Running backs suffer none of the "didn't win the big game" biases that color our perception of quarterbacks. Moton started all 16 games each of the last four years, gradually improving and joining the conversation of best right tackles in football. What Mason did have was a keen attention to detail and fanatical drive to succeed. in the mid-1960s to early '70s, chances are "Whichever one has Marv Fleming" would have been a correct answer. Ryan threw five touchdown passes and ran for a sixth to beat the Giants and lead the Browns to the NFL championship in 1964. Feyenoord v VVV Venlo - Eredivisie. NFL But the diminutive Brees would not have been able to lead the Saints to a Super Bowl and several seasons as top contenders without a clean pocket, particularly right in front of him. All-time underrated and overrated players for Pro Football Reference rates him at near a Pro Bowl level well into his 30s. He is also infamous for admitting on ESPN Radio that he once purposely let Packers defender Sean Jones sack Scott Mitchell so the struggling quarterback would get knocked out of a game. Regardless of the Cardinals struggles, Dierdorf was a star. Super Bowl championships: Two (1996, 1999). If ever a geezer was meant to play with George Allens Over The Hill Gang, he was the one. Membership on various All-1960s teams. Brown is now best known as a television personality. Teams: Seattle Seahawks, Kansas City Chiefs, Detroit Lions, Arizona Cardinals, Chicago Bears, Tennessee Oilers, Pro Bowl appearances: Three (1984, 1988, 1989). 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. 100-91). It was rival 49ers tackle Bryant Young who the Rams were most concerned about before the 1999 season, when they signed Timmerman as a free agent. There are a ton of names in the conversation for best offensive linemen of all time, but Dierdorf never seems to have his name mentioned. Kenn is one of the NFL's all-time great players and leaders, and his impact ranges far beyond his playing career. The easiest way to be overlooked by history is to replace a legend just after a franchise has peaked. Anderson's 1,000-yard seasons came in a primitive offense with a rudimentary passing game. David was a crucial component of the Bucs defense during their playoff run in 2020 that culminated in a Super Bowl victory. Shenault is dynamic after the catch and plays like a running back with the ball in his hands. Top 20 Most Underrated NFL Players of All Time | TheRichest You know the type. While every fan base is sure to have two or three names they feel are undervalued and worthy of this list, here are my current top ten underrated players in the NFL. Hence, the Campbell video. His 42-yarder in the 1990 NFC championship game rates as one of the greatest clutch kicks in league history. There are over 120 teams that compete in the FBS, which means that storylines and hidden superstars abound. Most Underrated NFL Players of All Time by Team | Stadium Talk 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. 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. Actually, make that four careers. 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. Modern centers don't get the credit they deserve. WebThe Top 10 Most Underrated Football Players of All Time 1. He was usually the Bears' best rusher and receiver in his prime years, catching 40-50 passes per season from Mike Tomczak or the young Jim Harbaugh. 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. 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. 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. 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. Let's take a look at the the five most underrated footballers of all time. Teams: Los Angeles Rams, Washington Redskins. "That was my territory," Edwards recalled in The Palm Beach Post. As some players continue to grow their stardom and gain league-wide recognition, others are less talked about, often flying under the radar for several seasons or even entire careers without proper acknowledgment. Bottom line: Derrick Mason was among the shrewdest, most precise route runners of his time. Bottom line: OK, kids, lets play Name That Hall of Famer. Butler is all but guaranteed to get lost in the shuffle. Waller was a sixth-round draft pick at wide receiver by the Ravens in 2015 and struggled to find targets early in his career in spite of his 66 frame. 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. Super Bowl championships: Two (2005, 2008). Mills looks like just another local hero linebacker in the encyclopedias, albeit a good one. He intercepted 25 career regular-season passes and two more in the postseason. At age 25, Franklin-Myers seems to be just scratching the surface of his potential and should benefit from some additional pieces being added to a young rebuilding Jets defense. Karl Mecklenburg. Bottom line: The Greatest Show On Turf boasted so much star power you couldnt tell the other Rams without a program. Bottom line: Never mind guys such as Michael Vick and Lamar Jackson. Although it is tough to put a second-year player on this list as underrated when he is still relatively unproven, Laviska Shenault has such a unique skill set at wide receiver that will quickly start to garner more attention. It's Bryant Young, whorecorded 89.5 sacks for the 49ers, 23 more than Haley. During his time at Fiorentina, he was the best player, 2. No one should expect to make money from the picks and predictions discussed on this website. When London Fletcher retired after the 2014 season, Robert Klemko of The MMQBasked him if he was motivated by feeling underappreciated for most of his career. Overshadowed on a bad team for much of his early career, Bates also came from a draft that featured top safeties Minkah Fitzpatrick and Derwin James. More