20 most underrated football players of all time

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. He also scored 35 touchdowns on the ground in that span. Young played for some great 49ers teams, including a Super Bowl-winning squad as a rookie in 1994. WebFive players made their "Top 100" debuts -- David Montgomery, Jimmie Ward, CeeDee Lamb, Justin Tucker and Kyle Pitts -- in Episode 1 (Nos. He lacked the straight-line speed to be a game-breaker. 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. Still, Allen rarely gets respect as a true number one wideout. Lambeau Field was an icy outpost; the Packers still played a handful of home games in Milwaukee back then. Wouldnt you know it? His teams averaged 392.0 yards and 34.0 points in those games. Slot specialists such as Julian Edelman and Victor Cruz are now considered valuable components to the modern passing game. Both of those seasons came, ironically enough, after Allen and Buddy were separated. Its a frigging joke that Taylor isnt in the Hall of Fame discussion. Dunn left Tampa Bay as a free agent after the 2001 season and headed to Atlanta, largely because of his relationship with Arthur Blank, the Falcons owner. Old-timers call it the Lawrence Welk trade after a television bandleader of the era who would begin songs by counting off "A one, and a two, and a three". He finally won a Super Bowl ring as a backup for the Buccaneers. Steve Atwater. Along with the legendary Johnny Unitas, Rote probably did more to change the quarterback position than anyone in the pre-merger era even if so few know it. McDole, nicknamed "The Dancing Bear" because of his boogie on the dance floor rather than his on-field footwork, was known as more of a run defender than a pass-rusher. With his career spread evenly across three teams and zero All-Pro selections (a consequence of playing in the same era as Ray Lewis and Brian Urlacher), Fletcher is a Hall of Fame long shot. In his prime, Wright was often mentioned in the same breath as Hall of Famers Mel Blount and Mike Haynes. The Bills were among the first teams to frequently operate without a huddle. The former top ten draft pick looks to be on the verge of breaking out. He routinely beat defenders with quickness out of his breaks and clever change-of-pace moves, qualities that also served him well as a punt returner. Thats what Krieg did best win football games. The Bucs hired head coach Jon Gruden and won Super Bowl XXXVII the next season. Karl Mecklenburg. It is absurd that Jones isnt talked about more with his ability to impact games. 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. The admission probably slams the door of the Hall of Fame on Brown forever. Anderson is no Hall of Famerthe middle of his career is a morass of ordinary-at-best seasonsbut he was a pioneer and an innovator. Bottom line: For 16 seasons, Henry Ellard wreaked havoc as a pass receiver and punt returner. Its hard to think of a player more dominant and less talked about over a long period of time than Chandler Jones. WebWhile 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. Rivers' excellence, longevity and ability to barely dodge immortality make him the John Hadl of his era. Maybe he wasn't the best defender on the field for any one play, but he stayed on that field for an entire generation. Its easy to forget the Seahawks had some pretty good teams way back when, even a few playoff ones. Lets hear some "un-der-ra-ted!" Allen made a lot of plays. They didnt allow a sack in 84 pass attempts. Craters so big that you could drive a semi through them. ), Teams: Pittsburgh Steelers, San Diego Chargers, Super Bowl championships: Two (1974, 1975). If Morgan had played in a pass-happy offense with a Pro Bowl quarterback and hands-off rules, you would find him in Canton right now. Arizona Cardinals: Kelvin Beachum, OT. At 67 Buckner also has a wide arsenal of pass rush moves to pressure the quarterback. He headed to Washington and moved from the weak to strong side. In 10 of the 12 seasons in which he started at least half their games, the Seahawks prevailed more times than not. On this All-Underrated list, he is in very good company. At 5-foot-10, 190 pounds, he didnt wow anyone physically. Teams: Pittsburgh Steelers, San Francisco 49ers, Cleveland Browns, New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, New England Patriots, Super Bowl championships: Two (1979, 1990). Yes, Marshall amassed that sack total by playing foreverhe started270 games (plus 19 playoff starts) from 1961 through 1979. 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. Web12. He intercepted 25 career regular-season passes and two more in the postseason. But Brown was a unique and underappreciated player for over a decade on a team that nearly revolutionized the way football is played. 