Promote your business or product on 700level.com. For
more information about advertising with us CLICK HERE!

I know these lists are ridiculous...I rarely pay even a tiny bit of attention to power rankings, player ranking, etc., but I happened across this and thought it was worth some off-season discussion in the bleeds or its retardedness.

1. Tom Brady, QB, New England Patriots: Can he do any more than he did last season? The scary thing for the rest of the league is, yes he can.

2. Peyton Manning, QB, Indianapolis Colts: Even Manning's down seasons are sensational. If Marvin Harrison is back this year, watch out.

3. LaDainian Tomlinson, RB, San Diego Chargers: His failure to play in the AFC Championship Game hurts his rep some, but he's still the best runner in the game.

4. Randy Moss, WR, New England Patriots: Talk about resurrecting a reputation. He wasn't on many top 50 lists a year ago. Now he's a top 10 player.

5. Champ Bailey, CB, Denver Broncos: It's chic to pick his game apart. That's foolish. Bailey is still the best cover corner in the game.

6. Mario Williams, DE, Houston Texans: Williams is making the Texans proud for passing on Reggie Bush and Vince Young to take this pass rusher. He might have been the league's best defensive player in the final eight weeks of 2007.

7. Bob Sanders, S, Indianapolis Colts: The only thing holding him back is the injury issues. When he's on the field, the Colts have a different defense.

8. Carson Palmer, QB, Cincinnati Bengals: After Brady and Manning he's the third-best quarterback. The Bengals need to run it a little better to take the heat off him.

9. DeMarcus Ware, OLB, Dallas Cowboys: He was given more freedom in Wade Phillips' version of the 3-4 and played better in 2007. Ware is a speed rusher who has his best football still in front of him.

10. Kevin Williams, DT, Minnesota Vikings: He is a powerful inside player who teams with Pat Williams to form the best tackle tandem in the league. He is good against the run, yet quick enough to get pass-rush penetration.

11. Shawne Merriman, LB, San Diego Chargers: Merriman is a pass-rush force off the edge. His quickness and power are the perfect combination for the Chargers' 3-4 system. You have to account for him on every pass play.

12. Jared Allen, DE, Minnesota Vikings: He led the league in sacks last season with the Chiefs. The Vikings added him to give them the best defensive line in the league. Allen plays hard all the time.

13. Terrell Owens, WR, Dallas Cowboys: Forget all the theatrics. He's a star player. He bounced back from his off 2006 season to be one of the best last season. I'd take him on my team any day.

14. Albert Haynesworth, DT, Tennessee Titans: Before he got hurt midway through last season, he was on his way to a potential Defensive Player of the Year award. When motivated, he is as good as anybody inside.

15. Adrian Peterson, RB, Minnesota Vikings: Peterson was special as a rookie and should be even better this time around. He is a big, strong and fast and can rip off the big runs with an Eric Dickerson-like ease.

16. Walter Jones, T, Seattle Seahawks: Jones is a rock on the left side of the Seattle line. He is a great pass protector who has improved as a run blocker.

17. Ben Roethlisberger, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers: At 26, he's entering his prime. Roethlisberger has developed into a quality passer. Playing behind a bad line last year, he hung in tough and led the Steelers to a division title.

18. Charles Woodson, CB, Green Bay Packers: Ask Packers insiders who was better last season, Woodson or Pro Bowl player Al Harris. The answer is Woodson. After Bailey, I'd take him over all other corners.

19. Steve Hutchinson, G, Minnesota Vikings: He wasn't his usual self in his first season with the Vikings in 2006, but bounced back to his dominating form last year.

20. Brian Westbrook, RB, Philadelphia Eagles: It's scary to think what the Eagles offense would be like without him. He's a better runner inside the tackles than many expected and he's good in the passing game. He's a versatile weapon.

21. Steve Smith, WR, Carolina Panthers: He was hurt last season when Jake Delhomme went down. It doesn't help that Smith has little help on the other side. Defenses all double him.

22. Reggie Wayne, WR, Indianapolis Colts: When Marvin Harrison was out last season, Wayne emerged as the team's go-to receiver. The guess here is that is that it stays that way. He's a true star now.

