July is the driest month of the year when it comes to NFL news, which makes it the perfect time for something like a top 100 players list. For the fourth straight year, we’re happy to bring you our 2025 NFLTR Top 100 Players. 

We’re not the only outlet that does a top 100 — NFL Media has done one with at least some democratic input from current players since 2011 — but our goal is to give more credit to players and positions that are often easy to overlook, especially in the trenches. We build it using traditional and advanced statistics, awards, positional value, career trajectory and a good old-fashioned dash of the eye test. Our list won’t be perfect but the goal is to give as much credit where it’s due as possible. 

Today is the final update to the 2025 list. Check out the links below for the full 2025 NFLTR Top 100 Players. 

• 100-91
• 90-81
• 80-71
• 70-61
• 60-51
• 50-41
• 40-31
• 30-21
• 20-11

Resources: 

• Pro Football Reference
• QB advanced stats
• Win rates from ESPN for OL and DL
• PFF advanced stats (grades, pass rush productivity, blocking efficiency, coverage stats)
• ESPN WR tracking metrics
• Past NFLTR Top 100s 

10 – Eagles RT Lane Johnson

After a slight down year in 2023, at least compared to his lofty standards, Johnson rebounded and reclaimed his standing as one of the top two tackles in football last year. He was one of just a couple tackles to finish in the top 10 in both pass block and run block win rate, per ESPN, ranking fifth on both leaderboards at 95 percent and 80 percent respectively. PFF credited him with just 14 pressures total allowed all season and a 98.6 pass block efficiency that was No. 2 among all tackles. Even going into his age-35 season, Johnson is a dominant player who’s showing almost no signs of slowing down. 

9 – 49ers DE Nick Bosa

Winning isn’t just good for business in the NFL, it usually has a positive impact on stats for players, too. The opposite is true of losing. The hard times the 49ers fell on last year with a 6-11 record meant fewer opportunities for Bosa to rush the passer. He had nine sacks, dipping below double digits for the first time since he tore his ACL in 2020. He also had 69 total pressures — still 10th among all edge rushers per PFF, but far below the 100 a year he’d been averaging the past three seasons. 

Still, some of the advanced metrics show Bosa’s still one of the top edge rushers in football. He ranked fifth in ESPN’s pass rush win rate at 22 percent and has been a regular at the top of that leaderboard the past few years. PFF has a metric called pass rush productivity that weights sacks, hits and hurries against snaps played. Bosa’s score ranked sixth in the league. When he got his chances last year, he was as dangerous as ever. 

8 – Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase

Chase joined elite company with a remarkable 2024 season, becoming just the fifth receiver in the modern era to win the NFL’s Triple Crown by leading the league in catches, yards and touchdowns. (The other four were Cooper Kupp, Steve Smith, Sterling Sharpe and Jerry Rice). Chase piled up 127 receptions for 1,708 yards and 17 touchdowns in a prolific Bengals offense. 

Part of what makes Chase so good is how great he is at everything receivers are asked to do. He’s fast enough to take the top off the defense, tough enough to go over the middle and has the route running and savvy to uncover against any type of coverage. His best skill might be after the catch, though. His combination of speed and strength is a lot for defenses to handle and he finished second in the league with 24 missed tackles forced, per PFF. What’s even scarier is that Chase’s season could have been even better — he had 10 drops and caught just 10 of 24 contested targets. We might not have seen the best of Chase and the Bengals quite yet. 

7 – Vikings WR Justin Jefferson

Jefferson’s former LSU teammate is nipping right on his heels here, but I still give the top dog edge at the wide receiver position to him. For me, there’s one stat that says it all. Jefferson leads all receivers in NFL history in receiving yards through the first five seasons — and second place isn’t close. Jefferson has 7,432 yards in his career so far, well ahead of former Rams WR Torry Holt in second place with 6,784. He added another 1,533 yards last year and tied a career-best with 10 touchdowns. 

Jefferson has done all of that without the benefit of an elite quarterback so far in his career, though he’s certainly gotten strong seasons from guys like Kirk Cousins and Sam Darnold. He’s nearly impossible for any corner to guard one-on-one with his flexibility and route-running skills, and he’s got laser focus to bring in the ball from all angles. He’s not as dynamic as Chase after the catch, but he’s capable of explosive plays at all levels of the field and a more consistent player still. He’s the best receiver in the league — and there’s a ton of competition for that spot these days. 

6 – Cowboys DE Micah Parsons

After flirting with winning Defensive Player of the Year in each of his first three seasons, Parsons wasn’t a significant factor in that conversation this past season. Parsons missed four games and the overall step back the Cowboys took also weighed him down in the minds of voters. He was still outstanding. Parsons recorded 12 sacks in the 13 games he played and forced two fumbles for good measure. He was third in the NFL in pass rush win rate at 23 percent and seventh in total pressures with 79 despite the missed time. In PFF’s pass rush productivity score, which accounts for snaps played, Parsons ranked third among all edge rushers. 

Despite the setback, it feels like it’s just a matter of time until Parsons wins a DPOY award and he’s a viable candidate to get multiple if things break right with good health in the coming years. Most likely, Parsons will continue to play in Dallas, as even though the team is currently dragging its feet, the Cowboys have a history of getting these deals done eventually. 

5 – Browns DE Myles Garrett

Garrett did his best to try and lift up the Browns’ defense and turned in yet another remarkable season. He had 14 sacks and crossed the 100-sack mark for his career. He also added three forced fumbles and led the NFL with 22 tackles for loss. After winning Defensive Player of the Year in 2023, Garrett finished third in the voting in 2024 despite playing on a miserable Browns squad. By nearly every measure — pass rush win rate, total pressures, etc — Garrett was a top three edge rusher in football last year. Fortunately for the Browns, their contract offer convinced him to back off his trade request, and Garrett is poised to keep playing in Cleveland for the foreseeable future. 

