JKFOOTBALL Top 100 Players for 2021: 19-11

The second to last installment of the top 100 arrives! Today we find out the best 10 players not in the top 10 of our first annual top 100 list of players for the upcoming season. This top 20-10 is sure to spark some controversy as not everyone agrees on who the best of the best are. These guys are all so good there are arguments to be made for some above others that even I could probably be convinced. Here we go.

19. George Kittle, Tight End, San Fransisco 49ers

2020 stats: 48 receptions, 634 yards, 2 TDs receiving (only 8 games played due to injury)

Another player affected by the Niners nasty injury bug of 2020 was George Kittle who most can confidently say is their best player on their stacked roster. Entering the league as an afterthought 4th round pick, Kittle burst onto the scene right away and instantly became one of the few premier tight ends in our current NFL world. In his 4 seasons we have seen Kittle blossom into a superstar pass catcher in the NFL but at the same time he is probably the best blocking tight end in the league. Despite playing just half the season, Kittle still put up 630 yards receiving on almost 50 catches. You can see he would have been on pace for a monster 100 catch, 1200+ yard receiving season which is especially rare for tight ends these days. Even though he only played 8 games, he still finished inside of the top 20 for TE receiving yards which I also find just so impressive. In those 8 games he had more yards than guys like Dallas Goedert or Austin Hooper did all season. Other than players like DeAndre Hopkins or Tyler Lockett, I don't know if there is a better contested, jump ball, tough go up and get it catch guy than Kittle. He just makes some grabs that leave you with your mouth wide open. I almost feel bad putting him down at 19 because I could see an argument for him being in the top 10 but I went with my gut and he hits the list at 19 with a chance to rise even higher with a healthy 2021 campaign.

18. Dalvin Cook, Running Back, Minnesota Vikings

2020 stats: 1557 yards, 16 TDs rushing, 44 receptions, 361 yards, 1 TD receiving (only 14 games played)

Somehow despite missing 2 games with injury, Dalvin Cook managed to rack up these insane totals that we see above. This season was a rare outlier year in which a player managed to rush for over 2000 yards but in pretty much any other year, Cook easily wins the rushing title by a landslide. In the 14 games he played, he was borderline unstoppable. Didn't matter how bad the Vikes' o-line was at times, Cook would find his space and make men miss. There was a point around halfway through the season where there was a genuine argument for Cook to win league MVP. Cook combined for almost 2000 all-purpose yards and 17 TDs. Those are video game-like numbers. This was probably the healthiest season we've seen from the Florida State alum and it was clearly his best. When healthy, it is clear that Dalvin Cook is one of those players that you have to create your entire gameplan as a DC around. He is just that good. 

17. Tyreek Hill, Wide Receiver, Kansas City Chiefs

2020 stats: 87 receptions, 1276 yards, 15 TDs receiving, 123 yards, 2 TDs rushing

What an investment the former 5th round pick Tyreek Hill has turned out to be for the Chiefs. After falling to the late rounds of the 2016 draft, the Chiefs drafted Tyreek Hill to be a gadget player due to the otherworldly speed that he possesses. Hill turned out to be much more than just a gadget speedster. Turns out the guy can run some of the cleanest routes in football and has crazy good hands too! In 2020, Tyreek Hill had maybe his best season yet of his young career. Fresh off of a massive payday and a Super Bowl win, Tyreek Hill played like he had everything to prove still. He racked up 87 catches for almost 1300 yards and a whopping 15 receiving TDs. He added another 100+ yards and 2 TDs off of the ground (mostly from the jet sweep). Tyreek Hill really ended up on the perfect team for his skillset. He plays in an offense run by the most creative play caller in our league in Andy Reid and has probably the best QB since Tom Brady throwing him the ball. However, I don't think the Chiefs reach back to back Super Bowls without the help of Tyreek Hill. He has been their WR1 for years and probably was the main reason they beat the Niners in the Super Bowl with his famous "Jet Chip Wasp" play. While sadly things didn't go as well for him in the Super Bowl, when the Chiefs played the Bucs in the regular season, Tyreek Hill had the best game we've seen from a WR in years. He racked up 200 receiving yards IN THE FIRST QUARTER. After that he 'cooled down' a little and finished the game with 269 yards and 3 TDs, we could have seen him shatter the single game receiving yards record. It was an insane performance. Hill also had 100+ receiving yards in both playoff games for the Chiefs before the Super Bowl. One of the fastest and most electric players in our game comes in at no. 17 on the list. Not too shabby for a former 5th round pick. 

