Three Longhorn offensive stars named top-10 players at their position by Pro Football Focus
Pro Football Focus is making its way through the offseason by ranking the top 10 players at every position, and several Texas Longhorns on the offensive side of the ball were labeled as one of the best in the country.
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Xavier Worthy was among the top wideouts, Ja’Tavion Sanders was listed as one of the elite tight ends, and Kelvin Banks was described as one of the best blindside protectors in the country.
Xavier Worthy – No. 4 WR
It was a relatively down year for Worthy, whose 70.1 receiving grade in 2022 was more than 10 points lower than what he posted in 2021 as a true freshman. Despite seeing 10 more targets this past season, the sophomore recorded 224 fewer receiving yards and four fewer touchdowns than his dominant 2021 year.
He became much more of a downfield receiver this past season, with his average depth of target being 17.6 yards, which ranked seventh highest in the Power Five. That dwarfs his 13.4-yard figure from 2021, which was 69th in the same group. By making him more of a downfield threat, Texas took away one of Worthy’s best attributes: his ability after the catch. As a true freshman, Worthy’s 526 yards after the catch were the 10th most in the Power Five. He fell to 41st this year with 324 yards after the catch.
PFF’s Max Chadwick
Worthy should be able to reap the benefits of being a part of a receiving corps that includes AD Mitchell, Jordan Whittington, Isaiah Neyor, Casey Cain, and Johntay Cook. Plus, Sanders’ contributions in the passing game will help No. 1 garner better matchups.
He should remain the Longhorns’ main deep threat. How often he’ll be able to convert opportunities offered by Quinn Ewers will determine the direction of Worthy’s 2023 season.
Worthy was slotted behind Washington’s Rome Odunze, Ohio State’s Emeka Egbuka, and another Buckeye in Marvin Harrison Jr.
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Ja’Tavion Sanders – No. 3 TE
Sanders joined Texas with a ton of hype as a top-15 recruit in the 2021 class.
He began to live up to that billing in his sophomore season, catching 32 combined first downs and touchdowns in 2022, which trailed only Dalton Kincaid, Michael Mayer and Brock Bowers among FBS tight ends. His 613 receiving yards also trailed only Bowers among returning Power Five tight ends. He’s a freak athlete at 6-foot-4 and 242 pounds, and he is the early favorite to be TE2 in the 2024 draft behind Bowers.
PFF’s Max Chadwick
Sanders put himself at or near the top of a number of school records last year. His 54 catches were the most by a TE in school history. Sanders’ 613 yards in 2022 trailed only William Harris’ 1984 campaign.. The five touchdown receptions were third-most in a season by a Longhorn, behind Derek Lewis’ mark of six and Pat Fitzgerald’s record eight.
Sanders could pass David Thomas this year for most receptions by a tight end on the way to the 2024 NFL draft.
Sanders was slotted behind Minnesota’s Brevyn Spann-Ford and Georgia’s Brock Bowers.
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Kelvin Banks – No. 7 OT
Banks dominated as a pass protector. His 3.5% pressure rate allowed on true pass sets ranked sixth among Power Five tackles. His 98.4 pass-block efficiency score was also second among Big 12 tackles, behind only Oklahoma’s Anton Harrison — a top-25 prospect on PFF’s big board. Banks could become one of the best offensive linemen in the nation next season if he continues developing as a run-blocker, where he earned a 64.9 grade.
PFF’s Max Chadwick
Banks was in the starting lineup from the beginning of the 2022 season, and lived up to his five-star billing from the jump. He fared incredibly well versus the fearsome pass-rush duo of Will Anderson and Dallas Turner versus Alabama, and had other strong showings against a number of first-round pass-rushers.
Banks was behind LSU’s Will Campbell, USC’s Jonah Monheim, Penn State’s Olumuyiwa Fashanu, Alabama’s JC Latham, Duke’s Graham Barton, and Notre Dame’s Joe Alt.
