5. Luke Kuechly, LB, Carolina Panthers: The Panthers ask more of their linebackers than any team in the league, and Kuechly is driving force with freakish athleticism and the ability to process reads at an uncanny speed. His closing speed in the run game and range in the passing game jump off film, as evidenced by his Thanksgiving Day performance that ranks as one of the most impressive by a linebacker in the past half-decade. If not for Miller's MVP performance, we would have spent the offseason recounting Kuechly's own dominant playoff run.