10 NFL Players Who Have the Most on the Line the Rest of the Season

With the playoff picture taking shape, the second half of the NFL season represents a crucial time for even those players without the playoffs to look forward to.

For some there is a need to impress before free agency. Others have a place on the roster to maintain or a reputation to uphold.

We have taken into consideration current performance, contracts, trade value and legacy to determine the 10 players who have the most on the line the rest of the season.

Will Colin Kaepernick’s uncertain future see him top the list, or does Wes Welker have more on the line after signing with the St. Louis Rams?

10. Anquan Boldin

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There is a debate emerging over whether Anquan Boldin will end up in the Hall of Fame.

ESPN NFL insider Adam Caplan says (via Taylor Price of 49ers.com) no, claiming: “To me, he’s not a Hall of Fame player, just below that."

But it would be hard to refuse a gold jacket to a player who sits 19th in all-time receiving yards and 13th in all-time receptions, per Pro-Football-Reference.com.

To confirm his status as a future Hall of Famer, Boldin can do little more except improve his numbers. Landing at a contender before he retires would also help.

Boldin is a free agent at the end of the season and has vowed to return in 2016, per Cam Inman of San Jose Mercury News (via NFL.com’s Chris Wesseling).

Yet there will come a time when Boldin’s body doesn’t allow him to perform to an NFL standard, no matter how badly he wants to play. Reggie Wayne hoped to play in the 2015 season, but realised after two preseason games that retirement was the better option.

So Boldin must make hay while the sun is shining. The 49ers have seven games remaining. Boldin should use every one to increase his total yards and score a few more touchdowns to give himself every opportunity of earning a bust in Canton.

Prediction

Boldin enjoyed back-to-back 100-yard games before the hamstring injury that forced him to miss the 49ers last two games.

The 35-year-old is known for his toughness, and it’s hard to imagine he won’t be on a roster in 2016. Given his experience and resiliency, he might even get a shot at a contender.

There’s no way Boldin would be kept out of the Hall of Fame if he contributed to a Super Bowl-winning campaign for the second time.

9. Joe Haden

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It might be weird to see the name of a player who signed a five-year contract extension worth $68 million just last May, as reported by ESPN.com, and would go on to have a Pro Bowl season on this list.

But Joe Haden’s 2015 season has been mired by injury problems and woeful performances.

Bryson Vesnaver of Pro Football Focus includes Haden in his list of worst players at every position in 2015, and it’s easy to see why. Quarterbacks throwing at Haden are 24-of-31 passing for 387 yards and four touchdowns, for a quarterback rating of 158.2.

The best rating a quarterback can receive is 158.3, proving just how vulnerable Haden has been.

A second concussion of the season forced Haden to miss the game against the Cincinnati Bengals last Thursday, and the Pro Bowl cornerback will not return for Sunday's game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, per Rotowire staff (via CBS Sports).

Signing a contract brings with it a level of expectancy. In Haden’s case, the Browns expect him to be elite. If he continues to struggle in the remaining weeks, Haden’s trade value might see him end up on the trade block. Though it would represent a costly decision for Cleveland, stranger things have happened.

Prediction

It’s impossible for a player to gain consistency when he’s constantly battling injuries, and that has certainly been the case with Haden.

Players endure blips, and Haden is unfortunate enough to be going through one now. An extended run of games will see the 26-year-old return to the level that earned him Pro Bowl appearances in 2013 and 2014.

8. Eddie Lacy

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Before the season began, any football fan told that Eddie Lacy would be benched midway through the season for James Starks would have responded by laughing in the speaker's face.

But that’s exactly what has happened, Green Bay Packers head coach Mike McCarthy confirmed (via the Packers Twitter feed) on Wednesday that Starks “is our No. 1 back right now going into Detroit.”

To put Lacy’s benching into context, this is a running back who rushed for over 1,100 yards in each of his first two seasons and is now sitting behind a running back who has never rushed for more than 578 yards in any of his six seasons.

It shows just how dismal a season Lacy is having, with the nadir being last Sunday’s game against the Carolina Panthers in which he lost a fumble and ran for 10 yards from five carries.

What’s on the line for Lacy in the final eight games has little to do with money—he’s not a free agent in the offseason. Instead, it’s regarding his reputation and whether Mike McCarthy will feel he needs to sign a new running back to supplant the 25-year-old.

