Texans' C.J. Stroud, Ravens' Roquan Smith Named Nos. 39, 40 on 2025 NFL Top 100 List

Baltimore Ravens linebacker Roquan Smith and Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud rounded out the top 40 in the NFL's annual list of the best players in the league.

Smith claimed No. 40 with Stroud sitting 39th in the ranking with Monday's reveal.

Here's where things stand with 38 spots left to hand out:

NFL Top 100 Players for 2025

100. Ladd McConkey, WR, Los Angeles Chargers

99. Leonard Williams, DL, Seattle Seahawks

98. Aaron Jones, RB, Minnesota Vikings

97. Drake London, WR, Atlanta Falcons

96. Lavonte David, LB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

95. Josh Sweat, OLB, Arizona Cardinals

94. Sam LaPorta, TE, Detroit Lions

93. Creed Humphrey, C, Kansas City Chiefs

92. Jessie Bates, S, Atlanta Falcons

91. Tua Tagovailoa, QB, Miami Dolphins

90. Zach Allen, DL, Denver Broncos

89. James Cook, RB, Buffalo Bills

88. Andrew Van Ginkel, OLB, Minnesota Vikings

87. Quinnen Williams, DT, New York Jets

86. Laremy Tunsil, OT, Washington Commanders

85. Kyren Williams, RB, Los Angeles Rams

84. Christian Gonzalez, CB, New England Patriots

83. Cameron Heyward, DT, Pittsburgh Steelers

82. Jerry Jeudy, WR, Cleveland Browns

81. Trent McDuffie, CB, Kansas City Chiefs

80. Rashan Gary, DE, Green Bay Packers

79. Dak Prescott, QB, Dallas Cowboys

78. Khalil Mack, DE, Los Angeles Chargers

77. Tee Higgins, WR, Cincinnati Bengals

76. Vita Vea, DT, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

75. Patrick Queen, LB, Pittsburgh Steelers

74. Bobby Wagner, LB, Washington Commanders

73. Christian McCaffrey, RB, San Francisco 49ers

72. Sam Darnold, QB, Seattle Seahawks

71. Kerby Joseph, S, Detroit Lions

70. Frankie Luvu, LB, Washington Commanders

69. Jordan Mailata, OL, Philadelphia Eagles

68. Jordan Love, QB, Green Bay Packers

67. Malik Nabers, WR, New York Giants

66. Jalen Ramsey, CB, Pittsburgh Steelers

65. Trey McBride, TE, Arizona Cardinals

64. Bo Nix, QB, Denver Broncos

63. Josh Hines-Allen, DE, Jacksonville Jaguars

62. Bijan Robinson, RB, Atlanta Falcons

61. Brian Thomas Jr., WR, Jacksonville Jaguars

60. Cooper DeJean, CB, Philadelphia Eagles

59. Matthew Stafford, QB, Los Angeles Rams

58. Joe Mixon, RB, Houston Texans

57. Nick Bosa, DE, San Francisco 49ers

56. Justin Herbert, QB, Los Angeles Chargers

55. Aidan Hutchinson, DE, Detroit Lions

54. Derwin James, S, Los Angeles Chargers

53. Jared Verse, LB, Los Angeles Rams

52. Terry McLaurin, WR, Washington Commanders

51. Kyle Hamilton, S, Baltimore Ravens

50. Baker Mayfield, QB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

49. Quinyon Mitchell, CB, Philadelphia Eagles

48. Jonathan Greenard, LB, Minnesota Vikings

47. Tyreek Hill, WR, Miami Dolphins

46. Will Anderson Jr., DE, Houston Texans

45. Trent Williams, OT, San Francisco 49ers

44. Mike Evans, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

43. Jalen Carter, DT, Philadelphia Eagles

42. Dion Dawkins, OT, Buffalo Bills

41. Puka Nacua, WR, Los Angeles Rams

40. Roquan Smith, LB, Baltimore Ravens

39. C.J. Stroud, QB, Houston Texans

Smith was a Pro Bowler and All-Pro for the second straight season in 2024. He finished with 143 total tackles, one interception and 1.5 sacks in 16 starts. In 10 of those appearances, he was on the field for all of Baltimore's defensive snaps.

As a whole, Baltimore's defense took a small step backward in Zach Orr's first year as the coordinator. The Ravens allowed the sixth-fewest yards in 2023 with Mike Macdonald in the booth and then dropped to ninth in that category. The unit did improve as the campaign unfolded, though, shaking off a tough start.

Smith was once again the defensive tone-setter and continued to live up to his five-year, $100 million contract. He was the No. 2 off-ball linebacker in the annual positional rankings from ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.

The Ravens will hope his strong level of performance carries over into 2025 as they try to win a third successive AFC North title.

In the case of Stroud, the Texans are banking on a rebound.

Coming out of the 2023 season, the No. 2 overall pick was seemingly on the cusp of a breakthrough and offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik was one of the hottest names on the coaching market.

Slowik's firing in January was a sign of how badly Houston's offense performed relative to expectations.

That included Stroud, who went from averaging a league-high 273.9 passing yards per game as a rookie to getting just 219.2 per contest. His interception total more than doubled from five to 12, and he threw for fewer touchdowns (20) despite making two more appearances.

Players don't always develop in a linear arc. Especially for quarterbacks thrust into the starting job as a rookie, there are bumps in the road.

Last year, it felt as though opposing teams figured out how to attack what had been a high-powered Houston offense, and Slowik was unable to find the right adjustments.

Now, Nick Caley is tasked with getting the group to look dynamic again and having Stroud reassert himself as a Pro Bowl-caliber signal-caller.