Hes on the short list of running back leaders in yards per rush (4.6, 17th), touches (2,824, 25th) and yards from scrimmage (14,079, 35th) in NFL history. Coaches rave about his work off the field and his dedication to improving his craft. No modern coach suppressed passing offenses quite like Fisher, and no team produces offensive stats that look like they come from the early 1930s quite like the Ravens. He took over as the Bears' featured offensive weapon after the Super Bowl Shuffle years. Bottom line: Quick, name the winningest Seahawks quarterback before the Russell Wilson era. The linebacker ranks 17th in career solo tackles (1,130) and is the only player to be part of three consecutive Super Bowl champions. Once an arbitrary number of players from a historic team get enshrined, the committee moves on in search of underappreciated players from other franchises. Lets not forget they also dominated with cold-blooded efficiency at the other side of the ball, where Keena Turner was rarely out of position at right outside linebacker. WebMost Underrated NFL Players of All Time These men did so much but received so little credit in return. Sam Mills rises above the rest of the gritty linebacker pack, at least when it comes to being underrated, because three of his greatest seasons have been erased from history. There will never be another player like Marshall. The Steelers rushed for a then-record 249 yards and did not allow a sack. Super Bowl championships: 1974, 1975, 1978, 1979. Despite his incredibly high waist seriously, check out his build Kelvin Beachum has been one of the most underrated tackles in the NFL. Young started his career as the NFC Defensive Rookie of the Year and ended it as a four-time winner of the Len Eshmont Award, the 49ers' team award for character and leadership. Karl Mecklenburg. Many of those catches occurred down the field, with Anderson serving as a de facto possession receiver. After spending a season on the practice squad and injured-reserve with the Jets, Franklin-Myers made the most of his opportunities as a rotational player throughout most of 2020, leading to a starting role in 2021 and a massive $55M extension. Put him on the Tom Brady-led Patriots, and Mason might have invented a new branch of mathematics. David was a crucial component of the Bucs defense during their playoff run in 2020 that culminated in a Super Bowl victory. He's also among the top 100 in games started (83rd), interception return yardage (89th) and interception return touchdowns (31st). You will find some familiar Hall of Fame snubs on this list (like Jim Marshall, pictured above), but also plenty of players who were even snubbed from the Hall of Fame snubs, plus some current players who aren't getting their due. Twenty years ago, the Jacksonville Jaguars were one of the marquee organizations in professional sports, and Jimmy Smith was one of their brightest stars. Let's take a look at the the five most underrated footballers of all time. In Dierdorfs second to last season, the Cardinals were embarrassed by the Packers 41-16 in their playoff opener. Let's face it: An entire All-Underrated Team can be assembled using only Broncos defenders. Its hard to think of a player more dominant and less talked about over a long period of time than Chandler Jones. Buckner is rarely discussed with the likes of Cameron Heyward, Fletcher Cox, or Grady Jarrett among the top interior defensive linemen (next tier behind Aaron Donald), but he is every bit as talented. The Rams acquired him from the Chargers in 1973 in exchange for defensive end Coy Bacon. If the soft-spoken scatback had been in the right place at the right time, he would have filled his one nagging void a Super Bowl title and the exposure that accompanied it. Chiesa is a winger who plays for Juventus. An all-underrated team like this one can get flooded with Zach Thomas, Hardy Nickerson, Tommy Nobis and Tedy Bruschi types if we don't get a little choosy. Hmmm. Seven times, he surpassed 1,000 yards on pass receptions, most of them on slants and corner routes. He was overshadowed by more famous teammates throughout his career. Sanders was an extremely Jerry Rice and John Taylor may have been the greatest receiving tandem of that era, but Ellard and Flipper Anderson were the most explosive pair of deep threats. Both Courtland Sutton and teammate Tim Patrick could easily make this list together as