Kolb set the Super Bowl standard for left tackles in Super Bowl IV, when he smoked undersized Minnesota Vikings end Jim Marshall like a bad cigar. The 2023 wide receiver class is one of the worst in recent memory, but there are some solid options on Day 2 for teams searching for complementary players. Men such as Joe Montana, Lawrence Taylor, Barry Sanders, Jerry Rice and so many others have all had their days in Canton at the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and they are revered as being some of the greatest players to ever wear NFL uniforms. Hull started his professional career with the USFL's New Jersey Generals, where he helped Herschel Walker rush for 2,411 yards in one 18-game season. His career was cut short by injuries suffered in the first of those three Pro Bowls. Fleming was a reliable backup tight end/wide receiver who played with four Super Bowl-winners (and one NFL champion) in a dozen seasons. 4,409 Rushing Attempts. One of the best players in the league during the 1980s, Monk is too often unappreciated in lists of all-time great wide receivers. McDole's Bills defenses held opponents to fewer than 3.1 yards per carry across three consecutive seasons. Butler was the NFL's most dangerous all-purpose safety for much of the 1990s. Now that's underrated. 1. 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. "Underrated" is in the eye of the beholder, so let's establish some ground rules for these rankings: After that, players are ranked based how underappreciated they are, not how great they are. Appreciate him for being that. The Jaguars, meanwhile, slowly descended to their current status as the NFL's punching bag. Maybe not, seeing as Nalen has not had much success. His franchises just kept ending up on the wrong side of history. Hull was not just a great lineman but a groundbreaking one. Anderson's 1,000-yard seasons came in a primitive offense with a rudimentary passing game. 2 due to the fact that more than a few knowledgeable football people have publicly stated that they see Joe Montana as being the greatest quarterback in history. In an era when 50 percent completion rates and 20-interception seasons were common for Pro Bowl quarterbacks, Anderson's 64.9 percent completion rate and quarterback ratings above 90 look like temporal anomalies. Kenn is one of the NFL's all-time great players and leaders, and his impact ranges far beyond his playing career. Far from it. Bottom line: One of the premier long-ball threats of any era, Stanley Morgan ranks 10th in yards per reception (19.2) and 39th in touchdown catches (72) on the all-time list. That makes sense: Both started their careers late, played with workhorse running backs, won a championship and had their careers curtailed by vicious hits. 10. Addiction soon began consuming Smith's career, and then his life. Not bad for a guy who might as well have played in a straight jacket for 14 seasons. That "something" was throwing for more than 29,000 yards and going to four AFL All-Star Games and a Pro Bowl with the Chargers and then leading the Rams to a 12-2 record in 1973. He recorded four consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons from 1988 through 1991, a rare feat at the time. Still don't understand why the writers don't respect it.". 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. He is now stuck in a rebuilding cycle that may take a few years. For the second installment in underappreciated NFL players, we have the running backs. "Hate to say it, but I do believe I should be there (in Canton)," Marshall once said. That is untrue for a variety of reasons. He was a Pro Bowl regular, two-time All-Pro and Defensive Rookie of the Year in 1971. Allen made a lot of plays. Henry Ellard spent the first five seasons of his NFL career returning punts and putting up humdrum receiving stats. He talked the talk and he walked the walk, and Reed should be recognized for being an all-time great receiver by all fans and journalists. Provided by Fadeaway World View the original article to see He was an iron man for a powerhouse franchise that reached four Super Bowls while playing many of their home games in arctic conditions. Actually, theres a simple explanation. Schlereth started in three Super Bowls with the Redskins and Broncos, all of them victories. 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. Isiah Robertson, LB, Rams, Bills. One of the big Pro Bowl misses from 2015 is the player I think is the NFL 's Most Underrated. One of the greatest defenders of his era reduced to stuntman status in Campbell's action movieall it takes is a moment to make a player underrated forever. 