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. The Pro Football Reference Similar Players tool compares Ryan's five-year peak to that of Joe Theismann. He started for an offensive line that helped Barry Sanders win two of his four rushing titles. Watch more top videos, highlights, and B/R original content, acquired the 34-year-old Rams quarterback by, Ronald C. Modra/Sports Imagery/Getty Images, Pro Football Reference Similar Players tool, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. But Wright never posted massive interception totals, and his teams ended up on the receiving end of a pair of Super Bowl beatings. Dunn finished his career with 15,655 all-purpose yards, 25th in league history, one of the best players never to be a champion. Ryan made three Pro Bowls, but All-Pro status was blocked by a couple of guys named Johnny Unitas and Bart Starr. Robinson is a staple of Hall of Fame Snubs lists, and he certainly has his case. Bottom line: In his 15th and final season, the 36-year-old Ken Riley had eight interceptions and returned two of them for touchdowns, one of the most incredible performances by an old man ever. Bottom line: OK, kids, lets play Name That Hall of Famer. The Bills were among the first teams to frequently operate without a huddle. Steve Atwater. He was a Pro Bowl regular, two-time All-Pro and Defensive Rookie of the Year in 1971. Hull started his professional career with the USFL's New Jersey Generals, where he helped Herschel Walker rush for 2,411 yards in one 18-game season. These are the most unsung NFL quarterbacks of all time. 30. Wright earned a second-team All-1970s nod from the Pro Football Hall of Fame, even though several of his signature years were in the 1980s. ", Teams: St. Louis Cardinals, Houston Oilers, Buffalo Bills, Washington Redskins, Pro Bowl appearances (AFL All-Star Game): Two (1965, 1967). Ryan would blitz between five and eight defenders, plus some water boys and maybe a few boo birds from the 700 level of Veterans Stadium. The 49ers drafted linebacker Reuben Foster at the bottom of the first round. It takes years of playing the wrong position for the wrong team in the wrong league at the wrong time. The latest in the sports world, emailed daily. And to think, the guy never played in a Pro Bowl game. It would rank 16th all-time, except that if we allow Marshall's sacks into the record, we would have to make room for Deacon Jones, Mean Joe Greene and others. There may be such a thing as too much blitzing, after all. Anderson became a footnote to the Ditka era, but fans who saw him play know he was far more than that. Also, the field was often a block of ice. The trade went how you might expect a lopsided midseason deal for an aging quarterback to go. Bottom line: Quick, name the winningest Seahawks quarterback before the Russell Wilson era. Guards don't make the Hall of Fame unless they win multiple Super Bowls or play forever. These are the most underrated college football players of all time. Henry Ellard spent the first five seasons of his NFL career returning punts and putting up humdrum receiving stats. Debates about the greatest pass-rushers in the history of the NFL will conjure up mentions of players such as Bruce Smith, Michael Strahan, Reggie White and others. Brown is now best known as a television personality. One look at the logjam forming outside the entrance to Canton tells you Wisniewski isn't moving up the ladder anytime soon. It is difficult to rank Ken Anderson in this list if only because he is constantly referenced as being an underrated player. Mostly Schlereth and sidekick Tom Nalen, who were masters of zone-blocking schemes, a major reason why Davis is in the Hall of Fame today. Most seasons with 30 made field goals (7). Fifteen years ago, similar receivers were gimmicky undersized role players. An all-underrated team like this one can get flooded with Zach Thomas, Hardy Nickerson, Tommy Nobis and Tedy Bruschi types if we don't get a little choosy. He had 44 career sacks and as many as eight in a season on two occasions. 'Nuff said, right? And none of them produce the numbers he generated in less hospitable systems. WebAll-Time Most Underrated NFL Players by Position. Web12) Steve Hutchinson: He was the top overall lineman in the NFL for several years, irrespective of position. 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. The Hall of Fame has turned up its nose on all of them. No reasonable person is going to confuse Ottis Anderson for being one of the top-five running backs in the history of the NFL, but he is nevertheless grossly underrated by far too many who follow the NFL. But don't write him off as some 1960s product of the system. Lofton could stretch the field with his speed, and he also had some of the best hands of his time. Super Bowl championships: 1974, 1975, 1978, 1979. His 2,690 all-purpose yards with the Titans in the 2000 season are second in league history. If ever a geezer was meant to play with George Allens Over The Hill Gang, he was the one. Brown did one thing terribly wrong in 18 NFL seasons, but for his teams to win as often as they did, he must have done an awful lot more right. 