5 NFL Players Who Can Break into NFL Top 100 Next Season
The NFL finished unveiling the results of their "Top 100 Players of 2024" poll last week and with it came some surprising revelations. There were a handful of high-profile stars who were snubbed, while others found on the list appeared to be coasting more on reputation rather than recent results.
The list also changed significantly compared to last year, proving there is plenty of parity in the upper echelon of professional football. Players like Lamar Jackson and Christian McCaffrey made significant leaps into the top-five, while others such as Cameron Heyward and Saquon Barkley narrowly stayed in the rankings after significant falls.
There were plenty of fresh faces on the list as well, replacing veterans who dropped out entirely in 2024. For instance, C.J. Stroud parlayed a fantastic rookie campaign into a top-20 ranking, while many other young players joined him in the top-100 for the first time.
Although it is far too early to even think about putting together a top-100 for 2025 and it's even tougher to project which rookies will have the type of first-year success to attain that status, you can be certain that the list will look vastly different when it's released next summer.
With that in mind, let's highlight five established players who have a great chance of breaking into the top-100 at the conclusion of the 2024 campaign.
RB Breece Hall, New York Jets
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The New York Jets have been struggling with offensive ineptitude and quarterback woes for over a decade, but the club's running back issues disappeared in 2022 when it tapped Breece Hall in the second round of that year's draft.
Hall, the first back off the board in his class, began living up to the hype immediately. Over the first seven weeks of his rookie season, Hall racked up 681 yards from scrimmage and scored five touchdowns on just 99 touches.
It took a midseason ACL tear to derail what could have been an Offensive Rookie of the Year-winning campaign, but that significant injury didn't hinder impact his ability to get back on the field for the start of 2023.
Despite losing quarterback Aaron Rodgers in the opener and having a subpar offensive line to work behind, Hall managed to stay healthy and put together a stellar individual season. He participated in all 17 games, totaled up nearly 1,600 yards from scrimmage and found the end zone on nine occasions, making him one of the few bright spots during yet another underwhelming Jets season.
That statement campaign showed Hall is fully recovered from knee surgery and ready to emerge as one of, if not the NFL's top back. Gang Green will need the up-and-coming superstar back to take that leap too, as playoff expectations are sky-high now that Rodgers is back in the fold and the offensive trenches have been overhauled.
Barring an injury, Hall is poised to earn his first Pro Bowl nod and should establish himself as one of the few running backs worthy of a top-100 distinction in 2025.
CB Jaylon Johnson, Chicago Bears
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Arguably the biggest snub on this year's Top-100 list, Chicago Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson made it clear he wasn't happy about his exclusion.
During a training camp press conference, Johnson openly pondered how his peers failed to distinguish him as a top player despite his Pro Bowl and All-Pro selections. He even singled out Aaron Rodgers as a player who did not deserve a top-100 ranking, citing the injury that kept him off the field for all but four snaps in 2023.
Johnson makes some valid points, especially after a breakout campaign in which he notched 10 pass defenses, four interceptions—including one turned for a score—and a forced fumble. Opposing quarterbacks only completed 55.2 percent of their throws against Johnson, who allowed just 279 yards and two touchdowns in coverage on the season.
Pro Football Focus was high on Johnson's 2023 efforts, giving him an elite 90.8 grade that ranked atop all qualifying cornerbacks. The Bears acknowledged Johnson's excellent work as well, coming to terms on a hefty four-year, $76 million contract extension that will keep him in the Windy City through the 2027 campaign.
If the 25-year-old can continue playing at the same level this year, it would be absurd to omit him from the NFL Top 100 in 2025. Even a slight drop-off would still warrant an inclusion, as Johnson would still rate as one of the best players manning one of the most difficult positions in football.
CB Trent McDuffie, Kansas City Chiefs
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It's no coincidence that the Kansas City Chiefs have won back-to-back Super Bowls in the two seasons that Trent McDuffie has been on the roster.
While the cornerback hasn't received the recognition and praise that his superstar teammates Chris Jones, Travis Kelce and Patrick Mahomes—all ranked in the top-10 of the latest NFL 100 list—have been showered with, McDuffie has been a pivotal piece of the team's defense during his short NFL tenure.
Kansas City's decision to trade up for McDuffie in the 2022 draft has been one of general manager Brett Veach's best moves. While Kansas City had to give up No. 29, No. 94 and No. 121 to get the No. 21 selection that year, it was well worth it for a player who emerged as an All-Pro in just his second professional campaign.
McDuffie has started all 27 games he's been available for, tallying 124 tackles, 14 pass defenses, six forced fumbles and four sacks in that span. He's yet to record a single NFL interception, but McDuffie has only faced 127 targets—allowing just 77 completions for 777 yards and five touchdowns—despite lining up against plenty of elite wideouts.
