Top 100 NFL players entering the 2020 season: Nos. 50-41
By Samuel Teets
48. Leighton Vander Esch, OLB, Dallas Cowboys
Vander Esch missed seven games in 2019 with a neck injury. However, the 24-year-old is fully healed and ready for redemption. Placing the Boise State product this high up the top 100 might catch some people off guard, but Vander Esch possesses perennial All-Pro talent. I can’t tell if it’s a miracle or a crime that he fell to 19th overall in the 2018 NFL Draft.
As a rookie, Vander Esch made 11 starts and only played 77 percent of Dallas’ defensive snaps. Despite his limited playing time, the young linebacker racked up 140 tackles, two interceptions, and seven passes defensed. If not for Darius Leonard arriving in the NFL simultaneously, Vander Esch probably would’ve won the Defensive Rookie of the Year award and been a First-Team All-Pro.
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Instead, Vander Esch settled for a Second-Team All-Pro selection and a Pro Bowl bid. He only appeared in nine games last season, playing 47% of Dallas’ total defensive snaps. Despite battling a neck injury, Vander Esch still averaged eight tackles per game.
Expectations were so high for Vander Esch entering 2019 that PFF listed him as the fifth-best off-ball linebacker, only trailing stars like Lavonte David, Luke Kuechly, and Bobby Wagner. With a full offseason to heal up, the third-year linebacker should regain his All-Pro status.
47. Minkah Fitzpatrick, S, Pittsburgh Steelers
Unexpectedly, Fitzpatrick demanded a trade from Miami early in his second season. The request caught many in the NFL community off guard. Since when do second-year players demand trades? However, the Dolphins complied and sent the former 11th overall pick to Pittsburgh for a 2020 first-round selection and other picks.
In Pittsburgh, Fitzpatrick became the final piece of an elite defense. He joined forces with Cameron Heyward and T.J. Watt, creating a unit that led the NFL in sacks and total takeaways. Fitzpatrick filled the stat sheet, tallying 69 tackles, five interceptions, nine passes defensed, two forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries and two defensive touchdowns.
At the end of the year, the AP rewarded Fitzpatrick with a First-Team All-Pro selection. His name even entered several Defensive Player of the Year debates. So, why is he not higher on the top 100? The NFL is overflowing with safeties right now. Five ballhawks heard their names called before Fitzpatrick, and four more appear higher up the list.