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. His 2,690 all-purpose yards with the Titans in the 2000 season are second in league history. Player B passed for 31,548 yards and 214 touchdowns and ran for 22 touchdowns with below average-to-good teams. There have been too many players in NFL history to count, so naturally, many of them werent going to get the attention they deserved for their play. Oh, and sub-packages were pretty rare in the 1960s and 1970s, so Marshall didn't leave the field much. Robertson was one of the NFL's fastest linebackers in the 1970s. Ogbah improved against the run while putting up a career-high in both sacks (9) and QB hits (21). What Mason did have was a keen attention to detail and fanatical drive to succeed. New England Patriots wide receiver Stanley Morgan, right, battles for Hadl signed with the Chargers instead, and Sid Gilman built him into the trigger man for an offense from which all modern offenses descended. That feeling never really went away.". Rivers had neither, but he possessed just about everything else. Moton has also committed just 10 penalties in over 50 career starts, an average of less than one penalty every five games. Bottom line: In the Steelers' 3-4 scheme, defensive ends were akin to smaller, more agile tackles run-stoppers first, pass-rushers second. 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. All betting content is intended for an audience ages 21+. Actually, theres a simple explanation. WebLet's face it: An entire All-Underrated Team can be assembled using only Broncos defenders. Oakland Raiders. The system helped make Hall of Famers of Kelly, Reed and Thomas. He had to blanket a wide receiver in man coverage with no safety help on every play. That voter meant every fanbase has a beloved old defender, renowned for his toughness and leadership, that they swear belongs in the Hall of Fame. Bates started every game during his first three seasons since entering the league in 2018, recording three interceptions in each season and averaging over 100 tackles. Mason's 95-catch, 1,200-yard seasons translate to 115-catch monsters in more pass-oriented schemes. Bowman is coming off an Achilles tear in 2016. But run defense was king in the era when McDole played, and his 16-year career is littered with big plays: 12 interceptions, 14 fumble recoveries, two touchdowns, three safeties and a pair of sacks in the 1966 AFL Championship Game. For a few years, he was not only the best guard in the NFL, but the most important. Bottom line: Wilber Marshall was the most athletic and versatile linebacker with the legendary 1985 Bears defense he often replaced the celebrated Mike Singletary in pass situations. Marshall cant get his name even on the preliminary Hall of Fame ballot. 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. Mills was a USFL All-Star in all three seasons of the league's existence, and he led the Philadelphia and Baltimore Stars' Doghouse Defense (coached by Jim Mora) to a pair of league titles. Seven times, he surpassed 1,000 yards on pass receptions, most of them on slants and corner routes. He was arrested four times after his abrupt retirement. McLaurins numbers through two-plus seasons are very similar to Stefon Diggs, who went through a similar quarterback situation early during his career in Minnesota. Sutton hauled in 72 catches for 1,112 yards during his second season in the league before a knee injury cut short his 2020campaign after 1 game. Anderson's 1,000-yard seasons came in a primitive offense with a rudimentary passing game. He was one of the first true slot receivers of 21st-century NFL offenses. The statue portrays jubilant Packers fans in tundra-weather gear appearing to cradle a player who just pounced into the stands. It takes years of playing the wrong position for the wrong team in the wrong league at the wrong time. The rumors themselves were not surprising. Teams: Dallas Cowboys, San Francisco 49ers, Pro Bowl appearances: Three (1993, 1995, 1997), Super Bowl championships: Three (1992, 1993, 1994). This commitment to team defense is perhaps one of the main reasons Buckner is not more recognized as one of the top interior defensive linemen in football. Unless you live in Cleveland or are over 50, you probably have never heard of him. Fleming was a reliable backup tight end/wide receiver who played with four Super Bowl-winners (and one NFL champion) in a dozen seasons. Once an arbitrary number of players from a historic team get enshrined, the committee moves on in search of underappreciated players from other franchises. 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. He rose to Pro Bowl status playing left tackle for a single-back, Joe Gibbs-style 1980s offense. Dont let the numbers fool you Morgan wasnt a one-trick racehorse. McLaurins route running continues to improve while routinely making contested catches look easy. I still don't know that people gave me my due respect for my production. The Steelers rushed for a then-record 249 yards and did not allow a sack. Tom Jackson. The NFL is a star-driven league. Bottom line: Derrick Mason was among the shrewdest, most precise route runners of his time. His franchises just kept ending up on the wrong side of history. Ogbah has always been a steady presence rushing the quarterback but broke out in 2020 during his first season with the Dolphins. Bottom line: All Ken Norton could do was take down ballcarriers and collect Super Bowl rings. 