Best NFL Athletes Of 2020

Tom Brady has been named the NFL's top player since 2011, but why will he go down in NFL history as one of the greatest in years? ^{Sources: 12}

The 2016 third-ranked player has established himself as a defensive player, amassing more than 40 points in the NFL and earning two trips to the Pro Bowl since the 2019 season. Jordan has grabbed 87 sacks, 40.5 of which came in the last three seasons. Aaron Donald started the season as the best defensive player in NFL history and is one of the best defensive players in the league. Wagner has reached Pro Bowl status in six of his eight NFL seasons, the same year he debuted. ^{Sources: 2, 14, 17}

Wagner has played most of his career, but he is also one of the league's best offensive linemen in terms of overall offense. ^{Sources: 19}

The 30-year-old athlete, who was drafted by the Lions with the first overall pick in 2009, is currently the fastest player to reach 30,000 passing yards in NFL history and the fourth quarterback in NFL history to throw for 5,500 yards and 10 touchdowns in a season. Dan Marino, who played 17 seasons for the Miami Dolphins, retired in 2019 but was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2005. Alabama finished the season as the league's second-best passer with a career passing percentage of 85.5 and is the only athlete ever to be an MLB member. Bo played for four different teams in his career, most recently for the New York Giants and was a member of their Super Bowl XLVIII championship team. ^{Sources: 1, 4, 16, 18}

He scored 39 of 50 in the test of cognitive ability and intelligence used by the NFL to assess candidates for the draft. No quarterback has ever scored more than a 38 / 50, which is the second-best score of any quarterback in NFL history, behind Peyton Manning (39.5). ^{Sources: 18}

Lewan earned four first-team All-American honors and three All-American honors, making him one of the most decorated offensive linemen in college football history. ^{Sources: 6}

Robben made it to the NFL after stints with lower-league football franchises, eventually playing eight seasons for the San Diego Chargers, New York Giants and San Francisco 49ers. Robben played at the highest level in professional football, Jones earned his place as one of the most decorated offensive linemen in college football history. He would enjoy a successful 10-year NFL career, playing with the New England Patriots, Chicago Bears, Denver Broncos, Houston Texans, Seattle Seahawks, Oakland Raiders, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Cleveland Browns, Jacksonville Jaguars and New Orleans Saints. Atwater played in 11 NFL seasons and spent one (11) of those seasons with the Denver Broncos. He played for four different teams in his career and played for two different NFL teams: the Denver Rams and the Carolina Panthers. ^{Sources: 0, 5, 6, 13}

Rivers turned pro after being picked by the New York Giants in the first round of the 2004 NFL Draft at Texas A & M University. ^{Sources: 9}

The NFL remains a quarterback game in which nine of the top 10 earners compete under center, and Larry Warford has been named to the Pro Bowl three years in a row. The NFL was dominated in 2015 by opposing quarterbacks like Aaron Donald - but the defensive end has taken over. Guards are also the NFL's top dropout players and the NFL has remained a quarterback game the last two seasons, with nine top-ten earners lined up in the middle. ^{Sources: 3, 7, 8}

The 2018 NFL MVP earned enough respect to secure the No 1 spot, as he was ranked eighth among quarterbacks of the year. He won the award in 2017 and 2018 and is eighth in the NFL player rankings. ^{Sources: 2, 11}

If Tuitt can keep up with his 2019 production in 2020, the Steelers defensive lineman will move into the top 100. If Ingram falls in the 2020s, Baltimore's running back will get a nod in the PFN's top 100 because he is the most valuable defensive player. ^{Sources: 16}

Meanwhile, the Pro Football Network recently conducted a poll to identify the 100 best NFL players of 2020. The rankings are based on a survey organized by the NFL, in which players were selected by their peers based on their performance in recent NFL seasons. To be eligible for the rankings, a player must have made at least one start in each year he has played in the league since being drafted in 2018 or 2019 and have also played in all 16 regular-season games this season. ^{Sources: 6, 12, 16}

Alabama leads all FBS schools with 2020 NFL players, highlighted by a total of 612 players in the top 100 and 1,512 overall. The top 10 most talented conference participants (SEC, ACC, SEC West, Big Ten, Pac-12, AFC and AFC) combined 6 12 of the 1512 players and the top 100 schools in each conference. ^{Sources: 10}

Among current active players, Vinatieri has the chance to surpass George Blandas's 26 seasons and hold the record for the longest NFL career in history. Pro Football Focus rates Nelson as the second-best player in the NFL's 2020 draft class, while CBS Sports' Pete Prisco rates him as the top 10 pick. Brees is the most valuable player of last season, sitting out 2020, and that shouldn't lead to eight New England Patriots players dropping out of the season.

Cited Sources

• https://mwwire.com/2020/04/27/top-nfl-players-from-service-academies/ ⁰
• https://ngscsports.com/2020/08/01/who-are-the-most-famous-nfl-players/ ¹
• https://dknation.draftkings.com/2020/9/6/21424495/nfl-predictions-2020-defensive-player-of-the-year-picks-aaron-donald-stephon-gilmore-chase-young ²
• https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-best-players-opting-out-of-the-nfl-nba-wnba-nhl-and-mlb-in-2020/ ³
• https://www.mlb.com/news/list-of-top-athletes-to-play-2-or-more-sports-c215130098 ⁴
• https://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2020/4/21/21209840/nfl-draft-2020-prospects-famous-relatives-randy-moss-thaddeus-son-antoine-winfield ⁵
• https://www.profootballnetwork.com/top-10-most-athletic-nfl-players-of-the-21st-century/ ⁶
• https://www.forbes.com/sites/kurtbadenhausen/2020/09/11/the-nfls-highest-paid-players-2020-bosa-tops-with-44-million-mahomes-sits-out/ ⁷
• https://www.nfludovico.com/post/top-10-nfl-players-of-2020 ⁸
• https://www.oldest.org/sports/active-nfl-players/ ⁹
• https://www.ncaa.com/news/football/article/2020-09-07/nfl-players-college-2020-rosters ¹⁰
• https://theathleteshub.org/2020-nfl-top-25-players-under-25/ ¹¹
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NFL_Top_100 ¹²
• https://www.sportscasting.com/the-5-best-nfl-players-who-didnt-go-to-college-2/ ¹³
• https://www.radio.com/sports/nfl/radio-coms-top-25-nfl-players-for-2020 ¹⁴
• https://www.colts.com/news/quenton-nelson-nfl-top-100-players-2020 ¹⁵
• https://www.profootballnetwork.com/top-100-nfl-players-2020/ ¹⁶
• https://fanbuzz.com/nfl/nfl-players-from-florida/ ¹⁷
• https://www.collegeconsensus.com/features/smartest-nfl-players/ ¹⁸
• https://www.theringer.com/nfl/2020/4/16/21223242/nfl-draft-32-most-valuable-picks-21st-century-tom-brady-russell-wilson ¹⁹