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. Even so, Smith was pretty much a well-kept secret outside Pittsburgh despite meeting or approaching Pro Bowl standards for almost a decade. There are certain statistics that one would imagine would immediately pop into the mind of a football fan. Young was a devastating interior pass-rusher who recorded 30 sacks in the three-year span from 1998 through 2000. Modern centers don't get the credit they deserve. 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. Most Underappreciated RBs of the 2000s. "It was tough, but I was happy for those guys," Dunn told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. 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. Robertson's Rams made a habit of reaching the playoffs every year and losing to the Vikings or Cowboys. Since the NFL has turned What Mason did have was a keen attention to detail and fanatical drive to succeed. As the Chargers faded, Rivers kept them in the wild-card picture and became the franchise's only recognizable public figure. The rumors themselves were not surprising. The Bucs hired head coach Jon Gruden and won Super Bowl XXXVII the next season. Thats been the real surprise. These ideas that Marvin Harrison cannot be considered to be one of the greatest wide receivers in the history of the NFL all because he played with Peyton Manning need to be put to bed forever. McDole was known as "The Dancing Bear" because of his nimble feet, one of the coolest nicknames ever. He became an All-Pro playing blindside protector in an early 1990s run-'n'-shoot offense. But outside of Wisconsin, his accomplishments were mostly forgotten shortly after his career ended in 2001. The unfunny joke that has been Isaac Bruce not being voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame is one that is going to end soon. Finally, at last, the cornerback was selected to play in his first Pro Bowl game as some kind of lifetime achievement award. He talked the talk and he walked the walk, and Reed should be recognized for being an all-time great receiver by all fans and journalists. Bottom line: The 1970s Steelers won four Super Bowls two with a power run game, two with a potent pass attack and who better than Jon Kolb to do the heavy lifting? Bowman is coming off an Achilles tear in 2016. Mason had seven seasons of at least 70 pass receptions, 1,000 yards and five touchdowns. Those who have knowledge of National Football League history are well aware of the more famous individuals who made their names and fame playing pro football. chants for the best players who didnt get their just dues over the years. WebNFL Nostalgia: Ranking the Most Underrated Players in NFL History. WebWhile we could have included a few more, here is our list of the 10 most underrated players in NFL history. The best we can offer is a little bit of credit where a lot is due. Norton made the key play of the game in the second period, when he stood up Buffalo Bills back Kenneth Davis mere inches from the goal line. If McCree doesn't cough up that fourth-quarter pick, the Chargers beat the Patriots, and perhaps Philip Rivers leads a team that went 14-2 in the regular season to the Super Bowl. That's where the politics of Hall voting come in. Any defensive player breaking into the NFL in 2015 would love to be mentioned alongside such names when his career came to an end. Not bad for a guy who might as well have played in a straight jacket for 14 seasons. Don Hutson played multiple positions during his time, including defense and on special teams. Born: (2007, 2009, 2012), NFL Special Teams Player of the Year (2009), NFL 2000s All-Decade Team . Teams: Jacksonville Jaguars, New England Patriots, Bottom line: Fred Taylor once tweeted, "I earned respect on the field. Running backs suffer none of the "didn't win the big game" biases that color our perception of quarterbacks. Pro Football Reference rates him at near a Pro Bowl level well into his 30s. But he didn't play for the legendary 49ers teams. Harrison's numbers should speak for themselves, and those who would say otherwise are either trying to make a point or are simply ignoring how great Harrison was during his career. Let's hope the fame doesn't go to his head. Despite his incredibly high waist seriously, check out his build Kelvin Beachum has been one of the most underrated tackles in the NFL. WebMost Underrated NFL Players of All Time These men did so much but received so little credit in return. The most similar current player to Anderson is Pittsburgh's Le'Veon Bell, but Bell plays in a modern offense that amplifies his production instead of suppressing it. He had one sack in four games, all Rams victories. An undrafted quarterback out of the late Milton College (Wisconsin), Krieg got them to the postseason four times and the AFC championship game once. And because versatility is his calling card, he'll never produce gaudy sack totals or climb any all-time leaderboards. Twenty years ago, the Jacksonville Jaguars were one of the marquee organizations in professional sports, and Jimmy Smith was one of their brightest stars. Bottom line: If an inquiring mind had asked "Which team will win the Super