The Top 100: NFL's Greatest Players

For the 100th anniversary team, see National Football League 100th Anniversary All-Time Team.

The Top 100: NFL's Greatest Players was a ten-part television series that set out to determine the top 100 greatest NFL players of all time. It was presented by the NFL Network in 2010. The series was based on a list of the top 100 National Football League players of all time, as compiled by a "blue-ribbon" panel assembled by the NFL Network. The members of the panel were current and former NFL coaches, players, executives, and members of the media. Each episode, broadcast each Thursday from September 3 to November 4, 2010, introduced a group of 10 players from the list, with each nominee player presented and advocated for by a separate noteworthy individual in the world of sports and entertainment. It started with the players ranked 100 through 91, and moving up the list each week.

The final episode, premiering on November 4, 2010, introduced the top 10 players of all time according to the panel. Jerry Rice was chosen as the top player of all time, with Jim Brown as the second choice.

The list

Rank	Player	Position(s)	Team(s)†	Year inducted to Pro Football Hall of Fame
1	Jerry Rice	WR	San Francisco 49ers	2010
2	Jim Brown	FB	Cleveland Browns	1971
3	Lawrence Taylor	LB	New York Giants	1999
4	Joe Montana	QB	San Francisco 49ers	2000
5	Walter Payton	RB	Chicago Bears	1993
6	Johnny Unitas	QB	Baltimore Colts	1979
7	Reggie White	DE	Philadelphia Eagles, Green Bay Packers	2006
8	Peyton Manning	QB	Indianapolis Colts	2021
9	Don Hutson	E	Green Bay Packers	1963
10	Dick Butkus	LB	Chicago Bears	1979
11	Ronnie Lott	S, CB	San Francisco 49ers	2000
12	Anthony Muñoz	OT	Cincinnati Bengals	1998
13	Joe Greene	DT	Pittsburgh Steelers	1987
14	Sammy Baugh	QB, S, P	Washington Redskins	1963
15	Deacon Jones	DE	Los Angeles Rams	1980
16	Otto Graham	QB	Cleveland Browns	1965
17	Barry Sanders	RB	Detroit Lions	2004
18	Ray Lewis	LB	Baltimore Ravens	2018
19	Bronko Nagurski	FB, OT	Chicago Bears	1963
20	Brett Favre	QB	Green Bay Packers	2016
21	Tom Brady		New England Patriots	*
22	Gale Sayers	HB, RS	Chicago Bears	1977
23	John Elway	QB	Denver Broncos	2004
24	John Hannah	G	New England Patriots	1991
25	Dan Marino	QB	Miami Dolphins	2005
26	Bob Lilly	DT	Dallas Cowboys	1980
27	Merlin Olsen		Los Angeles Rams	1982
28	Emmitt Smith	RB	Dallas Cowboys	2010
29	Jack Lambert	LB	Pittsburgh Steelers	1990
30	Night Train Lane	CB	Los Angeles Rams, Chicago Cardinals, Detroit Lions	1974
31	Bruce Smith	DE	Buffalo Bills	2009
32	Jim Parker	OT	Baltimore Colts	1973
33	Sid Luckman	QB	Chicago Bears	1965
34	Deion Sanders	CB, RS	Atlanta Falcons, Dallas Cowboys, San Francisco 49ers	2011
35	Chuck Bednarik	C, LB	Philadelphia Eagles	1967
36	Raymond Berry	SE	Baltimore Colts	1973
37	Jim Thorpe	HB	Canton Bulldogs	1963
38	Lance Alworth	WR	San Diego Chargers	1978
39	Gino Marchetti	DE	Baltimore Colts	1972
40	O. J. Simpson	RB	Buffalo Bills	1985
