Quarterbacks:

Patrick Mahomes: 4,839 yards, 37 TDs, 98.5 rating
Aaron Rodgers: 4,114 yards, 37 TDs, 111.9 rating
Josh Allen: 4,407 yards, 36 TDs, 92.2 rating
Deshaun Watson: 4,823 yards, 33 TDs, 112.4 rating; 2020-21 stats
Tom Brady: 5,316 yards, 43 TDs, 102.1 rating

Mahomes has been the number one quarterback in the league for years now. He has led his team to the conference championship 4 years in a row. He and Rodgers who has won the MVP 2 years in a row are undisputedly numbers 1 and 2. Allen and Watson at 3 and 4 are also very close. Watson didn’t play last year due to legal issues, but he was the third-best quarterback in the league before this season. This year, Allen crept up the list and overtook Watson because we don’t know what Deshaun will look like when he returns. Taking the last spot on the quarterback's list is Tom Brady who has dominated the league for almost 2 decades. Despite his age, this past year was one of his best seasons and was good enough to leave him right on the end of my list. 

 Runningbacks:

Derrick Henry: 2,027 yards, 17 TDs, 5.4 avg; 2020-21 stats
Christian McCaffery: 1,387 yards, 15 TDs, 4.8 avg; 2019-20 stats
Dalvin Cook: 1,159 yards, 6 TDs, 4.7 avg
Saquon Barkley: 593 yards, 2 TDs, 3.7 avg
Nick Chubb: 1,259 yards, 8 TDs, 5.5 avg

Derrick Henry is a freak of nature who is probably the hardest person to tackle in all of the NFL. He was injured for some games this year, but he finished with over 2,000 yards last season. Right behind him is Christian McCaffery who if not for injury the past two seasons would probably be number one. He is the best receiving back in the league who finished with over 1,000 rushing and receiving yards in the 2019-20 season. Dalvin Cook is a quick, but powerful running back who doesn’t get hurt very often and has accumulated over 1,000 yards in most of the seasons he has played. Saquon Barkley could probably be rated anywhere in the top 10 running backs by different people. Without his injuries, I think he would probably be top 2, but his production is outside of the top 10. He has faced tons of setbacks, but in his only fully healthy season, he played amazing and rushed for over 1,000 yards. The last spot was really close between Nick Chubb and Alvin Kamara but Nick Chubb has been the focal point of the Brown’s offense over the past few years and has never failed to achieve. 

Wide Receivers:

Davante Adams: 1,553 yards, 11 TDs, 12.6 avg
Justin Jefferson: 1,616 yards, 10 TDs, 15.0 avg
Cooper Kupp: 1,947 yards, 16 TDs, 13.4 avg
DeAndre Hopkins: 1,407 yards, 6 TDs, 12.2 avg; 2020-21 stats
Tyreek Hill: 1,239 yards, 9 TDs, 11.2 avg

Davante Adams is the undisputed number one receiver in the league and he has been for probably the past 3 seasons. He has always been in the OPOY conversation and was Aaron Rodgers number one target for years. Justin Jefferson who has only been in the league for 2 seasons is a phenom and an amazing route runner. He will be the best receiver in the league for years to come. Cooper Kupp had the best year for a receiver maybe ever, but he has to do it for more than one year to become the best. DeAndre Hopkins has been a top 2 receiver for a while, but the emergence of Jefferson and Kupp this year and the fact that he was hurt bumped him down to 4. Lastly, Tyreek Hill, the fastest player in the league, has dominated with Patrick Mahomes at quarterback. We have to see how he will play without Mahomes in his upcoming season in Miami. 

Tight Ends:

George Kittle: 910 yards, 6 TDs, 12.8 avg
Travis Kelce: 1,125 yards, 9 TDs, 12.2 avg
Darren Waller: 1,196 yards, 9 TDs, 11.2 avg; 2020-21 stats
Mark Andrews: 1,361 yards, 9 TDs, 12.7 avg
Kyle Pitts: 1,026 yards, 1 TDs, 15.1 avg

The tight ends list isn’t very close from top to bottom, but George Kittle and Travis Kelce at the top are very close and probably interchangeable. Tier 1 of tight ends is just the two guys at the top, and while they play the same position, they are very different players. George Kittle is a big strong run after catch guy who is great at blocking and helps his team in so many ways. On the other hand, Travis Kelce is an elite route runner with great hands and can catch the ball up and down the field. Behind them in tier two are Darren Waller and Mark Andrews, who both play similar to Kelce as they are quick and great route runners, but they aren’t as physical and good at blocking. The final guy on this list is quick and built more closely to a wide receiver. He was the number target on his team as a rookie and he will continue to climb this list in years to come. 

Offensive Lineman:

Trent Williams: 1 sack allowed, 16 pressures allowed, 7 penalties
Quenton Nelson: 1 sack allowed, 15 pressures allowed, 5 penalties
David Bakhtiari: 1 sack allowed, 9 pressures, 4 penalties; 2020-21 stats
Zach Martin: 1 sack allowed, 19 pressures allowed, 2 penalties
Ryan Ramczyk: 2 sacks allowed, 19 pressures allowed, 0 penalties

Trent Williams and Quenton Nelson are in a league of their own as the best tackle and guard in the league. I just prefer Williams because he plays a slightly more important position. Right behind them is David Bakhtiari who is arguably the best pass blocker in the NFL. In the last two spots are two guards who have very similar stats and have dominated the league for years. 

