The Cardinals were 0-3 in the playoffs in Dierdorfs time with the team, and none of the games were particularly close. Matthew Stafford is approaching 50,000 career passing yards, a number only topped by 11 quarterbacks in history. There are a ton of names in the conversation for best offensive linemen of all time, but Dierdorf These men did so much but received so little credit in return. Victory propelled Montana to superstardom, while defeat left the 32-year old Anderson to play out the string as a high-percentage passer for a rapidly disintegrating franchise. A dominant presence as a run blocker, Moton uses his athleticism to get to the next level of the defense in a hurry. He helped the Packers win a Super Bowl. Randy Gradishar. He led the Bengals to a pair of playoff appearances in 1973 and 1975, Joe Montana's high school senior and Notre Dame sophomore seasons. Tom Jackson. And then there is plain old forgotten. Hull never lived to see himself make a Hall of Fame semifinalist list, as he died of liver failure at age 50 in 2011. He intercepted 25 career regular-season passes and two more in the postseason. Players like McDole are what all-time underrated lists exist for. The Steelers rushed for a then-record 249 yards and did not allow a sack. 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. The NFL is now full of receivers like Mason, but few of them are as productive as he was for over a decade. He's also among the top 100 in games started (83rd), interception return yardage (89th) and interception return touchdowns (31st). Year after year, Chandler Jones is one of the best pure pass rushers in football. Lets hear some "un-der-ra-ted!" Hull was not just a great lineman but a groundbreaking one. Buckner earned his first All-Pro honors in 2020 and still has plenty of untapped potential to take his game to another level at just 27 years old. Steve Wisniewski played guard on a Raiders team that moved in the middle of his career and was just good enough to remind you it was not in the same class as the great Raiders teams that preceded it. That's its own kind of recognition. The best teams in the AFL proved to be NFL-caliber, but the bottom of the league was populated with a nearly bankrupt franchise or two, so the best players clumped on the best teams and stood out from the crowd. All advice, including picks and predictions, is based on individual commentators opinions and not that of Minute Media or its related brands. THE MOST UNDERRATED PLAYERS OF ALL TIME - YouTube 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. He's not the kind of player a wise organization sheds to cut expenses. They didnt allow a sack in 84 pass attempts. Bottom line: One of the premier long-ball threats of any era, Stanley Morgan ranks 10th in yards per reception (19.2) and 39th in touchdown catches (72) on the all-time list. But there is no player; fans themselves get to "leap" into the statue for photo ops. McLaurin registered 87 catches in 2020 after 58 during his rookie season in 2019. FanDuel NFL 2021: Best lineup for Week 16, Jets HC Robert Saleh tests positive for COVID, could miss Jaguars game, LeVeon Bell fires back on Twitter at fans trolling him for signing with Buccaneers. 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. In 10 of the 12 seasons in which he started at least half their games, the Seahawks prevailed more times than not. most underrated footballers of all time Fletcher intercepted 23 passes and recorded 39 sacks as a do-it-all middle linebacker. It's Bryant Young, whorecorded 89.5 sacks for the 49ers, 23 more than Haley. Bates has still developed into a leader in the Bengals secondary and arguably their best player on defense. In Jahri Evans' four All-Pro seasons (2009-12), the Saints ranked first, sixth, first and second in the NFL in total yards. Here are ten of the most underrated college football players of all time. Dave Meggett -- RB, 1989-1994. In both New England and Arizona, Jones has wreaked havoc on quarterbacks, demonstrating versatility as a 3-4 OLB and 4-3 DE. Maybe Rivers takes his place among the all-time greats. The top 20 most under-rated footballers of all time - The Telegraph 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. Ground rules: A max of three Pro Bowl invitations. Robertson is so poorly remembered that it was hard to find a decent photo of him in our archives. Actually, make that four careers. Bates is a ball-hawking safety in coverage with excellent range, intelligence, and athleticism. This past offseason, Juszczyk signed a five-year $27M contract to return to the 