16. Stefon Diggs, Wide Receiver, Buffalo Bills

2020 stats: 127 receptions, 1535 yards, 8 TDs receiving

How about that for a first year on a new team. When Stefon Diggs requested a trade out of Minnesota last off-season and the Bills paid a premium price of a first round pick to get it done, most underrated the player that Diggs was. We all knew he was a Pro Bowl caliber player, but no one really thought he was anywhere near a top 5 WR in the league or ever would be. A change of scenery was all he needed. With Josh Allen as his new QB in Buffalo, the newly paired duo absolutely proved every hater wrong. Diggs exploded with 127 catches for over 1500 yards and 8 TDs receiving. The Bills won the AFC East for the first time in a decade and made a run to the AFC Championship game where they fell just short of the biggest stage in sports. The sky now seems to be the limit for the Bills and their crazy good duo. Diggs seemed to instantly become an elite WR1 in Buffalo the second he arrived. He went from 1000 yards on 60 catches max in Minnesota to 125 catches for 1500 in Buffalo. Heck, he led the entire NFL in receiving yards this season. He was also elite into the post-season. He had back to back 100 yard/1 TD games in the first two rounds of the playoffs including some crucial catches in that first playoff game to secure the win for the Bills. Diggs proved to be worth every penny that Buffalo gave up for him because the move to get him seemed to change the entire landscape of the future of Buffalo. We cannot wait to see what is in store for Diggs and Josh Allen and the whole Bills team in 2021 and beyond. A year ago, Diggs probably would have been somewhere in the 80s or 90s on this list, now look how high he's risen. 

15. Bobby Wagner, Middle Linebacker, Seattle Seahawks

2020 stats: 138 total tackles, 3 sacks, 8 pass deflections, 1 fumble recov.

One of the most consistently elite players over the last decade is Bobby Wagner. The former Super Bowl champ and future hall of famer has been the anchor of the Seahawks defense for the past 3-4 seasons since the break up of the Legion of Boom and it is safe to say he has done a good job himself. Despite being above 30 years old for a position dominated by younger players, Bobby Wagner is still the best inside linebacker in football. He has never had a season under 100 tackles in his entire 9 year career. That is wild. That is the definition of consistency for the position. He is one of the least flashy superstars in the league which makes his dominance go almost unnoticed a lot of the time, but that does not mean he isn't there. He had another All-Pro season this year with 138 tackles, 3 sacks, and 8 pass breakups. He is just always there. Always right in the middle of the defense, taking away the middle of the football field which is the spot so many QBs look to go right away. He is the captain of the Hawks defense and is like having a coach out there on the field. He calls the plays and gets everyone in the right spot where they should be. He is really the definition of a player that makes everyone around him better. The fact that he also has stayed so healthy to this point in his career is so impressive and that along with his consistency is what makes me believe there shouldn't be a drop off in his production any time soon. Bobby Wagner is here to stay at the top of the ILB ranks. Easily a top 15 player in this league.

14. Josh Allen, Quarterback, Buffalo Bills

2020 stats: 4544 yards, 37 TDs, 10 INTs passing, 421 yards rushing, 8 TDs

When Josh Allen was drafted towards the bottom of the top 10 in the 2018 NFL draft, most did not know what the Bills would get with him. A QB with a massive frame and cannon of an arm but major accuracy problems with many bad mistakes. The talent alone had him as the projected no. 1 pick in the draft by some but as a second round talent by others. That is the scouting reports you are bound to get when you are a raw QB from a small football school like Wyoming. The haters looked somewhat right 2 years in as Allen struggled with those same issues time and time again, but then 2020 happened. It was like a switch was flipped. Allen came out of the gates firing and never looked back. Perhaps it had a lot to do with Stefon Diggs (mentioned earlier) who the Bills acquired in the off-season. Having that go to WR1 to throw it up to seemed to change everything for Allen. Suddenly, accuracy was not an issue. Suddenly, Allen wasn't making bad choices with the football. His ability that was 'raw' at one moment in time was suddenly developed and it helped Josh Allen have a monster year. 4500+ yards, 37 TDs, only 10 picks. Another 400 yards and 8 TDs on the ground. This was just insane. After being an average/below average QB in his first two years, Allen finished 2020 as the second place vote getter for LEAGUE MVP. He was that good. Only Aaron Rodgers was considered a better player in the regular season. The Bills were so close to making it to the Super Bowl. After the craziness that 2020 brought for Allen and the Bills, 2021 is going to be a big year for them. They will fully expect themselves to make it to the Super Bowl and why not? They have Josh freaking Allen at QB. A guy who would not have been in the top 100 last year finds himself at 14 on this years list. 

