Fred Warner managed to play only six games last season for the San Francisco 49ers before a broken right ankle ended his season prematurely in Week 6.
Warner’s play up until that point and his all-around dominance over the past several years still was enough to help him earn the honor of being named the top off-ball linebacker in the NFL by The Associated Press.
A panel of eight AP pro football writers ranked the top five players at off-ball linebacker, basing selections on current status entering the 2026 season. First-place votes were worth 10 points. Second- through fifth-place votes were worth 5, 3, 2 and 1 points.
Warner got six first-place votes and won the voting with 60 points. Detroit’s Jack Campbell got the other two first-place votes and finished second with 39 points. Philadelphia’s Zack Baun was third, Carolina’s Devin Lloyd was fourth, and Miami’s Jordyn Brooks and Baltimore’s Roquan Smith tied for fifth.
Green Bay’s Zaire Franklin, Seattle’s Ernest Jones IV, Tennessee’s Cedric Gray, Kansas City’s Nick Bolton, Cleveland’s Carson Schwesinger and Bobby Wagner also received votes.
1. Fred Warner, San Francisco 49ers
Warner had been a first-team All-Pro from 2022-24, as well as 2020, as the leader of San Francisco’s defense. Warner is the prototypical linebacker for the modern game as he excels in both pass coverage and stopping the run.
Warner is the only player currently on an NFL roster with at least 10 career sacks, interceptions and forced fumbles. In his last three healthy seasons, Warner had 393 tackles, seven interceptions, 28 passes defensed and nine forced fumbles.
2. Jack Campbell, Detroit Lions
The Lions surprised some watchers when they used the 18th overall pick to draft Campbell in 2023 out of Iowa. Campbell quickly showed why that was a shrewd decision.
He’s been a key component of Detroit’s defense since his rookie year and took his game to a new level in 2025 when he was named first-team All-Pro after becoming the first player since at least 2000 to have at least 160 tackles and five sacks in a season. The Lions rewarded Campbell with an $81 million, four-year extension earlier this offseason.
3. Zack Baun, Philadelphia Eagles
Baun followed up his breakthrough 2024 season, when he helped the Eagles win the Super Bowl, with another strong campaign as he firmly established himself as one of the game’s top linebackers.
Baun had struggled to get on the field on defense as an edge rusher his first four seasons in New Orleans, but has been a star at linebacker on Vic Fangio’s defense in Philadelphia. He was an All-Pro in 2024 and made his second straight Pro Bowl last season after recording 123 tackles, seven passes defensed, seven tackles for loss and 3 1/2 sacks.
4. Devin Lloyd, Carolina Panthers
The 2022 first-round pick by Jacksonville had a breakthrough season last year with the Jaguars that earned him a three-year, $45 million contract from Carolina in the offseason.
Lloyd’s five interceptions were tied for the most by any linebacker in the last 12 seasons and he had a 99-yard return for a TD after picking off a pass from Patrick Mahomes.
5. (tie), Jordyn Brooks, Miami Dolphins
Brooks was a rare bright spot in an otherwise disappointing season for the Dolphins as he earned All-Pro honors for the first time in his career. The former first-round pick by Seattle has stepped up his game after being signed in free agency by Miami before the 2024 season.
He led the NFL with 183 tackles last season, including 99 solo tackles.
5. Roquan Smith, Baltimore Ravens
Smith has been a steadying force for Baltimore’s defense since being acquired in a midseason trade from Chicago in 2022. He has been a Pro Bowler in all three full seasons with the Ravens and made first-team All-Pro in 2023 and ’24.
His six straight seasons with at least 130 tackles are tied for the second-longest streak in the NFL since at least 2000, trailing only Bobby Wagner’s current 10-year run.
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
