Dax Hill’s Cincinnati Bengals career is off to an interesting a unique start.
Seen as the heir apparent to one of the two safety slots the Bengals were anticipated to lose in free agency the following season, they selected him in the first round (31st overall) of the 2022 draft.
Hill filled in as the third safety in case Vonn Bell or Jessie Bates failed to report for duty. But since neither safety missed a beat, Hill’s primary playing opportunities as a rookie came from the outside corner against Cleveland and the slot against Tampa Bay.
This season marked his first with the Bengals at safety as a result. It was an uneventful experience overall, with some aspects of his physique, attitude, and character that stood out as well as obvious areas that still required work.
Now let’s explore Hill’s second season:
With a PFF score of 51.6, Hill is considered low. Fans who wish to move on from him after his first year of starting have talked a lot about it.
The point of contention here is not whether PFF is good or poor, but rather if the grading for these players—especially the safeties—is contextually lacking. Safeties are rarely used in plays, and when they are, the defence usually suffers as a result.
PFF assigns a mark ranging from -2 to +2, for both positive and negative excellent plays. Safeties will almost always receive a zero on most plays.
The ball is tossed below, they stay above it, and someone else makes the tackle. Given the short sample size, all grades will have a significant impact on them. They find it difficult to make up for grades of -1 and -2 in a manner that other positions do not. Bates’s PFF score would fluctuate in part because of this.
He wouldn’t have the chance to correct his mistakes if he mishandled the ball a few times in the air.
The second topic of dispute regarding PFF grading is that, contrary to popular belief, it is mostly outcome focused.
A ball that bounces upward as opposed to downward can cause a grade to drop from +1 to -1. Let’s use Hill’s dropped interception as an illustration.