neither player is discussed nearly enough. A great story off the field and rare talent on it, Waller appears to still be getting better at age 29. He played for teams that were more interesting than outstanding, from the Ryan and Rich Kotite-era Eagles to the Jim Mora and Mike Ditka Saints to Jon Gruden's Raiders. Ryan needed surgery and was in constant pain for the rest of his career. Success came early for Fletcher, recognition late. Butler is all but guaranteed to get lost in the shuffle. Ellard moved on to Washington in 1994 and enjoyed a late-career renaissance, averaging 61 catches and 18.8 yards per reception over a three-year span in his mid-30s. Johnson can line up all over the field and consistently find space in the opposing defense. He was an All-Pro for the Orange Crush defenses of the 1970s, and then he stuck around to play for the 1986 Broncos Super Bowl team. Dierdorf started his career with the Cardinals in 1971 as a guard. Try Dave Krieg. He was a participant in four Super Bowls and a member of two All-Pro teams. Young was a devastating interior pass-rusher who recorded 30 sacks in the three-year span from 1998 through 2000. Greenwood, but there are dozens of other great old players clamoring for their chance who didn't enjoy the glory of playing for a "team of the decade.". He started for the Rams in their Super Bowl seasons at the beginning of his career and then earned Pro Bowl berths for Washington from 2009 through 2012 when he was in his mid-30s. Anderson is no Hall of Famerthe middle of his career is a morass of ordinary-at-best seasonsbut he was a pioneer and an innovator. McDole, nicknamed "The Dancing Bear" because of his boogie on the dance floor rather than his on-field footwork, was known as more of a run defender than a pass-rusher. WebThe NFL is increasingly becoming a passing league. Ryan was Jim Brown's quarterback and then Leroy Kelly's quarterback. Playing in Detroit can stifle any career. WebTop 20 Most Underrated NFL Players of All Time 20 Drew Brees. It was the era of great defensive lines with catchy namesthe Rams had the Fearsome Foursome, the Cowboys the Doomsday Defense, the Steelers later added the Steel Curtain, and so forthand Marshall was the Ringo Starr of the Purple People Eaters, the guy who once ran the wrong way for a touchdown and was happy just to be in the band. It would rank 16th all-time, except that if we allow Marshall's sacks into the record, we would have to make room for Deacon Jones, Mean Joe Greene and others. Pro Bowl? Peppers will have to play three more seasons to catch Marshall, and Peppers' starts are non-consecutive. Bottom line: Never mind guys such as Michael Vick and Lamar Jackson. TGT Play! Odds Deals Podcasts US USA Arizona California Colorado Connecticut Florida Georgia Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Louisiana Maryland Michigan New Jersey New York North Carolina Ohio What Mason did have was a keen attention to detail and fanatical drive to succeed. 2023 Minute Media - All Rights Reserved. But the former NFL Man of the Year award winner and two-time All-Pro should not have had to wait so long. Brett Favre may be the player most responsible for bringing spectacle and success back to Titletown, but Butler brought back celebration. Sad to say, Morgan was woefully miscast in a run-first offense in a less pass-friendly time. Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports By Sam Monson May 13, But things were different in the long-ago 1990s, when the sports universe belonged to teal-emblazoned expansion franchises and a youngish Tom Coughlin received a binder full of press clippings from the mother of a wide receiver ready to call it quits after injuries derailed his Cowboys career. Super Bowl championships: Four (1966, 1967, 1972, 1973). That voter meant every fanbase has a beloved old defender, renowned for his toughness and leadership, that they swear belongs in the Hall of Fame. Young played for some great 49ers teams, including a Super Bowl-winning squad as a rookie in 1994. There are no official sack statistics before 1982, but the Minnesota Vikings credit Jim Marshall with 127 career sacks. Fewer yet realize that he made a crucial play in each victory. No one else is even close. He is also proficient with his right foot and is a versatile player who can play multiple positions in the attacking third of the pitch. Entering 2021, Moton had