Key Points
Bullet point summary by AI
- The NFL Players Association has begun revealing its top 100 list, with early rankings already sparking debate among fans and analysts.
- Several quarterbacks and veteran defenders find themselves placed higher than many expect, raising questions about their current impact and future potential.
- The next wave of reveals will test whether these rankings hold up as the league's elite players come into focus this offseason.
It’s that time of the offseason: NFL.com has started releasing its list of the league's top 100 players, as voted on by the players themselves. The list updates with new players every day (Monday-Friday) until Aug. 21. After that, each player in the top 10 will be revealed, one per day, from Aug. 24 until Sept. 4. As of Monday, we’re just inside the top 60 players — and while we've yet to get to the truly elite, there are some questionable names that should be raising eyebrows already.
Jordan Love, QB, Green Bay Packers
Top 100 ranking: No. 72
It’s hard to believe in Jordan Love at this ranking for a couple of reasons. He’s been decent in his NFL career since he took over as the starting quarterback Green Bay, keeping the Packers consistently competitive. The problem is, though, he hasn’t really taken that next step. He’s regressed since his first season as the starter — regardless of how Packers fans want to look at it — and it’s hard to argue that he’s truly a top-70 player right now.
Quarterback is one of the hardest positions in sports. Yes, Love has been above-average, but not by as much as this ranking suggests. This isn’t about stats, either; this is about playoff performance. He’s 3-for-3 in postseason appearances since he took over as QB1, yet he has just one playoff win, and that came in his first run back in 2023. His playoff campaign in 2024 was abysmal, and while he was much better individually last year, his team fell short.
Love is good and has a chance to look like a top-50 player this year. For Love to be a top-70 player right now, though, I need to see more postseason success.
QB Bryce Young, Carolina Panthers
Top 100 ranking: No. 98
This feels a little bit forced. Not to say that Bryce Young isn’t good, or doesn’t deserve to get recognized for taking the Carolina Panthers to the playoffs last season for the first time in nearly a decade. That said, I need to see more from him before we start claiming he’s one of the NFL’s best 100 players. In the second half of the season, the Panthers went 3-5, ended the year on a three-game losing streak – including the playoff defeat to the Los Angeles Rams – and had a losing record overall.
If Young has another strong season and Carolina gets back to the playoffs, then it'll be a different conversation. But if we’re being honest, he still has a lot of development to go through before he jumps up to the next tier of NFL quarterbacks. Just a year ago, we were wondering if he would be the Panthers’ long-term option and now he’s one of the 100 best NFL players? It feels like a bit of an overcorrection, as Carolina's reticence to extend him would suggest.
QB Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers
Top 100 ranking: No. 85
Maybe I’m just a Brock Purdy hater, but this feels like we’re giving the Niners starter a little too much credit after last year. Yes, he played well despite injuries around him, but he also appeared in just eight games — and you could argue Mac Jones looked better than he did while filling in as the starter. Purdy has really had one good season so farm, and it earned him $265 million and a top-100 ranking. He averaged 200 passing yards in two games, got one playoff win against a mediocre Philadelphia Eagles team and had more interceptions than touchdown passes in the postseason last year.
This season, for Purdy to be ranked No. 85, I need to see him play like he did in 2023. He needs to stay healthy and can’t get outplayed by his backup. The 49ers have proven to be a system quarterback’s best friend. Purdy is still fighting those allegations with me because he still lacks in-pocket consistency.
CB Jalen Ramsey
Top 100 ranking: No. 82
Jalen Ramsey is good, but he’s not really a top-80 player at this point in his career. He wasn’t that much of a game changer in Pittsburgh last season while moving from cornerback to safety. Though he did have eight passes defended, he had just one interception; at this point in his career, he’s not really moving the needle enough to justify being ranked this highly. When you compare last season to his career baseline, it doesn’t really stand out, which goes to show that he’s already in the twilight years of his career. That’s not to say he’s no longer good, but there are some better players that could have pushed him down this list.
The Steelers turned to Ramsey in desperate need for secondary help and he did just enough. He’s not going to be the lockdown, game-changing cornerback he was during his Jacksonville and Los Angeles Rams days, but he can still be productive.
S Budda Baker
Top 100 ranking: No. 75
There’s not much to talk about with the Arizona Cardinals aside from Budda Baker, who just keeps on keeping on despite the dysfunction around him. Unfortunately, though, his reputation might exceed his production at this point. That’s not to say he’s bad, but I think it’s a bit steep to say he’s a top-75 player in the NFL. He’s been a great box safety, wreaking havoc for the Cardinals in the run game, but he’s not really that impactful of a player at this point in his career.
No. 75 isn't too drastic a ranking, but I just don’t think he’s as effective as he used to be. The Cardinals don’t have much reason to retain him, so I wouldn’t be surprised to see him traded before the trade deadline this fall.
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