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. This past offseason, Juszczyk signed a five-year $27M contract to return to the 49ers, making him the highest-paid fullback in football by a wide margin. Randy Gradishar. With 4.35 speed, McLaurin can take the top off any defense but has also rounded out the rest of his game since his time at Ohio State. Ellard moved on to Washington in 1994 and enjoyed a late-career renaissance, averaging 61 catches and 18.8 yards per reception over a three-year span in his mid-30s. His 23 fourth-quarter comebacks (20th overall) are more than Dan Fouts, Jim Kelly, Sonny Jurgensen and Bart Starr, to name a few Hall of Famers at the position. Henry Ellard spent the first five seasons of his NFL career returning punts and putting up humdrum receiving stats. Full name: Jordi Alba Ramos Date of birth: March 21, 1989 Age: 33 years old (as of 2023) Place of birth: L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Spain Height: 1.70 m Current team: And then there is plain old forgotten. He played in the run-'n'-shoot offense, which means he was on an island against the NFL's best pass-rushers on every snap for a half-decadeno tight end flanking him, no blocking back behind him. Edouard Mendy of Chelsea celebrates after his sides victory in the Premier League match 2. Teams: Seattle Seahawks, Kansas City Chiefs, Detroit Lions, Arizona Cardinals, Chicago Bears, Tennessee Oilers, Pro Bowl appearances: Three (1984, 1988, 1989). But here's the thing: Gradishar, Mecklenberg and Atwater are famous for being snubbed. But no highlight clip of that play can be found on the internet. How he slipped through the cracks for 13 years remains one of the unsolved mysteries in pro football. But none accomplished more than Ryan while receiving less acclaim. It takes more than mere greatness to be considered one of the most underrated players in pro football history. Pro Bowl? One of the greatest defenders in the history of a storied franchise, Young is just another victim of bad timing when it comes to getting the reputation he deserves. 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. One of the most well-traveled quarterbacks in NFL history, Vinny Testaverde hung around long enough to register the seventh-most passing yards ever in his 20-year career. He also doesn't play in the shadow of a legend. He started for an offensive line that helped Barry Sanders win two of his four rushing titles. Teams: Chicago Bears, Washington Redskins, Houston Oilers, Arizona Cardinals, New York Jets, Pro Bowl appearances: Three (1986, 1987, 1992), Super Bowl championships: Two (1985, 1991). He played 256 career regular-season games, never missing a start due to injury. The most similar current player to Anderson is Pittsburgh's Le'Veon Bell, but Bell plays in a modern offense that amplifies his production instead of suppressing it. Jeff Saturday had to translate Peyton Manning's spur-of-the-moment audibles into protection schemes a split second before the snap. The NFL is now full of receivers like Mason, but few of them are as productive as he was for over a decade. All advice, including picks and predictions, is based on individual commentators opinions and not that of Minute Media or its related brands. 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. Now that's underrated. "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. 1. If he started his career a decade earlier or a decade later, Young would have anchored the defense for one of history's great teams or helped push the Harbaugh 49ers over the top in the Super Bowl. But McCree did fumble. His stardom was spread among three teams, robbing him of local hero status (or Hall of Fame momentum) in any one city. Hull was not just a great lineman but a groundbreaking one. 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. Bottom line: If an inquiring mind had asked "Which team will win the Super Bowl?" WebThis list is for those players the ones who were great football players and did not get the credit they deserve. Buckner plays within the defense, often allowing others to make plays, but remains a nightmare trying to block one on one. Ryan was Jim Brown's quarterback and then Leroy Kelly's quarterback. Not bad for a guy who might as well have played in a straight jacket for 14 seasons. Mason had seven seasons of at least 70 pass receptions, 1,000 yards and five touchdowns. WebA key ingredient of arguably the best back four to grace the game Mauro Tassoti, him, Franco Baresi and Paolo Maldini the Milan central defender made more than 450 He won 65 percent of his NFL starts. Bottom line: Few remember Glen Edwards as the fearless strong safety with the Steelers first two Super Bowl teams. Teams: New England Patriots, Indianapolis Colts, Pro Bowl appearances: Four (1979, 1980, 1986, 1987). 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. A Colts defender delivered some payback in the all-star game. Krieg was a career overachiever who survived 19 seasons on modest talent with defense-driven teams. These men did so much but received so little credit in return. Following a strong start to 2021, McLaurin is slowly beginning to earn the respect his game deserves. 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. Super Bowl championships: Two (1996, 1999). A beast in coverage, Jones continues to round out his game as one of the top overall linebackers in football. Teams: Los Angeles Rams, Washington Redskins. He finished his career by doing something almost impossible: signing with the Patriots as a veteran role player during one of the few years they didn't reach the Super Bowl. Teams: Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Atlanta Falcons, Pro Bowl appearances: Three (1997, 2000, 2005). Mills and Reggie White were the USFL's two greatest defenders ever. In their two Super Bowl seasons that followed, Young was a virtual nonfactor in the matchup. Graham has only missed one game since 2012 prior to 2021, and similar to Hughes is a winning culture type of player. Make no mistake about it, Eric Bieniemys exodus from Kansas City to Washington is only one move on the chess board Brown did one thing terribly wrong in 18 NFL seasons, but for his teams to win as often as they did, he must have done an awful lot more right. Even so, Smith was pretty much a well-kept secret outside Pittsburgh despite meeting or approaching Pro Bowl standards for almost a decade. Kenn was one of the leaders of the NFL Players Association during the era of replacement players and court battles over free agency. No one else is even close. 