The 16 Biggest Egos in the NFL Today

There is no doubt that the NFL is filled with very big egos. Egos getting in the way is just one of the reasons that the league and the players can't agree to a new collective bargaining agreement. But who are the biggest egos in the NFL right now?

When you are as physically gifted as these players are, you are earning millions of dollars, everyone wants to follow you and little kids idolize you—how do these guys not get some sort of an ego from all the adulation?

We are going to limit our search to include current NFL players, as well as the incoming rookies and the owners. That gives us plenty of material to work with. We don't even need to use coaches with big egos; we already have our top 16 lined up, with a few honorable mentions as well.

Honorable Mention: Big Egos in the Making

You don't even need to remove the sunglasses from this rookie to know who he is. The incoming freshman class of 2011 has a few bright and shining egos that already are looking like they could greatly expand in the not too distant future.

The nominees are Cam Newton, Jimmy Smith, Ryan Mallett and potential supplemental draft pick Terrelle Pryor. From all the cars that Pryor owned, he might have the biggest ego of the class already, but there is a certain icon and entertainer who was referring to himself in the third person who shows signs of being right there neck and neck.

Honorable Mention: Veterans

First veteran up is Hines Ward. He used to be a model citizen type, but with the Super Bowl rings comes more fame. Then we get into Dancing with the Stars. Then he is stopped by the police for being in a stolen car, but it is a misunderstanding. Then this past week, we have an alleged DUI arrest. The cracks are starting to show that Ward's fame and ego need a reality check.

Other honorable mention candidates include Adam "Pacman" Jones, Bart Scott and Philip Rivers. All three of these guys have large egos that are well documented. It is good that they play on different teams to keep the bigger egos from clashing.

It should be noted that Jones was arrested this weekend, so any reports that he had turned a corner were purely wishful thinking. With Terrell Owens and probably Chad Ochocinco gone, the Bengals will need somebody to step up and maintain their image and reputation.

Eli Manning

When you refuse to play for the team that drafted you, that automatically earns you a spot in our biggest ego list. There are just no two ways around it.

The NFL draft is what it is. It may have its share of flaws and rules and regulations that seem unfair to most of us, but how many players actually refuse to play for a team that drafts them?

Have you seen the latest commercial featuring the Manning brothers as Old West sheriffs? Throwing a football around with the big mustaches? Eli's ego needed a little exercise this summer, as he had nothing else to do.

DeAngelo Hall

One thing that is consistent with big egos is that the players begin to take on a sense of self-entitlement and feel they are above the law.

Enter DeAngelo Hall. According to an article in Pro Football Talk, Hall watched as one of his properties in Virginia was seized for failure to pay close to $25,000 in back taxes on the property.

The way the story ran, Hall was getting checks for more than $1 million a contest when he was with the Raiders, and he can't cough up $25,000 to save his home? This is a player who has earned over $10 million in his career.

Hall is very skilled at being a trash talker, which is par for the course for players with a big ego.

Jay Cutler

Jay Cutler has been known to be a trash talker but has also been known to make up some pretty ridiculous claims. While a member of the Broncos, Cutler claimed to be better than John Elway. It is one thing to have a big ego and believe in yourself; it is another to try to vault yourself over Elway, the local treasure of the Broncos franchise.

Based on his reputation, it is clear that few people were upset when he faced the wrath and scorn of Chicago for not gutting out the second half of the NFC Championship Game last season.

Vince Young

Vince Young was once on top of the world when he led Texas to its victory in the Rose Bowl over USC for the national championship. Since then, many believe that Young developed a giant-sized ego over his fame and popularity.

He started doing all the wrong things to advance his career. Partying late at the clubs, because everybody knows that can only lead to trouble, is just one of the things he started doing regularly that fed the ego.

Then we have the whole issue regarding wanting to hurt himself and running out making threats with a gun. Young needs to find a positive mentor who can teach him how to be humble and try to salvage what is left of his career. It's not like Jeff Fisher bailed on him because he was a high-character guy. He was lazy and unprepared, but that is what happens when your self-worth becomes overinflated. You start taking short cuts.

When Fisher and Young reached a stalemate in 2010, that was a real battle of egos. That could have easily been called the "Clash of the Titans." Neither one emerged victorious, and as a result, neither one will be part of the Titans squad in 2011.

