The NFL's top 100 players in 2022, 20-11

With the 2022 NFL season almost upon us, it seemed like a good time to examine the top players around the league. Ranking NFL players in any position is a difficult task and it only gets harder when you rank every player in the NFL.

Every player on this list is an incredible asset to their franchise. Many players couldn't make the cut because there's only 100 spots on the list. However, with good performances in the 2022 NFL campaign, they might be on this list next year.

Let's continue to count down the top 100 players in the NFL. Here are numbers 20-11:

#20. Quenton Nelson, Indianapolis Colts

Jordan Nelson was always going to make an appearance on this list and I had a tough time placing him. That’s despite missing four games in the 2022 NFL season and being less than 100 percent among a couple of others.

Expand Tweet

Still, he was able to hold opposing defenders to just one sack with 15 total pressures across the 13 contests was available for. Along with that, he continued to dominate as a run-blocker, where he can ride defensive tackles back into the linebacker’s lap. He can crush edge defenders on kickout blocks or take second- and third-level defenders out if they try to get in his way when leading up into the hole. He’s still on a Hall of Fame trajectory.

#19. DeForest Buckner, Indianapolis Colts

Looking at where fans generally conceive DeForest Buckner to be and the lack of attention he receives, he’s become one of the most underappreciated players in the NFL. Across his two NFL seasons in Indianapolis, he has recorded 20 tackles for loss, 16.5 sacks and 44 additional quarterback hits. While those numbers are more than respectable, they don’t truly illustrate his impact on the Indianapolis Colts defense.

Expand Tweet

If you put this guy at three-technique and just ask him to attack upfield, he will constantly disrupt run plays and he can take away any space for the quarterback to step up into, but you can legitimately line him up in the A-gap and swallow double-teams, while Ithe Colts even started putting him in two-point chances over the center and used him as a set-up man on games, creating pressure opportunities for teammates.

#18. Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Chargers v Washington Football Team

After the big three of John Allen, Patrick Mahomes and Aaron Rodgers, in terms of talent level Justin Herbert stands above the rest. After setting a new rookie record with 31 passing touchdowns, he surpassed that number by seven additional ones this past NFL season, while cracking the 5,000-yard mark through the air. He did toss 15 interceptions and his team came up one overtime field goal short of making the playoffs. But he also led five fourth-quarter comebacks and game-winning drives each, while the Los Angeles Chargers defense and special teams let him down frequently.

Expand Tweet

Herbert made some of the most mind-boggling throws we saw all of last season. He finished the year by converting six straight do-or-die fourth downs to give his team a chance in Week 18's Sunday Night thriller against the Las Vegas Raiders.

#17. Fred Warner, San Francisco 49ers

For a player to stand out at his position, he has to either consistently play at an extremely high level or give his team an advantage that others can't. Fred Warner combines both of those things for the San Francisco 49ers. Not only does he process plays and can get there quicker than any other linebacker, but the space he can cover in the passing game enables them to do things that not even the Seahawks could with Bobby Wagner.

Expand Tweet

Whether he’s splitting linemen in space to kill screen passes or carry a seam route by a receiver after being mugged in the A-gap, he achieves feats you don’t often see. His 12 tackles for loss and passes defended over the last two years, as well as his 6.9% missed tackle rate, are impressive. But numbers can’t fully grasp his effect on the 49ers defense.

#16. Justin Jefferson, Minnesota Vikings

It was a tight race for WR3, but even if Justin Jefferson came up just short in that competition, he’s a tremendous player. He’s not as strong as some others, but I don’t think there’s anybody who can make defenders look absolutely stupid quite like the Minnesota Vikings receiver as a route-runner.

Expand Tweet

Jefferson’s 3,016 yards through his first two seasons are the most among all the players in NFL history. He’s currently just half a yard behind Julio Jones for the most receiving yards per game ever. I can’t wait to see him be utilized more frequently in the slot and play a bigger part as a run-blocker under new head-coach Kevin O’Connell in the Cooper Kupp role.

