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No one is surprised where ESPN poll ranked Fred Warner among top linebackers

When it comes to linebackers, it's Fred Warner and then everybody else.

By Peter Panacy

San Francisco 49ers linebacker Fred Warner (54)
San Francisco 49ers linebacker Fred Warner (54) / Steph Chambers/GettyImages
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Fred Warner came in at No. 1 in an ESPN poll that ranked out the 10 best linebackers in football right now, shocking nobody.

The San Francisco 49ers have the best linebacker in all of football, Fred Warner.

That's not hyperbole.

Not only was Warner a first-team All-Pro (again) after his 2023 efforts, but he also has the trend of gracing the top spot in nearly every linebacker ranking out there.

Well, the three-time Pro Bowler finds himself atop yet another linebacker list, this one compiled by ESPN's Jeremy Fowler (h/t Bleacher Report) in a poll of NFL coaches and executives.

Warner was the clear-cut No. 1 choice, apparently earning 80 percent of first-place votes among those polled.

It shouldn't be that surprising after he not only earned his third first-team All-Pro nod but also finished sixth in Defensive Player of the Year voting.

Of the selection, Fowler cited a league coordinator:

"He's like an elite quarterback in terms of managing the game. Checks, adjustments, unbelievable awareness and instincts. He allows the other 10 people around him to function at a high level collectively because of what he's able to do mentally."

Making things even better for the Niners, Warner's linemate, Dre Greenlaw, made the list at No. 9 despite suffering a devastating torn Achilles during the Super Bowl last February.

As for the entire 10 best off-ball linebackers, here you go:

  1. Fred Warner (San Francisco 49ers)
  2. Roquan Smith (Baltimore Ravens)
  3. Matt Milano (Buffalo Bills)
  4. Patrick Queen (Pittsburgh Steelers)
  5. Nick Bolton (Kansas City Chiefs)
  6. Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah (Cleveland Browns)
  7. Tremaine Edmunds (Chicago Bears)
  8. Demario Davis (New Orleans Saints)
  9. Dre Greenlaw (San Francisco 49ers)
  10. Foyesade Oluokun (Jacksonville Jaguars)

It probably won't be surprising if Warner winds up in the same spot again this time a year from now, as San Francisco fans have become somewhat spoiled by his stellar bar-setting play.

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