23. Ed Reed, S, Baltimore Ravens: He is the prototype modern safety: rangy and can still tackle. He is what safeties like Roy Williams wish they could be.

24. Antonio Gates, TE, San Diego Chargers: When the Chargers need a first down through the air, Gates is that guy. And he does it facing constant double-coverage.

25. Dwight Freeney, DE, Indianapolis Colts: He's coming off a serious foot injury, which is a concern. It's why his ranking is down. When he's truly healthy, he's a top 15 player.

26. Andre Johnson, WR, Houston Texans: Injuries limited him last season, but Johnson is one of the best when he's on the field. The Texans were a different team without him last season.

27. Jason Peters, T, Buffalo Bills: I love young, rising players like Peters. He plays with a mean streak. Watching him play is like watching a defensive player go at it.

28. Chad Johnson, WR, Cincinnati Bengals: He isn't nearly as good as he thinks he is. But he's still pretty damn good. He does have a tendency to disappear in big games.

29. Nnamdi Asomugha, CB, Oakland Raiders: DeAngelo Hall might get more attention on the other side this season, but Asomugha is a better player. He's been overlooked for the past two seasons.

30. Richard Seymour, DE, New England Patriots: He played hurt last season and wasn't the same player as in years past. But he's still one of the best when he's healthy.

31. Larry Fitzgerald, WR, Arizona Cardinals: The Cardinals gave him a new contract in March because he's their go-to guy. He teams with Anquan Boldin to form one of the top receiving duos.

32. Brian Urlacher, LB, Chicago Bears: A few years back he was overrated. He's not anymore. Urlacher excels in the middle of the Chicago defense.

33. Steven Jackson, RB, St. Louis Rams: The offensive line woes of the Rams really hurt Jackson last season. That line will be better this season and his numbers will go up.

34. Braylon Edwards, WR, Cleveland Browns: Edwards was second to Moss with 16 receiving touchdowns in his third season in the league. He averaged 16.1 per catch and will only get better as he hits his prime.

35. Drew Brees, QB, New Orleans Saints: For the second consecutive season, Brees put up huge numbers in the Saints offense. He might not be the biggest or have the strongest arm, but Brees knows how to throw the football.

36. Tommie Harris, DT, Chicago Bears: Harris is strong and quick. He had eight sacks last season, showing off his quickness. He can still hold the point against the run.

37. Asante Samuel, CB, Philadelphia Eagles: He had a big season at the right time, cashing in on a huge deal with the Eagles. He's great at playing the ball in the air, but some scouts think he freelances too much.

38. Shawn Andrews, G, Philadelphia Eagles: He's a huge guard at 6-4, 345 pounds and he shows off that power when blocking for the run. He improved in pass protection in 2007, although the Eagles line regressed as a whole.

39. Ernie Sims, LB, Detroit Lions: It's too bad more people don't get to watch him play. He's a fast linebacker who always seems to find his way to the football. He's a younger Derrick Brooks.

40. Lofa Tatupu, LB, Seattle Seahawks: He's a fierce tackler in the middle of that Seattle defense. He's not big at 6-feet tall, but he plays big. You can tell he loves the game.

41. Vince Wilfork, DT, New England Patriots: He was the best front-seven player on the Pats defense last season. He's a load in the middle. Moving him off the ball is tough for any center.

42. Osi Umenyiora, DE, New York Giants: His speed off the right side is a huge plus for the New York defense. Without Mike Strahan playing on the other side this season, it will be interesting to see how Umenyiora does now.

43. Patrick Willis, LB, San Francisco 49ers: It didn't take him long to establish himself as a top middle linebacker. He is fast, active and packs a punch. In a year or so, he might be the best insider linebacker in the game.

44. Kellen Winslow, TE, Cleveland Browns: He has emerged as one of the rising stars for a rising team. His ability to stretch the defense is vital to the Cleveland offense.

45. Aaron Kampman, DE, Green Bay Packers: He plays all out all the time. Despite being light at 265 pounds, he holds up against the run at left end quite well. He has speed and strength as a pass rusher.