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. Yet somehow, some way, Kolb never received a Pro Bowl invitation. By being overshadowed by Brown, achieving his greatest success just before the dawn of the Super Bowl era and getting stuck behind the Tom Brady and Peyton Manning of your grandfather's generation, Ryan earned the title of the NFL's All-Time Most Underrated Player. Smith wasnt a no-show on third-and-long, either. Lofton was the first player in NFL history to accumulate 14,000 receiving yards. In his prime, Wright was often mentioned in the same breath as Hall of Famers Mel Blount and Mike Haynes. Bottom line: In his 15th and final season, the 36-year-old Ken Riley had eight interceptions and returned two of them for touchdowns, one of the most incredible performances by an old man ever. No matter what the two-time All-Pro accomplished, he could never be Jerry Rice, who cast a long, tall shadow in the same conference. He also scored 35 touchdowns on the ground in that span. There may be such a thing as too much blitzing, after all. Norton made the key play of the game in the second period, when he stood up Buffalo Bills back Kenneth Davis mere inches from the goal line. Seven times, he surpassed 1,000 yards on pass receptions, most of them on slants and corner routes. Actually, make that four careers. Even so, Smith was pretty much a well-kept secret outside Pittsburgh despite meeting or approaching Pro Bowl standards for almost a decade. Both players were Pro Bowlers the previous year. Terry Porter is another name that isnt remembered despite his The linebacker ranks 17th in career solo tackles (1,130) and is the only player to be part of three consecutive Super Bowl champions. The 49ers drafted linebacker Reuben Foster at the bottom of the first round. The unfunny joke that has been Isaac Bruce not being voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame is one that is going to end soon. Passing wasn't really their thing. New England Patriots wide receiver Stanley Morgan, right, battles for a ball with Derrick Mason recorded four 1,000-yard seasons for Jeff Fisher teams and four more for the Baltimore Ravens. Nope, not Charles Haley. Ryan needed surgery and was in constant pain for the rest of his career. Super Bowl championships: Four (1966, 1967, 1972, 1973). Hadl played quarterback, halfback, defensive back and punter for the University of Kansas. Bottom line: Terrell Davis rushed for 2,008 yards in his momentous 1998 season, but look at the game films and you wont see him fake out many defenders or break many tackles. The Hall of Fame eluded Ellard for several reasons: comparisons to Rice, the Rams' move to St. Louis (it takes hometown writers and buzz to mount a campaign) and those five early seasons in a ground-and-pound offense. Greene remains third all-time in the list of career NFL sacks, and 32-year-old Jared Allen is the only active player who is remotely close to catching Greene. Those who like to shout "first-ballot Hall of Famer" about Rivers do not know how the Hall of Fame works. Teammates Alan Page and Carl Ellar were held in higher regard. These are the most underrated college football players of all time. The old adage says that there is no such thing as a wrong opinion. The rumors themselves were not surprising. Turned out he was skilled and driven enough to be a champion. 5. He played for teams that were more interesting than outstanding, from the Ryan and Rich Kotite-era Eagles to the Jim Mora and Mike Ditka Saints to Jon Gruden's Raiders. 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. But outside of Wisconsin, his accomplishments were mostly forgotten shortly after his career ended in 2001. WebThe 2023 wide receiver class is one of the worst in recent memory, but there are some solid options on Day 2 for teams searching for complementary players. The Pro Football Reference Similar Players tool compares Ryan's five-year peak to that of Joe Theismann. Lets hear some "un-der-ra-ted!" That may be unfair to players like Robinson, Jerry Kramer and L.C. Butler's defensive accomplishments might have brought him to the cusp of immortality, but don't underestimate the power of that Lambeau Leap. The lack of respect that Larry Fitzgerald has received from supposed football experts throughout his career boggles the mind. Young played for the teams that slowly slid from George Seifert to Steve Mariucci to oblivion. News on all your favorite celebs, reality TV, and movies. Stafford is an underrated quarterback who has also been a pillar of stability outside of his second season and this past year. The admission probably slams the door of the Hall of Fame on Brown forever. Teams: Los Angeles Rams, Washington Redskins. Jim Marshall, DE, Vikings. 