NFL Players of the Decade

The Game Room
1

Colin Cowherd’s radio show today got me thinking about this. We’re into 2010. Who were the top NFL players of the past 10 years? In order to avoid the Heisman Conundrum (ie., the glory boy positions getting all the love), I’m presenting mine as a Team of the Decade (sort of), but feel free to just list your top 10 or whatever.

The only rule is you have to separate offensive and defensive players (ie., separate lists). I don’t want Ed Reed getting bumped for Priest Holmes, or whatever.

Anyway, here’s my offense:

QB: Peyton Manning. Obvious, really. The most consistent performer in any sport in history. Since 2000, he hasn’t thrown fewer than 25 touchdown passes in any season. He’s thrown for less than 4,000 yards just once. He hasn’t thrown more than 15 picks since 2003.

RB: LaDanian Tomlinson. As someone on Cowherd’s show said, he’s the most complete player in (modern) history, and if not for Manning he’d be the most consistent of the decade. Superb at picking up the blitz. The only back to catch 100 passes in a season. Has lost just 12 fumbles despite carrying or catching the ball nearly 3,500 times. 4.4 yards-per-carry average despite playing on some truly atrocious Charger teams during the first half of his career. 8 of 12 for 143 yards and SEVEN touchdowns as a passer. Oh, and he’s got an outside chance to retire as the #2 scorer in NFL history.

FB: This is where it got hard. Best blocker (Lorenzo Neal)? Best rusher (Mike Alstott)? Best all-rounder (Tony Richardson)? I went for Neal, but only because Alstott spent most of the decade on the bench or retired. Blame Gruden. You ran behind Neal, you ran for 1,200 yards. It was that simple. It’s worth noting that Tomlinson’s unbelievable ‘06 performance came behind Neal, as did Corey Dillon’s 278-yard game.

Flanker: I wanted to put Marvin Harrison here, but he was pretty much done after the 2006 season. Then I wanted T.O., but he fucks up every team he plays for. Instead, it’s got to be Randy Moss. Not consistent at all, but even in his forgotten two seasons in Oakland he posted a combined 1500 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Split End: I wanted to put Reggie Wayne here, but for some reason, I’ve never seen him as a great player. First he was second banana to Marvin Harrison, and then when Harrison was gone he had to fight for the spotlight with Dallas Clark. Andre Johnson has been a superstar for a while, and should have been one for longer, but he’s never even been to the playoffs. Instead, it’s Chad Ochocinco. Like LT2, he toiled in relative obscurity for years, despite posting 1,300 yard seasons like clockwork. He’s so good he made the totally useless Peter Warrick and the nearly as useless T.J. Houshmanzadeh look like viable NFL starters, just because they lined up across from him.

Tight End: Gates or Gonzo? I think Gates will be the best ever when all is said and done - but it’s not all said and done yet. Both showed that NFL teams could stick any worthless scrub at wide receiver if they had good enough tight ends. Gates didn’t play for the first three years of the decade, and Gonzalez did, so Gonzo gets the nod here.

Left Tackle: Neither Jonathan Ogden nor Orlando Pace made it much past the halfway point of the decade. Walter Jones did, and was arguably better than either. Easy call.

Left Guard: Will Shields. Have to have someone from that Chiefs line.

Right Tackle: Ryan Diem. The underappreciated glue in the Colts’ offense.

Right Guard: He played on the left, but I can’t not put Larry Allen in this list. One of the few perennial Pro Bowlers who actually deserved his nods.

Center: Tom Nalen. Another easy one.

I’ll do defense in a separate post because I have to get some work done.

2

I know Tom Nalen seems like the easy choice at C but I would pick Kevin Mawae myself.

Actually I prefer Jeff Faine to either one of them but I don`t expect a whole lot of support on that one.

3

Nalen gets hurt by not being 3-4 years younger. That’s the problem with decade lists - they screw the guys who straddle. You should be able to say “Nalen’s 10 year run from 97-06” (just as long as at least half of that stretch is in the decade in question). Still a close call.

4

Hmm. Gates vs Gonzo is a tough one. Can you exclude someone simply because another guy played 1-2 years longer in a given decade? Imho, gonzo was the best ever at TE in blocking and consistency. Gates is re-defining what a TE is. Those players, imho, should always make the all-decade teams.

5

I don’t see anything that Gates is doing that Gonzo and Sharpe didn’t do before him.



       REC/YR YDS/YR REC/G YDS/G  TD/YR TD/G
Gates   68.4   889.0  4.4   57.1   8.4  0.54
Gonzo   76.8   908.2  4.8   57.3   6.3  0.40
Sharpe  58.2   718.6  4.0   49.3   4.4  0.30

More TDs, but that’s the nature of the game these days, not the position.

