Mike Caldwell is a career quality starter β a linebacker whose body of work places Caldwell in the top half of all players at the position historically. The Knox model values sustained contribution over flash, and Caldwell's career arc reflects exactly that kind of reliable professional-grade performance.
Mike Caldwell
Top 31% all-time linebackersReliable Starter
Career Value Β· VORP
VORP 34 Β· #2532 Β· Role PlayerWorth 34 points of value above a freely-available replacement linebacker β top 56% of all 4,642 ranked at the position. 4 of 4 seasons cleared the replacement bar, by +8.5 on average.See board β
Seasons above replacement
4 cleared
Beat replacement (adds to VORP) Below it β adds 0, never a debit
47
Replacement
the KC-H bar
β
4
Seasons over
cleared the bar
Γ
+8.5
Avg surplus
peak +21
4 seasons Γ ~8.5 surplus β VORP 34
Combined Season Grid
The full season-by-season grids, joined on one timeline. Every selected stat family stays visible at onceβno tab hopping.
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 | |||||
| 1993 | β | CLE | 15 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 0.0 | 0.0 | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| 1994 | β | CLE | 16 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 0.0 | 0.0 | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| 1995 | β | CLE | 16 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 0.0 | 0.0 | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| 1996 | β | BAL | 9 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 4.5 | 4.5 | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| 1997 | β | ARI | 16 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 2.0 | 2.0 | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| 1998 | β | PHI | 16 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 1.0 | 1.0 | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| 1999 | β | PHI | 8 | β | 26 | 17 | 9 | 6 | 1 | 1.0 | 8.0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 |
| 2000 | β | PHI | 15 | β | 43 | 38 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 1 | 10 | 1 | β | 1 | 0 |
| 2001 | β | PHI | 15 | β | 89 | 66 | 23 | 7 | 3 | 3.0 | 13.0 | 0 | 7 | 2 | β | 0 | 0 |
| 2002 | β | CHI | 14 | β | 51 | 36 | 15 | 4 | 3 | 3.0 | 10.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2003 | β | CAR | 3 | β | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 |
| Career | β | 143 | β | 211 | 159 | 52 | 19 | 7 | 14.5 | 40.5 | 2 | 22 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
Defense
| Season | Age | Team | G | GS | Tkl | Solo | Ast | TFL | QBHits | Sk | Dis | Int | PD | FF | FR | TD | Sfty | VAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | 22 | CLE | 15 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 0.0 | 0.0 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 3.9 |
| 1994 | 23 | CLE | 16 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 0.0 | 0.0 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 5.9 |
| 1995 | 24 | CLE | 16 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 0.0 | 0.0 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 5.2 |
| 1996 | 25 | BAL | 9 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 4.5 | 4.5 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 12.7 |
| 1997 | 26 | ARI | 16 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 2.0 | 2.0 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 8.8 |
| 1998 | 27 | PHI | 16 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 1.0 | 1.0 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 6.9 |
| 1999 | 28 | PHI | 8 | β | 26 | 17 | 9 | 6 | 1 | 1.0 | 8.0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 | 5.7 |
| 2000 | 29 | PHI | 15 | β | 43 | 38 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 1 | 10 | 1 | β | 1 | 0 | 8.7 |
| 2001 | 30 | PHI | 15 | β | 89 | 66 | 23 | 7 | 3 | 3.0 | 13.0 | 0 | 7 | 2 | β | 0 | 0 | 9.3 |
| 2002 | 31 | CHI | 14 | β | 51 | 36 | 15 | 4 | 3 | 3.0 | 10.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6.8 |
| 2003 | 32 | CAR | 3 | β | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 | β |
| Career | 143 | 211 | 159 | 52 | 19 | 7 | β | β | 2 | 22 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 73.9 |
KV-H Anatomy
KV-H 53 Β· SolidA solid career by KV-H: a remarkably steady profile that scores 53 of 100, era-normalized against tackles/g peers across 4 scored seasons, with a short career trimming the score.