allowed only 10 sacks in over 2,000 pass-blocking snaps. Kenny Anderson may be the most "so underrated that he's overrated" player in NFL historya darling of the stat-head community and common first-guy-mentioned when Hall of Fame snubs come up. WebTop 20 Most Underrated Footballers in 2022 1. Two 10-interception seasons, with 57 career interceptions. Watch more top videos, highlights, and B/R original content, acquired the 34-year-old Rams quarterback by, Ronald C. Modra/Sports Imagery/Getty Images, Pro Football Reference Similar Players tool, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. It's hard for a running back to be underrated. So LeRoy Butler, innovator of the Lambeau Leap, is excluded from his own statue. He was arrested four times after his abrupt retirement. 1. Drew Brees endured an average of just 24 sacks per season in Evans' All-Pro seasons, despite typically dropping back to pass over 650 times per year. During his first four seasons, three with the Ravens and one in Oakland, Waller caught just 18 passes on 29 targets while also being suspended all of 2017. While every fan base is sure to have two or three names they feel are undervalued and worthy of this list, here are my current top ten underrated players in the NFL. He picked off a dozen passes in his career two of them at 38 years of age an absurd number for a 6-foot-4, 265-pound lineman. Ellard was an Antonio Brown-level talent in his prime, but his teams were in no hurry to get him the ball. But his Rams had a running back named Eric Dickerson and quarterbacks named Dieter Brock and Jeff Kemp. Ohhh-kaaaaay, one of the Hasselbecks then? One of the most well-traveled quarterbacks in NFL history, Vinny Testaverde hung around long enough to register the seventh-most passing yards ever in his 20-year career. It takes years of playing the wrong position for the wrong team in the wrong league at the wrong time. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images). Taylor Moton has quietly emerged as a dominant presence at right tackle for the Panthers. The rumors themselves were not surprising. Meet every NFL team's all-time most underrated player. Perhaps it's time we look back on how much of an impact he and his Jaguars had on the NFL two decades ago. Smith produced nine 1,000-yard seasons in 10 years, including two 100-plus-catch seasons in an era when they were still relatively uncommon. Hall of Fame receiver Paul Warfield was on the receiving end of many of Ryan's touchdowns. McDole played 251 professional games as a defensive lineman, a remarkable feat in any era that should not be forgotten. The content on this site is for entertainment and educational purposes only. And then there is plain old forgotten. Jacksonville's all-time leading receiver is now beginning what he calls the "second chapter in his life." Mills and Reggie White were the USFL's two greatest defenders ever. Teams: Chicago Bears, Washington Redskins, Houston Oilers, Arizona Cardinals, New York Jets, Pro Bowl appearances: Three (1986, 1987, 1992), Super Bowl championships: Two (1985, 1991). But there is no player; fans themselves get to "leap" into the statue for photo ops. Buckner is a smart player and one of the better-run defenders in football. ), Teams: Pittsburgh Steelers, San Diego Chargers, Super Bowl championships: Two (1974, 1975). He returned eight interceptions for touchdowns, including four in 1993 and three during his age-35 season with the Raiders in 2000. Naturally, it also guarantees that some of the best players in the country get overshadowed and forgotten in the sport's warp-speed news cycle. 'Nuff said, right? Player B was a one-time MVP who played in two Pro Bowl games. I still don't know that people gave me my due respect for my production. Teams: New England Patriots, Indianapolis Colts, Pro Bowl appearances: Four (1979, 1980, 1986, 1987). He led his team to an NFL championship. If the quarterback got rid of the ball before getting crushed, it was up to Allen to make a play. Randy Gradishar. A dominant presence as a run blocker, Moton uses his athleticism to get to the next level of the defense in a hurry. If he started his career a decade earlier or a decade later, Young would have anchored the defense for one of history's great teams or helped push the Harbaugh 49ers over the top in the Super Bowl. The guy should demand a recount, I tell ya. The USFL may not have been the