Early 2021 NFL free agency rankings: George Kittle headlines top 70 players

40. Alex Mack, C, Atlanta Falcons

Approaching his 35th birthday, there’s a chance Mack walks away from football after the 2020 season. A six-time Pro Bowler, Mack is in the final season of a five-year, $45 million deal he signed with Atlanta in 2016.

On the wrong side of 30, Mack is beginning his descent down the mountain. The former first-round pick made his last Pro Bowl appearance in 2018, and his last All-Pro selection came in 2017. Mack recently earned a spot on the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s All-2010s Team.

39. Shaquill Griffin, CB, Seattle Seahawks

After two mediocre seasons, Griffin finally broke through for Seattle this past year. The former third-round pick needed to prove his worth as a top cornerback, and he delivered. Griffin earned his first Pro Bowl bid last year and settled in as the best defensive back in Seattle’s remade secondary.

Griffin did not intercept a pass last year, but he did break up 13 pass attempts and finished the year as PFF’s 13th highest-ranked cornerback on a list of the top corners through Week 17. According to PFF’s Solomon Wilcots, Griffin generated a 21.2 percent forced incompletion rate, which ranked first among a list of the league’s top-25 corners through the season’s final week.

This year is the first time Griffin makes more than $1 million in total salary. While he won’t get a record deal in 2021, Griffin should lock on to the deal Cincinnati gave Trae Waynes, which pays out $14 million annually. If Waynes can make that kind of cash, so can Griffin.