Former NC State LB Payton Wilson is Stacking Up the 2024 NFL All-Rookie Team Honors

Plenty of potential on display from the rookie linebackers, but Cooper and Wilson were the standouts. No rookie linebacker was every down player for every week of the season, but there was plenty on display. Cooper was especially impressive as he handled a bigger load as the season went on. (PFF)

Wilson was 1 of 2 Linebackers to make The Athletic’s All-Rookie 1st Team.

Wilson had a terrific year, too, defending the run, dropping in coverage and blitzing the pocket. Most importantly, he stayed healthy for all 17 regular-season games and was one of the Steelers’ best coverage players on kicks and punts (300 special-teams snaps). (Athletic)

The 2023 Bednarik Award winner was 1 of 2 Linebackers to be named to Fox Sports’ All-Rookie 1st Team.

Another second-round gem out of Texas A&M, Cooper might have had the best all-around season for a defensive rookie: 87 tackles, 3.5 sacks, 13 tackles for loss, a forced fumble and an interception. Wilson, a third-rounder from NC State, started only four games but also did a bit of everything, with 78 tackles, a forced fumble and two recoveries, and an interception. (Fox)

Wilson was 1 of 2 Linebackers to make The 33rd Teams’ All-Rookie 1st Team.

Payton Wilson had a decorated college career at NC State, but there were questions about how his skill set would transition to the NFL level.

Fortunately for Wilson, he ended up in the perfect spot (Pittsburgh) to become an ascending playmaker. He had 78 tackles this year with a forced fumble and one of the most impressive interceptions any played made this season.

The Steelers’ defense continues to be a dominant unit because the front office finds gems in the draft like Wilson. (33rd Team)

Wilson played in all 17 games in the Regular Season, starting in 4. He finished with 78 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, 1 forced fumble, 2 fumble recoveries and 1 fumble returned for a touchdown.

The 2023 ACC Defensive Player of the Year wasn’t just 1 of the Top-2 Rookie Linebackers…he was quite literally one of the best Linebackers overall in the NFL this season.

His PFF grade of 75.3 was the 12th highest grade by a Linebacker, and his Coverage grade of 76.9 ranked 5th.

Wilson ranked 4th on the Steelers in tackles, but he led the team in Tackle Rate, making a tackle on 15.82% of the snaps he was on the field. He made a tackle ever 6.32 plays. As a Steelers fan, I ran the numbers for the rest of their defense, and could bore you with them, but just know, it wasn’t even close. Safety DeShon Elliott’s Tackle Rate was 13.11%, nearly 3 percentage points behind Wilson.

Wilson simply is one of the best players to ever play football for NC State. He is 1 of only 3 players in school history to be named the ACC Defensive Player of the Year. He is the only player in NC State history to win the Butkus Award, which is handed out annually to the best Linebacker in College Football. He won the Bednarik Award, which is awarded annually to the best Defensive player in college football. Wilson earned 1st Team All-ACC honors 2 times, becoming 1 of 37 players in school history to earn 1st Team honors multiple times. He is only the 4th player in school history to be named a Unanimous All-American. Wilson is 1 of 6 Wolfpack defenders to finish his career with 400+ tackles.