49ers, making him the highest-paid fullback in football by a wide margin. Teams: Seattle Seahawks, Kansas City Chiefs, Detroit Lions, Arizona Cardinals, Chicago Bears, Tennessee Oilers, Pro Bowl appearances: Three (1984, 1988, 1989). His franchises just kept ending up on the wrong side of history. Robinson was one of those players. Quarterback is the most important position in organized football and maybe in all of sports, so it should be no surprise that men who play QB dominate the top spots of this list. McDole is not known for much of anything anymore, as his AFL stardom came before the Super Bowl era and his Redskins heroics predated the era of Joe Gibbs and the Hogs. The correct answer is Player A (Ken Stabler), and if youre Player B (Brodie), you have to wonder if one Super Bowl should make that much difference. 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. That made Hull one of the first centers to make line adjustments on the fly. He began his career at the tail end of Jim Harbaugh's great defensive teams, but he has since battled both injuries and the incompetence of the Jim Tomsula and Chip Kelly experiments. 'Nuff said, right? The start to his career is Hall of Fame worthy and includes a Super Bowl championship while with the New England Patriots. In addition to the most underrated and overrated Raiders of all time, Adam Rank goes on a mini-tirade about a criminally underrated coach. An ever-growing backlog of outstanding safeties is queuing up outside Canton, as Troy Polamalu and Ed Reed will soon joinJohn Lynch and Brian Dawkins. There will never be another player like Marshall. McDole was a starting defensive end for two of history's legendary defenses: the AFL champion Buffalo Bills of 1964 and '65 and Washington's "Over-the-Hill Gang" of the early 1970s. And almost nobody remembers that, when Edwards caught the ball, he knew what to do it. 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 let's not place the full burden of history on his shoulders, as Marty Schottenheimer, Norv Turner, the Chargers front office and Rivers himself had a hand in making the team a playoff also-ran during those peak years. Ryan made three Pro Bowls, but All-Pro status was blocked by a couple of guys named Johnny Unitas and Bart Starr. 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. Tom Jackson. He then led three fourth-quarter comebacks to bring them back to the playoffs in 1965. Web20 most underrated football players of all time 1. At only 510, Johnson lacks the ideal size. And because versatility is his calling card, he'll never produce gaudy sack totals or climb any all-time leaderboards. Once an arbitrary number of players from a historic team get enshrined, the committee moves on in search of underappreciated players from other franchises. Brown is now best known as a television personality. He had 44 career sacks and as many as eight in a season on two occasions. His 65 interceptions are fifth most in NFL history. Jackson probably helped you win a fantasy title or two, but he would be remembered for so much more if he wasn't always on the wrong team at the wrong time. Super Bowl championships: Four (1966, 1967, 1972, 1973). Rote was the first quarterback who regularly beat defenses with his legs as well as his arm. Six All-Pro selections. FEDERICO CHIESA. Maybe Wright wasn't a Blount-level legend, but he deserves better than to be the forgotten man among the Broncos' forgotten men. Perhaps Hull would be in the Hall of Fame if the Bills had won even one Super Bowl. David entered the league as a terrific coverage linebacker and has continued to grow into an all-around complete linebacker and playmaker. At 67 Buckner also has a wide arsenal of pass rush moves to pressure the quarterback. Young played for some great 49ers teams, including a Super Bowl-winning squad as a rookie in 1994. Mason was frequently his team's most valuable offensive player, but he and Steve McNair made their short pitch-and-catch passes look a little too easy. He headed to Washington and moved from the weak to strong side. The problem with Dierdorf is he played for a lot of bad Cardinals teams. Butler is all but guaranteed to get lost in the shuffle. A Hall of Fame voter once warned me that "every town has its linebacker.". With his career spread evenly across three teams and zero All-Pro selections (a consequence of playing in the same era as Ray Lewis and Brian Urlacher), Fletcher is a Hall of Fame long shot. If not for Schlereth's many health problems that included 29 surgeries, 15 on his left knee alone, he would have been a perennial Pro Bowl selection. A lifelong Tampa Bay Buccaneer, Davids 10-year career has been about consistency and productivity. The converted all-purpose athlete became one of the fathers of modern quarterbacking. But don't write him off as some 1960s product of the system. Sideways. He should be remembered as more than a throwback to the era when Lawrence Welk references were topical. The Hall of Fame has turned up its nose on all of them. Hence, the Campbell video. So LeRoy Butler, innovator of the Lambeau Leap, is excluded from his own statue. Top 20 most underrated footballers of all time: who are they? Turned out he was skilled and driven enough to be a champion. 