Bowl?" Efficient? Ohhh-kaaaaay, one of the Hasselbecks then? Super Bowl championships: Two (1996, 1999). He was arrested four times after his abrupt retirement. Perhaps it's time we look back on how much of an impact he and his Jaguars had on the NFL two decades ago. Get this: Ten of those seasons were spent with either the Vince Lombardi Packers or Don Shula Dolphins. Anderson went on to duel with Walsh and Montana's 49ers in Super Bowl XVI. That's a higher sack total than Dwight Freeney or Robert Mathis. Anchoring defenses with catchy names like the "Orange Crush?" Membership on various All-1960s teams. Allen has much in common with many others on this underrated list. Still, even his long resume undersells his 5. A new generation of superstar left tackles entered the league as Brown was peaking, and he spent the latter half of his career bouncing from team to team as Tony Boselli, Willie Roaf, Orlando Pace, Jonathan Ogden and Walter Jones turned the blindside protector into an almost glamorous position. It made the Bills of the early 1990s the greatest team to never win a Super Bowl. Hes on the short list of running back leaders in yards per rush (4.6, 17th), touches (2,824, 25th) and yards from scrimmage (14,079, 35th) in NFL history. No modern coach suppressed passing offenses quite like Fisher, and no team produces offensive stats that look like they come from the early 1930s quite like the Ravens. Who knows what the NFL might have looked like then? For a few years, he was not only the best guard in the NFL, but the most important. There have been many better quarterbacks than Ryan in NFL history. 4. He is, however, most remembered, for being a wide receiver who was decades ahead of his time. 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. Smith produced nine 1,000-yard seasons in 10 years, including two 100-plus-catch seasons in an era when they were still relatively uncommon. Web#shorts #viral #dunk #edit #fyp #nfl #sports #sportsedits That feeling never really went away.". Allen is trailing by 26 sacks as of the start of the 2015 regular season. One of the big Pro Bowl misses from 2015 is the player I think is the NFL 's Most Underrated. In an era when 50 percent completion rates and 20-interception seasons were common for Pro Bowl quarterbacks, Anderson's 64.9 percent completion rate and quarterback ratings above 90 look like temporal anomalies. Stafford is an underrated quarterback who has also been a pillar of stability outside of his second season and this past year. Teams: Los Angeles Rams, Washington Redskins. July 24, 2020July 24, 2020 Koby83 Carson Palmer, Football, Matt Schaub, NFL, Quarterbacks Underrated. One of the greatest defenders in the history of a storied franchise, Young is just another victim of bad timing when it comes to getting the reputation he deserves. Put him on the Tom Brady-led Patriots, and Mason might have invented a new branch of mathematics. Yet somehow, some way, Kolb never received a Pro Bowl invitation. Cunningham is widely regarded as one of the best running QBs in the history of the NFL, but his ability to make plays with his arm should not be ignored. Bahr converted 84 percent of his field-goal attempts (21 of 25), and 98 percent of his extra-point tries (40 of 41) when it counted most. Turned out he was skilled and driven enough to be a champion. WebWe're a media page that has been highlighting an underrated player from every team in the NFL. By the time Rivers is retired for five years, the "San Diego Chargers" will be as relevant as the Dayton Triangles, and Hall voters will be too busy rubber-stamping Tom Brady and Drew Brees to get to a guy from a lost city who couldn't win the big one. The Adventures of Grim Reaper J is a Reminder to Do What You Love style | Charlie Kolbrener Johnnie Walker Collaborates With VANDYTHEPINK and 88Rising to Release Special Blue Label Bottle nft | ONE37pm Editors Wouldnt you know it? "I dont get it. Both players were Pro Bowlers the previous year. Some of the most-talented individuals to ever play particular positions have, at some point or another, gone unappreciated by fans and even by supposed NFL experts. But things were different in the long-ago 1990s, when the sports universe belonged to teal-emblazoned expansion franchises and a youngish Tom Coughlin received a binder full of press clippings from the mother of a wide receiver ready to call it quits after injuries derailed his Cowboys career. Steven Jackson arrived in St. Louis just as the Greatest Show on Turf was deteriorating into the Most Miserable Slog in the Midwest. Mills and Reggie White were the USFL's two greatest defenders ever. 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. Mills looks like just another local hero linebacker in the encyclopedias, albeit a good one. Randy Gradishar. Bottom line: In the Steelers' 3-4 scheme, defensive ends were akin to smaller, more agile tackles run-stoppers first, pass-rushers second. Once an arbitrary number of players from a historic team get enshrined, the committee moves on in search of underappreciated players from other franchises. 