Brilliance: The 25 Best/Most Surprising Showings of The 2010 NFL Season
Never has America seen an NFL season of such excitement, letdowns and surprises.
Rising stars have emerged where analysts would have thought least likely before the season began. Super Bowl contenders were virtually eliminated from the playoffs by midseason. The 2009 slackers are feeling comfortable in their division leads and, to be specific, Michael Vick is the media center once again.
But this time it's because he looks like a super-human on the field, not because of his illegal past.
But what are the best and most surprising showings of this season?
25. David Garrard and the Jacksonville Jaguars
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Maurice Jones-Drew was always good, so don't get me wrong here. The Jacksonville Jaguars, however, haven't always been as good as people thought they could be...until now.
They don't have Pro-Bowl receivers, but QB David Garrard is making it work. He's successfully turned Marcedes Lewis into a touchdown magnet and made the name Mike Thomas actually relevant.
Jack Del Rio is doing a phenomenal job with play selection so that both the running and passing attacks work. And a solid input from the Jags' defense has led them to an 8-5 record, a two-game winning streak, and a 4-1 record in their last five games.
24. Josh Freeman
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Almost nobody thought that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers would be a decent team this year, but Josh Freeman shut everyone up.
Though they will likely miss the playoffs due to the emergence of the Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants, Green Bay Packers, Atlanta Falcons and Chicago Bears, they are still an 8-5 team that, in my voice, has had the best comeback as a franchise from the 2009 season to the 2010 season.
Way to go, Freeman.
23. T.Ochocinco (The Cincinnati Duo)
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Every year, these two talk and talk and talk. I guess it made sense that they'd end up on the same team eventually, right?
Ochocinco isn't as relevant to this post as TO, other than that the power sharing has worked out fine. Owens, on the other hand, has actually had a phenomenal year (well, compared to what people thought the 36-year-old could still do).
He does have three receptions for over 40 yards and nine total receiving touchdowns, but most of that came in the hot streak that he is no longer on.
Still, their overall performance has surprised many of their fans throughout the season.
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22. Cameron Wake Leading the League in Sacks
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You may not know Mr. Wake, so here's an introduction:
Height: 6'3''
Weight: 250
Age: 28
College: Penn State
I guess this is more than you need to know for such an article, but I think it's time people start learning about Cameron Wake, linebacker for the Miami Dolphins.
He leads the league in sacks at 14, three of them occurring on Aaron Rodgers in a single game. His sacks are complemented by 50 tackles and three forced fumbles.
The best part, though, is the following question: Who would've guessed?
21. LaDainian Tomlinson
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By no means is LT having a season anywhere near the caliber of his prime, but he's taken over the bulk of the carries from Shonn Greene, in addition to showing at least some signs of the vintage Tomlinson.
He's not a tier-one superstar, but he's surprisingly filled in very nicely for the New York Jets.
20. Dan Carpenter (Yeah, a Kicker)
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This may have been the first year I didn't skip over the kicker column in Pro Bowl voting. Why? Dan Carpenter, that's why.
The Miami Dolphins kicker has the longest field goal of any kicker this season: a 60-yarder. What teams would choose to even kick, rather than punt or go for it, when the alternative is a 60-yard field goal. He better be thanking coach Tony Sparano for giving him the chance to become top dog. He has multiple five-FG games this season and no one could have seen it coming
19. Ryan Fitzpatrick
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Ever since the day he graduated from Harvard, he's been floating around the NFL. Usually a team with the record that the Buffalo Bills has looks to get a quarterback with one of the first picks in the draft, but the Bills should look otherwise.
Fitzpatrick, with the right supporting cast, may be the guy for the Bills. He's shown signs of being on the verge of stardom and has helped some no-name skill players become superstars.
18. Mike Tolbert
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Well, I couldn't not include him on this list somewhere.
In the midst of Ryan Mathews and Darren Sproles, leaving out the fact that Rivers runs a pass-first offense, Mike Tolbert was least likely to be the guy to have a breakout season.
But 11 rushing touchdowns deems him worthy of having an official breakout year, at least in my eyes.
17. Chris Ivory
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Chris Ivory, RB of the New Orleans Saints, was about as likely to be a superstar as any practice squad player.
On a team with Reggie Bush, Pierre Thomas and Ladell Betts, two injuries would have to happen just for Ivory to get a few carries per game.
Well he did and he proved that he deserved more...and more.
