James Francis is a career quality starter — a linebacker whose body of work places Francis in the top quarter of all players at the position historically. The Knox model values sustained contribution over flash, and Francis's career arc reflects exactly that kind of reliable professional-grade performance.
James Francis
Top 18% all-time linebackersIron Man
Combined Season Grid
The full season-by-season grids, joined on one timeline. Every selected stat family stays visible at once—no tab hopping. Switch to Combined to fold the selected families into unified totals—yards from scrimmage, total TDs, touches.
1 grid split in one view
| Season | Age | Team | G | GS | Defense | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tkl | Solo | Ast | TFL | QBHits | Sk | Dis | Int | PD | FF | FR | TD | Sfty | |||||
| 1990 | 22 | CIN | 16 | — | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 8.0 | 8.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — |
| 1991 | 23 | CIN | 16 | — | 68 | 0 | — | — | — | 3.0 | 3.0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | — | — | — |
| 1992 | 24 | CIN | 14 | — | 38 | 35 | — | — | — | 6.0 | 6.0 | 3 | 13 | 3 | — | — | — |
| 1993 | 25 | CIN | 14 | — | 44 | 38 | — | — | — | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2 | 7 | 0 | — | — | — |
| 1994 | 26 | CIN | 16 | — | 101 | 87 | — | — | — | 4.5 | 4.5 | — | 6 | 1 | — | — | — |
| 1995 | 27 | CIN | 11 | — | 64 | 54 | — | — | — | 3.0 | 3.0 | — | 6 | 1 | — | — | — |
| 1996 | 28 | CIN | 16 | — | 70 | 62 | — | — | — | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3 | 7 | 1 | — | — | — |
| 1997 | 29 | CIN | 16 | — | 55 | 43 | — | — | — | 3.5 | 3.5 | 1 | 6 | 2 | — | — | — |
| 1998 | 30 | CIN | 14 | — | 36 | 31 | — | — | — | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 5 | 2 | — | — | — |
| 1999 | 31 | WAS | 2 | — | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0.5 | 1.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 |
| Career | — | 135 | — | 480 | 353 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 33.5 | 34.5 | 11 | 55 | 10 | — | 0 | 0 | |
Career Value · VORP
104 career value over replacement — #1059 all-time of 4,649. 11.6/season above a replacement-level LB.
Draft OutcomeValue ↑
Pick #12 (Rd 1) · CIN · 1990 · +0.8 vs expected KV-H
61actual
60.2 expected · Δ+0.8
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