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Choosing the NFL's Mount Rushmore is not an easy task. There are decades' worth of legends in NFL history that have played all different positions. There are solid cases that can be made for many NFL players that could be deserving of a spot on the NFL's Mount Rushmore. These four earned their spots above all of the rest.
#1 - QB Tom Brady
While it is difficult to narrow all of the names in NFL history down to just four players, Tom Brady is the most clear and obvious choice of all of them. A fair version of the NFL's Mount Rushmore can't realistically be made without Tom Brady. He is the most decorated player of all time by a wide margin.
Tom Brady's success is unmatched. His long list of impressive accomplishments includes seven Super Bowl rings, five Super Bowl MVPs, three regular-season NFL MVPs and ten Conference championships. He has never had a losing record in any of his 20 plus seasons in the league.
He is the NFL's all-time leader in many passing categories, including yards and touchdowns. Those records will get even larger because he is still actively playing at an elite level. He is already the greatest of all time and he's showing no signs of slowing down. He is the easiest choice for the NFL's Mount Rushmore.
#2 - WR Jerry Rice
Choosing the greatest of all time in any position in the NFL is a difficult task, with the exception of quarterbacks and wide receivers Tom Brady and Jerry Rice. This distinction is what earns Jerry Rice second spot on the NFL's Mount Rushmore. He did more than enough in his career to consolidate himself as the best wide receiver to ever play the game.
Jerry Rice is the NFL's all-time leader in receptions, receiving yards, receiving touchdowns and total touchdowns. He is a ten-time First Team All-Pro and two-time Offensive Player of the Year. Wide receivers rarely ever get votes for NFL MVPs, but Jerry Rice earned votes in six separate seasons.
Fair statistical debates can be made about who is the best of all time, playing just about any position in the NFL. Wide receiver is not one of those positions as the career numbers of Jerry Rice are far and away the best. He deserves a spot on the NFL's Mount Rushmore because of this.
#3 - QB Peyton Manning
Peyton Manning is the second quarterback to make it to the NFL's Mount Rushmore. While Tom Brady is the greatest quarterback of all time for all that he has accomplished, a strong case can be made that Peyton Manning is the best regular season quarterback of all time.
Peyton Manning has won the NFL MVP award more times than any other player in NFL history. Many players have won it twice and several have won it three times but no player has won four. Peyton Manning is in a class of his own with five NFL MVP awards in his career. That is the main achievement that gets him a spot on the NFL's Mount Rushmore.
Manning earned MVP votes in five other seasons as well while also winning Offensive Player of the Year twice and being selected as a First Team All-Pro seven times. He is also a Super Bowl MVP and two-time Super Bowl champion. He has won more than 70 percent of his career games.
#4 - EDGE Lawrence Taylor
The most dominant force to ever rush a passer, Lawrence Taylor was the most feared man in the NFL for the entirety of his career and was a relentless threat coming off the edge. All he did was sack quarterbacks.
Lawrence Taylor recorded 132.5 official sacks in his career and an additional 9.5 sacks before they became official in 1982. He has hit double-digit sacks in seven consecutive seasons in his prime, including a career-high 20.5 sacks in 1986. That was an NFL record at the time.
Lawrence Taylor's biggest accomplishment was winning the NFL MVP award. He is one of only two defensive players in NFL history to win the award. He also won Defensive Player of the Year three times and Defensive Rookie of the Year. He is an eight-time First Team All Pro and probably the greatest defensive player of all time.