46. Tony Gonzalez, TE, Kansas City Chiefs: He's one of those guys who doesn't seem to ever slow down. He had 99 catches last year in a bad offense.

47. Marcus Trufant, CB, Seattle Seahawks: He led all NFC corners with seven interceptions. He also got credit for 22 passes defensed. He has emerged as a top-tier corner.

48. Wes Welker, WR, New England Patriots: Yes, he belongs on this list. He had an amazing season as a slot receiver in 2007. Even when teams knew he was getting the football, he made plays.

49. Fred Taylor, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars: Taylor finally got his due last season with his first Pro Bowl appearance. At 32, he remains one of the biggest home-run threats in the league. His 5.4 per-carry average was second best among the league's best rushers to Peterson (5.6).

50. Devin Hester, KR, Chicago Bears: I don't normally put return men on these lists, but this guy has earned it. It will be interesting to see how long he can maintain it.

Just missed: Julius Peppers, DE, Carolina Panthers; Larry Johnson, RB, Kansas City Chiefs; Patrick Kerney, DE, Seattle Seahawks; Troy Polamalu, S, Pittsburgh Steelers; Adrian Wilson, S, Arizona Cardinals; Antonio Cromartie, CB, San Diego Chargers' Terence Newman, CB, Dallas Cowboys; DeMeco Ryans, LB, Houston Texans; Tony Romo, QB, Dallas Cowboys.

so charles woodson is a better player than westbrook. gotcha.

mario williams number 6? i see.

also, how, praytell, can tom brady play better than he did last year? i mean, i'm actually curious.

No disrespect to Champ Bailey, but I don't think I'd have him in the top 5. It feels like they felt forced to have those run of Defensive players in the top 10. But Mario Williams certainly is not yet a Top 10 guy, either.

But Mario Williams certainly is not yet a Top 10 guy, either.

that said, the way the williams/bush draft choices are playing out is nothing short of remarkable.

I'm actually somewhat pleased with the results of Bush/Williams thus far. I remember telling my friend on draft day that if Bush managed to become halfways a Brian Westbrook clone that the Saints would have already maximized his capabilities. Of course, such a result would have been worth the pick, but I sincerely doubted that Bush had the ethic and the humility necessary to try to make himself into the next Westbrook.

BTW, while I usually consider any 'list' suspect, I have a special disdain in my heart for anything published by the CBS Sports 'journalists.' Anyone here with an extra twenty minutes in their week could put out more thoughtful, better researched, more meaningful analysis than those clods. In fact, I would say that I would trust a NEAG drunken post over Pete Prisco.

Pete Prisco is 1 of the few instances where i woulda gladly greenlighted an Abortion, in hindsight.

18. Charles Woodson, CB, Green Bay Packers: Ask Packers insiders who was better last season, Woodson or Pro Bowl player Al Harris. The answer is Woodson.

If you made it this far, that sentence is enough for you to give up and start reading something else.

I seriously wonder if he's retarded. Sportsline is an absolute mess when it comes to...sports reporting. If not for fantasy baseball, that site should have gone the way of the mammouth years ago.

it really is the best site for fantasy, hands down.

The only thing more retarded than his rankings is his pretzel logic he actually puts in writing justifying them.

35. Brees - "...but Brees knows how to throw the football." Good thing he is a QB and not a kicker!!

7. Sanders - "...when he is on the field." The guy is almost never on the field. I could make this list when I put on another 100 pounds of muscle and run 4.2 forty.

14. haynesworth - "...when motivated, he is as good as anybody inside." So he is usually not motivated, but he is AS GOOD as anybody. Maybe he will be AS GOOD as Van Olhoffen with a little effort.

DeMeco Ryans not on the list. Westbrook too low. Big Ben (AT 17) and Brees ahead of Romo.

I kinf of agree with Seth in the sense that Prisco should be the poster child for birth control. Tell the Mass. High School girls their kids could turn out like this and the pact would be broken immediately.

Most lists end up not being about the players, but about the nimrods who put them together. Just reminded of Lucha Latte's QB list and all the crap behind it (that list should be amending for next year - I put 5's over/under placement at 9, taking the over).

