Luke
Gifford
LB
#51
Luke Gifford
#51LB
San Francisco 49ers
Height : 6' 3" · Weight : 243 lbs · Age : 31
NFL record
| Year | Team | GP | TOT | SOLO | AST | SACK | FF | FR | YDS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | San Francisco 49ers | 3 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | San Francisco 49ers | 17 | 35 | 12 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2024 | Tennessee Titans | 16 | 49 | 31 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | Tennessee Titans | 11 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | Dallas Cowboys | 16 | 17 | 11 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | Dallas Cowboys | 16 | 11 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | Dallas Cowboys | 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 | Dallas Cowboys | 6 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Contract
San Francisco 49ers payroll →- 2026 cap number
- 1.97 M$
- Average per year
- 2.50 M$
- Total value
- 5.0 M$
- Seasons left
- 3 · through 2028
2026
1.97 M$
Guaranteed
2027
2.78 M$
Not guaranteed
2028
0.40 M$
Not guaranteed
Cap number: the season's salary plus the share of the signing bonus spread over the contract. Total value and average per year cover the whole contract, from its signing.
Advanced stats, 2025 Linebackers
NFL stats →2025 season. The percentile ranks the player among regular linebackers: 90th means better than 90% of them.
Tackles
35
11th percentile
Tackles for loss
0
1th percentile
Sacks
0.0
6th percentile
Pressures
—
Interceptions
0
30th percentile
Passes defended
1
17th percentile
Yards allowed per target
11.5 yd
3th percentile
Passer rating allowed
149.1
1th percentile
Missed tackle rate
5.4 %
81th percentile
Defensive snaps
172
0th percentile
Regular season. Data: nflverse (play-by-play, snap counts), Next Gen Stats, Pro Football Reference. EPA: expected points added. CPOE: completion percentage over expected.
2026 projection
NFL trends →Projected WAR
-0.1
Games
17
WAR 2025
-0.3
Games played
17
The pace of the last three seasons (WAR per game, 60/25/15), pulled toward the group average, over the games expected from his availability in the last two, adjusted for age.
Trend
→ Stable (-5)
- 20240.0 WAR · 0.000 per game
- 2025-0.3 WAR · -0.018 per game
The trend compares this season's WAR per game with last season's, weighted by games played.
Outlook, age included
-20 · 30 y.o. · the age when performance usually declines
It is only a projection. It knows nothing about injuries, trades or role changes.
Player ratings, 2025
All ratings →Ratings from 0 to 100, computed over four seasons from data, never by hand, against regulars in the same position group. 75 = established regular, 87 = 90th percentile, 95+ = elite.
OV · Overall
63
Depth player
- TCK
- Tackling
- 82
- COV
- Coverage
- 56
- RDF
- Run defense
- 64
- PRS
- Pass rush
- 63
- DUR
- Durability
- 74
- EX
- Experience
- 70
Why these ratings?Hide details
- TCK — Tackling : Tackles made and missed tackles
- COV — Coverage : Yards and passer rating allowed per target
- RDF — Run defense : Run tackles and tackles for loss, per snap
- PRS — Pass rush : Pressures, sacks and QB hits, per snap
- DUR — Durability : Games played out of his team's, over several seasons
- EX — Experience : Seasons in the NFL
WAR and PAL Rating, 2025
How we rate →WAR: the EPA (expected points added) of every play, above replacement level, shared among those who made it, then converted to wins (35.3 points = one win). PAL Rating scores performance from 0 to 100 against regulars in the same group (50 = median).
WAR
-0.3
PAL Rating
8 / 100
Value Rating · 2025
14 / 100
2025 PAL (8) against 2026 salary: the contract's average per year (APY), $2.5M.PAL expected for this salary: 35PAL: dimensions
Where WAR comes from (in wins)
Half the EPA of his sacks, interceptions, passes defended, forced fumbles, tackles for loss and QB hits, against his position's average per snap.
Yards allowed per target against his position's average, 0.12 points per yard (measured).
Replacement level: the share of defense the league spends on his position (by payroll), prorated by snaps.
How much better or worse than average his team's defense was (EPA allowed), minus what is already credited to players, prorated by snaps.
The individual part is splash plays and coverage. The rest is the position share and his team's defense, split by snaps played.
| Season | Team | G | WAR | PAL | OV | Tkl | TFL | Sacks | INT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | SF | 17 | -0.3 | 8 | 63 | 35 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 |
| 2024 | TEN | 16 | 0.0 | 78 | 80 | 44 | 1 | 0.0 | 1 |
Luke Gifford in five questions
What are Luke Gifford's stats in 2025?
Luke Gifford has 0 sacks and 0 QB hits in 17 games in 2025.
How old and how tall is Luke Gifford?
Luke Gifford is 31 years old. He is 6'3" (191 cm) and weighs 243 lb (110 kg).
How good is Luke Gifford?
Luke Gifford produced -0.3 wins above replacement (WAR) in 2025. His PAL rating is 8 out of 100: very poor for his position.
How much does Luke Gifford make?
Luke Gifford earns $2.5M for the 2025 season. His Value Rating is 14 out of 100 (very poor return): it measures the on-field return for that salary, compared with players at his position.
What number does Luke Gifford wear, and what team does he play for?
Luke Gifford plays for San Francisco 49ers in the NFL, at LB, and wears number 51.