Defensive Tackles:

Aaron Donald: 84 tackles, 12.5 sacks 
Chris Jones: 27 tackles, 9 sacks
Cam Heyward: 89 tackles, 10 sacks
Grady Jarrett: 59 tackles, 1 sack
Fletcher Cox: 27 tackles, 3.5 sacks

Aaron Donald is the best player in the NFL and is easily the best defensive tackle in the league. He just made a game-winning play in the Superbowl and continues to terrorize quarterbacks. Chris Jones did not have the best year this season, but he has been and will most likely continue to be the only defensive tackle that can rival Donald. Behind them are 3 more players who have been interchangeable and I ranked them based on their production this season.

Defensive Ends:

Myles Garrett: 51 tackles, 16 sack
TJ Watt: 64 tackles, 22.5 sacks
Joey Bosa: 51 tackles, 10.5
Khalil Mack: 50 tackles, 9 sacks; 2020-21 stats
Nick Bosa: 52 tackles, 15.5 sacks 

Defensive ends were definitely the hardest defensive list to make. I put both defensive ends and outside linebackers on this list so it is mostly just an outside pass rushers list. There are so many guys who can rush the passer at an elite level that it was tough to only put 5. TJ Watt and Myles Garrett were very close, but I gave Garrett the edge due to the double teams he received and the fact Watt has only been this elite for one season. Next are three guys whose stats also look very similar, but Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack are able to get to the passer with less talent around them to help. Nick Bosa plays for one of the best defenses in the NFL with a bunch of stars who take the attention off of him.

Linebackers

Fred Warner: 137 tackles, 0.5 sacks
Bobby Wagner: 170 tackles, 1 sack
Darius Leonard: 122 tackles, 0 sacks
Demario Davis: 105 tackles, 3 sacks
Eric Kendricks: 143 tackles, 5 sacks

The linebackers list I made is just middle linebackers, but there were still a bunch of guys who easily could have been in the top 5. Fred Warner got the top spot in my opinion due to a lot of his physical attributes. He is big, strong and fast. His physicality helps him be able to make any play on the field and he is the captain of one of the strongest defenses in the league. Bobby Wagner is getting older, but he is still a do-it-all guy and led the NFL in tackles. He can stop the run and defend the pass evenly well. Darius Leonard is lightning quick and is one of the best linebackers against the pass, he can cover slot receivers better than any linebacker in the league. Davis and Kendricks are both bigger guys who can rush the passer well and are great in the run game. I gave the edge to Davis because he is a bit faster and can better cover sideline to sideline. 

Cornerbacks:

Jalen Ramsey: 77 tackles, 4 INT
Jaire Alexander: 51 tackles, 1 INT; 2020-21 stats
Xavien Howard: 50 tackles, 5 INT
Stephon Gilmore: 53 tackles, 6 INT; 2019-20 stats
Tre’Davious White: 57 tackles, 3 INT

Jalen Ramsey has been the best corner in the NFL for probably about 5 years now. He is lockdown in man or zone coverage and is one of the best physical corners in stopping the run. Jaire Alexander is the best corner in man coverage and while he isn’t very versatile he is elite in being able to slow down his opponent. Howard, Gilmore, and White are all ball hawks who usually are at the top of the list in interceptions. Gilmore hasn’t really played the last two years, but after the 2019-20 season, he was the second-best corner in the league. Xavien Howard had an amazing year in 2020-21 but he kind of cooled off this past season and Tre’Davious White is always consistent and was a leader on the number one defense in the NFL this past season. 

Safeties:

Budda Baker: 98 tackles, 3 INT
Minkah Fitzpatrick: 124 tackles, 2 INT
Derwin James: 118 tackles, 2 INT
Tyrann Mathieu: 76 tackles, 3 INT
Justin Simmons: 80 tackles, 5 INT

To be a great safety you have to be good in coverage, fast, strong, and be an amazing tackler. It is the last line of defense for a defense and takes a special type of player to be elite there. Budda Baker is the best safety in the league due to his ability to be elite at every single trait needed out of him. Behind him are guys like Minkah Fitzpatrick who is amazing in coverage and Derwin James who is physical and a great tackler, but no one is as all-around like Budda. A few years ago Mathieu did play like Baker, but recently he has lost a step and struggled in coverage. Justin Simmons is another one of the do-it-all guys, but he is young and has yet to do it for multiple seasons

Kickers:

Justin Tucker: 35-37 FG made, 94.6%, 66 Long
Harrison Butker: 25-28 FG made, 89.3%, 56 Long
Younghoe Koo: 27-29 FG made, 93.1%, 54 Long
Mason Crosby: 25-34 FG made, 73.5%, 54 Long
Chris Boswell: 36-40 FG made, 90.0%, 56 Long

Justin Tucker is clearly the best kicker in the NFL right now and might be the best kicker ever. After that, it is tough to rank kickers because most of the guys in the NFL make their kicks. Mason Crosby was tough to rank because he has been right behind Tucker for the past decade, however, he had a down year last year so I had to drop him a few spots. I expect him to be an elite kicker again next year just like he was before. 

*All stats that aren’t labeled are from the 2021-22 NFL Season