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 49ersWarner 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.
