Welcome to the reveal for players ranked 50-41 for this year’s r/NFL Top 100 Players for the 2020 Season!
Players whose average rank had them land in places 50-41 are on this portion of the list revealed today. Players are associated with the team they finished 2020 with.
Below you will see write-ups from rankers summarizing the players' 2020 season and why they were among the best in 2020. Stats for each player are from this season and are included below. Additionally, their previous ranks in this long running series are also available for all of you.
Lastly, we have a return of the individual player cards this year with some fun “facts” about each player.
Methodology
LINK TO THE HUB POST WITH A MORE DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE METHODOLOGY
- A CALL FOR RANKERS just before the Super Bowl.
- Rankers for each team nominated players to rank. 10 Games Played Minimum Threshold. Players are associated with the team they finished the 2020 Season with.
- The Grind. Utilize ranking threads for individual rankers broken up by positional groups. Users were tasked with ranking players within the following tiers based on their evaluation: T-25, T-50, T-100, T-125 based on 2020 regular season only. There were no individual user case threads. There were no arbitrary position limit caps. Just questions and rankings.
- Users submitted their individual Top 125 list.
- User lists were reviewed for outliers by me with assistance from two former rankers. Users were permitted to correct any mistakes found. Once complete, lists were locked.
- Reveal the list… right now.
So now, without further ado, here are the players ranked 50-41 in the r/NFL Top 100 Players of the 2020 Season!
#50 - Stephon Tuitt - Interior Defensive Line (IDL) - Pittsburgh Steelers
Previous Ranks*
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N/A | N/A | N/R | N/R | N/R | N/R | N/R | N/R |
Written By: /u/astro63
For Steelers fans, it always felt like Stephon Tuitt was knocking on the door of greatness but could never quite open it. Since being drafted back in 2014, Tuitt has routinely flashed his immense physical strength and explosive playmaking ability but struggled with inconsistency from game-to-game. 2018 started a turning point for Tuitt, as he became the main man up front after Cam Heyward went down injured, and in 2019 he came out guns blazing with 3.5 sacks and 22 tackles in 6 games before being shut down with a pectoral injury. It was a disappointing blow to a player who looked primed to join the NFL’s best, but thankfully the wait didn’t last very long. In 2020, Stephon Tuitt picked up right where he left off (and then some), exploding onto the scene as one of the most dominant interior pass rushers in the NFL. Statistically speaking, Tuitt produced 11 sacks, good for third most among all interior defensive linemen, and a ridiculous 71 total pressures (per PFF), trailing only Aaron Donald. To put this level of production in perspective, Tuitt generated a pressure on 14.5% of his pass rush snaps, which translates to a pressure once every seven snaps. Standing at an imposing 6’6 310 pounds, Tuitt showcased his ability to use every bit of his frame to crash the interior and disrupt passing lanes with his length. His game is largely built on physicality, but he also presents an impressive amount of quickness and lateral agility to either power through or swat through opposing blockers. On top of that, Tuitt took huge strides this past season as a run defender, stabilizing an inconsistency into a strength. With 45 total tackles and 33 run stops (per PFF), Tuitt stood out with his ability to anchor down and plug running lanes more than ever before. Pittsburgh has been a consistently strong defense at stopping the run, and Tuitt’s improvements really helped take the pressure off Cam Heyward and Tyson Alualu this past season. Ultimately, Tuitt looked the part of a dominant, two-phased defensive lineman last season and was at times essentially unblockable for long stretches. His ability to take over games was on full display at times and was a huge part of Pittsburgh’s defensive success. As Cam Heyward gets up there in age, the torch will soon be passed to Tuitt as the tone-setter and leader up front, and he certainly has the talent to do so.
#49 - Calvin Ridley - Wide Receiver (WR) - Atlanta Falcons
Previous Ranks
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/R | N/R |
Written By: /u/CokeZ3ro
This season Calvin Ridley faced the greatest challenge of his 3-year career. Julio missed 7 games and was limited in 2 more, thrusting Ridley into the position of WR1 for over half the season. How did he respond?
For those who like stats, here are a few. Ridley was T-4th in receiving yards, 4th in Yards/Game, T-1st in receptions over 20 yards, a Yds/Rec of 15.3, and 8 games over 100 yards (the most of any WR)
But stats are for nerds, so let's see the man in action. In his first game without Julio this season, Ridley blazed past the entire Bears secondary for a 63 yard touchdown. Think you can handle some more speed? Jourdan Lewis can't. Here's a toe touch) to emulate the Jet himself. Marshon Lattimore on him like a blanket? Don't matter. How about some Hot WR on WR action while Chris Harris Jr. watches And for those with time on their hands, here's a good analysis on the Riddler
With Julio heading off to Nashville, Ridley is now the Number 1 in Atlanta. And with this season as a litmus test, the future looks bright for Ridley.