4 – Bengals QB Joe Burrow

Top 100 lists like this are engineered to spark debate. But I think there would be about as broad a consensus as possible that the following four quarterbacks belong right here at the top of the list. Of the last seven MVPs, five have been won by this group of players and this group represents most of the betting favorites for MVP awards for at least the next five years. Now the exact order of this quartet? There’s room for reasonable minds to disagree.  

For me, Burrow belongs in the conversation but at No. 4. He was brilliant in 2024 just the same as he’s been for most of his young career. The biggest thing holding him back has been health, including a torn ACL in his rookie year and a torn wrist ligament in 2023. In 2024, he was healthy though and shredded opposing defenses to the tune of 4,918 yards, 43 touchdowns and just nine interceptions. Burrow led the NFL in yards, touchdowns and attempts as the Bengals leaned hard on his arm to overcome other shortcomings in a scramble for the playoffs. 

Had they been a little more consistent or caught some breaks in close games, it’s possible Burrow would have won his first MVP award. Ultimately he’s the only one of these four players who lacks that recognition. He’s also just a tick more limited physically than the other three, though still an incredible player. For me, that slots him in perfectly at No. 4. 

3 – Bills QB Josh Allen

Allen got one monkey off his back last season by winning his first-ever MVP award for a phenomenal season, though the Bills still fell short in the playoffs and are looking to get over that hump. Interestingly enough, it came in a year where the Bills asked less of Allen in some ways than they had in the past. Buffalo ran the ball more than it had in a long time and Allen had the fewest passing attempts since his second year in the league when he was still finding his way. 

However, Allen was still the engine that powered the whole thing, and he did it without the services of a star No. 1 receiver. Whether it was the passing game or running game, Allen was devastating and efficient. He threw 28 touchdowns to just six interceptions (notching a career-low 1.2 percent INT rate) while adding 531 yards rushing and 12 touchdowns. He tied for the NFL lead in QBR with the next player on the list and was third in adjusted net yards per attempt. 

Like the MVP vote, it was razor-close to put him here instead of ahead of the next player…

2 – Ravens QB Lamar Jackson

The MVP award almost always refers to the one given by the Associated Press, along with the other formal NFL honors. But other outlets also hand out their own awards, including the Pro Football Writers Association which is the other major organization that names an MVP. There is a fair amount of overlap between voters for the PFWA and the AP, which means the PFWA MVP, announced first, is usually a telling indicator of how the AP voters are leaning. The last time the two awards were different was 2003, and it’s happened just seven times in the modern era (1975-present), including this past year.  

Jackson earned PFWA MVP awards while Allen took home the formally recognized AP MVP, showing how thin the margins were between the two players. Jackson’s supporting cast was a couple of ticks better than Allen’s, which along with voter fatigue might have worked against him in the final tally. But if this author had a vote, it would have gone to Jackson. Coming off an MVP season in 2023, Jackson was even better last year. He threw 41 touchdowns to just four interceptions — 4! — and reached 4,172 yards passing. Jackson also nearly topped 1,000 yards rushing for the third time in his career, adding 915 yards on the ground and another four scores. That tied with Burrow for the league lead in scores, both passing and rushing. 

The Ravens were a run-heavy offense that leaned hard on RB Derrick Henry, so Jackson did all this on murderous efficiency. His adjusted net yards per attempt (normal YPA with bonuses for touchdowns and deductions for sacks and picks) of 9.38 was more than a full yard better than his closest competitor. He and Allen had identical QBRs of 77.3 to lead the NFL. About the only blemish on Jackson’s year was a playoff loss to the Bills in a tight game — and even then Jackson had put the game-tying pass in the hands of a pass catcher who would drop it. 

Jackson won’t silence all the doubters until he wins a Super Bowl, but for my money, there’s really only one quarterback I’d take ahead of him. And this decision was as hard as it’s been since the two entered the league…

1 – Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes

Last year, one of the most exciting and revolutionary players in the sport of football was…boring to watch. The Chiefs and Mahomes came into the year with lofty goals. They were going to get back to slinging the ball around the yard like they did in the first few years of Mahomes’ starting career, leaning on an augmented group of pass catchers. With Mahomes at the peak of his powers and a defense still in great shape, the Chiefs had their sights set on becoming the first team to ever win three straight Super Bowls. They got to the big game, but it felt like they were scraping by each week to get the win. Injuries ruined the best-laid plans on offense and Mahomes never looked comfortable the whole season. In the end, the Eagles smacked them down in one of the biggest blowouts in Super Bowl history. 

This year was the first year since I’ve started doing this list that I considered putting someone other than Mahomes at No. 1. His stats were kind of pedestrian compared to the other top quarterbacks. He threw for under 4,000 yards passing and had 26 touchdowns to 11 interceptions. He ranked seventh in success rate, eighth in QBR and all the way down at 19th in ANY/A. PFF assigned him the second-lowest grade of his career and charted him with just 24 big-time throws, the fewest of his career. The Chiefs were near the bottom of the league in explosive plays. 

But at the end of the day, Mahomes beat Jackson and Allen in their head-to-head matchups, and it was him and the Chiefs coming out of a loaded AFC to represent the conference in the Super Bowl despite the clear flaws with last year’s team. There has been an element of Mahomes sacrificing stats in order for the team to lean into its strengths the past few years, like a punishing offensive line and a stifling defense. He’s still counted on to make the biggest plays when they matter most, and for 18 out of 19 games, Mahomes delivered. It might not be as pretty as it was a few years ago, but Mahomes and the Chiefs are still kings of the hill — until someone knocks them off their perch.