There’s no doubt whatsoever that every player on the NFL Wire’s list of the 50 most dominant in the league today is a great player. You don’t make those lists if you’re historically average, and there are reasons for inclusion for each player.
That said, when you have dozens of editors and analysts voting for players, and you tabulate the results at the end, things will skew in this direction and that, and you won’t always be able to include every player deserving of inclusion.
So it is with our list, which you can read in two parts here:
Now, based on the results, and the players who missed the cut, here’s my list of the players who deserved to be in the Top 50, and were not for whatever reason.
James Bradberry, CB, Philadelphia Eagles
Bradberry ended up as the 52nd player on the list based on total voting, and the only reason I can think that he didn’t make the cut is that he’s coming off by far his best season to date. There’s also the matter of 2021, his final season with the Giants. That may have been his worst. Then, he allowed 60 catches on 92 targets for 729 yards, 262 yards after the catch, eight touchdowns, four interceptions, 13 pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 100.3.
Then, the Giants decided that he wasn’t a priority in free agency, which allowed the Eagles to swoop in with a one-year, $7.25 million deal that may have been the NFL’s biggest bargain in 2022. All Bradberry did for the NFC champs was to allow 46 catches on 98 targets for 489 yards, 159 yards after the catch, two touchdowns, four interceptions, 12 pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 51.8.
Maybe with another great season, which Bradberry can endeavor to put together with his new three-year, $38 million deal with the Eagles, and he’ll make the cut in 2024!
Darius Slay, CB, Philadelphia Eagles
It’s also possible that Bradberry and Slay, who worked the Eagles’ cornerback duo in conjunction with Bradberry, canceled each other out in the voting? It’s a nice problem to have on the field when you have two cornerbacks that good; perhaps it wasn’t as beneficial in the voting process. Slay came in 59th overall, which seems like a snub for a guy who allowed 47 catches on 83 targets for 559 yards, 162 yards after the catch, five touchdowns, three interceptions, nine pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 82.3.
That touchdown total seems high, but it’s mitigated by the fact that Slay spent so much time last season defending the No. 1 receiver for the opposing offense, and he did so much in press-man coverage. The Eagles gave Slay a new three-year, $42 million contract to keep doing what he does, which we’re sure will soften the blow.
Demario Davis, LB, New Orleans Saints
It may have been positional value that left Davis off the list — after all, Fred Warner of the 49ers was the only linebacker who made the Top 50. Regardless, it’s tough to justify the exclusion of a guy who’s been a top-tier linebacker for as long as Davis has, and the 11-year veteran had another fabulous season for the Saints in 2022. Davis had a career-high nine sacks, two quarterback hits, seven quarterback hurries, 63 solo tackles, 43 stops, and he allowed 31 catches on 42 targets for 276 yards, 209 yards after the catch, two touchdowns, one interception, four pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 96.9.
Davis is part of a very small group of the NFL’s best do-it-all linebackers, and that’s why he should have been in the Top 50. There’s another linebacker whose exclusion from this list was even more egregious.
Matt MIlano, LB, Buffalo Bills
Milano is absolutely the NFL’s most underrated linebacker — in 2022, nobody at the position not names Fred Warner had a better season. And all that got for Milano from our voters was 65th place overall. But as is the case with Warner, whatever you can possibly ask a linebacker to do, Milano can do it.
Last season, Milano had five sacks, eight quarterback hits, 11 quarterback hurries, 89 solo tackles, 57 stops, and he allowed 59 catches on 81 targets for 500 yards, 389 yards after the catch, no touchdowns, three interceptions, nine pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 73.1. He can cover inside and from the slot, and if you need a guy to rush the passer or blow up a run fit, he should be your guy. And he should have been one of our guys in the Top 50.
Joel Bitonio, OG, Cleveland Browns
While it’s nice that three guards — Zack Martin of the Cowboys, Quenton Nelson of the Colts and Chris Lindstrom of the Falcons — made the Top 50 (I’m always in favor of the big dudes getting some love), it could easily be argued that none of those fine gentlemen had a better 2022 season than did Bitonio, and Bitonio has been one of the NFL’s best guards for a good long time now. The nine-year veteran, who has played for the Browns throughout his NFL career, allowed one sack, six quarterback hits, and 13 quarterback hurries in 667 pass-blocking snaps, and he did so with a quarterback situation that was — to put it kindly — unstable.
Add in his run-blocking expertise and his athleticism in all things, and I would have liked to see Bitonio over at least Nelson and Lindstrom based on their 2022 seasons, and he’s right up there with Martin, if not ahead of him.
Quandre Diggs, S, Seattle Seahawks
Recently, Diggs expressed his consternation that he was left out of ESPN’s list of the top 10 safeties in the NFL today.
All I will say about the list.
What else do I have have to do to prove i’m one of the best in the league?
-Consistency? Did that!
-Top 5 in INT’s since 2017? Did that!
-Pro Bowl? Did that 3 times straight!
-6 Years of 3+ picks? Did that! First since Ed Reed!— Nino (@qdiggs6) July 12, 2023
I think that Diggs was the second-best safety in the NFL through the 2022 season behind only Minkah Fitzpatrick of the Steelers, who thankfully did make our Top 50. But Diggs didn’t, and as Fitzpatrick was the only safety who made the list, I can only think of positional value as the thing that pushed Diggs all the way to 75th overall.
Because when you look at Diggs’ tape, and factor in his effect on Seattle’s defense, I don’t know how else to explain it. And while Fitzpatrick may be the NFL’s best overall safety, there’s no guy I’d want patrolling the deep third in my defense more than Diggs. And if you’re playing a team that likes to throw the ball deep, there may be no defender, regardless of position, you want on that wall.
Opposing quarterbacks targeted Quandre Diggs four times last season on passes of 20 or more air yards. The results: No catches, one interception, and an opponent passer rating of… https://t.co/FQH2LvnBiU pic.twitter.com/JCOO6MOsXl
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) June 16, 2023
