NFL Network continued with their “Top 100 Players of 2017” list on Monday, and still no Detroit Lions have appeared on the list from No. 100 to No. 41. Matthew Stafford is the presumed only Lions player left to be announced on the list, and by the sounds of the preview for next week’s episode, it’s very likely he will fall somewhere between 31 and 40.
Whether any other Lions deserved to be on the list is a conversation for another day—most likely when the list is out in full—but today, I want to get at a bit of a larger issues. Today’s Question of the Day is:
Who is the most overrated player in the NFL today?
My answer: Clay Matthews.
Matthews was an absolute terror when he entered the league in 2009. He had double-digit sacks in three of his first four years in the NFL, including 13.0 sacks in just 12 games in 2012. His pass rushing skills as a 3-4 outside linebacker were astonishing to see and he seemed unblockable by even some of the best offensive linemen.
But Matthews has lost a step or two. Over the past two or three years, the Packers have shifted him inside and back outside at linebacker, trying to find the best spot for the 31-year-old at this point in his career. The results haven’t been very promising. Mos recently, he finished 2016 with just 5.0 sacks in 12 games.
Matthews landed at No. 82 in NFL Network’s list for 2017, but that number is based more on his history than his future. Matthews still has the smarts and the instincts for the Packers to get adequate play out of him for another few years, but his aging body no longer allows him to be a top 100 player.
Your turn.