NFL Top 100
The NFL Top 100 is an annual list that features the top one hundred players in the National Football League (NFL), as chosen by fellow NFL players. The rankings are based on an off-season poll organized by the NFL, whereby players vote on their peers based on their performance for the recent NFL season. Only players that are not retired in the next season are eligible for consideration.[1] In the ten-year history of the countdown, only Tom Brady has been voted No. 1 multiple times as well as the only one who has been voted No. 1 in back-to-back years (2011, 2017, 2018).
| NFL Top 100 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 10 |
| No. of episodes | 110 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 3–9 minutes (per player) |
| Release | |
| Original network | NFL Network |
| Original release | April 30, 2011 – present |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows | NFL Top 10 |
| External links | |
| Official website | |
Series overview
| Season | Episodes | Originally aired | Number 1 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First aired | Last aired | Player | Position | Team | |||
| 1 | 11 | April 30, 2011 | July 3, 2011 | Tom Brady | Quarterback | New England Patriots | |
| 2 | April 28, 2012 | June 27, 2012 | Aaron Rodgers | Green Bay Packers | |||
| 3 | April 27, 2013 | June 27, 2013 | Adrian Peterson | Running back | Minnesota Vikings | ||
| 4 | May 10, 2014 | July 9, 2014 | Peyton Manning | Quarterback | Denver Broncos | ||
| 5 | May 6, 2015 | July 8, 2015 | J. J. Watt | Defensive end | Houston Texans | ||
| 6 | May 4, 2016 | July 6, 2016 | Cam Newton | Quarterback | Carolina Panthers | ||
| 7 | May 1, 2017 | June 26, 2017 | Tom Brady | New England Patriots | |||
| 8 | April 30, 2018 | June 25, 2018 | |||||
| 9 | July 22, 2019 | July 31, 2019 | Aaron Donald | Defensive tackle | Los Angeles Rams | ||
| 10 | July 26, 2020 | July 29, 2020 | Lamar Jackson | Quarterback | Baltimore Ravens | ||
History
2011
NFL Network released ten episodes, each revealing ten players on the list during the 2011 offseason. The first episode, revealing the players ranked #100 through #91 was aired on April 30, 2011. The list's top 10 players were revealed when the tenth episode of the 2011 list was aired on July 3, 2011. The list, and series, began with the #100 ranked player, Washington Redskins quarterback, Donovan McNabb[2] and ended when New England Patriots quarterback and 2010 NFL MVP Tom Brady was selected as the number one ranked player.[3]
2012
The NFL Top 100 list returned for the 2012 NFL season. The season ran from April 28 to June 27, 2012. The list began with Tennessee Titans running back, Chris Johnson,[4] and concluded the reveal of the number one ranked player, and the 2011 MVP, Green Bay Packers quarterback, Aaron Rodgers.[5] Each episode of the season was followed up by NFL Top 100 Reaction Show, which featured NFL Network analysts reacting and voicing their opinions on the ten most recent players revealed on the list.[6]
2013
The NFL Top 100 list returned for the 2013 NFL season. The season ran from April 27 to June 27, 2013.[7] The list began with Baltimore Ravens tight end Dennis Pitta.[8] The number one ranked player of 2013 was Adrian Peterson, the 2012 MVP.
2014
The NFL Top 100 list returned for the 2014 NFL season. The season ran from May 10 to July 9, 2014. The number one ranked player of 2014 was Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning.
2015
The NFL Top 100 list returned for the 2015 NFL season. The season ran from May 6 to July 8, 2015. The number one ranked player of 2015 was Houston Texans defensive end J. J. Watt. It marked the first year a defensive player ranked No. 1. It was also the first time the No. 1 ranked player was not the defending MVP of the league. The MVP that year, Aaron Rodgers, was ranked number two.
2016
The NFL Top 100 list returned for the 2016 NFL season. The season ran from May 4 to July 6, 2016. The number one ranked player of 2016 was Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton. Marcell Dareus and Steve Smith fell out of Top 100, but were in honorable mentions list alongside Jameis Winston.
2017
The NFL Top 100 list returned for the 2017 NFL season. The season ran from May 1 to June 26, 2017. The number one ranked player of 2017 was New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, becoming the first player to be voted No. 1 more than once. It was also the second time the No. 1 player was not the reigning MVP of the league.[9] Matt Ryan, the MVP of that season, was ranked number ten.
2018
The NFL Top 100 list returned for the 2018 NFL season. The season ran from April 30 to June 25, 2018. The number one ranked player of 2018 was New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, marking his third time being voted No. 1.
2019
The NFL Top 100 list returned for the 2019 NFL season. The number one ranked player of 2019 was Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald.
2020
The NFL Top 100 list returned for the 2020 NFL season, running daily from July 26 to July 29. The number one ranked player was Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson.
See also
References
- "Where Would Manning, Megatron & Other Retirees Be on the Top 100 Players of 2016?". NFL - YouTube.com. 2016-07-13. Retrieved 2019-07-10.
- "Top 100: Donovan McNabb". National Football League. April 27, 2011. Retrieved May 10, 2013.
- Aashish Sharma (July 4, 2011). "Tom Brady Named NFL's Top Player of 2011: Why He Will Go Down as the Greatest". Bleacher Report. Retrieved May 10, 2013.
- Michael David Smith (April 29, 2012). "Chris Johnson falls 87 spots in NFL Top 100 ranking". Pro Football Talk. NBC Sports. Retrieved May 10, 2013.
- Network Ranking (June 27, 2012). "'The Top 100: Players of 2012': Aaron Rodgers". National Football League. Retrieved May 10, 2013.
- "Top 100 reaction: Biggest surprise". National Football League. April 28, 2012. Retrieved May 10, 2013.
- Sara Bibel (April 19, 2013). "NFL Network Presents 'The Top 100 Players of 2013'". TV by the Numbers. Zap 2 it. Archived from the original on May 1, 2013. Retrieved May 10, 2013.
- Aaron Wilson (April 29, 2013). "Dennis Pitta Named NFL's 100th-best player". Ravens Insider. Baltimore Sun. Retrieved May 10, 2013.
- NFL (2017-06-26), #1: Tom Brady (QB, Patriots) | Top 100 Players of 2017 | NFL, retrieved 2017-06-27