6

I don’t know about that. Gonzo’s benefited from that just as much as Gates, and just doesn’t score as much. However, I gave Gonzo the nod partly based on timing and partly because he basically spent two whole seasons in Kansas City as a sixth lineman when their All-Pro linemen all retired at once, without complaining.

Anyway, moving on…

Time for defense! I’m not bothering to arrange players by side. I selected a 4-3 because… well, because I prefer the 4-3. However, I have slotted some 3-4 players into it.

DE: Michael Strahan. This was an easy one. There have been a ton of guys who posted big sack numbers in the past decade, but Strahan produced as many as any of them. Conversely, no rush end played the run during Strahan’s career as well as he did.

DT: Warren Sapp. Another easy one. Sapp redefined the one-gap interior lineman.

DT: Kevin Williams. If Sapp is the best interior pass rusher, Williams is the best interior run-stopper. I would have liked to put a 3-4 nose tackle in here (probably Jamal Williams) but I’ve always felt like Williams could play that position nearly as well, and none of them could play 4-3 under tackle. Don’t even bring up Albert Haynesworth; he’s had two great years and a bunch of mediocre ones.

DE: I thought long and hard about Julius Peppers here, but you look at his numbers and see a good but not great player. He’s a chunkier Simeon Rice - a scary pass rusher, but not a game-changer. Instead, I have to go with Dwight Freeney. He’s the opposite of Strahan; he doesn’t play the run at all. He doesn’t have to, because he’s perfectly suited to the Colts’ play-from-ahead style. Unlike Peppers and Rice, he hasn’t had the luxury of playing on a line full of stars. Instead, for the most part, it’s been him and a bunch of scrubs (until Mathis came along). In fact, the Colts’ entire defense has been him and a bunch of scrubs for much of the decade.

WLB: Derrick Brooks. The best 4-3 outside linebacker ever, even though he’s no bigger than a 1990s strong safety. End of story. Well, except LT, but he doesn’t count. Eleven Pro Bowls, 9 All-Pro selections, 2002 defensive POTY.

MLB: Brian Urlacher got about 30 seconds’ consideration, but obviously this was always going to be Ray Lewis.

SLB: I figured since I had one coverage specialist and one all-rounder, the third linebacker should be a pass rushing specialist. Regardless, I would have put Junior Seau here, but he was only a full-time starter for the first half of the decade. DeMarcus Ware lost out because he only played for half of the decade. Much as I hate him, I have to go with Joey Porter instead. He’s been a force for 10 years.

CB: I think he’s horribly, terribly overrated. Nonetheless, he’s the best cover man of the decade. Champ Bailey.

SS: Ed Reed. Won’t ever get the recognition he deserves because he plays in Ray Lewis’ defense, but the guy can do anything - cover, tackle, lead, and return takeaways.

FS: Troy Polamalu. Just because of the hair.

CB: This one was hard. Ty Law? Charles Woodson? Aeneas Williams? Ronde Barber? I wanted a well-rounded player, since Bailey is worthless for anything except coverage. I’ve always thought Law was overrated, at least since the Pats let him go and replaced him with a string of rookie fourth-rounders. Williams gets marked down because his best years were in the previous decade. Barber is a superb football player, but not a great cover guy. Woodson gets the nod here largely thanks to his Green Bay years, which have made people forget his last two seasons in Oakland.

7

I’m a homer, so you can discount my opinion ;), but I’ll take Brady over Manning. Notable stats from the decade in question:
[ul]
[li]Four Super Bowl appearances (to Manning’s one)[/li][li]Three Super Bowl Wins (to Manning’s one)[/li][li]Most consecutive playoff wins: 10[/li][/ul]

There are plenty of other impressive stats (from both Manning and Brady), but I value playoff wins and championships, and that’s where Brady really dominates over Manning.

8

Manning has 2 Super Bowl appearances not one, and more years making the playoffs during the 2000s. Also, the entire team makes the playoffs, but only the QB accumulates stats - which Manning did a whole hell of a lot better than Brady did (though Brady’s no slouch). I think the Brady/Manning debate is a good one, but no one really gives Manning credit for playing with such an amazingly shitty defense for so many years and excelling.

9

I’d take Bill Belichick over Tony Dungy, but not Brady over Manning.

Regular season record is far more representative of quality than playoff record, and Manning has the edge. That said, I think measuring a quarterback by his record (or playoff record) is silly anyway.

10

Dungy didn’t have to cheat to win, unlike Belichick

11

Actually, Brady has a large edge - over 8% - in percentage of wins, which is the only meaningful way to compare records:

Manning regular season record = 133-62 (68.2%)
Brady regular season record = 97-30 (76.4%)

Manning overall record including playoffs = 151-71 (68.0%)
Brady overall record including playoffs = 111-34 (76.5%) - best of ANY quarterback since the merger (according to Wikipedia)

So, unless you’re saying that Manning gets the nod because he has more *total *wins than Brady (which I think would be odd, since Manning’s played for longer), then by your own criteria Brady is better. I agree that it’s a little silly to compare 2 quarterbacks of this caliber, though. They are both incredible and certain first-ballot hall of famers, and a good argument can be made for either of them for All Decade Team.