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. Teams: Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Atlanta Falcons, Pro Bowl appearances: Three (1997, 2000, 2005). A Colts defender delivered some payback in the all-star game. Efficient? Neal Anderson replaced Walter Payton. Bowman is a four-time All-Pro and tremendous all-purpose linebacker who emerged as a stalwart leader for teams that otherwise might have packed it in before Labor Day. But the run-'n'-shoot took away more than it provided, and the early 1990s Lions kept getting obliterated by better defenses in the playoffs. He picked off a dozen passes in his career two of them at 38 years of age an absurd number for a 6-foot-4, 265-pound lineman. Sometimes it's because they played next to even bigger stars and sometimes it's Player B was a one-time MVP who played in two Pro Bowl games. With Warfield hurt nearly all of that season, Ryan helped make a Pro Bowler out of receiver/punter Gary Collins. Young was also a much better rusher who could find the end zone via his arm or by using his legs. Who do you believe is the most underrated player that played at least one year from He started for the Rams in their Super Bowl seasons at the beginning of his career and then earned Pro Bowl berths for Washington from 2009 through 2012 when he was in his mid-30s. A Super Bowl ring and two AFL championships. Marshall reached just two Pro Bowls. But don't write him off as some 1960s product of the system. Rivers lacks several quarterback prerequisites for enshrinement: playoff glory, all-time records and, most importantly, momentum from a regional fanbase and media. Not every NFL star gets the love they deserve. Joyner, who was beloved by supporters of the Philadelphia Eagles, is a member of the NFL 20/20 club for interceptions and sacks. Let's face it: An entire All-Underrated Team can be assembled using only Broncos defenders. Player B passed for 31,548 yards and 214 touchdowns and ran for 22 touchdowns with below average-to-good teams. Any defensive player breaking into the NFL in 2015 would love to be mentioned alongside such names when his career came to an end. ), Teams: Pittsburgh Steelers, San Diego Chargers, Super Bowl championships: Two (1974, 1975). Smith produced nine 1,000-yard seasons in 10 years, including two 100-plus-catch seasons in an era when they were still relatively uncommon. Guys who played in Jacksonville repeatedly have been crapped on in Pro Bowl and Hall of Fame votes, none more so than Taylor during and after his 11 seasons there. That he was part of The Greatest Show on Turf should not be a knock against him or a reason for keeping him out of the Hall of Fame. After the Bills failed to score, he knocked quarterback Jim Kelly out of the game in the next series. And let's not place the full burden of history on his shoulders, as Marty Schottenheimer, Norv Turner, the Chargers front office and Rivers himself had a hand in making the team a playoff also-ran during those peak years. Most Underappreciated RBs of the 2000s. In Jacksonville, Ryan threw five touchdown passes and ran for a sixth to beat the Giants and lead the Browns to the NFL championship in 1964. 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. Is it at all possible that any of these legends of the game could possibly also be some of the most underrated players in NFL history? He then led three fourth-quarter comebacks to bring them back to the playoffs in 1965. For a few years, he was not only the best guard in the NFL, but the most important. Those who have knowledge of National Football League history are well aware of the more famous individuals who made their names and fame playing pro football. If John Hadl is remembered for anything these days, it's for one of the most disastrous trades in NFL history. It's better to be remembered for one of the most painful moments in your career than to not be remembered at all. No modern coach suppressed passing offenses quite like Fisher, and no team produces offensive stats that look like they come from the early 1930s quite like the Ravens. He didnt just take up space, either. David Garrard. Drew Brees endured an average of just 24 sacks per season in Evans' All-Pro seasons, despite typically dropping back to pass over 650 times per year. Ellard was an Antonio Brown-level talent in his prime, but his teams were in no hurry to get him the ball. Robertson is so poorly remembered that it was hard to find a decent photo of him in our archives. It doesn't matter: If you are a Broncos defender, you might as well forget about a bust in Canton. Bottom line: The Greatest Show On Turf boasted so much star power