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. Theyre the core players who are overshadowed by more well-paid, high-profile teammates and just plain pathetic, shameless self-promoters. Butler's defensive accomplishments might have brought him to the cusp of immortality, but don't underestimate the power of that Lambeau Leap. Web20 most underrated football players of all time 1. Waller upped his game in 2020 and hauled in 107 passes and nine touchdowns to earn his first Pro Bowl nod. chants for the best players who didnt get their just dues over the years. Jackson then moved on to Atlanta just after the collapse of the Mike Smith playoff teams but before the rise of the current Dan Quinn contenders. FEDERICO CHIESA. Super Bowl championships: Two (2005, 2008). Finally, at last, the cornerback was selected to play in his first Pro Bowl game as some kind of lifetime achievement award. Pro Football Reference rates him at near a Pro Bowl level well into his 30s. Not one of the Jim Harbaugh-era guys. That's not something to hold against a player. The best teams in the AFL proved to be NFL-caliber, but the bottom of the league was populated with a nearly bankrupt franchise or two, so the best players clumped on the best teams and stood out from the crowd. He's not the kind of player a wise organization sheds to cut expenses. When the Rams finally earned a Super Bowl berth, Robertson was in Buffalo, playing for another playoff also-ran. 25 Feb/23. Brown earned seven Pro Bowl berths and an All-Pro selection. But Wright never posted massive interception totals, and his teams ended up on the receiving end of a pair of Super Bowl beatings. 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. It doesn't matter: If you are a Broncos defender, you might as well forget about a bust in Canton. Fletcher followed Gregg Williams from coaching stop to coaching stop, serving as the sometimes controversial, always effective defensive mastermind's field marshal. If ever a geezer was meant to play with George Allens Over The Hill Gang, he was the one. Start with Adam Timmerman, who won Super Bowl rings with the Packers and Rams three years apart. That's a higher sack total than Dwight Freeney or Robert Mathis. And then there is Kent Hull, the first center to achieve greatness in a no-huddle offense. Even without the same speed and athleticism as when he entered the league, David continues to find ways to make impact plays like a seasoned veteran. Your favorite teams, topics, and players all on your favorite mobile devices. Fifteen years ago, similar receivers were gimmicky undersized role players. But three of his best seasons are not listed in the encyclopedias. Karl Mecklenburg. A new generation of superstar left tackles entered the league as Brown was peaking, and he spent the latter half of his career bouncing from team to team as Tony Boselli, Willie Roaf, Orlando Pace, Jonathan Ogden and Walter Jones turned the blindside protector into an almost glamorous position. Quarterback ratings for Washington skyrocket when targeting McLaurin, who has become a nightmare to defend with the ball in his hands after the catch. The fullback has become a non-factor in many of todays NFL offenses, but Juszczyk remains an integral part of how the San Francisco 49ers run their offense. Hes on the short list of running back leaders in yards per rush (4.6, 17th), touches (2,824, 25th) and yards from scrimmage (14,079, 35th) in NFL history. Some of the 19 Naturally, it also guarantees that some of the best players in the country get overshadowed and forgotten in the sport's warp-speed news cycle. Mills followed Mora to New Orleans and led the Dome Patrol linebacking corps, which brought the Saints franchise its first playoff appearances. But Hadl had to do something to make the Packers think he was worth two armfuls of draft picks. 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. Neal Anderson replaced Walter Payton. While under the radar, Bates has emerged as one of the better all-around safeties in football. Super Bowl championships: Four (1966, 1967, 1972, 1973). 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. Robinson is a staple of Hall of Fame Snubs lists, and he certainly has his case. Johnson can line up all over the field and consistently find space in the opposing defense. As the Chargers faded, Rivers kept them in the wild-card picture and became the franchise's only recognizable public figure. He then led three fourth-quarter comebacks to bring them back to the playoffs in 1965. 