One guy uses injuries to justify omission, the other uses injuries as an excuse for placement.

And people wonder why blogs are looking better (at times) than some of the "journalism" we're looking at.

I remember for years Peter King would pencil McNabb in as the #8 to #10 QB in the league and just change the names around him. That always cracked me up. One year it would be Chad Pennington ranked ahead of him, one year it would be Aaron Brooks, another year it would be Big Ben, Matt Hasselbeck would leapfrog him and fall off the list the next year...

Dude, if you have different plays jumping above him every year and another cast of one year wonders falling back off the list again, maybe you should give the guy as much credit as you do Phillip Rivers.

Where's McNabb on this list?

Pete tried to write him in, but his key strokes fractured Supah's tibia.

Not sure why you guys are so skeptical of Mario Williams being that high. I am pretty sure that the Giants reaffirmed the fact that pressure on the QB is the name of the game and he had 14 sacks last year. I can't find his hurries or splits but I do remember being pretty impressed with him and he should get better as his cast improves.

You can make a case for it, but I guess my problem with him being that high is he's just not the 6th best player in the entire league and he's probably not the best defensive end in the league.

I mean, what makes him better than Jared Allen, for instance. If we're just going on last season, which is all you can really use with Mario, Allen had 15.5 sacks and more tackles in only 15 games.

If you go over recent history, Shawn Merriman has 30 sacks in 27 games over the last two seasons. He has 40 over the last 3 years.

Aaron Kampman 27.5 sacks over the last 2 years and about 150 tackles.

Ware has 25.5 sacks and 160 tackles.

I mean, Mario might end up being amazing, but I think, at least right now, you can't call him the best DE or best pass rusher in football. Can't call him the best DE, IMO, either. That's what makes it a skethy ranking to me. He has one good year under his belt and he wasn;t even the best DE in football during that year.

The First two guys you mentioned played the Raiders Twice.


MW played the Colts twice.

Not to plug (since I have nothing to do with the site), but the best site I've seen for any objective player/team analysis (aside from the 700 Level, of course) is footballoutsiders.com. I've never joined their message boards or anything, but they at least try to be objective, which is pretty cool.

The First two guys you mentioned played the Raiders Twice.


MW played the Colts twice.

You can play that game all day, though. I mean, Williams played the Raiders once. he played the Dolphins. He played the Chiefs (who gave up more sacks than anyone in football). He also had an extra game since Allen was suspended in week one.

I'm not saying it's impossible Mario is the best in teh game. I'm just saying ranking him higher than guys who have done more (and even last season) based on a 1 year resume is a little ballsy...certainly leaves room for criticism.

He's also younger, no?

Williams is 23, Merriman is 25, Allen is 26, Ware is just about 26. Be honest, f-d, you get your choice of any of them for the Birds, who are you taking?

He's 23, Allen's 26, Merriman's 24, Ware's 25.

He's younger, but not so much that (again, my opinion) it should mean much. If those other guys were 31 or 32, it might make sense, but they are all in their early prime.

Plus, if age is a huge factor in thsi list, why would a guy like Fred Taylor get the nod over someone like Lynch?

Williams is 23, Merriman is 25, Allen is 26, Ware is just about 26. Be honest, f-d, you get your choice of any of them for the Birds, who are you taking?

It's a good question, and Mario would definitely be tempting. If it's for the Eagles, I'd probably take Williams. If it's a 3-4 team, I'd take Merriman or Ware in a heartbeat.

But that's a different question than the way I took the list. when I'm thinking about who I would want, I'm thinking about upside, age, etc. when I'm ranking players I'm thinking about what they can do for me right now and what their track record is.

If you're asking which runnign back I'dd take for the Eagles, I'd take Peterson over Tomlinson, but that doesn't mean I think Peterson is a better player today.

My bad on Merriman's age, funny too, cause I was just out there at his Bday party on May 25th, we all took roids and had an open mic where we disrespected LT with freestyle raps.




I dunno, this whole thing is silly anyway, you are talking about the difference between 6th and 11th on the list.

1  2