#48 - Joel Bitonio - Offensive Guard (OG) - Cleveland Browns
Previous Ranks
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N/A | N/A | 95 | N/R | N/R | N/R | 88 | N/R |
Written By: /u/wrhslax1996
Joel Bitonio was an amazingly fun guard to watch over the course of the 2020 NFL season. So fun, in fact, that I'm going to make this write-up an acrostic of his name. This is also the fourth write-up I've done so I'm looking to mix it up.
Just look at how good he is at pass protecting against great interior defensive linemen. Jon Allen said "watch this", and Bitonio said "No." He keeps his base and swats away the bullshit to stand strong and keep the pocket clean.
Oh my lord, did he just pull and seal Montez Sweat to set up a TD run? Yes, yes he did. Bitonio avoids contact, finds his man, seals him with strength and positioning, and sets up a crucial TD during the Football Team.
Eh, he can't be that good can he? Wrong, watch him pull alongside his BFF JC Tretter to take another WFT defender completely out of the play.. He really does move so well for a guy his size (6'4" 315lbs btw).
Look at this battle between him and Cam Heyward. Just two great minds battling it out. And I have a front-row seat. The momentum changes about 4 times in that rep but he keeps things clean for Baker to get the ball out. Nice.
Bah Gawd, watch him keep his head up and pick up a stunt flawlessly. Dude wasn't fooled for a second.
I really think he's a great player. No clip, just wanted to say it.
There he goes stonewalling a great DT again. Javon Hargrave is a strong man, but Bitonio keeps his base, balance, and intestinal fortitude to get a resounding win on this rep.
On God, he just continuously puts guys on skates. He churns the feet and just gets people moving in the wrong direction. He was a huge factor as to why the Browns rushing attack was so potent in 2020.
Now that's what I call just pwning somebody in the screen game. Seriously. I've watched this clip about 90 times and it just keeps getting better. I don't know what squints Brandon Rusnak was looking for, but I doubt it was Joel Bitonio just engulfing him.
I just wanted to say I love Joel Bitonio one more time.
One final clip for the road. This guy is smart, strong, fast, fat, and all around elite. If you're ever just sitting there with nothing to do, throw on some 2020 Browns OL tape and you can be entertained for hours. Thank you for being you, Joel.
#47 - Budda Baker - Safety (SAF) - Arizona Cardinals
Previous Ranks
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/R | N/R | N/R |
Written By: /u/Beehay
Budda Baker has had one hell of a year. First he became the highest paid safety in the NFL, granted most people knew it wouldn't be for long. He tore a UCL in his thumb week two, played with a cast week 3 and then missed week 4 for surgery. He returned a week later to post and 8 tackle and 1 sack performance against the Jets. A few weeks after that he had an (eventually game saving) interception against the Seahawks. I don't care he got run down, I'd bet every player in the NFL would've got run down by DK there. He just intercepted one of the best QB's in the game and took it 90 yards with a busted thumb. At this point in the season he was getting praise as potential DPOY, and that's with having missed a game. The Cardinals then almost 5 straight games because Kliff Kingsbury and Vance Joseph got exposed, but were saved by the "Hail Murray" versus the Bills. Yes I did mention that again, sorry Bills fans. At the end of the season Baker made the Pro Bowl (for the third time) and made his second All-Pro team (his 2017 accolades were for his special teams work, which was SPECIAL). Then after the number rules changed, he changed his number for the third time in 4 years. Please Budda, not again.
Lets watch some film of why he's ranked this high. On this play he decides that the "Free" in "Free Safety" means he's allowed to come up and fill a cutback lane for a TFL. Since 2019 Budda leads all DBs in tackles, the man is a tackling machine. Kyle Juszcyzk is considered the best fullback in the NFL, Budda Baker turned him to a coach with a blocking dummy. I could post a million more highlights because he's as splashy of a playmaker as they come but I'll just settle for this quick montage.
#T-45 - Terron Armstead - Offensive Tackle (OT) - New Orleans Saints
Previous Ranks
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N/A | N/R | N/R | 45 | N/R | N/R | 73 | 51 |
Written By: /u/sanswagata
Since 2018 Terron Armstead has made the pro bowl every year of his career. This includes second team all-pro honors in 2018 while the other years he did not receive any additional accolades. This past year the Saints offense ranked in the top 10 of every rushing statistic including finishing first in touchdowns. He also has had to protect a 40+ year old Drew Brees, who at this stage of his career is not very mobile to avoid pass rushers. But this will not just be going over statistics, because those can be pretty misleading with offensive linemen.
