With the NFL Top 100 officially complete, let’s do some reactions and talk about what I would change.

One important rule before we start: I’m only judging these players based on what they did last season. I’m not ranking careers, projecting what they’ll do in 2026 or giving someone extra credit because of what they accomplished three years ago. This is about the 2025 season.

And we’re only talking about the Top 10. Nobody has time to go through all 100 players.

#1 Myles Garrett — No Problem With This

I have absolutely zero problem with Myles Garrett being ranked the best player in football based on what he did last season. In fact, I love seeing a defensive player get this kind of recognition.

The NFL has changed so much in favor of offense. Quarterbacks and receivers dominate the attention, the rules increasingly favor scoring, and defensive players sometimes don’t receive the same recognition even when they’re completely taking over games.

Garrett absolutely deserved it. He finished 2025 with an NFL-record 23 sacks, along with 33 tackles for loss and 39 quarterback hits, earning Defensive Player of the Year in the process.

When you’re breaking NFL records while offenses are specifically designing their protection around stopping you, you’ve earned the #1 spot.

My verdict: Keep Garrett at #1.

#2 Josh Allen — Too High

I’m sorry, but Josh Allen was not the second-best player in football last season.

Was he still great? Absolutely. Allen once again showed why he’s one of the most dangerous quarterbacks in football, but if we’re strictly judging the 2025 season, I don’t see an argument for putting him ahead of Matthew Stafford.

Stafford was 37 years old and put together one of the best seasons of his career. He led the NFL with 4,707 passing yards and 46 passing touchdowns, threw only eight interceptions, won the MVP and helped lead the Rams all the way to the NFC Championship Game.

That’s ridiculous.

This isn’t me saying Stafford is a better quarterback than Allen going into 2026. That’s a completely different conversation. I’m saying Stafford had the better 2025 season, and that’s what I’m using to judge this list.

My verdict: Allen is still Top 10, but I’d move him down to #6.

#3 Bijan Robinson — Incredible Season, But I’d Move Him Down

Bijan Robinson was phenomenal last season, so I completely understand why the players gave him this much respect.

He rushed for 1,478 yards, added another 820 receiving yards and finished with a league-leading 2,298 yards from scrimmage. That’s an absurd amount of offensive production.

But #3 is where I’d make another change.

Not because Bijan wasn’t great. Someone else was simply even better.

I’d move Bijan down only one spot to #4.

#4 Matthew Stafford — Move Him Up

Stafford is probably my biggest issue with the original order.

Again, we’re talking about a 37-year-old quarterback who led the NFL with 4,707 passing yards and 46 touchdowns, threw just eight interceptions, won the league MVP and then helped take the Rams to the NFC Championship Game.

What more could he have done?

If this list is supposed to reflect what happened during the previous season, Stafford belongs near the very top.

My verdict: Move Stafford from #4 to #2.

#5 Jaxon Smith-Njigba — Move Him Up

JSN was unbelievable last season.

He caught 119 passes for 1,793 yards and 10 touchdowns, led the entire NFL in receiving yards and won Offensive Player of the Year. Then his team went on to win the Super Bowl.

Going from a very good young receiver to putting together one of the best receiving seasons in football is exactly the kind of performance this list should reward.

I don’t have him fifth.

I have him third.

My verdict: Move JSN from #5 to #3.

#6 Christian McCaffrey — Fair Ranking

Christian McCaffrey came back and immediately reminded everyone why a healthy CMC is one of the most unique offensive players in football.

He finished with more than 2,000 yards from scrimmage, caught over 100 passes and led the NFL with an incredible 413 touches.

The volume alone is insane, especially when you consider how much of the 49ers offense runs through him.

I wouldn’t move McCaffrey dramatically. With some of the changes I’m making above him, he slides down one spot on my list.

My verdict: Move CMC to #7.

#7 Puka Nacua — Too Low

Puka was ridiculous last season, and I think #7 actually undersells how good he was.

He led the NFL with 129 receptions, finished second with 1,715 receiving yards and added 10 touchdowns while helping Stafford and the Rams reach the NFC Championship Game.

JSN had the better season and deserves to be the highest-ranked receiver, but there wasn’t some enormous gap between them.

Puka was one of the best offensive players in football from beginning to end, and I’m comfortable putting him inside my Top 5.

My verdict: Move Puka to #5.

#8 Micah Parsons — Great Player, But Too High Based on 2025

This is exactly why I established the rule at the beginning.

If we’re asking who the best players in football are going into 2026, Micah Parsons absolutely belongs near the top of the conversation. But that’s not what I’m doing.

Parsons played only 14 games before suffering a season-ending knee injury. He was dominant when healthy, recording 12.5 sacks, but availability has to matter when we’re judging one specific season.

I’m not taking anything away from how good Micah is. I just think there were players who gave their teams a full season of elite production who deserve to be ahead of him.

My verdict: Move Parsons down to #10.

#9 Jahmyr Gibbs — Deserved

I’m completely fine with Gibbs being in the Top 10.

He rushed for 1,223 yards and 13 touchdowns, caught 77 passes for 616 yards and five more touchdowns, and finished with nearly 1,900 yards from scrimmage.

That’s 18 total touchdowns from a running back who can beat you as both a runner and receiver.

Detroit didn’t make the playoffs, which probably caused his season to fly under the radar a little bit, but Gibbs did his job. He was one of the most productive offensive weapons in football.

My verdict: Move Gibbs up slightly to #8.

#10 Patrick Surtain II — Around the Right Spot

Cornerback is probably one of the hardest positions to judge with basic statistics because the entire point of having an elite corner is that quarterbacks eventually stop wanting to throw at him.

Patrick Surtain II played 14 games, allowed only one touchdown on 63 targets and remained a centerpiece of one of the NFL’s best defenses.

I also love seeing another defensive player make the Top 10 because, just like I said with Garrett, defense deserves recognition.

My only issue is the same one I have with Parsons: when we’re judging one season, missing games matters. I wouldn’t have a problem with Surtain being around the Top 10, but I don’t think his exact spot is untouchable.

My verdict: Move Surtain up slightly to #9.

My Revised NFL Top 10

After looking strictly at what everyone accomplished during the 2025 season, here’s how I would rank them:

1. Myles Garrett
2. Matthew Stafford
3. Jaxon Smith-Njigba
4. Bijan Robinson
5. Puka Nacua
6. Josh Allen
7. Christian McCaffrey
8. Jahmyr Gibbs
9. Patrick Surtain II
10. Micah Parsons

The biggest thing for me is separating who I think is the better player from who actually had the better season.

Would I take Josh Allen over several players ranked ahead of him if I were starting a team tomorrow? Of course. But that doesn’t mean he had a better 2025 season than Matthew Stafford or Jaxon Smith-Njigba.

That’s where I think these lists sometimes get mixed up. Reputation, career accomplishments and what we expect a player to do next season can start influencing how we view what they actually did last year.

For this list, I’m keeping it simple: if we’re ranking the 2025 season, then what happened in 2025 should matter more than reputation.

What would you change about the NFL Top 10?

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