Now Bush and Thomas are back, but Ivory is the majority shareholder in the Saints' rushing game.
16. The Reincarnation of the Chicago Bears
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A lot of offseason questioning revolved on whether or not Jay Cutler could be the guy for the Chicago Bears.
His playing has finally provided an answer and the answer is yes.
Cutler is finally working well with RB Matt Forte, WRs Johnny Knox and Devin Hester and the reemergence of the Chicago defense we've all grown to love is finally playing well again.
The New England Patriots blew the Bears out, but the Patriots blow everyone out.
The Bears get an 'A' for their 2010 surprising performance.
15. Marcedes Lewis as a Star Tight End
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A big part of the 2010 success of the Jacksonville Jaguars is the proficient performance from TE Marcedes Lewis.
Finally, he is known for having nine receiving touchdowns, as opposed to just because his name is similar to a car company's.
He only has 45 receptions so far on the season, but that means 20 percent of his receptions are for touchdowns. That is the highest touchdown-to-reception ratio of any skill player in the NFL with a minimum of 30 catches.
14. Danny Woodhead
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Catch him if you can (but you probably can't).
Woodhead played Division II college football, but his 4.33-seconds 40-yard dash time and 38-inch vertical leap lifted him to a spot on the New York Jets. They saw his talent, but it wasn't properly executed until the Patriots acquired him for Week 4 of the 2010 season.
He doesn't have games in which he gets more than 5-to-10 carries, or 5-to-7 receptions, but he gets a lot of yards. Being one of the true flex players in the NFL (WR and RB), he has surprised a lot of people with over 330 yards in both the receiving and rushing departments and has scored five total touchdowns on the season.
13. Hakeem Nicks Emerging as a Superstar
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Any player who is on the field and reels in six catches for 87 yards just four weeks after being diagnosed with compartments syndrome is one tough player, but that's a separate story.
Nicks has missed three games this season, but Eli Manning has still thrown him nine touchdown passes. He's been surprisingly tough to defend, burning good defenses all season, and is getting recognition as a guy that will be a superstar for years to come.
12. The Vintage Deion Branch
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Deion Branch was decent as a New England Patriot during the earlier part of the decade, but no one could have guessed he'd be a star as a Patriot in 2010.
He has 760 yards and six touchdowns, four of which have come in the last three weeks.
Arguably the hottest WR in the NFL, Tom Brady has been looking his way just as often as he turns to his safety blanket, Wes Welker.
11. Matt Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons
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It's a great time to be an Atlanta Falcons fan.
Matt Ryan has lost one home game throughout his whole career and none in this season. The Falcons have done a great job fending off the New Orleans Saints, which are looking back in Super Bowl form.
Roddy White is just about as good as it gets, Michael Turner is getting more and more consistent and John Abraham leads a very physical defense.
The Falcons are a contender, and possibly even the favorite, for the Super Bowl.
10. LeSean McCoy
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Somehow, he'll find a way.
He'll find a way to get 130 total yards, he'll find a way to get at least one touchdown, he'll find a way to help the Eagles win and he'll find a way to please fantasy owners.
He's more than sufficient in terms of the replacement of Brian Westbrook and he is on the verge of super-stardom as an NFL running back.
LeSean gets an A+ on his 2010 performance.
9. BenJarvus Green-Ellis
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Any running back who can manage to score 11 touchdowns with three games left in the season and has Tom Brady as the quarterback deserves a solid amount of recognition.
There's not much more to say about Green-Ellis, really, other than that he's astonished the league and has done a phenomenal job in contributing to the success of the New England Patriots
8. Steve Johnson
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"Why so serious?" - Steve Johnson, WR, Buffalo Bills.
Well, to answer your question, maybe it's because your team is 3-10?
Regardless of his quotes, rhymes and antics, Steve Johnson walks the walk. He has nine receiving touchdowns on the year and his three-touchdown game proves that he has the potential to have huge games. Not any average receiver can notch a three-touchdown game, so he deserves some recognition there.
The most impressive part is that he was one of the last people in the league that you could have expected to become an instant superstar.
7. Ahmad Bradshaw
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He had a low point in which he got taken out as the starter, but even when Brandon Jacobs took on the load, he put up impressive numbers. He has broken 1,100 rushing yards, which is currently seventh in the league, and has rushed for eight touchdowns.
