The NFL is home to the world’s best football players, and, over the decades, some downright legends have played with pro teams in the league. These twenty players have etched their names into history and will be remembered forever as greats of the game.
Randy Moss
Pretty much every player who was on the 2007 Patriots team gets special mention in the annals of football history, because they were the first team to ever go undefeated across 16 games in the regular season. Randy Moss had an uncommon synergy with Tom Brady, as the wide receiver caught 23 of the 50 touchdown passes that Brady threw that year.
Mean Joe Greene
Do you know how good you have to be at football to be remembered as “Mean”? Joe Greene does. As the DT for the Steelers 70s-era dynasty, he was the core of the “Steel Curtain” defense. He was so hard to play against that the NFL banned a stunt alignment Greene used to elude interior linemen.
Tony Gonzales
Gonzales got a lot done in his seventeen seasons in the league, including his impressive Pro Bowl debut in 1999 when he was 23. He also appeared in the Pro Bowl in his last season with the NFL in 2013! Between the two, he made the cut 12 other times. Suffice it to say, he was an iconic tight end.
Emmitt Smith
Cowboys fans know how big of a deal Emmitt Smith was for the team’s 90s dynasty. He was a smaller running back with tons of strength who could easily put up 1,000-yard seasons while pushing the Cowboys to three Super Bowl wins. He remains the NFL’s career leader in rushing yards and rushing touchdowns.
John Elway
Even people who don’t know the Broncos’ history that well know that John Elway helped them get to the Super Bowl three times in four seasons in the late 80s. Eventually, he led the team to back-to-back Super Bowl wins to close out his time in the NFL, going out on a high note with the Super Bowl MVP award in his final game.
Aaron Donald
Defensive tackle Aaron Donald might be the best defensive player in the history of the NFL. Stats fans can argue about that one, but the fact of the matter is that he won the Defensive Player of the Year award three times, got picked for the Pro Bowl in all ten of his seasons with the Rams, and helped LA beat the Bengals in the Super Bowl.
Dick Butkus
Butkus was a phenomenal linebacker his entire career, but nothing ever topped his absurd rookie year. His first season with the Bears saw him yank five passes out of the air, acting as a prologue for the kind of defensive play he’d offer throughout his legendary time in Chicago. His ability to get on the ball and cover passes was unparalleled.
Barry Sanders
Sanders had a one-of-a-kind approach to his role as a running back. He was unpredictable, often plucking victory from the jaws of defeat with absurd rushing plays that just baffled opposing defenses. While he was with the Lions, he made it look like impossible plays were just run-of-the-mill drills he could do during warm-ups.
Ray Lewis
A surefire way to earn yourself a name in a franchise forever is to help them win a Super Bowl. Ray Lewis helped the Ravens win two Super Bowls. Their 2000 team only let six points through in three postseason games—and Lewis was the best man on the defensive team. That’s not just good, that’s uncanny.
Dan Marino
People who love the elegant art of the long pass should watch some recordings of Dan Marino’s games. He spent seventeen years with the Dolphins and through that time proved himself to be perhaps the best passing QB the game has ever seen. In 1984, he broke records and passed 5,084 yards and 48 touchdowns.
Johnny Unitas
Remembered as Johnny U, Unitas was considered the greatest QB to play the game back in the earliest days of the NFL. He helped captain the Colts to NFL titles in the late 50s and an early Super Bowl win in 1970. He once held a record for the highest number of games in a row with at least one touchdown pass (47 in a row, for the curious, broken by Drew Breese).
Walter Payton
Walter Peyton was so good as a running back that people just called him “Sweetness.” When he played on a so-so Chicago Bears team early in his career, he’s charge into eight-man screens just because he was good enough to go for it. When the Bears built a good offense around him, he helped bring them to Super Bowl XX victory. He was an all-around great.
Reggie White
Reggie White helped define modern free agency when he signed with the Green Bay Packers in 1993. That move ended up being a prudent career choice, as he helped the Packers win their first Super Bowl in 29 years in 1996. Of course, he got three sacks in that game, so White was instrumental in their success, to say the least.
Joe Montana
Even if you’re not a fan of football, you’ve probably heard of Joe Cool. The man was so cool that his given name and nickname were cool! Montana captained the 49ers to four Super Bowl victories in the 80s, and historically threw no interceptions across all of them. He was famously unshakable in playoff games and even used his own feet to make the magic happen, like in his unbelievable 92-yard rushing touchdown in Super Bowl XXIII.
Lawrence Taylor
It’s not common for a player to win both Defensive rookie of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, but that’s exactly what Lawrence Taylor did in 1981. In 1986, he won the MVP award for his role in helping the Giants secure their first Super Bowl win. His playstyle forever changed the way NFL teams played the left tackle position.
Patrick Mahomes
Mahomes is still the QB for the Chiefs and he’s already being called a legend in his own time. He’s helped lead Kansas City to three Super Bowl victories and four AFC championships since he arrived in 2017, and he’s still going. If the Chiefs win their third straight Super Bowl this year, people might start calling Mahomes the greatest of all time.
Jerry Rice
Jerry Rice was very good at football for a very long time. He caught a Super Bowl touchdown at age 40. That’s almost unheard of for a wide receiver, and not even getting into things like his absurd 22,895 career total receiving yards. In 1987, he played in 12 games. He caught 22 touchdowns in that time. That was the single season record for 20 years. Yeah, the guy was that good.
Peyton Manning
While Mahomes is the latest entrant into the “best QB ever” discussion, Peyton Manning and Tom Brady are the two players who historically vie for the title. Manning won five MVP awards and was the first starting QB to win a Super Bowl with two different franchises. He’s also a very well-known celebrity ambassador for the game.
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Jim Brown
The Cleveland Browns aren’t called that because of Jim Brown, but it certainly doesn’t hurt that he was basically the Babe Ruth of football in the 50s and 60s and played for them. The last time the Browns won a league title was in 1964. Coincidentally enough, Brown retired in 1965. To this day, the legendary running back still holds the record for highest yards-per-game average at 104.3.
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Tom Brady
Tom Brady is the best to ever do it, no matter how you feel about him or the New England Patriots. His absurd seven Super Bowl wins will be a difficult record for any player to ever get close to. His 2020 outing with the Buccaneers came when he was 43 years old, and yet he was still playing at a level that helped propel his team to victory. That’s a level of dominance the sport might not see again for a long time.
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