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Jared Goff and Davante Adams Rise in NFL Network Top 100 Players of 2019

Paul Kasabian

Three Los Angeles Chargers, a couple of star NFC North wideouts and a conference-champion quarterback highlight the No. 31 through No. 40-ranked players on the NFL Network top-100 list entering next season.

The player-voted list now has 30 spots left to be revealed. Until that's done, here's a look at the 70 released so far. 

                      

NFL Network List: No. 100-No. 31

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

          

A Trio of No. 1 Wideouts

Recently, Chargers wideout Keenan Allen made his displeasure regarding his overall Madden NFL 20 score known via social media:

It's hard to argue with him. Allen snagged 97 passes for 1,196 yards and six touchdowns for a 12-4 Chargers team that finished tied for the AFC's best record. Austin Gayle of Pro Football Focus called him "unfairly overlooked" in a June 10 article, citing his excellent route running and versatility.

Allen also notably led the Bolts to one of their most impressive wins of the 2018 season: a 33-30 Sunday Night Football victory at the Pittsburgh Steelers in which star Chargers running back Melvin Gordon did not play. The Bolts' No. 1 wideout caught 14 passes for 148 yards and a touchdown.

Elsewhere, the Green Bay Packers' Davante Adams, who ranked No. 45 on last year's list, has hauled in 35 touchdown passes over the past three seasons and just recorded a career-high 97 catches and 1,196 yards last year. The 6'1", 215-pound wideout makes tremendous use of his size, specifically his dominant red-zone abilities. Ben Fennell of NFL Network explained further:

Most impressively, Adams did all this while seeing the most targets per game of anyone in the league. Granted, that gives Adams more opportunities to rack up stats, but he was clearly the Packers' No. 1 offensive weapon outside quarterback Aaron Rodgers and had the attention of defenses. Fatigue or pressure to excel never seemed to get to Adams, though, as he enjoyed a fantastic year.

As for the Minnesota Vikings' Adam Thielen, all he did was earn the NFL's second-best catch rate among wideouts who accrued at least 100 targets. His 73.9 percent rate was impressive considering he was working with a new quarterback in Kirk Cousins, and he amassed 113 receptions for 1,373 yards and nine scores too.

Thielen also ranked fourth in Football Outsiders' Effective Yards stats among all wideouts. His route running certainly helped him earn that mark, as evidenced by this series of moves shown during 2019 training camp:

The two-time Pro Bowler is entering his sixth NFL season.

               

Jared Goff Continues Climb Up Top 100

Los Angeles Rams signal-caller Jared Goff helped lead his team to a 13-3 record and a Super Bowl appearance. The third-year pro largely dominated along the way, completing a career-high 64.9 percent of his passes and tossing 32 touchdowns to just 12 interceptions.

Ranked sixth in Football Outsiders DYAR (defense-adjusted yards above replacement) and DVOA (defense-adjusted value over average) last year, Goff figures to take another step ahead this year, especially with his top three receivers (Robert Woods, Brandin Cooks and Cooper Kupp) all returning.

Kupp only played eight games last year after his season ended prematurely due to a torn ACL. With him back in the mix, Goff gets back a security blanket who snagged 72.7 percent of his targets, which ranked best among Rams wide receivers. The frequent red-zone target also tied for the team lead with six touchdowns despite missing half the regular season.

Impressively, Goff has also been excellent outside the pocket, as noted by Pro Football Focus:

The ex-Cal star isn't the most mobile of quarterbacks (108 rushing yards), but he's still great at making plays if needed.

Ultimately, Goff's ceiling is quite high under head coach Sean McVay, who has turned around the Rams' fortunes after the team went 4-12 during the 2016 season prior to his arrival.

Los Angeles' offense has arguably been the league's best ever since, with McVay taking the team to a 24-8 record and a Super Bowl appearance.

McVay has been extended through 2023, and if general manager Les Snead's words comes to fruition, Goff is next:

It won't be a big surprise if Goff makes another sizable leap up the top 100 next year as well, perhaps into the top 20.

   

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