PS. Sorry about screwing up Peyton’s two SB appearances. Don’t know what I was thinking. 4 is still better than 2, though :wink:

12

(bolding mine)

See my apology above about Manning SB appearances :o

In the 2000s, Manning has 9/10 years making the playoffs, Brady has 7/9, or 7/8 if you discount his year out with the knee injury. Not a significant difference, IMO.

I don’t know what the bolded statement means…?

I absolutely give credit for Manning playing with shitty defenses. I think he’s a freaking machine!

13

I can’t stand Brady, so I won’t take sides in Manning v Brady. But I think Roethlisberger should be included in this conversation.

In addition to the lack of postseason success, Manning has other skeletons. he was a major reason why the Colts repeatedly lost in the playoffs, repeatedly. Brady and Roethlisberger don’t have that little problem.

Big Ben won rings with 2 different coaches and systems. He’s also never lost a Super Bowl. Of course, he did have an atrocious game versus Seattle. But he won. And he beat Manning that year.

14

As much as I like ben, Pitt’s success during his career came as much from the coaching and defense as from himself. This year’s team is eerily similar to the one in Ben’s rookie year, where he went something crazy like 11-1 while throwing ~100 yards per game and riding on the back of Jerome Bettis, Duce Staley, and later, Willie Parker. On a different team, I think it’s clear that Ben wouldn’t have had the success he has had.

On the other hand, there’s little doubt that Manning could improve a different team immensely. If Manning and Brady switched teams, I think the Colts would get a lot worse while the pats would get a lot better.

15

Ben doesn’t belong in the conversation. He’s closer to Eli than Peyton. And it is laughable to suggest that he get any credit at all for that first Superbowl. (He gets all the credit in the world for the second one, of course.)

No, you’re good. LT played outside linebacker in the 3-4, not 4-3, so your caveat was unnecessary. (Though appreciated by this Giants fan.)

16

A couple of differences from RNATB’s cool list. I won’t be picking positions according to left/right, flanker/split end, etc. This allows me to avoid having to consider “wasting” a spot on second-tier stars like Reggie Wayne, Chad Ochocinco, or Ryan Diem. I mean, granting that Diem was the best RT of the decade, if a team happened to have Walter Jones, Orlando Pace, and Diem, we all know which one would be riding the bench (or playing Guard).

Also, I’ll be a little more willing to consider accomplishments that came prior to 2000 so long as the player played through most of the 00’s, or played most of his career in that decade.
QB: Peyton Manning. I think it’s fine to put Brady here, but Manning is an easy call for me. Brady gets some credit for the playoff wins and the Super Bowls, etc., but the coaching staff and the other 52 players players, collectively, get a lot more. One could argue that Brady would have consistently put up super-fantastic numbers (like he did in '07) if he’d always had a Colts-caliber offense around him, but that’s speculation, while Manning actually has put up some of greatest stats in NFL history.

RB: LaDanian Tomlinson. Total slam dunk. I’d be interested to see if anyone could make an intelligent case for someone else. I frankly doubt it.

FB: Tony Richardson. Could be Neal, but I’ll go with Richardson because of his association with the Chiefs’ running game (more to come on that). I hate Alstott here, who’s more of short-yardage RB than true FB.

TE: Tony Gonzales. And it’s not even close.

WR1: Randy Moss.
WR2: Terrell Owens.
WR3: Marvin Harrison. What? Three WRs? Well, it’s a 21st century offense, so the Fullback is only going to play 40% of the snaps, max. Besides, these three are so close, and so far ahead of the rest of the pack, that it’s a little silly to stop at two.

As for the order, first off, it’s pretty close, and largely subjective. Moss just seemed the most dominant of the three, and I think it’s not coincidence that historically great passing seasons have followed him around: Culpepper and the great Vikings offense completely fell apart without him, he squeezed a pretty good offensive year out of Kerry Collins and a bad Raiders team in '05, and his arrival in New England coincided with the sudden shift from “mediocre passing game” to “greatest Quarterback season of all time.” You can follow the same sort of pattern in T.O.'s teams and teammates, if to a lesser extent. Harrison was great, of course, but I do knock him a small amount for getting passes from Peyton Manning – that had to inflate his apparent value somewhat. Also, for all the talk of Moss and T.O. being bad guys, Marvin Harrison maybe kinda sorta probably murdered a guy in cold blood.

