Minnesota Vikings 2015 Profiles: Anthony Barr

By Kevin Parvizi | Jun 24, 2015

There were a number of players who exceeded my expectations last season, but Minnesota Vikings outside linebacker Anthony Barr stands out as the biggest example of a player who made me eat some crow. I thought Barr would be too raw to make much of an impact as a rookie, but I was completely wrong about that, as he immediately looked like one of the league’s best and most versatile 4-3 outside linebackers. He, of course, has the pass rushing chops to excel as a 3-4 OLB, but he looked downright impressive in the Vikings scheme last season.

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The box score stats credit Barr with 70 tackles, four sacks, three fumble recoveries (including one for a game-winning TD), two forced fumbles, and three passes defended. Those are pretty strong numbers across the board, reenforcing the idea that Barr can be a three-way, playmaking OLB who can get after the passer, play a role in shutting down the running game, and even drop back and cover when asked to.

It’s rare to get that kind of production out of a rookie, particularly one who has spent so little of his career at the linebacker position. He was a touted running back prospect in college before playing at RB, WR, and TE at UCLA. He only moved to linebacker in his junior year with the Bruins, and he’s been a rousing success ever since switching over his freakish athletic talents to the defensive side of the ball.

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Is Barr raw? Yeah. Yeah, he is. But that hasn’t prevented him from being an excellent player on the Vikings defense, and, when you look at his athletic traits combined with his production as a rookie, you can see why he has such a massive ceiling. See, despite missing a whopping (be prepared to blink twice if you haven’t seen this stat before) 22 missed tackles last year, per Pro Football Focus, Barr managed to be a huge asset on the Vikings defense.

Like a high drop rate doesn’t necessarily mean that a receiver played poorly, a high rate of missed tackles isn’t a death-knell for a back seven player like Barr. He was 14th out of 34 qualifiers in PFF’s “Pass Rushing Productivity” for 4-3 OLBs, as only four players at the position (Von Miller, Khalil Mack, Bruce Irvin, and Sio Moore) had more total pressures on the QB.

Unfortunately for Barr, he had one of the league’s lowest Run Stop% at the position, and only Ray-Ray Armstrong (OK fine, you’re allowed to say, “Who?” here) had a higher rate of missed tackles.

So I guess I was right about him being raw, after all. But I was still wrong about him, because I thought Barr wouldn’t be a success as a rookie. And despite the fact that he missed too many tackles and looked raw against the run, he was successful, and it goes beyond the fact that he was a key pass rushing presence.

You can’t always take the numbers at face value, and Anthony Barr is a case where some more qualification is required. 55 of his 70 tackles were of the solo variety, which is a pretty darn good split for a linebacker. His athleticism and range managed to show up in the running game, even if his lack of strength and poor tackling technique did indeed haunt him as a rookie.

Barr was also hurt by playing for a run defense that allowed 4.3 yards per carry and was responsible for surrendering 1,943 yards. Their passing defense was the fifth-least attempted on unit in the league, largely thanks to the efforts of guys like Barr, Everson Griffen, Harrison Smith, and Xavier Rhodes.

Although there’s room for improvement here (he quickly went to work on improving his tackling this offseason), Barr’s playmaking ability and production as a rookie show that he is an early “hit” for Mike Zimmer and the Minnesota Vikings. At No. 8 overall, I, like a few others, thought the Vikings were getting a raw player who could only win with speed and raw athleticism off the edge, and I thought he would have a tough time transitioning to the NFL, particularly to a 4-3.

Oct 26, 2014; Tampa, FL, USA; Minnesota Vikings outside linebacker Anthony Barr (55) celebrates as he runs into the end zone after a 27-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown to win the game as the Vikings beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 19-13 in overtime at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Manning-USA TODAY Sports

However, despite a few consistency issues, Barr passed his rookie test and has as much upside as any defensive player in the league. Yes, he’s no Mack, but nobody really expected him to be as good as a player who is already one of the best defensive players in the game.

Barr also has exceptional tools and a high ceiling, as we saw with some of his highlight-reel plays this year. His mistakes due to rawness were overcome by his big plays due to his physical tools, and he showed better instincts than I expected.

With Eric Kendricks’s addition constituting a significant upgrade in supporting cast, Barr could have a big year in 2015, though we will have to see evidence of more disciplined tackling in his sophomore season.

When evaluating Barr’s rookie season, you have to remember that 4-3 OLB wasn’t his most natural fit coming into the league, and yet he managed to look like a well-rounded player despite those aforementioned flaws.

He unsurprisingly was at his best when utilized as a pass rusher, and his athletic ability will likely shine through more strongly next year as he continues to improve and become more comfortable with the position. (Also, something about trusting in Zimmer.)

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