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. Why retain an expensive vestige of the last regime, or really the last three regimes? Rivers had neither, but he possessed just about everything else. While most Giants fans remember Meggett, he is still one of the most underrated players of all time. Bowman is coming off an Achilles tear in 2016. The 49ers drafted linebacker Reuben Foster at the bottom of the first round. But what peak years they were: 14- and 13-win seasons, annual playoff appearances, routine 4,000-yard, 30-touchdown seasons. Modern centers don't get the credit they deserve. We look at the 10 most underrated players in football at the moment. After making the Pro Bowl twice early in his career, David has failed to make it since 2015 while still playing at a high level. The Top 10 Most Underrated Football Players of All Time All-time underrated and overrated players for Quarterback ratings for Washington skyrocket when targeting McLaurin, who has become a nightmare to defend with the ball in his hands after the catch. When the team inducted Smith into the Pride of the Jaguars ring of honor last year, it was the strange case of a moribund franchise honoring a former receiver still on parole for succumbing to the demons of addiction. Top 20 Most Underrated NFL Players of All Time | TheRichest On the field, it is Diontae Johnson that has emerged as a favorite target of Big Ben. Make no mistake about it, Eric Bieniemys exodus from Kansas City to Washington is only one move on the chess board He is now stuck in a rebuilding cycle that may take a few years. It's better to be remembered for one of the most painful moments in your career than to not be remembered at all. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1996. They were the Yale football of the NFL, their glory years moldering in history books. But a double whammyplaying center and playing for the Broncoshas kept him miles from Hall of Fame consideration. Teams: Jacksonville Jaguars, New England Patriots, Bottom line: Fred Taylor once tweeted, "I earned respect on the field. He also doesn't play in the shadow of a legend. Ohhh-kaaaaay, one of the Hasselbecks then? Truth is, Norton should have been Super Bowl XXVII Most Valuable Player, not Troy Aikman, who was the obligatory quarterback pick. Through the 2018 season, Vinatieri checked in at 81 (56 of 69) and 99 (70 of 71), respectively. Jacksonville's all-time leading receiver is now beginning what he calls the "second chapter in his life." Lomas Brown played left tackle for four Lions playoff teams. As a pass blocker, Moton has developed into a steady presence capable of holding his own, and at times even dominating top pass rushers that include Joey Bosa and Cameron Jordan. That may tick him off. His 4.53 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine was far from elite level speed either, but none of that has not stopped Johnson from playing fast and producing at a high level for the Steelers. Sanders was an extremely Rivers' excellence, longevity and ability to barely dodge immortality make him the John Hadl of his era. #5. WebTop 20 Most Underrated NFL Players of All Time 20 Drew Brees. Kenn is one of the NFL's all-time great players and leaders, and his impact ranges far beyond his playing career. He routinely beat defenders with quickness out of his breaks and clever change-of-pace moves, qualities that also served him well as a punt returner. 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. But the former NFL Man of the Year award winner and two-time All-Pro should not have had to wait so long. The Over-the-Hill Gang fielded one of the most ferocious pass rushes of its era, notching 53 sacks in 1973. Oakland Raiders. 