Lacy’s slump isn’t helping the Packers in their bid to secure the No. 1 seed in the NFC, and that is why it’s crucial Lacy finds a spark at some point in the next few weeks. His ceiling is much higher than Starks’, and Lacy running over defenders like he did in 2013 and 2014 gives the Packers a great shot at Super Bowl glory.

If he doesn’t turn it around and the offense continues to struggle, the Packers will simply be glad to win the NFC North.

Prediction

If history is anything to go by, Packers fans needn’t worry—in 2014 Lacy averaged 98.67 rushing yards in the final six games—but it’s hard to see Lacy repeating that success this time around. He’s entering the final eight games without any momentum, and per Michael Cohen of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (via NFL.com’s Kevin Patra), he's at a loss to explain his struggles.

Lacy will regain his place as the starting back in the coming weeks, but following Lacy’s disappointing season and Starks being 30 years old by the time the 2016 draft arrives, McCarthy will add at least one running back to compete with the duo.

7. Sam Bradford

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Chip Kelly made the decision to trade Nick Foles and a second-round pick in the 2016 draft to the St. Louis Rams in exchange for Sam Bradford in a bid to “make this thing a championship operation,” per CSNPhilly.com's Derrick Gunn (via colleague Geoff Mosher).

Bradford’s arrival was seen as the jigsaw's final piece—the piece Kelly needed to make his uptempo scheme an unstoppable NFL force.

Yet despite the hype, the Philadelphia Eagles wouldn’t even make the playoffs if the season ended today and the offense hasn’t been the dominant attack that was advertised in the preseason.

Bradford is a shadow of the player who looked like a perfect fit for the Eagles in the preseason. His passer rating of 79.5 is exceeded by Foles' (79.7), while only three quarterbacks have thrown more interceptions than Bradford’s 10.

Bradford, a free agent at the end of the season, has eight games to prove he can spearhead the Eagles’ “championship operation” before Kelly decides whether the No. 1 overall pick in the 2010 draft is worth keeping around.

Prediction

Bradford’s performance in Week 9 against the Dallas Cowboys, in which he was 25-of-36 passing for 295 yards, one touchdown and zero interceptions, will have given Kelly confidence that Bradford is growing comfortable with his scheme.

But Kelly has shown that mere comfort isn’t enough, trading away Foles after back-to-back 10-6 seasons. He wants his quarterback to have a detailed understanding of his scheme, to be able to recite the nuances of each play without peeking at the playbook.

Matt Lombardo of NJ Advance Media reported the Eagles have “simplified the offense to accommodate Sam Bradford,” the quarterback saying: “In the past couple of weeks we've kind of found what we're good at. Some of the pass concepts and things that I’m comfortable with.”

We’ll see in the remaining eight games whether a simplified offense is all Bradford needs to be a success in Philadelphia. If he plays well and takes the Eagles to the postseason, Bradford will be the starter for the long haul.

But if the Eagles miss out on the playoffs, Kelly will search the trade block for a quarterback ready to carry out his offense to its fullest.

6. Peyton Manning

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Though he’s had a glittering career, Peyton Manning’s legacy is at stake in the next three months.

He’ll certainly end up in the Hall of Fame. Nobody can doubt that.

But, in what could be his final season in the NFL, Manning's failure to win the Super Bowl would leave lingering thoughts of an unfulfilled career.

If the Denver Broncos' season doesn’t culminate in Manning lifting the Lombardi Trophy, nothing would separate him from Trent Dilfer or Brad Johnson when it comes to the number of Super Bowls won.

This isn’t to say players' quality should be judged on how many Super Bowl rings they own—if that were the case, Eli Manning would be classed a better player than his brother—but several questions would be raised if a quarterback who threw more touchdowns than any other and put up 55 touchdowns in a single season was unable to win multiple Super Bowls.

If this is Manning’s last season, it must be a Super Bowl-winning one, or else those losses in Super Bowl XLIV against the New Orleans Saints and Super Bowl XLVIII against the Seattle Seahawks will sting that little bit more.

