Matthew Stafford Ranked 41st On 'Top 100 Players Of 2012'

NFL Network's "Top 100 Players of 2012" series continued on Wednesday night with spots 50-41 being revealed. We knew that a Detroit Lions player was set to be on Wednesday's list, and we had to wait until the end of the show to find out who it was. This is because quarterback Matthew Stafford came in at No. 41, the final spot revealed on Wednesday night.

The general theme of the feature the show put together on Stafford is that he performed extremely well in his first full season in the NFL. Although he does have one of the top receivers in the game to throw to (Calvin Johnson), there's no doubting Stafford's talent considering he threw for more than 5,000 yards.

Should Stafford be higher than No. 41 just based on what he accomplished last season? Many think so, but the thing I took away from the feature on the show is that consistency will be key for Stafford. For next year's version of this show, Stafford could rocket up the rankings if he puts together another strong season in 2012. Right now, it seems some players want to see him put up the kinds of numbers he had in 2011 for more than one season, which is fine.

It's not clear right now when the next Lions player will be on the show. Ndamukong Suh was included in the preview highlights for next week's show, but I'd be surprised if he's ranked in the top 40 considering most don't expect him to be on the top 100 list at all. Chances are we'll have to wait for Calvin Johnson, who will probably be in the top 10.

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