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It's never easy moving on from the heroes we grew up watching, the ones who might've made us fall in love with football or furthered our pa sion for the sport, but with the arrival of , , and , the future of football is here. It wasn't so long ago that the idea of , , , , and Ben Roethlisberger reaching the final stages of their illustrious careers would've been terrifying, but with the arrival of the aforementioned quarterbacks, saying goodbye to aging Hall of Famers isn't so scary anymore. The future of football is already here, and it's just as bright as what came before. , I'm asked to a semble a list of the top 25 NFL players under the age of 25. Every year, the exercise provides a reminder that the NFL is oversaturated with young talent. It's not just the aforementioned trio of quarterbacks, two of whom have won MVP trophies in the past two seasons, one of whom has already captured the first Lombardi Trophy of his career. It's also the 22 other players who made their way onto the list. Unfortunately, the exercise isn't just a reminder of how stacked the NFL is with young talent. It's also a taxing proce s that requires leaving off 20 or so players under the age of 25 who deserve to be on the list, but just couldn't fit. This year's list is no different. There are more than 25 great players who are under the age of 25. From (a bad 2019 season that wasn't entirely his fault) to (just not enough volume in the ' offense) to (a torn ACL) to (the edge rusher who just had 10.5 sacks, not the quarterback), a ton of worthy players were snubbed. I'll be the first to admit that. There are only 25 spots on this list and there are undoubtedly more than 25 great young players in today's NFL. Tough decisions had to be made. Which are the best (and worst) rankings on the top 25 players under 25 list? Will Brinson and the Pick Johnny Manziel Jersey Six Podcast Superfriends give their strong opinions about Sean Wagner-McGough's rankings; listen below and for daily NFL goodne s.As for how the list came to be, let's go over the rules. As I wrote a year ago ...The list is not a draft. This is not a situation where every player under the age of 25 was placed in a pool and then redrafted into the league. If the list was a draft, there'd be far fewer running backs on the list because running backs just aren't valuable enough to justify their selection in a draft with this many good players who play far more important positions. I am not Dave Gettleman. So then, what is the list based on? What they've done so far:How well has the player played to this point in their career? Recent succe s matters more than past succe s, but past succe s still matters. Availability also matters. That's why someone like Chubb, who tore his ACL in Week 4, mi sed out. It's not his fault he got hurt, but I couldn't put him on the list after his second season ended with only one sack in four games.Future projection:What is this player's ceiling? This isn't just a list about prior accomplishments. It's also about the future too. Positional value:It's not a draft, but positional value is a factor -- just not the only factor. You'll find plenty of running backs on this list, because it's not their fault they play the least valuable position on either side of the ball and because they should be rewarded for how dang good they are at playing their position. But you won't find them that high up the list because they do happen to play the least valuable position on either side of the ball. It's a balance.What disqualifies a player from the list? Age:Being 25 years old or older. I repeat: If a player is already 25 as of Thursday, May 21, he is disqualified.Experience:Being a rookie, since we have no way of knowing how good or how bad or how mediocre they'll be in the NFL. You won't find or on this list. If they perform well in the upcoming season, they'll be on next year's list. But first, we need to see it.At the end of the list, you'll find a list of notable omi sions -- these are the players I desperately wanted to find a spot for, but just couldn't. If you think that one of the notable omi sions deserved to make it over someone on the list, I don't blame you. They were all tough decisions. Finally, some quick facts about the list: Nineteen of the 25 players alsoFourteen of the 25 players are offensive players.Out of the 14 offensive players, four are quarterbacks, six are running backs, three are receivers, and one is an offensive lineman. No tight ends made the list, although Mark Andrews of the Ravens came awfully close. Out of the 11 defensive players, three are edge rushers, one is a defensive lineman, one is a linebacker, two are cornerbacks, and four are safeties. So, every position on defense is covered.One team had three players selected: the .Four teams had two players selected: the , , Ravens, and .The Colts were the only team to have two players in the top 10, with the Chargers barely mi sing out.The AFC outnumbers the NFC, 14-11.Even though there are only four quarterbacks, the top three spots all belonged to quarterbacks.Even though there are six running backs, only one finished in the top half of the list -- mainly because of positional value. There were 13 carryovers from last year's list. Out of the 12 players who did not make the cut this year after ranking in the top 25 a year ago, seven of them were disqualified due to age. Out of those seven 25-year-olds, two wouldn't have made the list even if they were still under the age of 25, namely due to their performances in 2019. Those two players? and . The five players who mi sed the list due to performance and/or injury reasons? Bradley Chubb (), (), (took a slight step back in 2019), JuJu Smith-Schuster (a bad 2019 season that wasn't entirely his fault), and (a mediocre 2019 season).Without further delay, the list itself ... 25. Saints S (23) Despite snagging 10 interceptions during his first three seasons (), it still feels like Williams is underrated. This past season, he posted a career high in pa ses defended with 13 (he had 10 in his previous two seasons combined) and finished asUnfortunately for Williams, his involvement incontinues to overshadow just how good of a player he's been since the Saints took him 42nd overall in the 2017 draft. 24.RB(24) Finally, after a couple of injury plagued seasons, it all came together for Cook in 2019, when he totaled 1,654 yards and 13 touchdowns in a 14-game season. 2019 was the first season where we saw just how great Cook can be if he can stay entirely healthy. In his entire career, he's averaging 5.4 yards per touch. For Cook, it's all about staying healthy. He's mi sed 19 games in three seasons. 23.WR A.J. Brown (22) First, it's important to note that Brown is due for regre sion in 2020. That's not an indictment of Brown, but rather a testament to how remarkable Brown was during his rookie season. He caught 52 pa ses for 1,051 yards and eight touchdowns, meaning he averaged an incredible 20.2 yards per catch. That number is bound to regre s in 2020. But even if the regre sion monster comes for Brown, he should remain the focal point of the Titans' pa sing game and one of the best young wideouts in all of football. While his efficiency numbers might decline, don't be surprised if his skills as a receiver improve. He's only entering Year 2. 22. WR (24) Over the past two seasons -- the entire duration of Sutton's career to this point -- the Broncos have started the following quarterbacks: , , , and . So, what Sutton has already accomplished at this stage of his career is even more impre sive. Despite playing with those aforementioned quarterbacks, all of whom are not very good (with the notable exception of Lock, who still has a chance be good), Sutton is averaging 57 catches, 908 receiving yards, and five touchdowns per season. This past season marked his breakout. Despite playing with three of those four quarterbacks, Sutton posted career highs in catches (72), receiving yards (1,112), and touchdowns (six). As the Broncos fill out their offense around Sutton and as Lock matures, Sutton should continue to ascend in Denver. 21. DL (24) Is Clark still underrated? It certainly feels that way. He's the type of interior defensive lineman who's capable of both plugging the run and generating pre sure. Over the past three years, he's averaged 5.5 sacks, 33 solo tackles, 7.3 quarterback hits, and 7.7 tackles for lo s per season. Like all interior defensive linemen, Clark's contributions are often overlooked as edge rushers around him rack up more sacks. But Clark is an elite player at his position group. He's tied with Chris Jones (too old for the list), who entered the NFL the same year, in career approximate value. He deserves recognition for his dominance in the trenches. 20. Browns RB (24) Chubb is yet another Bryce Johnson Jersey |
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发表于 2026-10-5 17:15:02