BREAKING: Luke Kuechly ranked fifth-best player in NFL

Perhaps it speaks to the level of Luke Kuechly's true elite ability when the linebacker getting ranked the fifth-best player in the National Football League rubs a few people the wrong way.But that's exactly what happened when Pro Football Focus released its Top 10 players in the NFL for the coming 2018 season earlier this week, and Kuechly came in at No. 5. The only players who were ranked ahead of Kuechly were (4) Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown, (3) Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones, (2) New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and (1) Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald.

Even while dealing with a few concussions over the last handful of years, the numbers show how dominant Kuechly has been. He's earned four consecutive grades over 90 on PFF's scale dating back to 2014, with Kuechly coming in at 94.7 in 2014, 98.8 in 2015, 93.1 in 2016 and 93.8 in 2017. The 2015 grade was arguably the best season PFF has ever evaluated by a linebacker, even with Kuechly missing three games.

"When they play their zone-heavy scheme, there are certain plays where he's covering two zones over, like plays he shouldn't even be covering," Pro Football Focus analyst Steve Palazzolo said. "They give him some leeway in the middle of the field to maybe re-route and make some educated guesses. He's so special at knowing what the offense is doing that he can get away with that type of stuff. It's almost like a Ray Lewis-type of smarts and pre-snap ability on the field with unbelievable athleticism as well. I love watching him in the run game, you see him moving before the snap and he's moving even defensive linemen sometimes. Kuechly is as fun to watch as it gets. He's battled those concussions the last couple of years, but I really hope he stays healthy because this run he's on, it's an all-time run for linebackers."

Kuechly isn't only elite against the rush. When being targeted in the passing game in 2017, Kuechly forced opposing quarterbacks into the lowest passer rating on balls thrown his way among all linebackers across the NFL. Kuechly has been accredited 818 tackles to go along with 10.5 sacks, 49 passes defended, 15 interceptions, one touchdown and five forced fumbles over his six-year NFL career. Despite some health concerns, the former first-round pick out of Boston College rebounded from the 2016 season's scary concussion on Thursday Night Football against the Saints - leading to him being carted off the field in tears and missing six games - to pace the Panthers with 125 tackles in 15 contests last season. Kuechly actually was placed into the concussion protocol early in the 2017 season and missed one contest before returning to play the rest of the year,

Kuechly finished ahead of (10) Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, (9) Baltimore Ravens guard Marshal Yanda, (8) Denver Broncos outside linebacker Von Miller, (7) Oakland Raiders defensive end Khalil Mack and (6) New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski on PFF's list.