Tony Romo

Is Tony Romo a semi-pro golfer, an A-list celebrity dater or a football player? It is hard to know what is going on with Romo, but to me he is about as far away from being Roger Staubach as is conceivably possible.

After burning through the likes of Jessica Simpson and Carrie Underwood, Romo must have upset hearts all over the state of Texas. But most Cowboys fans were probably growing tired of the distractions and would have preferred to see some playoff wins instead.

Married to former Miss Missouri and Miss USA contestant Candice Crawford, Romo is now off the market and can concentrate on his public image and golf game. The wedding was well attended by plenty of celebrities. But with an ego the size of Texas, would you have expected anything less?

Michael Crabtree

Michael Crabtree gesturing to the 49ers fans because he actually made a catch? I suppose that being tied for 52nd in the NFL in receptions means that you are something special, right?

Apparently, Crabtree thought so much of himself that he threatened to hold out his entire rookie season with the 49ers, as he didn't feel they were offering him enough money. I am sure that the 49ers would like to see him earn what he held out for, but that may never happen.

Maybe if Crabtree had dropped the pass against Texas for Texas Tech, he would be a more humble guy. But he did make the play, and his ego has been expanding ever since.

Daniel Snyder

For starters, I think it is safe to assume that anyone who decides to become an owner in the NFL is not a shrinking violet. You already know that the owner will be beyond wealthy, and their purchase of an NFL franchise is basically going to be stroking their image and ego.

In Washington, D.C. circles, people like to bash Daniel Snyder, and with good reason. He finds new ways to spend millions of dollars on players who wind up being terrible fits in Washington. Albert Haynesworth quickly comes to mind.

You know those NFL.com commercials on the NFL Network where Snyder's dinner date throws her Redskins jersey back to Snyder across from the dinner table? Tell me that doing that commercial wasn't a little ego boost.

For an interesting read, here is a scathing article on Snyder from Statter 911.com that addresses the public relations nightmare that is also known as Redskins owner Daniel Snyder.

Ben Roethlisberger

As we have stated before, when an athlete reaches the pinnacle that is the NFL, he leads his life with a certain sense of entitlement—that he can do whatever he pleases.

Although it is possible that Ben Roethlisberger may have turned a corner in the past year (the jury has not yet come back with its verdict), it is justifiable to put Big Ben on this list for his questionable dealings with females over the span of his career to date.

Then we bring up the time he got riding a motorcycle, where he could have easily put his team's entire season in jeopardy if he had gotten hurt worse than he did. That was a case of "let me do what I want, and forget everybody else." Ego and immaturity can lead to people doing dumb things.

Whether or not Big Ben stays on the straight and narrow is anyone's guess. But should he slip again and mess up, there is a reason that they say, "Three strikes and you're out!"

Ray Lewis

Ray Lewis talks a mean game. He runs his smack all day long but backs it up with solid play. Even though he walks the walk and talks the talk, it should also be noted that he possesses one huge ego.

From his war-painted face to the introduction dance when he arrives on the field, Lewis is obviously very full of himself.

Lewis is intense and plays with passion, but he does some things that are strange. You may recall his commentary about how NFL fans will turn to crime if the NFL goes on strike.

What about the deal when his posse got wrapped up in several deaths by the way of stabbing? Here is an article that reviews some of Ray's prior experiences and talks about his ego and prior judgment experiences.

Tom Brady

Nobody is denying that Tom Brady is not a great quarterback, but you never hear very much about Peyton Manning's dating history or love life—not exactly the case with Brady.

First there was the relationship with Playmate of the Year Layla Roberts. Then we move on to actresses Tara Reid and Bridget Moynahan. He has a child with Moynahan but leaves her for supermodel Gisele Bundchen. Leave it to Brady to call an audible like that.

I think we can agree that when you review the above, along with three Super Bowl championships, you know that Brady has a large ego. The good news is that he has taken care of his children, so there is that. We know of many athletes who have turned the other way.

As his popularity continues to grow, along with his records, hopefully Brady keeps things in check. I mean, it's not like he will feel the need to grow his hair long now or anything like that, right?

Joey Porter

Joey Porter is another trash talker of the huge ego variety. He has usually run his mouth and found ways to get himself in trouble, while he continues to shuffle to new teams that determine he is worth the money, headache and aggravation.

