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As is true with every offensive and defensive skill position in the NFL, the roles and relative values of the 3-4 defensive end has changed a lot in the last 10 to 15 years. Bruce Smith of the Buffalo Bills is the gold standard of the position—getting 200 career sacks in your career when you are, for the most part, stuck between the nose tackle and the outside linebacker play after play over your career is a singularly impressive feat.

The modern 3-4 end doesn't have the challenge of a static gap position. The NFL has become a hybrid league in which nickel and dime defenses have become base concepts. Your average 3-4 end might spend less than half his time in that actual position. In nickel fronts, he'll likely kick inside to pass-rushing tackle as the outside linebackers become gap ends, and the nose tackle may be off the field entirely.

In more creative defenses, like the ones crafted by Wade Phillips, Bill Belichick and Dick LeBeau, 3-4 ends are far more varied weapons. In such defenses, you'll see an end like Tennessee's Jurrell Casey line up in just about any gap. Same with Green Bay's Mike Daniels and Pittsburgh's Cameron Heyward, who have been wreaking havoc along the defensive line for years.

For the purpose of our season-end positional rankings, we designated 3-4 ends as those players who play that position in base 3-4 fronts, as rare as they may be these days, as well as official team position designations.

No matter which gap the player may be in, and what role he's playing, the following attributes are crucial to the success of any 3-4 end. NFL1000 Defensive Line scout Justis Mosqueda has been watching every end in the league regardless of designation, and he's ranked the league's 3-4 ends based on these attributes:

Snap Quickness: 15 points. How well does this player time the snap? How quickly does he get out of his stance and engage his blocker, or move through any gaps open to him? Can he create an advantage by being quick enough off the snap that he can get through the line before his blockers can get their hands up?

Pass Rush: 25 points. How well does this player move through blockers as an inside rusher or around the edge as an outside rusher? How well does he time stunts? Can he move through multiple gaps to find openings? When he gets to the pocket, does he have the speed and agility to chase down the quarterback?

Run Defense: 30 points. How well does this player move blockers back with a bull rush? Can he create loss plays with both power and speed? Does he have the quickness and change-of-direction ability to chase a running back to the sideline?

Tackling: 20 points. When he gets to the ball-carrier, does this player use correct form to wrap up and stop a play? Is he efficient when closing to the ball-carrier—enough to avoid needless extra yards after first contact?

Position Value: 10 points. This takes into account positional importance when comparing scores to other spots on the gridiron. 3-4 defensive ends are given 7/10 points across the board, leaving them with a maximum score of 97/100.

Note: In cases of tie scores between players, the order of the players goes to the scout's discretion.

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