LT: Willie Roaf.
LG: Will Shields. Putting in the left side of Chiefs’ spectacular O-line together. To know how good these guys were, look at the legendary RB seasons they bequeathed. We’re all familiar with the ridiculous yardage and TD numbers from KC’s Running Backs in the earl-mid 00’s, but perhaps even more impressive is their advanced stats. The Chiefs’ rushing DVOA rank, 2001-2005: 2nd, 1st, 1st, 1st, 4th. That kind of consistent dominance is almost unheard of, and the team did it with Priest Holmes and later Larry Johnson at RB, two players who, while certainly not bad, were also clearly, I think, not special in any meaningful way.

In fact, KC also had an extremely efficient passing offense in those years (and, needless to say, a phenomenal overall offense). They did have a *great *Tight End, but otherwise this was an offense with a well below average WR corps and one of the *better *QBs in the league, but clearly not one of the best. Skill position players always get the credit on truly great offenses, but Kansas city had the best offense of the first half of the decade – by far – and it was because of the O-line, quite directly.

C: Tom Nalen. I agree with RNATB: pretty easy call, especially when you give him extra credit for the 80 games he started in the 90s.

RG: Larry Allen. I think. I don’t actually have a strong opinion on the other Guard position.

RT: Orlando Pace. But I could be talked into Walter Jones or Jonathan Ogden. I mostly associate each of them with the 00’s, so I don’t care that Jones’ salad days fell more heavily on the near side of the millennium than the other two.
I’ll probably do Defense tomorrow. Or maybe not, we’ll see which way the wind blows.

17

Closer to Eli? You’re clearly a Giants fan. No offense, but that’s nonsense. And you’re falling for the Manning media hype. Peyton Manning has demonstrated over and over again that he chokes in big situations. Pretty much every. single. year. He’s worse than Favre. His Super Bowl win was as ugly as Ben’s first. The only other quarterback that belongs alongside Brady is Ben. Peyton stands somewhere around the top of the 2nd tier. And I don’t even discount his MVP’s. I think that he deserved them all. But the post-season counts big in debates like these. Manning fails miserably in the playoffs.

Damn! I hate giving credit to Brady!

Also keep in mind, Ben only has 6 years of experience. His 6 years are clearly superior to both Brady’s and Manning’s first 6.

18

WTF? Obviously you live in a world with a black and gold sky.

Ben.
Brady.

Ben’s career regular season record is 60-26 and his playoff record is 8-2. In Brady’s first six years as a starter, he went 70-24 in the regular season and 12-2 in the playoffs - and the Pats won one more Super Bowl than the Steelers did. 14 more wins and two fewer losses is over two games a year. Ben threw 127 TDs and 81 picks; Brady’s first six years he threw 147 and 78. Ben’s taken more sacks in six years than Brady has in his career. Roethlisberger has a tiny edge in completion percentage (63 vs. 62%) and a bigger edge in yards per attempt (8 vs. 7), but that’s it. Brady’s head and shoulders better than Roethlisberger.

Oh, and he never scrambled his brain in a motorcycle accident or got suspended for raping college girls. It’s nice to have a QB who’s allowed to play.

19

Thinking that Ben belongs in the mix is insanity. I am a Giants fan, yes, but at least I recognize that my guy isn’t the greatest of all time. You should try some reality, it’s nice. And yes, Ben isn’t that far removed from Eli. In fact, as I said, Eli is closer to Ben than Ben is to Peyton or Brady.

Evidence of your dreamworld is that you think Peyton’s Superbowl win was on par with Ben’s first. That’s laughable. Peyton’s Superbowl win was a pedestrian performance, well below his regular season standard. Ben’s first ring was a choke for the ages, the single worst performance in a Superbowl to ever win, and by a huge margin. Hell, his performance was so bad that only a handful of losing quarterbacks have ever played worse.

Ben choked his first Superbowl as badly as Peyton ever choked any playoff game. It was just fortunate for Ben that the Steelers had a great team around him and that they faced the scrotty Seahawks. Seahawks and Cardinals, what a legacy!

20

No, you’re quite right there. I didn’t realize how good Brady’s regular season record was. I’m still sticking with Manning, though.

If 2008 had never happened and we hadn’t seen Belichick wring an 11-5 season out of Matt Cassell, I’d probably have picked Manning AND Brady.

I selected a flanker and a split end just because I think wide receivers should be named something better than X and Y. :smiley: I didn’t really pigeonhole anyone into either group- if I’d gone with T.O. and Moss they’d have played opposite one another.

I was so determined to put someone from that Chiefs line on the team that when I ended up with Alan Faneca and Allen at the guard spots I decided to put Shields at center.

Then I realized if he was so good I was going to pick him out of position he was better than Faneca.

So nominate him for the '10-'20 all-decade team. Roethlisberger simply isn’t in the same tier as Manning. Manning’s team is built around him; Roethlisberger’s is built around its defense.