There was the Miami Dolphins game against the New England Patriots, when Porter came out ripping Patriots backup quarterback Matt Cassel.

While a member of the Dolphins, Porter announced on television that he wanted to be traded. There is a reason you have an agent, Joey. That is something somebody with a huge ego would do. Porter is a classic egomaniac.

Al Davis

It is well known that Al Davis has a huge ego. He drafts players he wants to draft, and it doesn't seem to matter that he keeps making strange decisions. It is his team, and he is committed to doing it his way. To think I used to attend Raiders games for years when I was living in Southern California, knowing that Commitment to Excellence meant something else back then.

He has had his share of famous clashes with his coaches and players alike. Marcus Allen, Tim Brown, Lane Kiffin and Mike Shanahan come to mind as just a few examples.

From moving his franchise between Northern California and Southern California to suing the very league that he is a member of, Al Davis does things his own way. He definitely marches to the beat of his own drum, which is another way of saying that he has a huge ego.

The Raiders seem to have improved during the past year, as their record of 6-0 against the AFC West would attest. But the reality is that the team has not been to the playoffs since 2002, so the Raiders and Davis are due. But then again, with Al Davis, you just never know what to expect.

Chris Johnson

Here we have an ego check moment: Chris Johnson winning an award at the ESPYs, right off the red carpet. Like his ego needed any more stroking.

When the new CBA deal is signed, Johnson is sure to hold out for more money on top of the already mentally exhausting labor lockout, because he is worth the extra money. Isn't that right, Chris?

So what you are probably going to need is to break in a rookie quarterback. Let's remove the only insurance policy that he has (a running game) and throw him to the wolves.

Anyone care to guess what week he finally comes to terms with the Titans?

Randy Moss

Randy Moss is a gifted receiver. However, every gifted receiver is not a prima donna. Just refer to people like Larry Fitzgerald, Jerry Rice and Andre Reed.

But when it comes to Moss, he sulks when he feels like it, or he takes off plays when he feels like it. He heaps praise on his old team and throws his current team under the bus.

He is losing a step, and playing for three teams in a year might start to be the norm until he decides it is time to hang them up. When Moss decided he had had enough when playing for the Raiders, he turned into the kind of player nobody wants to be associated with. A huge ego is all you need to justify that type of behavior. Let's see what he does this year, because his 2010 season was a joke.

Jerry Jones

The state of Texas doesn't seem to be big enough to hold the ego of Jerry Jones. As if he needed a bigger stadium, or a bigger scoreboard, or a bigger image, Jones found a way to get all of it with his new playpen for the Cowboys.

He thought he had everything lined up, hosting the Super Bowl and figuring his team was going to find a way to be playing in its home stadium for the Vince Lombardi Trophy. Something funny happened on the way to the Forum.

The Cowboys had an embarrassing season, and Jones then had to face the scorn of Super Bowl ticket holders when they oversold tickets for the event. Jones tried to cram as many seats as he possibly could out of his museum and caused NFL employees to give up their tickets, which probably endeared him to their memories for the long term.

From his run-ins with Jimmy Johnson, it is well known that there is only one sheriff in this town. With an ego that big, you know who is going to win every fight he enters.

Terrell Owens and Chad Ochocinco

Two famous giant-sized egos left, and only one slide remaining in the presentation? Why not try to fit them in on the same slide? I am sure that if they could team up to reprise Batman and Robin in Cincinnati last year, they can work together one more time.

From all of the antics that Terrell Owens has pulled on the football field after his touchdown celebrations, you already know how large his ego is. "I just love me some more me," or whatever it is that he says about himself. From popcorn to spiking the ball on the Cowboys midfield star, Owens is a classic ego case.

His partner in crime, Chad Ochocinco, is another one for the books. From keeping a list in his locker of all the cornerbacks he is going to beat on Sunday to his run through all sorts of wild and wacky publicity stunts during the NFL lockout, Ochocinco finds a way to keep his image and ego growing.

It is probably not by accident that their act was only going to last for one year together with the Bengals. Personalities and egos this big can only share the spotlight for so long before one side or the other flips on their friend. We sure wouldn't want to see that, would we?

Hope you enjoyed the presentation.