We will start by looking at Armstead's pass protection, which is very good, although he is a bit more talented when it comes to run blocking. Something that I found very impressive was his ability to jumpset defenders. A jumpset is when the OL will not gain depth during a pass set, but instead come to the defender almost like run blocking. Here are some examples of Terron Armstead jumpsetting: against Zadarius Smith, against Preston Smith, against the Chargers, against the Chargers again, and against JPP. The other thing that I really liked about his game was his ability to recover when he lost a hand due to a chop or swipe. Here he loses his outside hand, but is able to pivot and ride the defender outside the pocket. This is a good display of why hip flexibility is important in offensive tackles. You can still win the war even if you lose the initial battle. Here we have him refitting against Zadarius Smith from a wide 9 look. Zadarius is able to win the initial battle and take Armstead's outside hand, but he is able to win the war by quickly refitting it with precision.
Now finally we will look at the best and most fun area of Armstead's game which is his work in run blocking. His double teams with Andrus Peat were absolutely lethal this past year. This is a power play where they create good displacement, they also worked together on the backside of wide zone, and they blew defenders up on the front side of wide zone. Here is a great showing of blocking the DT into the LB to get two for one. Armstead was not just a beast on combos and double teams. Lets watch Armstead absolutely obliterate defenders on his own starting with this play against Minnesota where he drives a LB about 15 yards and finishes in the turf. He doesn't finish the defender in the turf here, but he blasts open a hole with fantastic play strength. On this play Armstead drives his assignment into the end zone and pancakes him. For my final few clips I just have a few comical plays against Minnesota where Armstead pulled and took on CBs. On the first one the CB just curls up in the fetal position to avoid being murdered, and on this other example Armstead pulled around and drove the CB out of the stadium (presumably).
All in all Armstead was a fantastic offensive tackle this past year and I think you can easily make the case for him being the number one OT depending on what you value in OL play. He is mean, strong, athletic, and the perfect mauler at LT while not losing much in terms of pass protection.
#T-45 - Garett Bolles - Offensive Tackle (OT) - Denver Broncos
Previous Ranks
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Written By: /u/ghettogoatsauce
For some, your initial reaction to seeing this player at this location is going to be "I thought this dude sucked?" Well, he did suck. The kind of suck where a former first-round pick gets his 5th-year option declined. The kind of suck where former GM John Elway asked "Does he know what holding is?" So, how do we get from "Holding, offense, number 72, 10-yard penalty, repeat first down," to a 4-year $68 million extension?
Well for starters, he went from 34 called Holds in 3 years to just 4 this past year. That alone, going from averaging a shade over 11 holds a year to just 4 helps. Of course there's more to LT then just not getting called for a hold. At just around 300 lbs, this first time 2nd-team All Pro is very mobile for a LT, as we see on this pull block. He's also vastly improved his technique in pass blocking. It may look unimpressive, but the ability to time up your punches to stuff an EDGE's attempt to control your hands is very important. Being able to just bury an unsuspecting pass rusher is hot too. Just clubbing the shit out of the EDGE with your hand on play action is cool too. You can clearly see the imprints of legendary O-line coach Mike Munchak taking effect.
Now for some stats to help round you out on this thesis. Garret Bolles allowed a whole zero sacks on the year, had a 90.6 overall grade with PFF in you're into that kind of thing, and had uhhh Drew Lock, Brett Rypien, Jeff Driskel, and Kendall Hinton as his QBs. With how much better he looked this year I think that Broncos fans can finally rest easy with regards to their LT position for the first time in a long time.
#44 - Demario Davis - Off-Ball Linebacker (LB) - New Orleans Saints
Previous Ranks
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N/R | N/R | N/R | N/R | N/R | N/R | N/R | 36 |
Written By: /u/lazy_street
Demario Davis might be the best FA signing the Saints have made since Drew Brees in 2006. He has helped the team defense turn around from the woeful 2012-16 years of record setting turrible play. He has further evolved over the last 2 seasons as one of the key leaders of the team, and *the* leader of the team whenever Brees was not available.
Ranking intangible qualities is usually pretty hard, but Demario makes it easy. Not only did he maintain in All-Pro level play from last season, he did so while leading the team on the field and advocating for social justice off the field. All of this while his 1 year old daughter suffered from a cancer that would eventually result in the removal of one of her eyes. The man is a perfect example of what you would want in a veteran player and more importantly a person.
In 2020, Demario led the Saints in tackles (119) while also converting 20 pressures into 4 sacks, 8 QB hits, and 21 hurries. His play got him his 2nd consecutive All-Pro selection, but he has yet to be to a Pro bowl in his career. On the field Demario hits like a freight train and does well in coverage. However, he did have some whiffs in both run support and coverage that were out of character for him. He just wasn't *as* elite as he was in 2019 when he was a first team All-Pro. Overall, his ranking this year is probably accurate but I do think he will be back in the Top 30 this upcoming season.
