The NFL Network recently concluded their best efforts to hide the fact that their league is comprised of a bunch of greedy robots, or as they called it, the NFL's Top 100 Players list.
The list was voted on by players (supposedly - Brandon Carr admitted on Nick Wright's show that he, nor any player he knows, actually voted on the list), which makes some of the more egregious errors somewhat more comprehendible, even if the Top 5 of the list is more reflective of 2004 than 2011.
For those of you in the dark - Here's the list.
The Chiefs had 5 players on the list:
33. God Jam Charles
45. Dwayne (Pro) Bowe
64. Tamba Hali
67. Brian Waters
93. Eric Berry
I have a few lists of my own, inspired by this list, to throw your way. Let me start by saying that while this list gets a lot wrong, that doesn't make this list a failure. The whole goal of a list like this is to spark debate and create discussion. Mission accomplished.
The first list will be my personal Top 25 Players of 2011 in the NFL. My list is right.
(Note: When making a list like this you have to make a distinction of whether importance of position matters. This isn't a list saying I'd trade Player A for Player B because, ultimately, I'd trade the best non-QB in the league for any one of the top 10 quarterbacks. Therefore, the top 10 list would consist of 8, 9, or 10 QB's. Mine isn't like that.)
His Top 25ness
1. Troy Polamalu, S, Pittsburgh Steelers
2. Aaron Rodgers, QB, Green Bay Packers
3. Darrelle Revis, CB, New York Jets4. Larry Fitzgerald, WR, Arizona Cardinals
5. Tom Brady, QB, New England Patriots
6. DeMarcus Ware, OLB, Dallas Cowboys
7. Drew Brees, QB, New Orleans Saints
8. Haloti Ngata, NT, Baltimore Ravens
9. Adrian Peterson, RB, Minnesota Vikings
10. Nnamdi Asomugha, CB, Oakland Raiders11. Peyton Manning, QB, Indianapolis Colts
12. James Harrison, OLB, Pittsburgh Steelers
13. Andre Johnson, WR, Houston Texans
16. Clay Matthews, OLB, Green Bay Packers
17. Chris Johnson, RB, Tennessee Titans
18. Julius Peppers, DE, Chicago Bears19. Ndamukong Suh, DT, Detroit Lions
20. DeSean Jackson, WR, Philadelphia Eagles21. Patrick Willis, LB, San Francisco 49ers
22. Antonio Gates, TE, San Diego Chargers
23. Ben Roethlisberger, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers
24. Richard Seymour, DE, Oakland Raiders
25. Dwight Freeney, DE, Indianapolis ColtsThat's it, that's the list. Problem with it? Let me know in the 'ments...
*Best fact of the NFL's Top 100 list: Kent State landed 3 players on the list (Gates, Harrison Cribbs), while neither Florida nor Florida St. landed a single player. HA!*
The next list of mine will be The 10 Most Overrated Players on the NFL's Top 100 List (in order of they're ranking). Here go...
1. Ray Lewis (4) - The better debate is if he even belongs in the Top 100 at all
2. Mike Vick (20) - Only had 1 year in him, won't ever play a full 16 game season again
3. Arian Foster (25) - He won't make the Top 100 list in 2012 - Book it
4. Jason Witten (36) - He's solid, but shouldn't be sniffing Top 50
5. Steven Jackson (38) - 3.8 yards per carry anyone? Remember Larry Johnson would've made this list once upon a time as well
6. Tony Gonzalez (46) - Sorry Tony!
7. Brian Waters (67) - Unfortunately, I'm in the know
8. Santonio Holmes (76) - More hype than he's worth
9. Jason Babin (85) - I know he put up numbers, but it was a 1 year thing
10. Joe Flacco (90) - As average as they get
11. Donovan McNabb (100) - Are you kidding me?
As I sit back and look at my list, I can't help but notice that I picked mostly aging veterans that aren't what they used to be. This makes sense because they'd still be highly respected by their peers, but nevertheless is an oversight of the list. The second thing I notice is that the Top 10 list is 11 players long, but I forgot how much I hated Michael Vick the first time through.
My final list entails snubs from the NFL's Top 100 list (in order of snubbery). This was harder to make, and I'm sure I'll forget some players who I would fully endorse making the list, but it's all Jesus.
10 Players Who Should Have Made the List:
1. Tramon Williams, CB, Green Bay Packers - Best defensive player of the 2011 playoffs, almost made my Top 25
2. Hakeem Nicks, WR, New York Giants - 1,052 yards, 11 TD in 12 games as a sophomore
3. Maurkice Pouncey, C, Pittsburgh Steelers - Hard to imagine him not becoming an All-Pro center
4. Peyton Hillis, RB, Cleveland Browns - Are there really 10 better running backs in the NFL?
5. Ryan Clady, LT, Denver Broncos - Is he no longer considered elite or something?
6. Osi Umenyiora, DE, New York Giants - Most surprising omission from the list - household name
7. Brandon Flowers, CB, Kansas City Chiefs - Narrowly edges Wallace Gilberry for my token Chiefs selection
8. Mike Wallace, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers - Finished 5th in receiving yards last season. Seriously.
9. David Harris, LB, New York Jets - The quintessential underrated player in the NFL
10. Kevin Williams, DT, Minnesota Vikings - He was the consensus best DT in the NFL at one point, no?
AND 1. Shaun Hill, QB, Detroit Lions - You'll understand someday...
The end.
The word 'list' was written 32 times in this post,
His Dirkness
