Four Eagles Named To The NFL Top 100 List And It Couldn't Matter Less
96. Carson Wentz
72. Jason Kelce
40. Zach Ertz
28. Fletcher Cox
The release of the NFL Top 100 Players list (as ranked by NFL players!) is up there with Shark Week as one of the worst times of the year. Such ado, such overhype, and it's all about nothing. 'Tis the season for anguish over snubs. "Can you believe this guy is ranked over that guy?" It feels like, in some fan's minds, the ranking of where players fall before the season outweighs any hardware that's up for grabs at the end of the season. They'd rather have two players in the top 15 than a playoff win. It's madness.
There have literally been lists written that decry the injustice of the list. The injustice! Someone get Erin Brockovich on the line. There has to be some kind of class action suit we can get in front of a judge. Some sort of remunerations must be in order for the sheer injustice we've had to undergo as fans. Really, it's just a stark indication of how badly we need football.
Maybe I'm externalizing my own restlessness. Because I damn sure don't care about any lists. If the Eagles have a bang up season and place 8 players on the Top 100 list next year, but are bounced in their first playoff game, I won't consider the season a success. And I won't be consoled by the generous ranking come next August either.
The rest of the league thinks Carson Wentz is the 96th best player in the league? Good. Great. Grand. It's up to him to dispel that consensus. It's nice to be underrated. I hope other teams overlook him. Having a Top 10 player does nothing for the player or team other than create lofty expectations and inflated senses of self worth. Thinking a high rating conflates with a high success rate is pure foolishness. Just ask Wentz. He was No. 3 on last year's list and ended the season with half the country thinking he belonged on the bench. It ultimately means nothing.
Plus, how could a guy like Malcom Jenkins not make the list? With how he sees the game? That's the real injustice.