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With the 2022 NFL season just round the corner, it seemed like a good time to examine the best players in the league. Ranking NFL players in any position is a difficult task. It only gets harder when you try to rank every player in the NFL.
Every player on this list is an amazing asset to their franchise. Many players couldn't make this list because there were only 100 spots available. However, with a good showing in the 2022 NFL campaign, they could be on this list next year.
Let's finish counting down the best 100 players in the NFL. Here are numbers 10-1:
#10. Jalen Ramsey, Los Angeles Rams
Unlike the other standout Los Angeles Rams defender Aaron Donald, Jalen Ramsey certainly didn’t look his best when last seen in the Super Bowl. He had real problems sticking with Offensive Rookie of the Year Ja’Marr Chase. However, he's still the number one cornerback in the league. After experimenting with him in the slot to start 2021, DC Raheem Morris realized he needed to put Ramsey back outside, so they’d be able to put him in quasi-man-coverage against the opposing team’s top receiver. They could then orchestrate the rest of their defense around this.
Not only is he a great coverage asset (passer rating of 68.6 and 71.1 allowed over the past two years), but this guy is also one of the top tacklers at the position, with a miss rate of just 6.1% last year.
#9. Myles Garrett, Cleveland Browns
In terms of athletic freaks on defense, you could argue that Myles Garrett currently sits above the entire NFL. However, as much as he was lauded as a draft prospect five years ago, what makes him such a great player today is the way he has developed since then. Particularly with how much more flexible he has become, along with the great length and power he brings to the table. This guy can set a physical edge in the run game like few others are able to and he can win as a pass-rusher from any spot along the front in a variety of ways.
In 2021 he was tied with T.J. Watt at 52 total pressures, along with 16 sacks. For him to climb even higher, we want to see him maintain his production during the end-stretch of the NFL season.
#8. Cooper Kupp, Los Angeles Rams
Cooper Kupp became just the second receiver to win the triple crown (145 catches for 1947 yards and 16 touchdowns) since 1992 (along with Steve Smith Jr.). But other than Michael Thomas a couple of years ago, he’s also the only receiver to be named Offensive Player of the Year since Jerry Rice in ’93. Just once during the NFL regular season, Kupp had less than 92 receiving yards in a game, and over their final three playoff games, he racked up 28 catches for over 400 yards and five TDs.
Weirdly, there are still some who look at Kupp as this limited slot receiver, but he lined up all across the formation and won at all three levels this past season. Along with getting open consistently when needed most, he’s a major key in the Rams running game, being able to work on double-teams with the tackle and other blocking duties typically reserved for tight-ends.
#7. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers
To me, there’s no doubt Aaron Rodgers should have won back-to-back MVP trophies. He led the NFL in touchdown and interception percentage, passer rating, QBR, EPA and several other statistical categories. Rodgers didn’t turn the ball over more than once other than in the season-opener, and his team won a league-high 13 games (16 played by Rodgers). When the Packers were missing their top-two offensive linemen, their quarterback just picked up opponents with the quick game on a weekly basis.
You can largely defend why he was so conservative in the Divisional Round and special teams let him down in remarkable fashion. But a quarterback of his caliber should not be held to ten points in a must-win situation and projecting forward, I’m concerned what losing Davante Adams will do, considering the incredible chemistry those two had.
#6. T.J. Watt, Pittsburgh Steelers
I don’t think we talk enough about how T.J. Watt tied Michael Strahan’s NFL record of 22.5 sacks last season – which he did in only 15 games. This is his second straight year of leading the NFL in sacks (15 in 2020), total pressures (61 and 52 respectively) and tackles for loss (23 and 21 respectively).
His pass-rushing prowess is even more impressive considering how much more frequently he’s asked to drop into coverage, compared to edge defenders close to his production. In the running game, he can bench-press tight-ends to control the point of attack, but also slip inside of blockers who overset him to create negative plays.
#5. Davante Adams, Las Vegas Raiders
Taking Aaron Donald out of the equation, you could argue that no player has been as consistent over the past four seasons as Davante Adams. His 93.2 receiving yards per game over that stretch would rank him atop the all-time NFL leaders list, and his 47 touchdowns scored through the air since 2018 are also number one. There may be guys with greater physical features, but nobody’s able to consistently create separation and haul in passes in key moments like him. What he and Aaron Rodgers have been able to do in high-leverage moments has been incredible.
Now moving on to the Las Vegas Raiders, he’s looking to maintain the level of consistency he had with Aaron Rodgers with his best friend from college, Derek Carr.
#4. Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs
As great as Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce were at the end of that contest, the Buffalo Bills defense should have been able to stop them with 13 seconds left. The following week, it was Mahomes taking unadvised risks in the second half that largely cost them a chance of going to another Super Bowl.
Now, while the Chiefs offense sputtered in the middle of last season (with a passer rating below 75 in six of seven games), I do give Mahomes a lot of credit for adapting his playing style to all the soft shell coverages he was facing and the offense becoming a much more efficient machinery. After all, Kansas City were number one in points per drive, third- and fourth-down rate.
#3. Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills
While the Bills’ 11-6 record may not quite suggest it, their point differential of +194 was number one in the NFL. They scored 26 or more points in all but four games and Josh Allen routinely made big plays for them, despite being one of the NFL’s most one-dimensional offenses for large stretches.
He accounted for 42 total regular-season touchdowns. While Buffalo came up just short in that Divisional Round thriller against the Chiefs, he set a new record for passer rating in a playoff run (149.0). What puts him above the other quarterbacks is what he did as the team’s biggest weapon on the ground as well, finishing second to Denver Broncos running back Javonte Williams in broken tackle rate (%). Allen was easily number one in percentage of rushes resulting in first downs, moving the chains on 54 of his 122 attempts, whilst averaging 6.3 yards per attempt.
#2. Aaron Donald, Los Angeles Rams
The level of consistent dominance for Aaron Donald is just ridiculous. Over the last four seasons, Donald has averaged 19.5 tackles for loss, led all interior D-linemen in total pressures in in each of those and is one ahead of T.J. Watt for the most combined pressures over that stretch (211).
His pressure numbers have slightly decreased in each of those years, but his double-team rate has also gone up correspondingly. If you look at a graphic representing percentage of double-teams (64%) versus pass-rush win rate on such snaps (23.1%), Donald stands alone in the top-right corner. We are watching one of the all-time NFL greats here and when needed most, he took over in the Super Bowl.
#1. Trent Williams, San Francisco 49ers
Since the start of the 2010’s (once I started religiously following the NFL), I haven’t seen a player have a greater season than Trent Williams did this past year. It may not sound as crazy, but when I say he’s clearly the best pass-protecting and run-blocking tackle in the NFL, just consider whether you have ever seen a player undoubtedly be the best at all of his duties for a full season.
Williams was responsible for only one sack, 16 total pressures and seven penalties. In the running game, he constantly takes edge defenders for rides on the front-side. But he can also toss DBs around like it’s nothing when they get him out in space, and last season Kyle Shanahan even used him at fullback a few times to blow linebackers out of the hole. That’s why he earned the highest PFF grade of all time for any player at 97.8.
For more in-depth breakdowns of the NFL and college football, head over to my page halilsrealfootballtalk.com and the YouTube channel.