#43 - Lavonte David - Off-Ball Linebacker - Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Previous Ranks
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N/R | 11 | 27 | 99 | N/R | 35 | N/R | 76 |
Written By: /u/ndembele
Can we stop calling Lavonte David underrated now? I suppose only a single Pro Bowl nod for a player of his calibre is ridiculous but after spearheading the Buccaneers’ defense all the way to a Super Bowl ring, any fan of the sport who hadn’t already taken note certainly will have now.
Anyway, Lavonte David is probably the most fundamentally solid player in the entire league. It’s not a flashy title but David isn’t an overly flashy player. It’s often said that he is always around the ball but when you watch him he isn’t blowing up blockers or covering half the field in a blink of the eye like his partner in crime Devin White, instead he makes his gains through a phenomenal ability to read the play stemming from a high football IQ and almost a decade of experience in the NFL, and through outstanding footwork and overall technique. Rather than running straight to the ball carrier, David will often take the ‘long way’ and weave in between would be blockers either going untouched or catching them completely flat footed. His awareness is also off the charts. If the offense throws up some kind of misdirection he’s the first to find the ball and then his teammates follow. He can read the QBs eyes and break from his zone assignment to get in a position to tackle before the throwing motion has even begun.
It’s hard to write about Lavonte David, there’s no single thing about him which you can point to in order to explain why he’s such a special player. He just does every little thing expected from a linebacker slightly better and it adds up to the Defensive captain of a Super Bowl winning team.
#42 - Za’Darius Smith - EDGE Rusher (EDGE) - Green Bay Packers
Previous Ranks
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/R | N/R | N/R | N/R | 26 |
Written By: /u/KingDing-a-Ling13
Za’Darius Smith finished last alphabetically out of all nominees for the Top 100 this year, but he did not let that hurdle block him from making the list. In fact, he didn’t let anyone block him this year. Brian O’Neill tried and failed here, when Smith swats O’Neill’s inside hand, then takes him for a nice ride at the end of his longarm. Matt Hennessey did his best impression of a matador against Smith, who was barely touched due to his clean swipe to inside swim move. Chris Lindstrom got wrecked by Z’s bull rush, leading to a strip sack scoop and score for the Packers defense. Zed’s bull rush was nightmare fuel for opposing linemen on a number of occasions, which he often used to gain leverage and set up a more technical move. Watch here when Smith pairs a bull rush with an inside rip, here when he follows it with a nice outside rip, or here when he doesn’t pair the bull rush with anything and just puts Chris Lindstrom on his ass. Yeah, Za’Darius didn’t like getting blocked this year.
As you can see in these clips, Smith isn’t your typical edge rusher. He lined up all over the defensive line, and had a ton of success both outside on the tackles, or inside over the guards. His explosiveness and power proved difficult for any offensive lineman to deal with. Quarterbacks hated seeing Zed line up across from them, as Smith had 26 combined sacks and QB hits, meaning he hit the QB more than any nominee besides T.J. Watt, Joey Bosa, or Carl Lawson. With 36 stops (per PFF), Zed ranked 2nd among nominees, behind only Watt. Line guru Brandon Thorn had Smith ranked 4th in the league last year for his True Sack Rate metric. For a guy who is naturally an edge rusher, Smith was also one of the best interior pass rushers across the league. The versatility Z offers makes him a key player for the Packers defense. Look at the film or the stats, they both tell the same story: Za’Darius Smith is an elite player in this league.
#41 - Tre’Davious White - Cornerback (CB) - Buffalo Bills
Previous Ranks
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 53 | N/R | 10 |
Written By: /u/midgetpenguin
The year is 2021, We just spent an entire year in our house, Tom Brady just won a superbowl with the Bucs, and Tre White is still an elite NFL Cornerback (and an even better Goalie).
After multiple seasons of all pro level play, The Bills corner was rewarded with the small sum that is 70 million dollars over 4 years, making him the highest paid corner at the time (for a few days). Although some may say Tre had a down season, mainly due to his incredibly high standard, he is still well on his way to earning every penny, and is still one of the best corners in the entire NFL.
Just like the day he was drafted, Tre White is a true number 1 lockdown corner, who can play zone or man. There are a very select few corners in the NFL who you expect to line up against the opposition's number 1 every down, with Tre being one of them… And he is very, very good at it. His elite awareness, coverage skills, playing the ball, athleticism, hands, someone stop me… make him a treat to watch, and deserving of his top 50 ranking.
There is without a doubt in my mind Tre White is a top 50 player in the NFL, and even less doubt in my mind that he will continue his dominance in the upcoming 2021 NFL season. Look for Tre to improve on some of the big plays he gave up last year, while continuing to put players on somewhat of an island. He was only thrown 55 times last year while allowing 34 receptions(!) and only 4 tds, with most snaps being against teams number 1 options. He also played most of the season on a bad ankle, so for the 2021 season I expect those numbers to be even lower, and his 2021 rank to be even higher.
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