Look at me, getting this edition of the NFL Network’s Top 100 Players reaction in days before the next episode actually airs. We have one more episode to go with the Top 10 and after No. 20-11 were released last Monday, it’s not difficult to figure out who those guys are, just where they might fall.
Our new additions have dwindled, but we still get a couple of fresh faces this time. Let’s see how the players did in ranking their peers.
20. Luke Kuechly, LB, Carolina Panthers
Last year: No. 7
2016: 102 tackles, two sacks, one forced fumble, six passes defended, one interception
Kuechly missed six games at the end of last season after suffering a devastating concussion against the New Orleans Saints. He still put up monster numbers. While I usually complain about injured guys landing on the list, Kuechly’s 10 games of work is worth a spot on the Top 100, but probably not in the Top 20.
19. Patrick Peterson, CB, Arizona Cardinals
Last year: No. 18
2016: 50 tackles, one fumble recovery, six passes defended, three interceptions
Peterson seems to live around this area in the Top 100 list every season and deservedly so. I remember being so disappointed when the Cardinals drafted him out of LSU in 2011, knowing the then St. Louis Rams would have to face him at least twice a year. Peterson shows that it’s not only quarterbacks who are born, but you could argue the same with position players. There was no doubt he was going to be an elite corner the second he put on his cleats in the NFL.
18. Tyron Smith, OT, Dallas Cowboys
Last year: No. 42
There’s little question at this point that Tyron Smith is the best offensive tackle currently playing in the NFL. He’s the top ranked offensive lineman on this list for a reason. Not only does he anchor the league’s best line, he’s built like some kind of super hero. There’s no fat and this dude’s body at 6-5 and 290. The only thing that hurt him last season was missing three games due to injury. Luckily for the Cowboys, they had the depth to survive it. Since it was just three games, there’s no reason he should be any lower than this.
17. A.J. Green, WR, Cincinnati Bengals
Last year: No. 16
2016: 66 catches, 964 yards, four touchdowns
A.J. Green is one of four players who have never missed the Top 100 list since the NFL Network started it. That’s quite an accomplishment and no one is arguing about his elite status as one of the game’s best wide receivers. Like Peterson, this kid came into the league and dominated immediately. The issue is this is just too high for 10 games worth of work. Not only did Green miss the first significant playing time of his career, this was the first season he didn’t surpass 1,000 yards. None of that was his fault, but that doesn’t make him the No. 17-ranked player int the NFL. He should be in the lower half of the list.
16. Drew Brees, QB, New Orleans Saints
Last year: No. 30
2016: 70.0 completion percentage, 5,208 yards, 37 touchdowns, 15 interceptions
I love how Drew Brees just kind of silently tosses his fifth 5,000-yard season. his ninth 30-plus TD season (he’s tossed 32 or more for nine consecutive years) and no one really seems to bat an eye. This has not been a normal quarterback’s career. When people talk about Brees being one of the five or 10 best quarterbacks of all time, you need to believe it. This ranking is high, but it’s ridiculous that Brees isn’t in the Top 10. He’s led the league is passing yardage for the last three season and seven times in his career. He’s led the league in touchdown passes four times. He’s tossed more than 40 TD passes twice for God’s sake (46 in 2011 and 43 in 2012).
15. Aaron Donald, DT, Los Angeles Rams
Last year: No. 14
2016: 47 tackles, eight sacks, two forced fumbles, five passes defended
According to Pro Football Focus, Aaron Donald is the best player, period, in the NFL, this season. Yes, it’s the same list that LeSean McCoy didn’t make that pissed him off so much. Pro Football Focus and I have a history of not seeing eye to eye. While I can appreciate the complete reliance on analytics, I think there’s still a place for the eyeball in sports scouting and it’s impossible for a player’s heart, poise and clutch ability to show up on a stat sheet. That being said. Donald is definitely a Top 10 player and if the Rams were a better team, wouldn’t be sitting here in the teens the last couple of seasons. Hopefully Sean McVay can fix that.
14. Dak Prescott, QB, Dallas Cowboys
Last year: Not Ranked
2016: 67.8 completion percentage, 3,667 yards, 23 touchdowns, four interceptions, 57 rushes, 282 yards, six touchdowns
I just gave Pro Football Focus some love and now I’m taking it away. Only one NFL writer, scout or pundit had Dak Prescott ranked as his No. 1 QB prospect coming out in the 2016 NFL Draft and you’re reading him right now. I am not surprised at all that Prescott performed the way he did with the Dallas Cowboys. I completely expected it and that’s why I told everyone who would listen, on my radio show and here at Get More Sports, that he was the guy to pick. Who listened? Nobody. Not even really the Dallas Cowboys who tried to trade up for Connor Cook before “settling” for Prescott in the fourth round. Pro Football Focus had Prescott ranked as its 221st player in the entire 2016 draft and 14th best quarterback behind such illustrious rookies as Brandon Allen out of Arkansas and Brandon Doughty out of Western Kentucky, neither of which tossed an NFL pass last season. They literally had him ranked one spot ahead of Cardale Jones.
13. Eric Berry, Safety, Kansas City Chiefs
Last year: No. 55
2016: 77 tackles, one forced fumble, nine passes defended, four interceptions, two defensive touchdowns
Berry again shows how much natural ability it takes to be one of the NFL’s best. From the second the Kansas City Chiefs drafted him, he was one of the best players in the league. Not even cancer could keep him out of the upper rankings at his position or the Chiefs from slapping him with the franchise tag when he became a free agent.
12. David Johnson, RB, Arizona Cardinals
Last year: Not Ranked
2016: 293 carries, 1,239 yards, 16 touchdowns, 80 receptions, 879 yards, four touchdowns
In the last article, I said it was nuts to compare LeSean McCoy to Barry Sanders or Marshall Faulk. It’s significantly less nuts to compare Johnson to Faulk, who put up Faulk-type numbers in his second season in the league. Johnson led the entire NFL in yards from scrimmage and no running back caught more passes. Hell, not a lot of receivers caught 80 passes.
11. Derek Carr, QB, Oakland Raiders
Last year: No. 100
2016: 63.9 completion percentage, 28 touchdowns, six interceptions
The NFL’s $125 million dollar man shows up on the list and this time I’m not arguing it’s too low. No. 11 is a solid ranking for a guy coming off his third season. I mean, you could argue he should be nine, but too many quarterbacks in the Top 10 probably isn’t fun for anybody. As it is, Carr is the best of his class and one of the hot young superstars in a league desperate for more quarterbacks. Last season he not only put up the numbers, but had his team a playoff spot locked up before he went down with a broken leg in Week 16. He also became the first QB in history to throw five game-winning touchdown passes in the fourth quarter or overtime in a season.
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