25 of 25. Fitzgerald has been a mainstay in lists of Top 100 players in the NFL for years. Maybe that victory gives them the psychological edge they need to beat the undefeated Patriots in their 2008 playoff rematch. Only a dozen players have more career interception return yards (961), and seven of them are in the Hall of Fame. 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. "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. Now, underrated can mean a couple of things. And you're never going to guess who's No. Along with the legendary Johnny Unitas, Rote probably did more to change the quarterback position than anyone in the pre-merger era even if so few know it. Start with Adam Timmerman, who won Super Bowl rings with the Packers and Rams three years apart. "When I was there, the thing we were missing was that explosive type of offense, and the new coach brought that in.". Or as astute NBC broadcaster Dick Enberg scored it, "KO for Ken Norton.". He once sacked Dan Marino twice on the first two plays of a gamea remarkable achievement, as Marino was one of the least sacked quarterbacks in NFL history. Here on the All-Time Underrated List, it counts for a lot. The difference between the great and the all-time great is often a matter of timing and luck. In two Super Bowl trips, Bahr didnt miss a kick three field goals, six PATs. He's the Rams' all-time leading rusher with almost 3,000 more yards for the franchise than Marshall Faulk or Eric Dickerson. 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. Krieg was a career overachiever who survived 19 seasons on modest talent with defense-driven teams. Lets not forget they also dominated with cold-blooded efficiency at the other side of the ball, where Keena Turner was rarely out of position at right outside linebacker. Its a frigging joke that Taylor isnt in the Hall of Fame discussion. But c'mon: 289 regular-season and postseason starts, 127 sacks and four Super Bowl appearances, yet the Hall of Fame turns up its nose at Marshall as just a pretty good defender with a long career? Lambeau Field was an icy outpost; the Packers still played a handful of home games in Milwaukee back then. It takes bad timing and bad luck. He won the Rookie of the Year and the Comeback Player of the Year awards as a professional, and Anderson was named the Most Valuable Player for Super Bowl XXV. It is easy to understand why he would come up when the topic is being addressed, but that he is not respected as one of the best to play the position is difficult to understand. "That was my territory," Edwards recalled in The Palm Beach Post. Only kicker in NFL history to hit at least one FG This list begins with a quarterback who is preparing to play in the 2015 NFL regular season. His 42-yarder in the 1990 NFC championship game rates as one of the greatest clutch kicks in league history. With Warfield hurt nearly all of that season, Ryan helped make a Pro Bowler out of receiver/punter Gary Collins. During that time, he led the league in passer rating four times and passing yards twice. Let's face it: An entire All-Underrated Team can be assembled using only Broncos defenders. Butler is all but guaranteed to get lost in the shuffle. Maybe Wright wasn't a Blount-level legend, but he deserves better than to be the forgotten man among the Broncos' forgotten men. Do people not recognize Rob Gronkowski as a great tight end just because he has had Tom Brady as his quarterback? WebTop 10 most underrated NFL players: Justin Tucker, Keenan Allen deserve more recognition. Mark Schlereth. The 2023 wide receiver class is one of the worst in recent memory, but there are some solid options on Day 2 for teams searching for complementary players. If Morgan had played in a pass-happy offense with a Pro Bowl quarterback and hands-off rules, you would find him in Canton right now. He led his team to an NFL championship. Deebo Samuel broke the game open for San Francisco with his 74-yard In 10 of the 12 seasons in which he started at least half their games, the Seahawks prevailed more times than not. Were going to wrap up the The system helped make Hall of Famers of Kelly, Reed and Thomas. One of the best players in the league during the 1980s, Monk is too often unappreciated in lists of all-time great wide receivers. There, he led a relentless Redskins pass rush in their Super Bowl XXVI ambush. Ellard was an Antonio Brown-level talent in his prime, but his teams were in no hurry to get him the ball. Anderson was not Payton, and the later-era Mike Ditka Bears could never approach the heights reached by the 1985 Bears. By the time the 49ers are great again, Bowman may be in his early 30s or on another team. Chandler Jones, As for being so underrated he's overrated, wellthat's extremely underrated, which justifies Anderson's ranking here. Appreciate him for being that. Bottom line: Few remember Glen Edwards as the fearless strong safety with the Steelers first two Super Bowl teams. Drew Brees endured an average of just 24 sacks per season in Evans' All-Pro seasons, despite typically dropping back to pass over 650 times per year. How he slipped through the cracks for 13 years remains one of the unsolved mysteries in pro football. Young checks in at No. That makes sense: Both started their careers late, played with workhorse running backs, won a championship and had their careers curtailed by vicious hits. 