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Top 10 Most Overrated NFL Players


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The NFL's 10 Most Overrated Players

intro
Matthew Emmons-US PRESSWIRE

There are a truckload of players in the NFL who many fans, coaches, owners, general managers, analysts, writers and even teammates wonder how they got there. These same players drive the fans of their team nuts trying to figure out why they're on the field and, in some cases, why they're praised for their awful play.

These are what we like to call overrated players and the NFL is full of them. It's a sad state of affairs for the league, but it's always been that way and it always will be. Thus, we just have to put up with these under-achievers and create slide show lists like this one to make sure they're recognized for their embarrassing efforts.

So without further ado, here are the 10 most overrated players in the NFL in no particular order:

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Kansas City Chiefs WR Dwayne Bowe

bowe
John Rieger-US PRESSWIRE

For whatever reason, Dwayne Bowe is considered by many to be one of the NFL's elite receivers. Sure, he had a few good games in 2010, but he's done nothing but drop passes and run incorrect routes ever since. There's more to an NFL receiver than making acrobatic catches once every blue moon, but the Kansas City Chiefs just don't see that with Bowe.

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Philadelphia Eagles WR DeSean Jackson

djax
The Star-Ledger-US PRESSWIRE

Yet another highly overrated receiver is the Philadelphia Eagles' DeSean Jackson. He's had a few big moments in his career, but far more embarrassing ones. This guy has managed to spoil several touchdowns by dropping the ball before making it into the end zone and falling on his face short of the goal line. He's also seemingly spent several games with his hands taped together with as many balls as he's dropped.

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Green Bay Packers LB Clay Matthews

matthews
Joe Nicholson-US PRESSWIRE

If Clay Matthews would worry about the game of football as much as he does that mop on his head he might be a solid linebacker for the Green Bay Packers. Sure, he makes some plays every now and then, but he gets driven off the line of scrimmage by opposing offensive line far more often than he gets around them and/or makes a tackle. It's feast or famine with Matthews and the Packers have been starving for most games over the past two years.

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San Diego Chargers QB Philip Rivers

rivers
Jake Roth-US PRESSWIRE

"Oh. he has so many yards and touchdowns and the San Diego Chargers' offense is so dynamic." Yeah, but have you looked at the number of interceptions thrown by Philip Rivers lately? How about the number of playoff wins by the Chargers, or even the number of wins in general? Now take a peak at how many games the Chargers have lost because of Rivers. That's what we thought.

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Green Bay Packers TE Jermichael Finley

finley
Jeff Hanisch-US PRESSWIRE

Green Bay fans are going to get frustrated seeing yet another Packer on this list, but it's validated. Jermichael Finley is as athletic, talented and physically gifted as any tight end in football, but he just can't put it together. He had one good game in 2011 and he's suddenly a prodigy. Wrong! Take a look at how many passes he's dropped, how many blocking assignments he's missed and how many times he's fallen flat on his face when trying to haul in a pass. As they say on Twitter, smh...

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Philadelphia Eagles QB Michael Vick

vick
Howard Smith-US PRESSWIRE

When will the Eagles learn? It's impossible to win football games throwing the ball a ton without an actual quarterback in the backfield. Michael Vick is not an accurate passer and all the hits he takes are his fault for either not getting the ball out fast enough and/or not progressing through his reads at all. NFL quarterbacks can't just "wing it"; they have to make smart decisions on the fly and deliver the ball accurately and on time. Vick can't do that and the Eagles will never contend for anything as long as he's under center.

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New England Patriots QB Tom Brady

brady
Kim Klement-US PRESSWIRE

Now a lot folks are going to turn up their nose at this one, but think about it: the New England Patriots haven't won a Super Bowl since Tom Brady has become the focal point of the team. During the Patriots' run of three Super Bowl titles in four years in the mid-2000s, Brady was a game manager. Sure, he's putting up big fantasy numbers now, but that's because his team has no defense and no running game and he's throwing the ball 40 times per game. The Patriots may be able to outscore opponents in the regular season, but Brady has been less than stellar in the playoffs since the 2007 season. Brady is a good quarterback, but he's not Joe Montana to whom he's always compared.

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Pittsburgh Steelers DB Troy Polamalu

troyz
Jason Bridge-US PRESSWIRE

If you're searching for the defensive player in the league with the most missed tackles, look no further than the Pittsburgh Steelers' Troy Polamalu. If Mike Tomlin had a dime for every time Polamalu missed a tackle in a critical situation, he'd be retired on his own island in Hawaii. Polamalu simply ducks his head and lunges as hard as he can at ball carriers. Sometimes he gets lucky and makes a big hit, but other times he's sprawled out on the ground wondering where the runner went. The answer? Most of time the end zone.