you couldnt tell the other Rams without a program. Reed was an offensive weapon that you hated to see going up against your favorite team because you knew that he was potentially a moment away from breaking for a game-changing play. McDole was a starting defensive end for two of history's legendary defenses: the AFL champion Buffalo Bills of 1964 and '65 and Washington's "Over-the-Hill Gang" of the early 1970s. Lofton could stretch the field with his speed, and he also had some of the best hands of his time. Those accomplishments may soon finally land Kenn in the Hall of Fame. In his most prolific early season, he caught 54 passes for 811 yards and five touchdowns. Anderson also won MVP honors the same year he won Comeback Player of the Year. He headed to Washington and moved from the weak to strong side. WebTop 10 most underrated NFL players: Justin Tucker, Keenan Allen deserve more recognition. The prejudice against punters that kept such great players out of the Pro Football Hall of Fame came to an end when Ray Guy was honored by voters. He is Baltimore Ravens nose tackle Brandon Williams. He is, however, most remembered, for being a wide receiver who was decades ahead of his time. Its easy to forget the Seahawks had some pretty good teams way back when, even a few playoff ones. June 19, 2020 Koby83 Football, Michael Turner, NFL, Running Backs, Sports Underrated. Bottom line: For 16 seasons, Henry Ellard wreaked havoc as a pass receiver and punt returner. Poor Louis Wright has a hard time even making the Broncos' overcrowded All-Snub Team. Freelancer for multiple websites. The only lineman to start all four of those games was a workout warrior and routinely bench-pressed 550 pounds in his prime. He should be remembered as more than a throwback to the era when Lawrence Welk references were topical. The correct answer is Player A (Ken Stabler), and if youre Player B (Brodie), you have to wonder if one Super Bowl should make that much difference. The Over-the-Hill Gang fielded one of the most ferocious pass rushes of its era, notching 53 sacks in 1973. Wouldnt you know it? At 5-foot-10, 190 pounds, he didnt wow anyone physically. Rote was the first quarterback who regularly beat defenses with his legs as well as his arm. "Because when the ball was thrown, I knew I had better ball skills and would go up and get it.". If the quarterback got rid of the ball before getting crushed, it was up to Allen to make a play. The Steelers rushed for a then-record 249 yards and did not allow a sack. He blitzed (20.5 sacks). But what peak years they were: 14- and 13-win seasons, annual playoff appearances, routine 4,000-yard, 30-touchdown seasons. Know who created those wide-open spaces? He has been named to eight Pro Bowl squads. Super Bowl championships: Four (1981, 1984, 1988, 1989). 3. The system helped make Hall of Famers of Kelly, Reed and Thomas. Evans, the best pass-protecting guard of his era, was charged with making sure pass-rushers didn't get close enough to Brees to bat his passes down, let alone sack him. Steven Jackson arrived in St. Louis just as the Greatest Show on Turf was deteriorating into the Most Miserable Slog in the Midwest. Randall Cunningham is one of the most polarizing individuals regarding these types of discussions. But Brown was a unique and underappreciated player for over a decade on a team that nearly revolutionized the way football is played. Defensive Player of the Year awards? Quick: Name the 49ers' all-time sack leader. There would not be another exchange of current Pro Bowlers in the NFL until the Broncos and Redskins exchanged Champ Bailey and Clinton Portis in 2004. Hes also among a select few to be a four-time Super Bowl champion. Deebo Samuel broke the game open for San Francisco with his 74-yard Greenwood, but there are dozens of other great old players clamoring for their chance who didn't enjoy the glory of playing for a "team of the decade.". The AFL was an eight- to 10-team league, so All-Pro selections were easier to come by. 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. LeRoy Butler, S, Packers. Don Hutson played multiple positions during his time, including defense and on special teams. WebUnderrated 2000s players that don't get the respect they deserve today. The Rams eventually acquired Jim Everett and opened up their offense, transforming Ellard into one of the NFL's most dangerous deep threats. 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B passed for 31,548 yards and five touchdowns feat at the bottom of the big Pro invitation! Short by injuries suffered in the Hall of Famers Mel Blount and Mike Haynes. `` played!
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