He leads the league with 13 rushes of 20 or more yards, largely due to his electrifying, CJ-like speed. He's beyond stardom and it's been a pleasant surprise to all New York Giant fans, and a dreadful happening to all of their opponents.
In a nutshell, the Giants organization has done a great job developing Ahmad Bradshaw as a prototypical NFL running back.
6. Sam Bradford
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It's not often that rookies settle into the NFL as smoothly and quickly as St. Louis Rams QB Sam Bradford was able to.
He's certainly not having a Pro Bowl season, but he has played like he'll get multiple Pro Bowl appearances in the near future.
Just give him a little time. That's all he needs.
5. Matt Cassel, Dwayne Bowe and the Kansas City Chiefs
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Oh, what a turnaround the Kansas City Chiefs have had. They've had breakouts all over the depth chart, have an 8-6 record and are currently in command of the AFC West (over the San Diego Chargers).
Matt Cassel, the ex-Patriot, is playing out of this world and the Chiefs believe he can be their guy for years to come. I agree with the Chiefs.
But come on, you know why I really included this post. Dwayne Bowe!
Bowe hauled in 13 touchdown passes over the course of seven games, just one game shy of the consecutive weeks with a receiving touchdown record. His 14 touchdowns are two more than Calvin Johnson, who is second in the league in terms of receiving touchdowns on the year.
Some say he's done now and he's completely cooled off, but I say otherwise.
Averaging almost two touchdowns per game and not failing to score over the course of seven games doesn't just happen. It's not just a coincidence. It's too much to be luck.
4. Brandon Lloyd
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Maybe he's just been in the wrong places at the wrong time?
How does it take Brandon Lloyd eight years to play this well?!?!
He's not looking like a one-year wonder, he's looking like a widely acclaimed veteran...but he's not.
Kyle Orton is the first QB to have such an incredible connection with him and he's been through both Washington and San Fransisco over the course of his career.
If only he had this kind of success years ago, he could have had a long, incredible career. He's still just 29 years old, but time is running out. Lloyd knows he has to keep up his performances to make a proficient salary as an NFL player, but even he didn't know he'd become such a superstar in any given year.
Lloyd's ranking is an A+ for the season so far, averaging 18.8 yards per receptions. Behind DeSean Jackson, that's the most for WRs with more then 40 receptions.
3. The Better Peyton
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Imagine Colt McCoy handing the ball off to a 240-pound rock that runs a 4.5-second 40-yard dash. How are you going to stop it?
The rock, of course, is Peyton Hillis, the 24-year-old tailback for the Cleveland Browns.
Though the Cleveland Browns struggle as a whole, their running game is frightening to opposing defenses, and that is solely because of Peyton Hillis.
With three games remaining in the season, he has rushed for 1,070 yards and 11 rushing touchdowns. He also had 446 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns.
He's also been the underdog up until now. He played as a backup for Denver and everyone thought Correll Buckhalter was his superior. He managed his way to a Browns team that was in dire need of a good running back and he more than proved himself as a dominant back in the NFL.
Hillis has astonished the world and he is now recognized as one of the premier running backs in the NFL.
2. Arian Foster
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There's only been one stat in the NFL this season that I will never forget.
That stat is Arian Foster's Week 1 performance against the Colts: 231 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns.
I mean how could I forget a number like that? It's Arian's second season in the NFL and he surprised the whole entire universe with a performance like that.
As an analyst, I still didn't have faith that he was an NFL star. Then he proved me wrong every single week, game after game, until now.
He leads the league with 1,330 rushing yards and an average of five yards per carry as well as 13 rushing touchdowns. He also has 504 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns.
I could now begin to list the running backs whom he's outplayed this year, but I'm going to make it more simple than that:
He's been the best, No. 1 in every category. Not one person is above him. End of discussion.
He is Arian Foster, he is only 24 years old, and he is here to stay.
1. Do I Even Have to Say It?
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He's the reason why people deserve second chances.
He's the only player who can miss five full games and still be No. 1 in the race for MVP.
He's the quarterback that runs a 4.36-second 40-yard-dash.
He's the reason the Eagles may be the hardest team to stop in the league.
He's the reason the Eagles are the most fun team to watch in the NFL.
He's the reason why the phrase "any given Sunday" will never be forgotten.
He's the reason why anything can happen.
He's the reason why LeSean McCoy has become great, why Jeremy Maclin has become incredible and why Desean Jackson has become absurd.
He is Michael Vick, No. 7, QB of the Philadelphia Eagles.
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