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New England Patriots TE Rob Gronkowski

gronk
Kim Klement-US PRESSWIRE

Yes, he's caught a lot of passes and scored a bunch of touchdowns in 2011, but Rob Gronkowski isn't the game-changer he's made out to be. He was a matchup problem out of nowhere last year, but has been tamed in 2012. On top of that, he's not the smartest player in the world. If he's not open off the line, he panics and doesn't have a clue what to do when Brady signals a hot route. Sure, he can catch the ball over smaller defenders, but his days of domination were short and are now over(rated).

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Detroit Lions DT Ndamukong Suh

suh
Kyle Terada-US PRESSWIRE

This loudmouth Detroit Lions hothead had a few decent games toward the end of his college career with the Nebraska Cornhuskers that were blown out of proportion because of his backstory. Since entering the NFL, Ndamukong Suh hasn't done much besides throw temper tantrums after getting driven off the line of scrimmage and called for unsportsmanlike conduct and/or unnecessary roughness. Since entering the league, Suh has found out he's not bigger and stronger than everyone else on the field anymore. The only problem is he doesn't know what to do now besides cost his team penalty yards.



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  • http://msn rob

    i hate critics you should take another hit off your crack pipe pencil neck

    • toddl10

      Dumber than a bag of rocks..thinking you need to take another hit off your crack pipe. Need to go back to school so you can comprehend what you read as well. Those in glass houses should not throw stones.

  • JC

    Did you see the 49 game where Romo willed that game on broken ribs. Get off the computer and watch a few games blogger.

    • Titansfan

      Did either of you idiots actually READ the article? It’s not the blogger’s opinion, it was a poll taken by the PLAYERS! You’re sitting there criticizing someone who is REPORTING, not posting his opinion. They shouldn’t just let anyone post on these things. Freakin morons I swear. Probably can’t even read in the first place.

  • mike

    @Jc Romo was my most expected on the list just cuz you can play a game alright with broken ribs only means the man should break his ribs more often his inconsistency is what puts him at the top of this list he is a lack luster team leader who is easily distracted has a good arm and slightly good accuracy but his field awareness is that of a high school quarterback not to mention even with all the best players a team could offer he still cannot get to a division championship ultra fail if you ask me and many cowboys fans alike as well as troy aikmen who in 2009 called him a fluke

  • http://TheBackyard Tim T.

    I can agree with with most of your picks except for Tom Brady.Come on give me a break.Brady is one of the top 5 QB’s in the league.Yeah he’s made some mistakes,but he doesn’t have a lot of help this year.The Patriots defense is terrible,they can’t seem to sto any one when they need to.The offense isn’t much better,receiver’s dropping passes and the front line isn’t protecting Brady.I’m a Redskin fan and I’d give anything to have a quarterback the likes of Tom Brady.Oh so now Romo is able to will his team to win.Rehab for you fella.

  • Dan Pettis

    What is this? Bash Quarterbacks Weekly? Where is Reggie Bush?

  • Matt Beeman

    I do not agree with Tom Brady being overrated. He’s had a few tough seasons he’s still one of the best QB’s to play the game and will go down as being the best that New England has ever had. Every player has a bad year and he’s no exception. Guaranteed he’ll be in the Hall of Fame.

    • jmz

      Tom Brady is definitely overrated. First name I thought of when I read the title of the article. I’m not saying he’s not a good QB. But he is overrated. If he wasn’t, he’d be having less “tough” seasons. Lame excuse.

      • Brad

        How many “tough” seasons has Brady had? Haha. He has too many t/o’s this season, but he has thrown TWENTY touchdown passes and his team is tied for 1st place. He was the MVP last season. He last missed the play-offs TEN years ago. People need to get their heads out of their a$$.

        How many Super Bowls has Manning won? 1. How many did Favre win? 1. How many did Elway win? 2. How many did Marino win? 0. Brady has won 3. Yet, everyone wants to rank him behind all those QB’s. And he holds the record for most TD passes in a season. And he has won 2 MVP’s…so, he has won titles and broken stat records…what else does he need to do?

        The fact that he is on this list is ridiculous.

  • Michael

    Why is Larry Fitzgerald left off of this list 8yr/120 mil contract is the biggest bust of all, I do not understand how a team can pay a player that has not proved he is worth the money, Larry needs to give back every penny.

    • RS

      If you want to talk about overrated people who were over paid, Albert Haynesworth has Larry beat. At least Larry tries. Albert got paid and used it to buy himself a bigger couch.

    • birdman

      WOW really, Fits is one of the greates WR ever… he has no QB to get him the ball. Did you not see the games he played when he had warner throwing him the ball. His playoff run two years ago was epic!!! all the way to the superbowl

  • Jason

    Why isn’t Peyton Manning on this list? Do you even follow football or just read headlines? Not a single O-lineman on the list? Not a single defensive back? How about Asomugha? Has he even made a tackle?

    • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=509104334 Riley Schmitt

      He took the poll from a list. Learn to read.

  • R A

    I think the voters in this “poll” don’t know what the word over-rated means. Brady at least has the stats and rings to back up his reputation. The epitome of the word over-rated HAS to be Michael Vick. Publicity hound, lots of “look at me” behavior, but no stats and most definitely no playoff success to justify the media frenzy around him. Donovan McNabb would be another. Anyone who runs his mouth about how great he is, or whom the media idolizes, but without the stats and championships is “over-rated”

    And by the way, how can Tebow be “over-rated” when everyone seems to insist he’s a lousy player? He hasn’t been starting long enough to determine if he’s an NFL-caliber QB or not. But he is 2-1 as a starter this season, with far more TD’s than turnovers, but his stats aren’t impressive. What’s more important? Stats or W’s? Still too early to say whether he’s over-rated or not. Over-publicized, maybe, but that’s not because he runs his own mouth.

    • Robert Taylor

      Tebow has no where to go but up. He is considered a horrible prospect and could not be overrated. I did forget to mention Rex Grossman. Have you ever seen such a loser get to play on winning teams?

  • Robert Taylor

    Easily the most overrated player of all time- Michael Vick. Second, Donavan McNabb. Uh oh, black quarterbacks, whom we are not allowed to criticize.
    PS: Sanchez is not overrated because everyone knows he is not very good.

    • JIMMY-BOY

      Black quarterbacks are criticized…wake up dude its not 10 years ago when ALL the white analyst were scared to do it for fear of backlash…or a chance meeting at a game and get that ass whipped…lol.jk. Donavan is not overrated, vick is an upper 15 qb just set back bcuz of dog fighting….who else gets 50+ yrds a game running and most of the time 250-300 yrds passing….not your qb whoever he is!

  • Parker

    It’s a little early to call Tebow the most overrated player in the NFL. Give the guy another year or two. He doesn’t have a pro mentor. The Broncos should’ve traded Orton and signed a guy like Kerry Collins in the off-season.
    I’m a Packers fan and the organization played their cards perfectly, allowing Rodgers to have a couple years of apprenticeship behind a legend like Favre.

  • Mark5

    READ the effing article you freakin IDIOTS! It is poll done by the PLAYERS! This blogger guy didn’t pick any of the players on the list! You are the biggest bunch of dip wads I’ve ever seen allowed to type on a public forum!

  • Texans Fan

    I also do not agree with Brady being on the list, and Larry Fitzgerald should not be on the list for those of you who think so. When you have Kolb as your QB what do you expect. However i do believe Tim Tebow should be on this list twice. They said it before he got to the PROS. This is not a place for him.

  • lamont

    suh is on the list ??? lmao what a joke ! first rookie all-pro in how many years? led defensive tackles in sacks last year and 3 sacks for an interior defensive lineman isn’t a bad stat at all. dominates the trenches. disagree with alot of things but suh on this list CRAZY !

  • Jimmy

    THIS IS A JOKE. First off everybody on here is having a crap year…they have all had very good seasons, except for maybe sanchez (defense got him there) chad ochocinco isint what he was, and I dont hear people saying he was, i bet raiders and broncos voted for rivers,?- what were the bolts or where were they before him? CHRIS JOHNSON OVERRATED??? HE ONLY GOT OVER 2000 YARDS IN ONE SEASON….THATS JUST CRAZY! ROMO-def overrated should be number 1….how can kevin kolb even be rated yet? # 90 for detroit may be slightly overrated but not much, remember he does play for the lions, who until this season were the very worst.TEBOW IS EXTREMELY OVERRATED BUT BY WHO…..he aint nothing! done a lot in college but nothing in denver tom brady…you know the jets players did that,cmon now,….reggie bush should be there,joe flacco should be on there,ryan grant should be on there,braylon edwards and ted ginn jr, where are they?

  • J-HZZA

    WHERE IN THE FLIP IS JAY CUTLER…..THE MOST OVERRATED PLAYER IN THE HISTORY OF THE NFL IN MY OPINION!!!!!

  • GR

    Articles like this shouldn’t even be published. A guy that works his tail-off to make into the Pros shouldn’t have his ass handed to him by some poll that doesn’t make sense.

  • http://[email protected] Skeetmoore

    I’d say at least 20% of the NFL players are jealous of Tim Tebow, otherwise there is no reason to have a player who’s started only 3 games on the list. Its obvious that Tony Romo, who I like watching play, should have had at least 40 votes. He’s never lived up to expectations. He’s the definition of over-rated. LOL!

  • Dave

    idk, kinda weird you don’t have Vick on this list… suspect.

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