NFL Top 100 | |
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Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 13 |
No. of episodes | 130 |
Production | |
Running time | 3–9 minutes (per player) |
Original release | |
Network | NFL Network |
Release | 2011 |
Related | |
NFL Top 10 |
The NFL Top 100 is an annual television series counting down 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, where 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 2010, NFL Network aired The Top 100: NFL's Greatest Players , an all-time top 100 list, with wide receiver Jerry Rice being voted as the number-one player. The following year, the network debuted their annual NFL Top 100, with quarterback Tom Brady being voted at the top. Brady holds the record for most number-one selections, with four (2011, 2017, 2018, and 2022). Fellow quarterback Patrick Mahomes is the only other player to have been voted number-one multiple times (2021, 2023). Running back Adrian Peterson (2013), defensive end J. J. Watt (2015), and defensive tackle Aaron Donald (2019) are the only non-quarterbacks to be voted number-one. Following Brady's retirement and resulting exclusion from the 2023 list, quarterback Aaron Rodgers holds the distinction of being the only player to be an NFL Top 100 selection each year of its existence. [2]
Season | Originally aired | Number 1 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
First aired | Last aired | Player | Team | ||
1 | April 30, 2011 | July 3, 2011 | Tom Brady | New England Patriots | |
2 | April 28, 2012 | June 27, 2012 | Aaron Rodgers | Green Bay Packers | |
3 | April 27, 2013 | June 27, 2013 | Adrian Peterson | Minnesota Vikings | |
4 | May 10, 2014 | July 9, 2014 | Peyton Manning | Denver Broncos | |
5 | May 6, 2015 | July 8, 2015 | J. J. Watt | Houston Texans | |
6 | May 4, 2016 | July 6, 2016 | Cam Newton | 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 | Los Angeles Rams | |
10 | July 26, 2020 | July 29, 2020 | Lamar Jackson | Baltimore Ravens | |
11 | August 15, 2021 | August 28, 2021 | Patrick Mahomes | Kansas City Chiefs | |
12 | August 14, 2022 | August 28, 2022 | Tom Brady | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | |
13 | July 24, 2023 | August 3, 2023 | Patrick Mahomes | Kansas City Chiefs |
The first season of the series was released prior to the 2011 NFL season. 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, [3] and ended when New England Patriots quarterback and 2010 NFL MVP Tom Brady was selected as the number one ranked player. [4]
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, [5] and concluded the reveal of the number one ranked player, and the 2011 MVP, Green Bay Packers quarterback, Aaron Rodgers. [6] 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. [7]
The series has run every offseason since, following the same countdown format, and continuing to feature players and analysts reacting to the rankings. [8] [9]
Symbol | Meaning |
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† | Denotes Pro Football Hall of Fame member |
^ | Denotes active player |
Several NFL players have expressed negative opinions of NFL Top 100. Responding to the 2021 list, Arizona Cardinals offensive tackle D. J. Humphries called the list "bullshit" and "made up" and cast personal doubt on if players actually vote, stating that he had never voted. [10] In 2022, former tackle Andrew Whitworth, a 3× NFL Top 100 selection himself, also asserted that not every player votes on the list, calling it a "joke" and "content filler". [11]
Donovan Jamal McNabb is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons, primarily with the Philadelphia Eagles. He played college football for the Syracuse Orange and was selected second overall in the 1999 NFL draft by the Eagles, where he spent 11 seasons. McNabb also spent a year each with the Washington Redskins and the Minnesota Vikings. The Eagles retired McNabb's no. 5 jersey number when he was inducted to the Philadelphia Eagles Hall of Fame in 2013.
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Aaron Charles Rodgers is an American football quarterback for the New York Jets of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the California Golden Bears, before being selected in the first round of the 2005 NFL draft by the Green Bay Packers, spending 18 seasons with the team. He is regarded among the greatest and most talented quarterbacks of all time.
DeMarcus Omar Ware is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Troy Trojans and was selected by the Dallas Cowboys with the 11th overall pick in the first round of the 2005 NFL draft. After spending nine seasons with the Cowboys, Ware departed in 2013 as the franchise's all-time leader in quarterback sacks with 117. Ware then played three seasons for the Denver Broncos, with whom he won Super Bowl 50 over the Carolina Panthers. After the 2016 season with the Broncos, he announced his retirement from the NFL. In 2017, he signed a one-day contract with Dallas to retire as a Cowboy. In 2018, the Broncos hired Ware as a pass-rush consultant. In 2023, Ware was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
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