Aaron Donald Ranks No. 1 in NFL Network Top 100 Players of 2019; Tom Brady No. 6

Aaron Donald is the best player in the NFL, at least in his peers’ eyes.

NFL Network revealed the top 10 on its countdown of the best 100 players in the league Wednesday. NFL players voted on the list, so those who are upset about their ranking have only their colleagues to blame.

Here is a look at the complete top 100:

100. Eric Weddle, S, Los Angeles Rams

99. Derrick Henry, RB, Tennessee Titans

98. Tyler Lockett, WR, Seattle Seahawks

97. Byron Jones, CB, Dallas Cowboys

96. Carson Wentz, QB, Philadelphia Eagles

95. Kyle Fuller, CB, Chicago Bears

94. Mitchell Schwartz, OT, Kansas City Chiefs

93. T.J. Watt, LB, Pittsburgh Steelers

92. Jurrell Casey, DT, Tennessee Titans

91. Andrew Whitworth, OT, Los Angeles Rams

90. Julian Edelman, WR, New England Patriots

89. Devin McCourty, S, New England Patriots

88. Cameron Heyward, DE, Pittsburgh Steelers

87. Cam Newton, QB, Carolina Panthers

86. Darius Slay, CB, Detroit Lions

85. Frank Clark, DE, Kansas City Chiefs

84. Jarvis Landry, WR, Cleveland Browns

83. Harrison Smith, S, Minnesota Vikings

82. Bradley Chubb, LB, Denver Broncos

81. Trent Williams, OT, Washington

80. Mark Ingram, RB, Baltimore Ravens

79. Geno Atkins, DT, Cincinnati Bengals

78. Kirk Cousins, QB, Minnesota Vikings

77. Taylor Lewan, OT, Tennessee Titans

76. Robert Woods, WR, Los Angeles Rams

75. Gerald McCoy, DT, Carolina Panthers

74. Leighton Vander Esch, LB, Dallas Cowboys

73. Stefon Diggs, WR, Minnesota Vikings

72. Jason Kelce, C, Philadelphia Eagles

71. C.J. Mosley, LB, New York Jets

70. T.Y. Hilton, WR, Indianapolis Colts

69. Matt Ryan, QB, Atlanta Falcons

68. Phillip Lindsay, RB, Denver Broncos

67. Dee Ford, DE, San Francisco 49ers

66. Eric Ebron, TE, Indianapolis Colts

65. Jason Pierre-Paul, DE, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

64. Amari Cooper, WR, Dallas Cowboys

63. Jadeveon Clowney, LB, Houston Texans

62. James Conner, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers

61. Jaylon Smith, LB, Dallas Cowboys

60. Larry Fitzgerald, WR, Arizona Cardinals

59. Zack Martin, OG, Dallas Cowboys

58. A.J. Green, WR, Cincinnati Bengals

57. Danielle Hunter, DE, Minnesota Vikings

56. Joey Bosa, DE, Los Angeles Chargers

55. Xavien Howard, CB, Miami Dolphins

54. Calais Campbell, DE, Jacksonville Jaguars

53. Mike Evans, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

52. Tyron Smith, OT, Dallas Cowboys

51. Deshaun Watson, QB, Houston Texans

50. Baker Mayfield, QB, Cleveland Browns

49. Myles Garrett, DE, Cleveland Browns

48. Melvin Ingram, DE, Los Angeles Chargers

47. JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers

46. Patrick Peterson, CB, Arizona Cardinals

45. Demarcus Lawrence, DE, Dallas Cowboys

44. Ben Roethlisberger, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers

43. David Bakhtiari, OT, Green Bay Packers

42. Christian McCaffrey, RB, Carolina Panthers

41. Cameron Jordan, DE, New Orleans Saints

40. Zach Ertz, TE, Philadelphia Eagles

39. Akiem Hicks, DT, Chicago Bears

38. Keenan Allen, WR, Los Angeles Chargers

37. Jamal Adams, SS, New York Jets

36. Chris Jones, DT, Kansas City Chiefs

35. Davante Adams, WR, Green Bay Packers

34. Melvin Gordon, RB, Los Angeles Chargers

33. Adam Thielen, WR, Minnesota Vikings

32. Jared Goff, QB, Los Angeles Rams

31. Derwin James, SS, Los Angeles Chargers

30. Eddie Jackson, FS, Chicago Bears

29. George Kittle, TE, San Francisco 49ers

28. Fletcher Cox, DT, Philadelphia Eagles

27. Jalen Ramsey, CB, Jacksonville Jaguars

26. Darius Leonard, LB, Indianapolis Colts

25. Russell Wilson, QB, Seattle Seahawks

24. Luke Kuechly, LB, Carolina Panthers

23. Odell Beckham Jr., WR, Cleveland Browns

22. Stephon Gilmore, CB, New England Patriots

21. Travis Kelce, TE, Kansas City Chiefs

20. Andrew Luck, QB, Indianapolis Colts

19. Tyreek Hill, WR, Kansas City Chiefs

18. Ezekiel Elliott, RB, Dallas Cowboys

17. Philip Rivers, QB, Los Angeles Chargers

16. Saquon Barkley, RB, New York Giants

