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The role of the inside linebacker in the NFL used to be very different than it is now.

Back in the day, Hall of Fame players such as Dick Butkus, Ray Nitschke and Mike Singletary were tasked to play as the men in the middle, directing the action and primarily flowing to the ball-carrier while occasionally rushing the passer on special blitzes. Pass coverage wasn't really a thing, and the lateral mobility to move from sideline to sideline wasn't generally a requirement.

Now, as NFL teams play nickel and dime defenses as their base concepts, the inside linebacker is a stationary inside guy in name only. These players must challenge run fits and blitz as in eras before, but the responsibilities have grown.

Inside linebackers must also be able to handle the responsibilities of strong- and weak-side 'backers in 4-2-5 and 4-1-6 base fronts; cover tight ends, running backs and receivers up the seam; and adapt to an ever-expanding array of pre-snap motions designed to gain the schematic advantage.

If you're a slow inside defender and you can't handle coverage when an elite running back flares out from the backfield to the slot or outside to run his designed route, you won't be on the field for long.

Inside linebackers must be able to play man coverage and understand how to hand off their receivers in zone coverage. What started in the Cover 2 and Tampa 2 defenses in the late '90s, the idea of inside linebackers breaking off into basic zone coverage, has expanded into an entirely new defensive playbook.

With that in mind, inside linebackers are lighter and faster and more agile than ever before.

San Francisco's Reuben Foster, the consensus top inside linebacker in the 2017 draft, weighed in at the scouting combine at 229 pounds. Luke Kuechly and Bobby Wagner, known to most as the gold-standard players at the position, weigh in at about 240.

The days of the three-down run-plugger are past us, and the foundational inside linebackers of today are the most versatile in the game's history as a result.

NFL1000 Inside Linebacker scout Jerod Brown has been watching every NFL inside 'backer all season, and he's ready to rank them by the following criteria:

Pass Defense: 25 points. Does this linebacker have the speed, agility and route awareness to cover tight ends, receivers and running backs, both out of the backfield and in the formation? How is his recovery speed? How are his drops? Does he work well in concert with other defenders? How well does he use his hands when deflecting and intercepting passes?

Run Defense: 25 points. How well does this player read gaps and flow through openings to get to the ball-carrier? What is his awareness when dealing with misdirection? Does he have the play strength to work through blockers? Does he have the sideline-to-sideline speed to deal with outside runners and clean up second-level runs?

Pass Rush: 15 points. Is this player able to add his athleticism to the pass rush when directed? How well does he time his blitzes, whether right off the snap or delayed? Does he show the acceleration and pass-rush moves to be an effective blitzer from multiple gaps?

Tackling: 25 points. No matter how flashy his play might be, how well does this player wrap up and tackle when faced with a ball-carrier?

Position Value: 10 points. A score that takes into account the importance of the position when comparing scores across other spots on the defense. Inside linebackers are given 7/10 points across the board, making their top possible grade a 97.

Make sure to check out all of the NFL1000 rankings from the 2017 season.