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. But run defense was king in the era when McDole played, and his 16-year career is littered with big plays: 12 interceptions, 14 fumble recoveries, two touchdowns, three safeties and a pair of sacks in the 1966 AFL Championship Game. Ryan needed surgery and was in constant pain for the rest of his career. New England Patriots wide receiver Stanley Morgan, right, battles for Bates finished tied for 6th in 2020 with 15 passes defended. He was arrested four times after his abrupt retirement. Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images, Cliff Welch/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images, Michael Zagaris/San Francisco 49ers/Getty Images. Greenlaw is equally effective against the run and pass, a sure tackler, and brings plenty of energy to theNiners' defense. So Anderson cranked out a few 1,000-yard seasons and played in some Pro Bowls, and that was that. Two 10-interception seasons, with 57 career interceptions. The 6'2" Wright was renowned as a run-stuffing cornerbackthat's him tackling Walter Payton in the photobut he also intercepted 26 career passes, even though opposing quarterbacks spent much of his career avoiding him. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call 1-800-GAMBLER. Super Bowl championships: Two (2005, 2008). 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. The Bucs hired head coach Jon Gruden and won Super Bowl XXXVII the next season. 10. But few cornerbacks spent more of their careers in the crosshairs than Allen. Poor Louis Wright has a hard time even making the Broncos' overcrowded All-Snub Team. Photo by JOHN CAPUTO/AFP via Getty Images, ST. LOUIS, MO CIRCA 1980: Ed Jones #72 of the Dallas Cowboys gets blocked by Dan Dierdorf #72 of the St. Louis Cardinals during an NFL football game circa 1980 at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Missouri. "I dont get it. Ken Griffey Jr.? All betting content is intended for an audience ages 21+. With 4.35 speed, McLaurin can take the top off any defense but has also rounded out the rest of his game since his time at Ohio State. WebThis list is for those players the ones who were great football players and did not get the credit they deserve. most underrated player Its hard to think of a player more dominant and less talked about over a long period of time than Chandler Jones. He was a Pro Bowler in 1974 and 75, and he was an All-Pro selection from 1976-78. "Underrated" is in the eye of the beholder, so let's establish some ground rules for these rankings: After that, players are ranked based how underappreciated they are, not how great they are. Bottom line: The Greatest Show On Turf boasted so much star power you couldnt tell the other Rams without a program. Efficient? Taylor rushed for 1,000-plus yards in seven seasons. 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. Bowman makes this list because he has the makings of a player who will be underappreciated historically. Allen made a lot of plays. Mike Kenn began his career playing left tackle for a lumbering 1970s power-running offense. 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 Gheorghe Hagi, Romania. A longtime semifinalist, his case is about to be handed over to the Veterans Committee, which has done a fine job recently of correcting oversights from Kenn's era. Schlereth started in three Super Bowls with the Redskins and Broncos, all of them victories. And consider this: The one-time college triple-jumper played with a Pro Bowl quarterback (Jim Everett) in only one season. Mason also caught 49 postseason passes and was one of the game's best return men for a few years. The content on this site is for entertainment and educational purposes only. The fullback has become a non-factor in many of todays NFL offenses, but Juszczyk remains an integral part of how the San Francisco 49ers run their offense. TGT Tips! Brown earned seven Pro Bowl berths and an All-Pro selection. Most Underrated Anderson was the first quarterback to successfully orchestrate the beta version of Bill Walsh's West Coast offense for multiple seasons. Waller overcame addiction and his suspension to emerge in 2019, catching 90 passes for 1,145 yards and three touchdowns while starting all 16 games for the Raiders. Allen has much in common with many others on this underrated list. Juszczyk has made five Pro Bowl appearances, including each season since joining San Francisco in 2017. He became an All-Pro playing blindside protector in an early 1990s run-'n'-shoot offense. Anderson became a footnote to the Ditka era, but fans who saw him play know he was far more than that. Maybe he wasn't the best defender on the field for any one play, but he stayed on that field for an entire generation. Hes also among a select few to be a four-time Super Bowl champion. He then went on to start at left tackle for the playoff-bound Cardinals and 2000 NFC champion Giants. Running backs suffer none of the "didn't win the big game" biases that color our perception of quarterbacks. So whaddya say, fans? The AFL was an eight- to 10-team league, so All-Pro selections were easier to come by. 