Throughout the offseason, our NFL staff has been rolling out our annual position rankings. We’ve covered the top off-ball linebackers, cornerbacks, edge rushers, running backs, wide receivers and quarterbacks. Now, it’s time to dive into the top players, regardless of position.
Members of the FOX Sports NFL staff listed their 10 best in order heading into the 2024 season. A first-place vote merited 10 points in our methodology and descended from there, down to a single point for 10th place. We then combined the scores to determine our rankings. Three quarterbacks cracked the list, along with two wide receivers and one running back. All three defensive players that made it were edge rushers.
For the second straight year, Patrick Mahomes earned the top spot on the list after another incredible Super Bowl run in 2023.
The only lineman on either side of the ball to make it was 49ers left tackle Trent Williams.
We’ll continue to roll out the best players at other positions as the season progresses. For now, here are the NFL’s top 10 players.
2023 Top NFL Players
1. Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs
Henry McKenna: I don’t think there’s any question about whether Mahomes is the best quarterback. He’s a three-time Super Bowl champion and will pursue the first-ever three-peat this year. The common wisdom is that wins shouldn’t be tied to quarterbacks — that it’s antiquated to track a QB’s record in that way. But Mahomes shows that, maybe, it’s not antiquated at all. Because he has a way of taking control of games in a way that shows the true power of a quarterback. He’s going to go down as one of the greatest of all time.
MAHOMES BEHIND THE BACK 🫢
📺: #DETvsKC on @NFLNetwork
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/eewdYOpS8c— NFL (@NFL) August 17, 2024
2. Myles Garrett, Cleveland Browns
McKenna: “Myles is the best defensive end in football,” said Joel Bitonio, who has played guard and tackle for the Browns.
There’s no edge defender that you can set and forget quite like Garrett. He does everything you could possibly want. He’s as big, quick, fast and strong as you could possibly need. He’s sort of old school: a true defensive end. And therefore, he doesn’t quite get as much love as Micah Parsons, who is a more versatile and flashy toy in Dallas. Garrett has also never had more than 16 sacks in a season, which is tough when we think of the truly great pass-rushers as logging 20 or more. But if you don’t think he’s the best in the NFL, you’re probably not watching him close enough. Garrett is reliable, productive and generally unstoppable.
“Myles is an alien,” Browns defensive tackle Mo Hurst said, “so he just does alien stuff all the time.”
Myles Garrett beats the double team for the sack 💪
📺: #CLEvsSEA on FOX
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/Quwvdzpx7G pic.twitter.com/acRhZ0Sj1c— NFL (@NFL) October 29, 2023
3. Christian McCaffrey, San Francisco 49ers
Eric D. Williams: Already the highest paid running back in the league, San Francisco sweetened the Stanford product’s salary this offseason, signing him to a two-year, $38 million extension. The move was well worth it for the engine of head coach Kyle Shanahan’s offense. McCaffrey finished with an NFL-high 2,023 scrimmage yards and 21 total touchdowns, accounting for 30% of San Francisco’s offense last year.
McCaffrey has a unique blend of physicality running between the tackles, speed and elusiveness in the open field and the ability to run routes and catch the ball out of the backfield like a No. 1 receiver. However, already dealing with a calf injury that has limited his practice time in training camp, the 49ers will need their lead running back to stay healthy for a second straight season. That could mean dialing back his touches during the regular season and leaning on a talented running back room that includes Jordan Mason, Elijah Mitchell and rookie Isaac Guerendo.
Tackling Christian McCaffrey is not a fun job
📺: #SFvsPHI on FOX
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/xvCjbLUIcN pic.twitter.com/UbTBidRGU8— NFL (@NFL) December 3, 2023
4. Justin Jefferson, Minnesota Vikings
Carmen Vitali: What’s there to say about Jefferson that hasn’t already been said in the form of the largest contract of any non-quarterback in the league? Earlier this offseason, Jefferson inked a historic four-year, $140 million extension that yields an annual contract value of $35 million a year.
It was more than deserved for the 2022 Offensive Player of the Year. Jefferson was injured for a significant portion of the 2023 season, bringing his overall numbers down and yet he remains a focal point on the Vikings offense. The bad news? There aren’t exactly Super Bowl expectations in Minnesota as they try to figure out just how far Sam Darnold can take them.