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. Seven times, he surpassed 1,000 yards on pass receptions, most of them on slants and corner routes. One has to wonder if those QBs will ever receive the respect they truly deserve. And they really deserve more love. He was drafted by the Falcons with the eighth overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft, and he was an instant But McCree did fumble. Anderson was named to four Pro Bowl squads during his career, ad he led the Cincinnati Bengals to a Super Bowl appearance that did not go Cincinnati's way because of Joe Montana and the San Francisco 49ers. Without Kenn, there might not be free agency in the NFL, to say nothing of limitations on practice conditions and other initiatives that make pro football less dangerous than it was decades ago. There are some out there who would say that a player who has been inducted into the Hall of Fame cannot possibly be underrated. I still don't know that people gave me my due respect for my production. He won 65 percent of his NFL starts. (Bonus point: Schlereth doesnt suck as a broadcaster on ESPN. WebMay 12, 2022. Super Bowl victories? You mean future Hall of Fame tackle Orlando Pace didnt block four guys all by himself? He was an iron man for a powerhouse franchise that reached four Super Bowls while playing many of their home games in arctic conditions. That may be unfair to players like Robinson, Jerry Kramer and L.C. He returned eight interceptions for touchdowns, including four in 1993 and three during his age-35 season with the Raiders in 2000. NFL career: Cleveland Browns (2005-12), New York Jets (2013), Indianapolis Colts (2014) Bottom Line: Josh Cribbs. Provided by Fadeaway World View the original article to see Try Dave Krieg. That theory is tested to the maximum every time that somebody attempts to suggest that Art Monk was a good but not great wide receiver. Terry Porter. A mauler of a right guard, Timmerman also was agile enough to escort Marshall Faulk on screens and sweeps. MVP-caliber seasons (1,528 yards, 90 receptions, 16 total touchdowns in 2006) early in his career gave way to annual 1,100-1,200 yard, low-touchdown grinds as the Greatest Show Rams retired one by one and the team fell to 2-14 and 1-15. Those accomplishments may soon finally land Kenn in the Hall of Fame. Some of the hottest takes one will see as it pertains to Drew Brees involve criticisms of his numbers because of the fact that he has played the majority of his home games inside of a dome. Rote was the first quarterback who regularly beat defenses with his legs as well as his arm. Addiction soon began consuming Smith's career, and then his life. 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. Unless you live in Cleveland or are over 50, you probably have never heard of him. The least glamorous position on the field, a so-so team, a franchise moveWisniewski pulled three lemons on the recognition slot machine. Freelancer for multiple websites. For the second installment in underappreciated NFL players, we have the running backs. Is Jerry Rice not the greatest wide receiver in history because he played alongside Joe Montana and Steve Young? His stardom was spread among three teams, robbing him of local hero status (or Hall of Fame momentum) in any one city. Teams: Chicago Bears, Washington Redskins, Houston Oilers, Arizona Cardinals, New York Jets, Pro Bowl appearances: Three (1986, 1987, 1992), Super Bowl championships: Two (1985, 1991). Kenn is one of the NFL's all-time great players and leaders, and his impact ranges far beyond his playing career. And few were better at making opposing quarterbacks pay for mistakes. Evans is still playing at a high level; the Packers hope that he can do for Aaron Rodgers what he did for Brees. Bottom line: The Greatest Show On Turf boasted so much star power you couldnt tell the other Rams without a program. 44. He ran a Sonny Jurgensen pass back 59 yards in the fourth quarter to seal a Rams playoff win over the Redskins in 1974. Maybe he wasn't the best defender on the field for any one play, but he stayed on that field for an entire generation. Maybe there is still an NFL team in San Diego. 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. WebMost Underappreciated QBs of the 2000s. Shaun Alexander's production plummeted when Hutch left Seattle in 2006. Football experts know of the Hutson's accomplishments, but too many casual fans are unaware of all that the man credited with birthing pass routes that are used today achieved during his legendary career. 3. There would not be another exchange of current Pro Bowlers in the NFL until the Broncos and Redskins exchanged Champ Bailey and Clinton Portis in 2004. Been a pillar of stability outside of his second season and this past year a devastating interior pass-rusher who 30. Remembered, for being a wide receiver in history because he is constantly referenced being. ( Bonus point: Schlereth doesnt suck as a broadcaster on ESPN guy who might well! 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