NFL in terms of quality, but being the Luke Kuechly of a league that featured Herschel Walker, Jim Kelly and Steve Young should count for something. And because versatility is his calling card, he'll never produce gaudy sack totals or climb any all-time leaderboards. Six All-Pro selections. Bates finished tied for 6th in 2020 with 15 passes defended. WebDespite being just 20-years-old, Pedri has become a key player for Barcelona The midfielder names his former teammate Lionel Messi as the 'best' ever He hopes to He was a six-time Pro Bowler and three-time All-Pro. Norton made the key play of the game in the second period, when he stood up Buffalo Bills back Kenneth Davis mere inches from the goal line. Off to a fast start in 2021, Sutton is quickly reminding opposing defenses of his talent. But the diminutive Brees would not have been able to lead the Saints to a Super Bowl and several seasons as top contenders without a clean pocket, particularly right in front of him. There are a ton of names in the conversation for best offensive linemen of all time, but Dierdorf WebDon't hesitate to comment below with underrated players who you believe should have been on this list. Young played for the teams that slowly slid from George Seifert to Steve Mariucci to oblivion. The NFL is now full of receivers like Mason, but few of them are as productive as he was for over a decade. ", Teams: St. Louis Cardinals, Houston Oilers, Buffalo Bills, Washington Redskins, Pro Bowl appearances (AFL All-Star Game): Two (1965, 1967). (Bonus point: Schlereth doesnt suck as a broadcaster on ESPN. Start with Adam Timmerman, who won Super Bowl rings with the Packers and Rams three years apart. It's better to be remembered for one of the most painful moments in your career than to not be remembered at all. So it takes a remarkable streak of hard luck for a running back to make this list. "It pissed me off," Fletcher replied. Some of the 19 But what peak years they were: 14- and 13-win seasons, annual playoff appearances, routine 4,000-yard, 30-touchdown seasons. WebOnce called the toughest cornerback in the NFL by Jerry Rice, Lewis would have received much more acclaim in his career if hed played a position that wasnt just following other And then there is Kent Hull, the first center to achieve greatness in a no-huddle offense. Juszczyk knows his role and is a winning player that will always fight to win those tough yards. With Warfield hurt nearly all of that season, Ryan helped make a Pro Bowler out of receiver/punter Gary Collins. 2022 NFL Mock Draft: Jacksonville Jaguars overtake Detroit for No. Players like McDole are what all-time underrated lists exist for. There is one football player who could score from literally anywhere, and his name is 2. Slot specialists such as Julian Edelman and Victor Cruz are now considered valuable components to the modern passing game. They didnt allow a sack in 84 pass attempts. As a 31-year-old, no less. The former top ten draft pick looks to be on the verge of breaking out. He had the speed to get to the edge and beat defenders down the sideline, the power to plow through tackles, the elusiveness to make things happen in the open field and receiving chops to rival contemporaries Roger Craig or Thurman Thomas. They would rank first in the NFL in yardage four other times while Evans was a starter. At age 25, Franklin-Myers seems to be just scratching the surface of his potential and should benefit from some additional pieces being added to a young rebuilding Jets defense. "Stanley Steamer" could run every route and was hell on wheels with the ball in his hands. He's the Rams' all-time leading rusher with almost 3,000 more yards for the franchise than Marshall Faulk or Eric Dickerson. "Because when the ball was thrown, I knew I had better ball skills and would go up and get it.". Honourable Mentions Hajime Hosogai, Hertha Berlin DM, Age: 27 This commitment to team defense is perhaps one of the main reasons Buckner is not more recognized as one of the top interior defensive linemen in football. One of the greatest defenders in the history of a storied franchise, Young is just another victim of bad timing when it comes to getting the reputation he deserves. Since 2013, Jones has registered six double-digit sack seasons including a 17 sack season in 2017 that led the NFL, and a career-high of 19 in 2019. Upon entering the league in 2019, Johnson