Steve Spagnuolo, Kansas City's venerable defensive coordinator, recently acknowledged McDuffie's incredible talent in a training camp interview with ESPN's Adam Teicher.
"[Being selected All-Pro] was the [biggest] compliment to a defensive back that did not have an interception because that tells you all you need to know," Spagnuolo said, "He does a lot of things really [well] and I'll guarantee you he's got his eyeballs on trying to get a couple of picks this year.''
McDuffie will need to raise his game even further in 2024 following the departure of L'Jarius Sneed.
The Chiefs likely felt comfortable moving on from Sneed—the team's No. 1 corner prior to being dealt to the Tennessee Titans this offseason—due to the impressive development of McDuffie. While he's a tad undersized at 5'11", 193 pounds, McDuffie has proven more than capable of taking on any assignment.
If McDuffie continues to play at the same level without Sneed to help take the heat off and the Chiefs go on to win an unprecedented third consecutive Super Bowl, it would be almost criminal to keep the star defensive back out of the NFL Top 100.
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QB Anthony Richardson, Indianapolis Colts
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The Indianapolis Colts took a major gamble when they drafted Anthony Richardson with the No. 4 overall pick last year. The high-risk move appeared to pay off after the inexperienced quarterback began his NFL career red-hot, but injuries unfortunately put a premature end to what could have been a magical rookie season.
Despite only starting for a single up-and-down season at Florida, Richardson vaulted up draft boards after shocking the world at the combine. He not only measured up at huge 6'4", 244 pounds, but packed blazing speed (he ran a 4.43-second 40-yard dash) and athleticism (he showcased a 40.5-inch vertical leap) into that frame.
NFL teams didn't seem to have an answer for Richardson during his first four starts. While his accuracy was predictably spotty—he completed 50-of-84 throws—he still racked up 577 yards and three scores through the air against a single interception. His rushing ability truly separated him from the pack though, as Richardson tallied 136 yards and four touchdowns on a meager 25 carries.
Even though the Colts only went 2-2 during Richardson's starts, it was clear they had found something in the young signal-caller. Suffering a season-ending shoulder injury and missing opportunities to grow his game on the field wasn't ideal, but the 22-year-old has used the downtime to his advantage and should be better than ever upon his return.
According to ESPN's Stephen Holder, Richardson spun the injury as something positive towards his development. "It's a blessing, really." The quarterback said, "The way I see it, if this didn't happen to me, I don't think I would be where I am now and have the mindset I have now.."
Richardson also told Holder that he didn't get a chance to show off his complete skill set last year. That should be a scary revelation for opposing defensive coordinators, as a healthy, motivated Richardson unleashing his entire toolset could be impossible to stop.
Should Richardson bring his arm along while continuing to be an athletic phenom when he takes off on the ground, he'll quickly become a top quarterback worthy of a top-100 distinction.
RB Bijan Robinson, Atlanta Falcons
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Despite being a rare top-10 running back draft pick, Bijan Robinson's rookie season wasn't quite up to par for a player many considered to be a generational prospect. It certainly wasn't a disappointing debut either, as the Atlanta Falcons star finished 2023 having rushed 214 times for 976 yards and four touchdowns and added another 487 yards and four scores on 58 catches.
Robinson is only scratching the surface of what he's capable of. He ranked No. 10 in the league and No. 6 at the running back position in yards from scrimmage despite earning the twelfth-most touches in the NFL. Previous head coach Arthur Smith was cautious with his first-year back, limiting Robinson to 771 offensive snaps—68 percent of Atlanta's offensive plays—and keeping him in a noticeable timeshare with Tyler Allgeier, the Falcons incumbent starter who accounted for 360 offensive snaps in 2023.
Expect to see much more of Robinson in Atlanta's new scheme following a regime change that will see head coach Raheem Morris and offensive coordinator Zac Robinson taking over for Smith and Dave Ragone, respectively.
Although they signed Kirk Cousins to a blockbuster contract in free agency, the Falcons appear primed to run their offense through Robinson. According to Terrin Waack of the team's official website, Morris succinctly summed up his plans for the superstar running back by saying, "In the simplest form you can put it, get the ball to Bijan as much as possible in the most ideal situations as possible"
Robinson is clearly capable of shouldering a heavy workload. He has the size and skill to be a true three-down back, showing as much during his incredible final season at Texas in which he went off for 1,894 yards and 20 touchdowns on 277 touches in just 12 games.
With Robinson's workload set to increase—Allgeier should be further phased out after averaging woeful 3.7 yards per carry last year—and a competent signal-caller in place to keep defenses honest, it would hardly be a shock to see him capture the league's rushing crown and cement a spot in the NFL Top 100.
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