Prediction

Denver’s defense has carried the team through nine weeks of the regular season, but Manning must step it up if the Broncos are to clinch a first-round bye. The defense will face Tom Brady, Derek Carr, Ben Roethlisberger and Andy Dalton in its next seven games, each of whom will prove tough to restrain.

Manning will surpass Brett Favre’s record for passing yards and wins by a starting quarterback, but his season will end in Cincinnati in the divisional round as Dalton breaks his curse of four straight one-and-done playoff exits.

As for his legacy, even those who believe the number of Super Bowl rings is the most important factor in determining a player’s success will admit Manning is one of the greatest quarterbacks in history. The 14-time Pro Bowl quarterback will go on to enjoy a successful coaching career while climbing the ranks within Papa Johns, eventually becoming its CEO.

5. Matthew Stafford

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According to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, Matthew Stafford’s future in Detroit is “very much in doubt,” as the Lions prepare for a major rebuild.

Stafford’s base salary for 2016 is $17 million, while his dead money value is $11 million, per Spotrac, making an offseason trade a probable outcome given Stafford isn’t rewarding Detroit’s investment with suitable production.

A strong final eight games, in which Stafford returns to the form that earned him a Pro Bowl appearance in 2014, would give the 27-year-old more chance of being a part of the new general manager’s plans.

Though that’s unlikely to happen. Stafford’s problems extend to more than just the 11 interceptions—he is struggling to read defenses, is failing to pick up blitz packages and lacks poise when under pressure. We’ll see in Sunday’s game against the Green Bay Packers if new offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter’s scheme, which Stafford had a bye week to get a better grasp of, yields greater results.

If not, it’s hard to see Stafford playing for Detroit next season.

Prediction

The Lions are starting over again, and trading Stafford gives them the opportunity to receive a few early draft picks, rendering Stafford’s spot on the Lions roster untenable.

But in the next eight games, Stafford can show potential suitors he retains the skills a contending team would seek. Who knows, Stafford could find himself succeeding Peyton Manning as the Denver Broncos starting quarterback.

4. Matt Forte

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There was talk of the Chicago Bears trading Matt Forte before the trade deadline on November 3, per NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport in an interview with GameDay First (via NFL.com's Kevin Patra).

Now Forte has eight weeks to save his Bears future.

The running back, who turns 30 next month, is a free agent at the end of the season and hasn’t done much to suggest a new contract from Chicago is impending.

Forte hasn’t had a 100-yard rushing game since Week 1 and has managed fewer than four yards a carry in four of seven games.

He also hasn’t been utilised as a pass-catcher—one of Forte’s strongest skills—as often as he was last year. In 2015 Forte is averaging 3.57 grabs a game—in 2014 that figure was 6.38.

Forte missed the Week 9 game against the San Diego Chargers, and rookie running back Jeremy Langford excelled in his absence. A stunning diving catch for 31 yards in the first quarter highlighted his performance.

Langford’s performance sparked debate of whether Forte’s days in Chicago are numbered, as seen in a piece by Lauren Moranor of Sports World Report.

Forte isn’t expected back from a knee injury for Sunday’s game against the Chicago Bears, per ESPN’s Jeff Dickerson, giving Langford another chance to impress.

When the Pro Bowl running back does return to the field, likely to be in Week 11, he must make head coach John Fox and general manager Ryan Pace see a productive player with years left in the tank, not a dwindling back not worth keeping on board in 2016.

Prediction

Forte will perform well enough to earn a new contract offer from the Bears, but the figures will be heavily reduced compared to the money he is earning in 2015, which includes a base salary of $7.05 million and a per-game bonus of $1.05 million, per Spotrac.

Forte will then decide whether to sign the deal or test the free-agent market.

3. Jason Pierre-Paul

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Prior to the July 4 fireworks incident that forced Jason Pierre-Paul to have the index finger on his right hand amputated, the New York Giants offered their star defensive end a long-term contract worth $60 million, per NFL media insider Ian Rapoport (via NFL.com’s Kevin Patra).

That lucrative contract was withdrawn, and Pierre-Paul signed a heavily incentivized one-year deal that guarantees him $1.5 million, per Spotrac. His earnings will reach $8.7 million if he records 10 sacks, per Rapoport. The Giants don’t know how productive Pierre-Paul will be, and the contract reflects that.

