CBS Ranks Their Top 100 Players: Some Seahawks Should be Higher
By Lee Vowell
Pete Prisco of CBS does not disrespect Seattle in his top 100 players, but a few Seahawks should rank higher.
By writing this, I mean no disrespect to Prisco. He is a good writer. His top 100 list is not bad. While there are no Seahawks in the top 10 players, it is hard to argue with who Prisco has listed. Aaron Rodgers number one?! Weak! (If I were to write that mean it, I would be an idiot. Maybe I still am.) Tom Brady is number two. That is fair enough. Plus, Prisco does have eight Seattle players in his top 100. Here’s a look at who those Seahawks are and where they rank and where I may disagree.
36. Richard Sherman
The first Seattle player on the top 100 list is Sherman at number 36. Is Sherman the 36th best player in the NFL? Possibly. But he is not the best player on the Seahawks. I wrote recently about who I thought were the best eight players on the Seahawks current roster. Sherman was number four on that list.
39. Michael Bennett
At number 39 (and the number two Seahawk) is Bennett. While number 39 might be the absolute correct number for Bennett in the NFL, he is not the second best player in Seattle. Is Prisco saying that Bennett is better than Russell Wilson and Earl Thomas? If so, this might lead to the thought that he did not think his list fully through. Bennett is great. Personally, he is my favorite player for the Seahawks. He is not, however, the second best player on the team. If Prisco thinks he is the 39th best player in the NFL, then other Seahawks should rank higher on the overall list.
42. Russell Wilson
The third best Seahawk, according to Prisco, comes in at number 42: Wilson. According to the list, Wilson is the eighth best quarterback in the NFL. Is Phillip Rivers better than Wilson? That is a great debate, but in my opinion he is not. Andrew Luck is just ahead of Wilson. Many Seahawks fans will have a different opinion about Luck being better than Wilson.
44. Bobby Wagner
Wagner comes in at number 44 and the fourth best player in Seattle. First of all, Wagner needs to be in the top 20 players of the NFL. He is the best middle linebacker in the league. His statistics and importance on the field prove he is among the league’s top players. Take away Wagner from the Seahawks, and Seattle is not the same team. Number 44 is simply not good enough for Wagner.
48. Kam Chancellor
In 2016, Prisco had Chancellor as the most overrated player in the league. Number 48 is probably a good fit for Chancellor, but ever ranking him as most overrated will forever skew any Prisco list. Like, ever. Forever.
56. K.J. Wright
56 is a pretty good number for Wright. He is consistently underrated and always very good. People are starting to see Wright in his rightful place as a top player in the NFL.
58. Earl Thomas
This ranking is the major issue I have with Prisco’s list. Prisco himself writes, “When I do my list, I take into account the 2016 season, but it’s mostly looking ahead to the 2017 season.” If this is truly the case, then Thomas has no place being ranked as the 58th best player in the NFL. Thomas was injured in 2016. But he is expected to be healthy for the start of the 2017 season. Thomas is among the top 20 players in the league every season and a potential Hall of Famer. I think Thomas is the best player on the Seahawks.
92. Cliff Avril
Avril is the final Seattle player ranked on Prisco’s list. There is no way on the face of the earth that Avril is the 92nd best player in the NFL. He is much better than that. Avril is eternally underrated. The saddest aspect is that his true worth in the league will probably not be understood until he is no longer playing. The Seahawks are not nearly as good when Avril is not playing. Seahawks fans, and the Seattle organization, know this. That is probably all that is important to Avril.
Again, Prisco is a good writer. His list is not horrible. But where he ranks certain Seahawk players compared to other Seahawk players might make one think he did not think his top 100 list through completely.