13. Travis Kelce, Tight End, Kansas City Chiefs

2020 stats: 105 receptions, 1416 yards, 11 TDs receiving

With Travis Kelce, we are witnessing the greatest tight end of all-time currently in his prime. This might sound like a bold statement but it just isn't. Kelce is the best tight end of all-time. For awhile, some could have said "sure, he's the best receiving tight end of all time", but now its really just "he's the best pure tight end of all time". We all knew Kelce was an elite tight end for years, but when Pat Mahomes arrived in KC, it took his game to new heights. Kelce has had 5 straight 1000 yard seasons. That is insane for a tight end if not insane for ANYONE. Not only that, but with his 1400 yards this year (second in the entire league for WRs or TEs), he broke his own record for most receiving yards in a single season by a TE. He has had a storied career to this point, but this was his best season yet of it. 100+ catches, 1400 yards and 11 TDs. That is just wild. Despite the Super Bowl loss, Kelce was dominant throughout the post-season. He had 100+ receiving yards in all 3 of the Chiefs post-season contests and had a combined 3 TDs as well. This is the best TE of all-time. We are currently witnessing his prime. Respect the greatness.

12. DeAndre Hopkins, Wide Receiver, Arizona Cardinals

2020 stats: 115 receptions, 1407 yards, 6 TDs receiving

I am honestly still in shock that Hopkins was traded from the Texans. The move didn't make sense at the time, it didn't make sense during the season, and it still doesn't make sense now. Why would the Texans trade one of the league's best receivers to another team with a budding superstar QB for next to nothing. It just makes 0 sense. That move was really the beginning of the end for the Texans but there is another day to talk about the mess that they are. What we are going to talk about right now is the season we just saw from DHOP in the desert. Just like Stefon Diggs, it took no time at all for him to get going with his new team. Pairing up with another budding superstar young QB in Kyler Murray, Hopkins quickly became his go to guy. 115 catches and 1400 yards later, Hopkins completed year 1 in Arizona. Probably the best jump ball WR in the league, we saw Hopkins make the play of the year in which he caught an almost impossible hail mary over 2 defenders with time expiring for a TD to give the Cardinals a major upset win over the Bills. Hopkins was also masterful in another major upset over the Seattle Seahawks to hand them their first L of the year back in the earlier weeks of the season. Despite finally playing with two great QBs for the last few seasons, that doesn't tell the whole story. Hopkins has been elite his entire career. No matter the QB. Heck, he made Brian Hoyer look like a good QB for a year in Houston. Out of 8 seasons in the NFL. Hopkins has gone for 1000+ yards in 6 out of those 8. He has stayed healthy almost his whole career and has even topped 1500 yards twice. Consistency is key and Hopkins is that and more. It doesn't matter who is throwing to him or where, he will catch it. One of the best WRs I've ever seen. Hopkins checks in at no. 12 on the top 100. 

11. Myles Garrett, Edge Rusher, Cleveland Browns

2020 stats: 48 total tackles, 12 sacks, 4 forced fumbles, 2 pass deflections

When you go 0-16 as a team and have no QB, the obvious logic is to take a QB with the no. 1 pick in the draft. Wrong. When there is a talent like Myles Garrett on the board it trumps everything. When the Browns went 0-16 in 2016 and had a constant QB carousel, it did not matter to them. Myles Garrett was considered a generational pass rushing talent and the Browns did not even consider anything else with the pick. Garrett has made them only look smart for that pick. In 4 years in the league, Garrett has produced double digit sacks in 3/4 and had 7 in his rookie year in which he only played 11 games. This season might have been the best of his amazing young career so far. He had 12 sacks and 4 forced fumbles and was a terror off the edge for opposing defenses. He made OC's around the league double team him time and time again. Neutralizing Garrett is near impossible and he proved it with the season he just turned in. Heading into 2021, Garrett could be in line for the best year of his career. Cleveland has had an amazing off-season and has loaded up their roster for a Super Bowl push. Their defense should be better than ever and now the Browns employ fellow former no. 1 overall pick edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney who will play on the opposite side of Garrett. I don't know about anyone else, but that duo sounds terrifying. Since he won't be the main betting favorite for DPOY, putting down some money now for Myles Garrett to win DPOY could be a really good bet. He might be my personal favorite to win the award. Myles Garrett just keeps on getting better and hits just outside the top 10 at 11 on our list for 2021.