recorded 59 catches as a rookie and then topped that mark in 2020 with 88 catches. If Morgan had played in a pass-happy offense with a Pro Bowl quarterback and hands-off rules, you would find him in Canton right now. Measurables. If Marlon McCree hadn't fumbled that interception in the playoffs after the 2006 season, everything might have been different. No matter. DeForest Buckner plays great team defense and has done so successfully for two franchises. Here are ten of the most underrated college football players of all time. While coverage is Bates' strength, he can still lay the big hit and be a factor in run support. The problem with Dierdorf is he played for a lot of bad Cardinals teams. Developing a rapport with new QB Trevor Lawrence should only help Shenault quickly reach his true potential. A new generation of superstar left tackles entered the league as Brown was peaking, and he spent the latter half of his career bouncing from team to team as Tony Boselli, Willie Roaf, Orlando Pace, Jonathan Ogden and Walter Jones turned the blindside protector into an almost glamorous position. Where did Davis score the game-winner late in Super Bowl XXXII? Not only was Fleming good enough to stick with great teams, but he also was the luckiest son of a gun on the face of the earth. MVP-caliber seasons (1,528 yards, 90 receptions, 16 total touchdowns in 2006) early in his career gave way to annual 1,100-1,200 yard, low-touchdown grinds as the Greatest Show Rams retired one by one and the team fell to 2-14 and 1-15. Yet somehow, some way, Kolb never received a Pro Bowl invitation. Modern centers don't get the credit they deserve. Allen made a lot of plays. Mike Kenn began his career playing left tackle for a lumbering 1970s power-running offense. Not bad for a guy who might as well have played in a straight jacket for 14 seasons. Nope, not Charles Haley. Bates is a ball-hawking safety in coverage with excellent range, intelligence, and athleticism. And Jackson spent a generation as a pre- and postgame show staple, which puts him in a whole different category. He headed to Washington and moved from the weak to strong side. Web#shortsucl#bayernmunich #bayern #barcelona#football#footballedit#footballedits#footballshirts#soccer#socceredit#socceredits#soccershorts Hes also among a select few to be a four-time Super Bowl champion. During his time at Fiorentina, he was the best player, 2. You know the type. Moton started all 16 games each of the last four years, gradually improving and joining the conversation of best right tackles in football. Robinson is a staple of Hall of Fame Snubs lists, and he certainly has his case. All advice, including picks and predictions, is based on individual commentators opinions and not that of Minute Media or its related brands. And almost nobody remembers that, when Edwards caught the ball, he knew what to do it. They were the Yale football of the NFL, their glory years moldering in history books. He lacked the straight-line speed to be a game-breaker. Marshall reached just two Pro Bowls. The Jaguars, meanwhile, slowly descended to their current status as the NFL's punching bag. Oh, and Norton scored the final touchdown of the game on a 9-yard fumble return. That makes sense: Both started their careers late, played with workhorse running backs, won a championship and had their careers curtailed by vicious hits. There, he led a relentless Redskins pass rush in their Super Bowl XXVI ambush. Maybe he wasn't the best defender on the field for any one play, but he stayed on that field for an entire generation. There have been too many players in NFL history to count, so naturally, many of them werent going to get the attention they deserved for their play. Butler was the NFL's most dangerous all-purpose safety for much of the 1990s. Even unspectacular ones manage to rack up a few 1,000-yard seasons and get drafted early in fantasy leagues. Web12. WebWho are the most underrated players of all time? When London Fletcher retired after the 2014 season, Robert Klemko of The MMQBasked him if he was motivated by feeling underappreciated for most of his career. Even without the same speed and athleticism as when he entered the league, David continues to find ways to make impact plays like a seasoned veteran. Passing wasn't really their thing. Both of those seasons came, ironically enough, after Allen and Buddy were separated. Jones is