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. Mike Williams is an elite deep threat at wide receiver and has maintained an average YPC of over 15 every year since 2018. He once threw three touchdowns in a shutout victory in a title game. Mason also caught 49 postseason passes and was one of the game's best return men for a few years. There's underrated, underappreciated and overlooked. Maybe Rivers takes his place among the all-time greats. Ryan needed surgery and was in constant pain for the rest of his career. Buckner is a smart player and one of the better-run defenders in football. "Even now I still get pissed off. They would rank first in the NFL in yardage four other times while Evans was a starter. His 65 interceptions are fifth most in NFL history. DeForest Buckner plays great team defense and has done so successfully for two franchises. 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. He was an iron man for a powerhouse franchise that reached four Super Bowls while playing many of their home games in arctic conditions. 10. Photo by JOHN CAPUTO/AFP via Getty Images, ST. LOUIS, MO CIRCA 1980: Ed Jones #72 of the Dallas Cowboys gets blocked by Dan Dierdorf #72 of the St. Louis Cardinals during an NFL football game circa 1980 at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Missouri. He is also proficient with his right foot and is a versatile player who can play multiple positions in the attacking third of the pitch. Jerry Hughes has been a consistent pass rusher and important piece to the Buffalo Bills defense. Lets not forget they also dominated with cold-blooded efficiency at the other side of the ball, where Keena Turner was rarely out of position at right outside linebacker. In Jahri Evans' four All-Pro seasons (2009-12), the Saints ranked first, sixth, first and second in the NFL in total yards. In his most prolific early season, he caught 54 passes for 811 yards and five touchdowns. Player A passed for 27,928 yards and 194 touchdowns and ran for four touchdowns with mostly very good teams and one great one. He arrived in Buffalo at the same time Marv Levy was revolutionizing NFL offense with the help of Jim Kelly, Andre Reed and Thurman Thomas. That's its own kind of recognition. He reached the playoffs as a rookie backup in 2004 and a 32-year-old backup in 2015, but zero times in the decade in between. Running backs suffer none of the "didn't win the big game" biases that color our perception of quarterbacks. So Kenn basically had three careers. Efficient? His career was cut short by injuries suffered in the first of those three Pro Bowls. Developing a rapport with new QB Trevor Lawrence should only help Shenault quickly reach his true potential. Hull never lived to see himself make a Hall of Fame semifinalist list, as he died of liver failure at age 50 in 2011. Maybe there is still an NFL team in San Diego. He played left tackle in 1972 and moved to right tackle in 1974. Through the 2018 season, Vinatieri checked in at 81 (56 of 69) and 99 (70 of 71), respectively. And to think, the guy never played in a Pro Bowl game. Buckner earned his first All-Pro honors in 2020 and still has plenty of untapped potential to take his game to another level at just 27 years old. McDole played 251 professional games as a defensive lineman, a remarkable feat in any era that should not be forgotten. He once sacked Dan Marino twice on the first two plays of a gamea remarkable achievement, as Marino was one of the least sacked quarterbacks in NFL history. He returned eight interceptions for touchdowns, including four in 1993 and three during his age-35 season with the Raiders in 2000. But don't write him off as some 1960s product of the system. Success came early for Fletcher, recognition late. Bottom line: After eight seasons in Buffalo, where he had been a mainstay with the best defense in AFL history, Ron McDole took his two-bar helmet to Washington. WebTop ten under-capped England players is a list Foden and Maddison want to avoid Matt Le Tissier won 10 fewer England caps than Carlton Palmer. Wide receiver Chase Claypool stole headlines as a rookie in 2020, while teammate JuJu Smith-Schuster always seems to attract headlines one way or another. Young was a devastating interior pass-rusher who recorded 30 sacks in the three-year span from 1998 through 2000. It was the era of great defensive lines with catchy namesthe Rams had the Fearsome Foursome, the Cowboys the Doomsday Defense, the Steelers later added the Steel Curtain, and so forthand Marshall was the Ringo Starr of the Purple People Eaters, the guy who once ran the wrong way for a touchdown and was happy just to be in the band. Wright earned a second-team All-1970s nod from the Pro Football Hall of Fame, even though several of his signature years were in the 1980s. But the former NFL Man of the Year award winner and two-time All-Pro should not have had to wait so long. 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. McDole is not known for much of anything anymore, as his AFL stardom came before the Super Bowl era and his Redskins heroics predated the era of Joe Gibbs and the Hogs. He was a Pro Bowler in 1974 and 75, and he was an All-Pro selection from 1976-78. There are over 120 teams that compete in the FBS, which means that storylines and hidden superstars abound. 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. Ronald Koeman. But his Hall of Fame candidacy has been stuck in semifinalist limbo. Sanders was an extremely He covered receivers (38 career interceptions). Peppers will have to play three more seasons to catch Marshall, and Peppers' starts are non-consecutive. 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. Overall, the total still ranks ninth at the position. But this list is all about giving overlooked players their due respect. 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.