57
Sustained
career value
Γ.6
58
Peak
best 3 seasons
Γ.4
Γ0.93
Longevity
career length
Blend 57.4 Γ longevity 0.93 = KV-H 53Β· confidence 100%
What builds the career mark of 57
On-field 39.9
Availability 17.1
On-field production Staying available
Season-by-season quality (era-relative tackles/g)
1999bestavg 562002
All-Time Standing
how this career measures against the all-time greats at the position6
Depth
of 100
Reached 7% of the all-time Sacks leader β a rotational/depth all-time profile at the position.
7% of the all-time Sacks leader7
0 categories β₯25% of the all-time leader0
A 0β100 scale where 100 = matched the all-time leaderat this position. Built only from visible encyclopedia data β career production vs. the all-time leader, plus efficiency (EPA) and comparable-player confidence β so it's a transparent context score, not a subjective rating. Tiers: Elite β₯ 85 Β· Strong β₯ 65 Β· Solid β₯ 45 Β· Depth < 45. Comparable-player confidence: 89%.
Career Aging Trajectory
vs. position group average Β· KV-H basisAmber = this player (normalized to own peak). Indigo = average linebackers aging curve. Group peak age: 25. Source: StatVault KV-H era (1999+).
Postseason Career
5 playoff gamesDefense
Tkl25Solo18Ast7TFL2QBHits1Sk1.0Dis4.0PD1
College stats are not imported for this profile yet.
StatVault has the verified college attribution (Middle Tennessee State), but no parsed college box-score table is present in this profile artifact. The section stays here so every profile has a consistent college-stats landing point without fabricating unavailable rows.
Reference Graph
Career teammates and draft class, derived from year-by-year rosters β every name is linked.
Top Teammates
Matt StoverK4yVinny TestaverdeQB4yBrian DawkinsS4yTroy VincentS4yRob BurnettDE4yAnthony PleasantDE4yHollis ThomasDT4yJeremiah TrotterMLB4yBrian KinchenTE4yHugh DouglasDE4yBobby TaylorCB4yDuce StaleyRB4yStevon MooreDB4yMichael JacksonWR4yEric TurnerFS4yBill JohnsonDT4yLeroy HoardRB4yIke ReeseLB4yBrandon WhitingDE4yDamon MooreDB4yKoy DetmerQB4ySean LandetaP3yKeenan McCardellWR3yEarnest BynerRB3y
1993 Draft ClassΒ· this player went #83
Similar Players
Statistical + physical similarity across every player in the database, position-relevant (0β100%).
Movementderived from season history
- 2003team change
Joined CAR (from CHI)
- 2003final season
Last recorded season with CAR
- 2002team change
Joined CHI (from PHI)
- 1998team change
Joined PHI (from ARI)
- 1997team change
Joined ARI (from BAL)
- 1996team change
Joined BAL (from CLE)
- 1993draft
Drafted by CLE β Round 3, Pick 83
Athletic & Unique Profile
verified measurements and curated source-tagged facts6'2" / 235 lb
Frame
Era Translator
Tackles translated to the 2025NFL β each season's standing among its own-era peers, projected onto 2025's scoring environment. Modern-era (1999+) coverage.
| Season | Actual Tackles | Tackles/G | β 2025 Tackles | β 2025 /G |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 26 | 3.3 | 53+27 | 3.1 |
| 2000 | 43 | 2.9 | 39-4 | 2.3 |
| 2001 | 89 | 5.9 | 94+5 | 5.5 |
| 2002 | 51 | 3.6 | 44-7 | 2.6 |
Data: nflverse:players, nflverse:player_stats_def, nflverse:draft_picks, wikipedia:season-stats (CC-BY-SA, facts-only), nfl.com:official-stats (facts-only reference), nfl.com:official-stats (games-played, facts-only reference) Β· multi-source verified via the StatVault Oracle Β· updated 6/18/2026
Career Value Β· VORP
34 career value over replacement β #2532 all-time of 4,642. 8.5/season above a replacement-level LB.
Draft OutcomeValue β
Pick #83 (Rd 3) Β· CLE Β· 1993 Β· +14.3 vs expected KV-H
53actual
38.7 expected Β· Ξ+14.3
Fan Rating
Rate Mike Caldwell β All-Time
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