#15. Zack Martin, Dallas Cowboys

I was ready to put the Colts’ Quenton Nelson as the best interior lineman in the NFL, but while him being banged up does certainly play a factor, I didn’t anticipate Zack Martin to surpass him again. However, he played the guard position as well as anybody not named Nelson in 2021.

Expand Tweet

Now at 31 years old, Martin was responsible for just one sack and 17 total pressures last season (2.7% pressure rate per dropback). He might have been even more effective as a run-blocker, where he consistently opens up cutback lanes behind him on zone run concepts. He was limited to just ten games the year prior, but showed his value when jumping in – and excelling – at right tackle.

#14. Ja’Marr Chase, Cincinnati Bengals

Super Bowl LVI - Los Angeles Rams v Cincinnati Bengals

There’s no other way to describe Ja'Marr Chase’s rookie campaign than ridiculous. Just one year after his former LSU teammate Justin Jefferson set the record for rookie receiving yards, Chase surpassed that mark with his 1,455. Of his 81 total receptions, 56 resulted in new first downs and 13 reached the end-zone. He had his issues with drops early on, with 11 during the regular year, but only one came during their final eight games and he consistently came up huge in the Cincinnati Bengals’ biggest games.

Expand Tweet

The reason I feel comfortable already putting him above so many other great receivers is that he can take a slant 70 yards, flat out run by defenders, but also stop on a dime and convert in high-leverage moments for them.

#13. Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs

Similar to Davante Adams for wide receivers, Travis Kelce does have legitimate competitors for the top tight end spot in the NFL. But in terms of consistently being available, moving the chains and making big plays when needed most, Kelce earns the top spot here. Over the past four years, he has averaged 99.3 receptions for 1276.5 yards and 8.8 touchdowns. Those numbers would rank him third, second and sixth amongst wide receivers.

Expand Tweet

No tight-end in the NFL is even close. Kelce can be split out and turn corners the wrong way, he can slalom through the defense with the ball in his hands or elevate from catches through contact. The only reason he’s not even higher on the list is that he did drop 10 passes last year, primarily due to a lack of needed focus.

#12. Nick Bosa, San Francisco 49ers

NFC Wild Card Playoffs - San Francisco 49ers v Dallas Cowboys

I believe there’s a pretty clear trio at the top of the edge defenders and Nick Bosa is pretty much right there with the two names in front of him. Two years ago, he earned the highest PFF grade among rookies since 2014, with 16 tackles for loss and 45 pressures.

Expand Tweet

After missing basically all of 2020 with a torn ACL, he returned even better this past year, being tied for the NFL-lead with 21 TFLs and finishing just three pressures behind T.J. Watt and Myles Garrett. Looking at that 49ers D-line, Bosa and Arik Armstead are the only ones who played well-above half of the defensive snaps, while number 97’s presence allowed those guys they rotated through to be in advantageous positions. This meant they felt comfortable playing a bunch of zone coverage without having to send extra pressure. And oh, he’s also a textbook stack-and-shed edge-setter in the running game.

#11. Jonathan Taylor, Indianapolis Colts

If there was something like this for running backs, Jonathan Taylor would have won the triple crown last season (332 carries for 1811 yards and 18 touchdowns). However, what impressed even more was that looking at the next five names in terms of carries, they averaged just 57.2 first downs on 269.2, while Taylor moved the chains 107 times. Not only was that 42 more times than the next-closest name, but he’s also the premier big-play threat at the position. Only two other guys even cracked double-digits for 20+ yard carries (Taylor was first 14).

Expand Tweet

While he certainly benefitted from playing behind one of the best offensive lines in the NFL, 1272 of his rushing yards came AFTER contact. Plus, he added another 360 yards and two TDs on his 40 catches.

For more in-depth breakdowns of the NFL and college football, head over to halilsrealfootballtalk.com and the YouTube channel.