These 2023 Justin Jefferson catches are nothing short of spectacular 🔥@JJettas | @Vikings pic.twitter.com/GfYwCJ4QIG
— NFL (@NFL) June 3, 2024
5. Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens
Ben Arthur: Jackson is still a rung below Mahomes and hasn’t proved his mettle in the playoffs, but there’s no denying his first-ballot Hall of Fame-caliber résumé. He won his second MVP award last season, becoming just the 11th player to win multiple MVP awards. At his current pace, Jackson is on track to becoming the undisputed best dual-threat quarterback in league history — and he continues to grow as a passer, evident by his career year under new offensive coordinator Todd Monken. The 2018 first-round pick recorded career-highs in passing attempts, completion rate, interception rate, passing first down and yards per attempt en route to guiding Baltimore to a second No. 1 overall seed in five seasons.
6. Tyreek Hill, Miami Dolphins
McKenna: He is probably the most difficult man to cover in the NFL. But you could argue that title is for Jefferson or Lamb, who are bigger targets and more likely to win contested catches. (Though Hill is an absolute monster in those situations, too.) But there is no debate about who is most challenging to cover after the catch. It’s unquestionably Hill. He is slippery and, of course, speedy. Once he’s loose, he’s like Max Verstappen in a Red Bull car — no one can catch him. I had Hill as No. 1 on my list. I think there might not be a more dangerous skill player not named Patrick Mahomes.
7. Trent Williams, San Francisco 49ers
Williams: Even though he turned 36 years old in July, Williams remains the best offensive lineman in the league and one of the foundational pieces of San Francisco’s dynamic offense. Williams held out for more guaranteed money during training camp, receiving his wish by consummating a new deal with San Francisco just before the start of the regular season. According to Next Gen Stats, the 49ers ran the ball nearly 60% of the time to the left side, averaging 5.2 yards per carry with Williams on the field last season and 3.2 yards per carry with him off it. An 11-time Pro Bowler, Williams was named first-team All-Pro the past three seasons. His ability to serve as Brock Purdy’s blindside protector and a key piece in San Francisco’s potent running game is a main reason why the 49ers are one of the favorites to return to the Super Bowl.
8. Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills
McKenna: Josh Allen will spend this season working with newly promoted Joe Brady to build an offense around what they did in the second half of last season. In short, they’re figuring out how to win without Stefon Diggs. Diggs took a major backseat after Brady replaced former offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey last year. And now that Diggs is in Houston, Allen will have to get the most out of Dalton Kincaid, Khalil Shakir, Curtis Samuel and Keon Coleman. But if last season was a teaser, Allen is up for the task. He blends his strength as a runner with his strength as a passer in a way we haven’t seen in a long time. If the Bills let Josh be Josh (which they did last year), then this offense will be as dangerous as ever.
4,830 total yards and 44 total touchdowns is just absurd…unless your name is Josh Allen. Is he your MVP? 🎮 @invisalign
📺: #NFLHonors – Thursday Feb. 8 on CBS & NFLN
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/f3NMZbqLor— NFL (@NFL) February 6, 2024
9. Micah Parsons, Dallas Cowboys
Ralph Vacchiano: The beauty of the 25-year-old Parsons is that he’s been one of the NFL’s best overall defenders in each of his three NFL seasons, and it still feels like the Dallas Cowboys haven’t really turned him loose. He has 40.5 sacks over those three seasons and based on the numbers, he probably should have more. Pro Football Focus has him with more than 100 total quarterback pressures over the last two seasons, and he led all edge rushers in pressure rate and finished second in pass-rush win rate last season. Probably the only reason he doesn’t have 20 sacks per season is that he’s asked to do so much more. He’s a strong run defender and good in coverage, too. Plus, offenses are constantly trying to run plays away from him, which with his speed proves to be impossible. He’s finished in the top three in voting for the NFL Defensive Player of the Year in each of his three seasons. It’s only a matter of time before he wins.
10. T.J. Watt, Pittsburgh Steelers
McKenna: He led the NFL in sacks. Let’s start there. He took the quarterback down 19 times. Crazy thing is, that total isn’t his career-best. He posted 22.5 sacks in 2021. But in 2023, Watt also tied his career-best in tackles (68). He’s a menace as a rusher. But here’s the other headache with Watt.
“There’s no other defensive lineman that I have to treat like a DB [defensive back],” Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow said. “Like I have to be conscious about where he is at, because he is just going to jump up and catch it. There’s nobody else that can do that. … You have to be very alert for him in the pass game, which is very unique, I would say.”
Watt had eight pass breakups last year and has averaged one interception per season. He interferes with the passing game in more way than one.
