The NFL Network wrapped up their annual offseason fluff series featuring the top 100 players in the league on Wednesday evening by revealing players ranked 1-10. None of them belonged to the Eagles. In fact, only one Eagles player made the entire top 100 list this year: Fletcher Cox at No. 49 overall. Two other Eagles players just missed making the final cut, however. Connor Barwin checked in at No. 110 and Malcolm Jenkins finished at No. 107.
2 Eagles
— NFL Network (@nflnetwork) July 7, 2016
3 Patriots
1 Seahawk
2 Colts
1 Raider
1 Viking
Numbers 110-101. #NFLTop100https://t.co/CobbVuJGmc
I won't argue that Barwin belongs in the top 100. While he's a good player, I don't think he was that great last season. He was arguably outplayed by his fellow pass rusher: Brandon Graham. Barwin's stats in some areas were barely better than Graham's despite the fact he played 200 more snaps.
Connor Barwin's numbers: 1071 snaps, 45 tackles, 7 sacks, 7 hits, 34 hurries, 1 forced fumble, 7 passes deflected
Brandon Graham's numbers: 880 snaps, 39 tackles, 6.5 sacks, 7 hits, 45 hurries, 3 forced fumbles, 1 pass deflected
Jenkins not making the cut is a different story. Look, it's just a silly list that doesn't really mean much in the grand scheme of things, but it's still disappointing to see Jenkins isn't more well-respected by his fellow players. There's ample evidence to suggest Jenkins was one of the best safeties in the league last year.
The 28-year-old Jenkins finished the 2015 season with 89 tackles, two interceptions, one defensive touchdown, 10 passes defensed, three forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery. Jenkins' value goes beyond his stats. His versatility makes him incredibly useful. Nearly 30% of Jenkins' snaps came while playing as the team's nickel cornerback. According to PFF, Jenkins finished second in yards per coverage snap in the slot, giving up just 0.78 yards per rep. As if that wasn't impressive enough, Jenkins also finished fourth in the team in special teams tackles with five. He does it all.
Jenkins is bound to make the list next year if he can turn in another good season.
While we're looking ahead, who do you think makes the cut next year? Cox is a given, but will he be higher than he was this year. Who else makes it? Zach Ertz? Jordan Matthews? Jordan Hicks?