Now, Pierre-Paul is facing the most important seven-game stretch of his career. If he’s able to be the effective pass-rusher he was in 2014, Pierre-Paul can look forward to a new contract and more years in the NFL. There’s also the added benefit of silencing all of those who mocked him.

If, however, his injured hand causes his performance level to drop considerably, Pierre-Paul could be entering free agency with little value, with no teams willing to pay big money for a defensive end who struggles to shed blocks and take down quarterbacks, thanks to permanent damage to his hand.

Prediction

Pierre-Paul needs a few games to get reacquainted with the rigours of the NFL and won’t come close to the 10-sack mark, but he will show glimpses of his former self.

Even if he fails to shine, it would be unwise for the Giants to discard Pierre-Paul in the offseason. He’s returning from a traumatic experience midway through the season, and, at 26 years old, is entering his peak physical years.

Adding to that is the Giants need for a quality pass-rusher, having recorded just nine sacks all season. No team has recorded fewer.

2. Colin Kaepernick

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All signs point to a breakup between Colin Kaepernick and the San Francisco 49ers after the 2015 season.

Blaine Gabbert has replaced Kaepernick as the starting quarterback, and according to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports, he's “done in San Francisco.”

La Canfora continued:

"

Trust between the player -- viewed as a franchise quarterback and potential superstar when leading the team to the Super Bowl just three years ago -- and the organization has eroded to the point where any cosmetic attempts to rebuild bridges are essentially a lost cause, and the prospect of Kaepernick actually playing there next season are viewed as a non-starter.

"

Kaepernick’s base salary of $11.9 million becomes fully guaranteed on April 1, 2016, per Spotrac. Should they trade or release the 28-year-old, the 49ers would take a $7.3 million dead cap hit but would clear $7.37 million in salary cap space.

Kaepernick is likely to feature again at some point in 2015—Gabbert can hardly be relied upon to revive the 49ers season, and Kaepernick’s trade value isn’t helped with him on the bench—and the next eight weeks will have a huge impact on his future.

Should Kaepernick flash glimpses of the talent that saw him lead the 49ers to Super Bowl XLVII, head coach Jim Tomsula will no doubt plead for Kaepernick to stay in San Francisco. After all, getting rid of him would leave Blaine Gabbert as the only quarterback on the roster.

But not only must Kaepernick rediscover the ability to play quarterback at a competitive level, he must overcome a schedule that includes games against the Seattle Seahawks, Arizona Cardinals, Chicago Bears and St. Louis Rams, all of whom rank inside the top 10 in passing defense.

Despite his situation, Kaepernick isn’t No. 1 because a trade might not be the worst thing for his career. If the 49ers want to rid themselves of Kaepernick, there won’t be a lack of suitors; teams will recall Kaepernick taking the 49ers to the Super Bowl in 2012.

Prediction

Much depends on the timing of Kaepernick’s return—Gabbert has already been announced the starter in the Week 11 clash against the Seahawks, per Taylor Price of 49ers.com—but one thing for certain is the precarious position Kaepernick will find himself in when he’s back.

The 49ers lack weapons on offense—Torrey Smith and Anquan Boldin are averaging 42.9 receiving yards and 53.1 receiving yards per game respectively—and Kaepernick isn’t playing well enough to win games with a subpar receiving corps.

After a roller-coaster five seasons in San Francisco, Kaepernick will be playing football elsewhere in 2016.

1. Wes Welker

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Wes Welker is back in the NFL after the St. Louis Rams signed him to a one-year deal on Monday.

The 34-year old doesn’t need to worry about harming his legacy. What he has put at risk by returning, though, is his health.

During a 12-year playing career, operating mostly from the slot, team officials believe Welker has had up to 10 concussions, per Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report.

A team executive wrote in a text to Freeman: “I’m really scared for Wes.”

Freeman continued: “Why would Welker risk more head injuries, with all we now know about the cumulative effect of concussions? Why would a team allow him to?”

Instead of causing excitement, the former Broncos player's return has people fearing for his health. That’s why Welker is No. 1.

Welker’s willingness to play is admirable, but with the effects of concussions never clearer, it certainly appears an unwise decision.

Prediction

It’s impossible to know whether Welker will suffer a head injury this season, but his return certainly raises several questions over whether a player with a history of concussions should be allowed to play in the NFL.