than anything, though, Rote was a leader and winner. A mauler of a right guard, Timmerman also was agile enough to escort Marshall Faulk on screens and sweeps. One of the most underrated players in AM Football, Brodie Croyle was drafted into the NFL by the Kansas City Chiefs in 2006 after being a college football standout with the University of Alabama. Top 20 most underrated footballers of all time: who are they? Hull was not just a great lineman but a groundbreaking one. David has amassed 12 interceptions, 16 fumble recoveries, 24 forced fumbles, and 53 pass deflections during his career. Steve Atwater. He had the speed to get to the edge and beat defenders down the sideline, the power to plow through tackles, the elusiveness to make things happen in the open field and receiving chops to rival contemporaries Roger Craig or Thurman Thomas. McDole's Bills defenses held opponents to fewer than 3.1 yards per carry across three consecutive seasons. The Jaguars, meanwhile, slowly descended to their current status as the NFL's punching bag. According to Next Gen Stats, Johnson averaged 3.6 yards of separation for each target during his rookie season, the most of any receiver in football. Young played for some great 49ers teams, including a Super Bowl-winning squad as a rookie in 1994. While Graham's sack numbers have never hit double digits, he remains a complete player and Super Bowl champion. He then went on to start at left tackle for the playoff-bound Cardinals and 2000 NFC champion Giants. WebFive players made their "Top 100" debuts -- David Montgomery, Jimmie Ward, CeeDee Lamb, Justin Tucker and Kyle Pitts -- in Episode 1 (Nos. Make no mistake about it, Eric Bieniemys exodus from Kansas City to Washington is only one move on the chess board Related:Most Overrated NFL Players of All Time. Brett Favre may be the player most responsible for bringing spectacle and success back to Titletown, but Butler brought back celebration. And almost nobody remembers that, when Edwards caught the ball, he knew what to do it. So it takes a remarkable streak of hard luck for a running back to make this list. Mason had seven seasons of at least 70 pass receptions, 1,000 yards and five touchdowns. Man Utd's double winning So LeRoy Butler, innovator of the Lambeau Leap, is excluded from his own statue. Hadl played quarterback, halfback, defensive back and punter for the University of Kansas. His 2,690 all-purpose yards with the Titans in the 2000 season are second in league history. Buckner is rarely discussed with the likes of Cameron Heyward, Fletcher Cox, or Grady Jarrett among the top interior defensive linemen (next tier behind Aaron Donald), but he is every bit as talented. WebOnce called the toughest cornerback in the NFL by Jerry Rice, Lewis would have received much more acclaim in his career if hed played a position that wasnt just following other Web113 Likes, TikTok video from FootWorld (@lovingfootbal): "The most underrated player of all time #dimaria #football". Quick: Name the 49ers' all-time sack leader. WebWhile positional drills may be more indicative of a player's success in the NFL, other events like the 40-yard dash, three-cone drill and bench press are less obvious. He blitzed (20.5 sacks). He ran a Sonny Jurgensen pass back 59 yards in the fourth quarter to seal a Rams playoff win over the Redskins in 1974. At 5-foot-10, 190 pounds, he didnt wow anyone physically. They say you know an offensive lineman is doing a great job when his name is rarely brought up, but its time Moton is talked about more for his success. He's rarely mentioned as an all-time great. Your favorite teams, topics, and players all on your favorite mobile devices. In Dierdorfs second to last season, the Cardinals were embarrassed by the Packers 41-16 in their playoff opener. Addiction soon began consuming Smith's career, and then his life. 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. Turner was the ultimate plug-and-play guy, one of five 49ers to be part of all eight of their playoff teams in the decade. 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 Hall of Fame has turned up its nose on all of them. Bottom line: Warrick Dunn overcame the murder of his mother, bouts with depression and 5-foot-9 size to have a successful 12-year NFL career. That makes sense: Both started their careers late, played with workhorse running backs, won a championship and had their careers curtailed by vicious hits. Why retain an expensive vestige of the last regime, or really the last three regimes? McLaurins route running continues to improve while routinely making contested catches look easy. Those accomplishments may soon finally land Kenn in the Hall of Fame. Maybe there is still an NFL team in San Diego. And to think, the guy never played in a Pro Bowl game. In the nine seasons that Aaron Smith had double-digit starts, their D ranked among the top nine in yards allowed every time, but his consistent play went over the heads of many. Oh, and Norton scored the final touchdown of the game on a 9-yard fumble return. They're the working stiffs who bust their butts at so-called lesser positions, on teams that are seldom seen on highlights shows, let alone national television. Moton has also committed just 10 penalties in over 50 career starts, an average of less than one penalty every five games. 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. But he didn't play for the legendary 49ers teams. Most underrated NFL players on all The Hall of And none of them produce the numbers he generated in less hospitable systems. 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 All betting content is intended for an audience ages 21+. Most Underrated "It was tough, but I was happy for those guys," Dunn told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.