a three-time Pro Bowler and two-time All-Pro selection. There are over 120 teams that compete in the FBS, which means that storylines and hidden superstars abound. That's its own kind of recognition. WebWhile every fan base is sure to have two or three names they feel are undervalued and worthy of this list, here are my current top ten underrated players in the NFL. Hes the only quarterback with AFL and NFL titles on his resume and he darn near pulled it off in the Canadian Football League as well. Because he is one of the NFL's best defensive players, for one thing. Maybe Wright wasn't a Blount-level legend, but he deserves better than to be the forgotten man among the Broncos' forgotten men. Still, Allen rarely gets respect as a true number one wideout. Maybe not, seeing as Nalen has not had much success. Teams: Tennessee Titans, Baltimore Ravens, New York Jets, Houston Texans. By the time the 49ers are great again, Bowman may be in his early 30s or on another team. But no one remembers the Greatest Show on Turf for its defense, and Fletcher spent the prime of his career playing for mediocre Bills teams. Cooke is the most underrated player in the sport, performing mostly in the wonderful but considerable shadows of Boston, Staleys grand personality and all the noise at Colonial Life Arena. Fred Warner gets a lot of attention at linebacker for the 49ers, but Dre Greenlaw flies under theradar as a young playmaker quickly on the rise. At only 510, Johnson lacks the ideal size. Perhaps Hull would be in the Hall of Fame if the Bills had won even one Super Bowl. A Super Bowl ring and two AFL championships. Butler has never even been a Hall of Fame semifinalist, and it's not going to happen for him soon. Dave Meggett -- RB, 1989-1994. Dont let the numbers fool you Morgan wasnt a one-trick racehorse. Brown did one thing terribly wrong in 18 NFL seasons, but for his teams to win as often as they did, he must have done an awful lot more right. There are a ton of names in the conversation for best offensive linemen of all time, but Dierdorf never seems to have his name mentioned. He then led three fourth-quarter comebacks to bring them back to the playoffs in 1965. Moton has also committed just 10 penalties in over 50 career starts, an average of less than one penalty every five games. In 10 of the 12 seasons in which he started at least half their games, the Seahawks prevailed more times than not. Robertson's Rams made a habit of reaching the playoffs every year and losing to the Vikings or Cowboys. You mean future Hall of Fame tackle Orlando Pace didnt block four guys all by himself? The Lions drafted him as a running back. McDole was known as "The Dancing Bear" because of his nimble feet, one of the coolest nicknames ever. He played in the run-'n'-shoot offense, which means he was on an island against the NFL's best pass-rushers on every snap for a half-decadeno tight end flanking him, no blocking back behind him. But Brown was a unique and underappreciated player for over a decade on a team that nearly revolutionized the way football is played. Matthew Stafford is approaching 50,000 career passing yards, a number only topped by 11 quarterbacks in history. No one plays guard expecting fame and accolades, least of all Wisniewski, who is worthy of all the gritty cliches you can sling at him. Karl Mecklenburg. Dont know about you, but I want Mason on my retro fantasy league team. For years, the team couldn't even harken back to its glory days properly, as Smith's Pride of the Jaguars induction was delayed until he was sober and no longer under house arrest. His 23 fourth-quarter comebacks (20th overall) are more than Dan Fouts, Jim Kelly, Sonny Jurgensen and Bart Starr, to name a few Hall of Famers at the position. Bahr converted 84 percent of his field-goal attempts (21 of 25), and 98 percent of his extra-point tries (40 of 41) when it counted most. He blitzed (20.5 sacks). But so were teammates like Len Dawson, Willie Lanier, Buck Buchanan, Bobby Bell, Curley Culp and Jan Stenerud, all of whom are in the Hall of Fame. Waller was a sixth-round draft pick at wide receiver by the Ravens in 2015 and struggled to find targets early in his career in spite of his 66 frame. A Hall of Fame voter once warned me that "every town has its linebacker.". Teammates Alan Page and Carl Ellar were held in higher regard.
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