15. Bobby Wagner, LB, Seattle Seahawks

14. Alvin Kamara, RB, New Orleans Saints

13. Michael Thomas, WR, New Orleans Saints

12. J.J. Watt, DE, Houston Texans

11. DeAndre Hopkins, WR, Houston Texans

10. Von Miller, LB, Denver Broncos

9. Julio Jones, WR, Atlanta Falcons

8. Aaron Rodgers, QB, Green Bay Packers

7. Antonio Brown, WR, Oakland Raiders

6. Tom Brady, QB, New England Patriots

5. Todd Gurley, RB, Los Angeles Rams

4. Patrick Mahomes, QB, Kansas City Chiefs

3. Khalil Mack, LB, Chicago Bears

2. Drew Brees, QB, New Orleans Saints

1. Aaron Donald, DE, Los Angeles Rams

Wednesday's list started with a testament to consistency.

Denver Broncos pass-rusher Von Miller was voted into the top 10 for the third consecutive year after he showed no signs of slowing down in 2018 with 14.5 sacks, four forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries on his way to a seventh Pro Bowl.

Defense then took a backseat to answers for some potential offensive debates in the next few selections.

Michael Thomas (13) and DeAndre Hopkins (11) were included on Tuesday’s broadcast, creating a situation where either Julio Jones or Antonio Brown would be seen as the best wide receiver. That was quickly answered when Jones came in at No. 9 even though he led the league with 1,677 receiving yards in 2018.

Brown had 1,297 receiving yards, although his 15 touchdown catches led the league and nearly doubled Jones’ eight.

AB slotted in at No. 7 ahead of his first season with the Oakland Raiders, where he will be tasked with replicating or building on his production without the help of Ben Roethlisberger.

Another debate is where Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Patrick Mahomes and Drew Brees would be ranked in the hierarchy of top-tier quarterbacks.

Rodgers was first on the list at No. 8, two spots ahead of where he was a year ago. There is no questioning his greatness, but the Green Bay Packers went 6-9-1 last season and finished third in the NFC North.

That was quite the difference in the standings from Brady, who won his sixth Lombardi Trophy, and Mahomes, who lost in heartbreaking fashion to Brady’s New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game during an MVP season.

Although Brady bested Mahomes in the AFC Championship Game, the Kansas City Chiefs signal-caller was two spots ahead of the all-time great. While Brady fell from No. 1 to No. 6, he can at least take solace in knowing his ranking matches the number of Super Bowl rings on his fingers.

Brees could have been waiting for Brady in that Super Bowl were it not for a controversial no-call at the end of the New Orleans Saints' NFC Championship Game loss to the Los Angeles Rams, but he at least has individual bragging rights with his No. 2 ranking on this list.

A head-turning selection was sandwiched in between the quarterback picks with Los Angeles Rams running back Todd Gurley coming in at No. 5.

While Gurley helped lead the Rams to the Super Bowl with 1,251 rushing yards, 580 receiving yards and 21 total touchdowns, he missed the final two regular-season contests and had only four carries for 10 yards in the NFC Championship Game. He also had 10 carries for 35 yards in the Super Bowl as he dealt with a knee injury down the stretch of the season.

That Gurley was ahead of running backs such as Ezekiel Elliott and Saquon Barkley considering his health concerns was notable.

That left two of the top three spots for the league's most formidable pass-rushers: Khalil Mack (No. 3) and Donald. While Mack finished the 2018 campaign with 12.5 sacks and turned around the Chicago Bears' defense on the way to an NFC North title, he can't match Donald’s impact on the field.

Donald was the face of the NFC champion Rams defense and led the league with 20.5 sacks and 25 tackles for loss even though he consistently faces double-teams. He can single-handedly wreck opposing game plans, and he makes his teammates better with his mere presence on the field.

As such, he is the NFL's best player heading into the 2019 season.