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. Get this: Ten of those seasons were spent with either the Vince Lombardi Packers or Don Shula Dolphins. Franklin-Myers has the ability to play anywhere on the defensive line and is off to a strong start in the Jets' new 4-3 defense under head coach Robert Saleh. He covered receivers (38 career interceptions). David was a crucial component of the Bucs defense during their playoff run in 2020 that culminated in a Super Bowl victory. WebFive players made their "Top 100" debuts -- David Montgomery, Jimmie Ward, CeeDee Lamb, Justin Tucker and Kyle Pitts -- in Episode 1 (Nos. Its easy to forget the Seahawks had some pretty good teams way back when, even a few playoff ones. 2023 Minute Media - All Rights Reserved. Jordi Alba. In the 1950s and the days of 12-game regular seasons, he rushed for 3,078 yards, nearly 1,000 more than the runner-up. Williams' career-high in receptions is only 49, but with increased targets, he has already recorded 31 catches over the first five games in 2021. Karl Mecklenburg. Man Utd's double winning Fifteen years ago, similar receivers were gimmicky undersized role players. If Mel Blount, Mike Haynes and teammate Lemar Parrish hadnt been in the same conference, Riley would have made more a few more Pro Bowl trips. So it takes a remarkable streak of hard luck for a running back to make this list. in the mid-1960s to early '70s, chances are "Whichever one has Marv Fleming" would have been a correct answer. The most underrated player on all 32 NFL teams Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Dallas Cowboys running back Tony Pollard (20) runs with the ball while being tackled by Baltimore Ravens cornerback Marcus Peters (24) in the second quarter at M&T Bank Stadium. The Jaguars, meanwhile, slowly descended to their current status as the NFL's punching bag. He then became a staple of trivia questions and All-Time Worst Trades listicles, as the Lawrence Welk trade overshadowed an even more impressive moment in Hadl's transaction history. Bottom line: Wilber Marshall was the most athletic and versatile linebacker with the legendary 1985 Bears defense he often replaced the celebrated Mike Singletary in pass situations. Know who created those wide-open spaces? Only a dozen players have more career interception return yards (961), and seven of them are in the Hall of Fame. His stardom was spread among three teams, robbing him of local hero status (or Hall of Fame momentum) in any one city. By being overshadowed by Brown, achieving his greatest success just before the dawn of the Super Bowl era and getting stuck behind the Tom Brady and Peyton Manning of your grandfather's generation, Ryan earned the title of the NFL's All-Time Most Underrated Player. A Colts defender delivered some payback in the all-star game. Yet he still led his team to the playoffs three more times. Bowman is a four-time All-Pro and tremendous all-purpose linebacker who emerged as a stalwart leader for teams that otherwise might have packed it in before Labor Day. Wide receiver Chase Claypool stole headlines as a rookie in 2020, while teammate JuJu Smith-Schuster always seems to attract headlines one way or another. 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. He led his team to an NFL championship. Some of the 19 2023 Fantasy Baseball Draft Prep Guide: Rankings, tiers, sleepers Feyenoord v VVV Venlo - Eredivisie. While under the radar, Bates has emerged as one of the better all-around safeties in football. A mauler of a right guard, Timmerman also was agile enough to escort Marshall Faulk on screens and sweeps. 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. Put Ellard in another era or even the AFC with an accomplished quarterback, and his legacy as The Best Wideout Not Named Jerry Rice would be that much greater. Player A passed for 27,928 yards and 194 touchdowns and ran for four touchdowns with mostly very good teams and one great one. Hmmm. While the 2021 season is still early, Johnson looks to have cleaned up some issues with drops that hindered his 2020 performance and is perhaps the only thing stopping him from gaining more notoriety.
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