41	Rod Woodson	CB, S	Pittsburgh Steelers	2009
42	John Mackey	TE	Baltimore Colts	1992
43	Alan Page	DT	Minnesota Vikings	1988
44	Mel Blount	CB	Pittsburgh Steelers	1989
45	Tony Gonzalez	TE	Kansas City Chiefs	2019
46	Roger Staubach	QB	Dallas Cowboys	1985
47	Ray Nitschke	LB	Green Bay Packers	1978
48	Red Grange	HB	Chicago Bears	1963
49	Mike Haynes	CB	Oakland Raiders, New England Patriots	1997
50	Terry Bradshaw	QB	Pittsburgh Steelers	1989
51	Bart Starr		Green Bay Packers	1977
52	Eric Dickerson	RB	Los Angeles Rams	1999
53	Willie Lanier	LB	Kansas City Chiefs	1986
54	Forrest Gregg	OT	Green Bay Packers	1977
55	Earl Campbell	HB	Houston Oilers	1991
56	Gene Upshaw	G	Oakland Raiders	1987
57	Mike Singletary	LB	Chicago Bears	1998
58	Steve Van Buren	HB	Philadelphia Eagles	1965
59	Mike Ditka	TE	Chicago Bears	1988
60	Jack Ham	LB	Pittsburgh Steelers	1988
61	LaDainian Tomlinson	RB	San Diego Chargers	2017
62	Randy White	DT	Dallas Cowboys	1994
63	Jim Otto	C	Oakland Raiders	1980
64	Herb Adderley	CB	Green Bay Packers	1980
65	Randy Moss	WR	Minnesota Vikings	2018
66	Willie Brown	CB	Oakland Raiders	1984
67	Kellen Winslow	TE	San Diego Chargers	1995
68	Mike Webster	C	Pittsburgh Steelers	1997
69	Bobby Bell	LB	Kansas City Chiefs	1983
70	Marshall Faulk	RB	St. Louis Rams	2011
71	Paul Warfield	WR	Cleveland Browns, Miami Dolphins	1983
72	Jonathan Ogden	OT	Baltimore Ravens	2013
73	Ozzie Newsome	TE	Cleveland Browns	1999
74	Marion Motley	HB, LB		1968
75	Darrell Green	CB	Washington Redskins	2008
76	Art Shell	OT	Oakland / Los Angeles Raiders	1989
77	Tony Dorsett	RB	Dallas Cowboys	1994
78	Bruce Matthews	OL, LS	Houston Oilers / Tennessee Oilers / Titans	2007
79	Emlen Tunnell	S	New York Giants	1967
80	Troy Aikman	QB	Dallas Cowboys	2006
81	Steve Young		San Francisco 49ers	2005
82	Ted Hendricks	LB	Oakland Raiders	1990
83	Norm Van Brocklin	QB	Los Angeles Rams	1971
84	Joe Schmidt	LB	Detroit Lions	1973
85	Marcus Allen	RB	Oakland Raiders	2003
86	Willie Davis	DE	Green Bay Packers	1981
87	Elroy Hirsch	E, FL	Los Angeles Rams	1968
88	Ed Reed	S	Baltimore Ravens	2019
89	Ernie Nevers	FB	Chicago Cardinals	1963
90	Kurt Warner	QB	St. Louis Rams	2017
91	Fran Tarkenton		Minnesota Vikings	1986
92	Michael Irvin	WR	Dallas Cowboys	2007
93	Sam Huff	LB	New York Giants	1982
94	Lenny Moore	HB	Baltimore Colts	1975
95	Larry Allen	G	Dallas Cowboys	2013
96	Mel Hein	C	New York Giants	1963
97	Derrick Brooks	LB	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	2014
98	Lee Roy Selmon	DE		1995
99	Michael Strahan		New York Giants	2014
100	Joe Namath	QB	New York Jets	1985

† Only team(s) with major contribution.

* Not eligible for induction until 2028

See also

• NFL Top 100
• List of Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees
• National Football League 75th Anniversary All-Time Team
• National Football League 100th Anniversary All-Time Team
• National Football League All-Decade Teams

External links

• The Top 100 list: NFL's Greatest Players