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The best player for each of the 32 NFL franchises
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The best player for each of the 32 NFL franchises

We are in the final days of the lead-up to the NFL's 100th season. Some of the greatest players in the league's history are still going strong; others are establishing legacies and rising up the ranks. Entering Year 100, here is every NFL team's greatest player of all time.

 
1 of 32

Arizona Cardinals: Larry Fitzgerald

Arizona Cardinals: Larry Fitzgerald
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Fitzgerald earns the nod over Hall of Fame defensive backs "Night Train" Lane, Larry Wilson and Aeneas Williams. But when his career concludes, the versatile superstar will stand second to Jerry Rice in receptions and receiving yards. This is a first-ballot Hall of Famer who has not had the luxury of quarterback continuity. While Lane may have been better at his peak, he played only six seasons with the then-Chicago Cardinals. Fitz is going into Year 16 and doing so as the face of Arizona professional sports. It will be fascinating to see how he looks in Kliff Kingsbury's Air Raid attack.

 
2 of 32

Atlanta Falcons: Claude Humphrey

Atlanta Falcons: Claude Humphrey
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One of this era's top sackers retired after the final season in which sacks were not an official stat. The Falcons defensive end was a handful off the edge, being credited (unofficially) with 122 sacks in a 14-year career (nine full seasons in Atlanta). Although the Falcons did not make the playoffs with Humphrey, he reached 15 sacks in 1976 — after missing a season because of a severe knee injury — and made the last of his six Pro Bowls for Atlanta's famed "Grits Blitz" defense. The '77 Falcons allowed 9.2 points per game (a 14-game season record). Julio Jones is coming, but he hasn't supplanted the Hall of Famer yet.

 
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Baltimore Ravens: Ray Lewis

Baltimore Ravens: Ray Lewis
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One of the easier choices here, Lewis was his era's defining inside linebacker, following in the footsteps of Dick Butkus and Mike Singletary. The menacing yet agile middle linebacker played at a high level for nearly his entire 17-season career, leading the Ravens to one of the dominant Super Bowl performances ever (in 2000) and helping the underdog 2012 team to a title as well. Even beyond their world-conquering 2000 unit, the Ravens ranked as a top-six defense 10 times from 1999-2011. The one constant: Lewis, who resides as one of the best defenders in NFL history.

 
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Buffalo Bills: Bruce Smith

Buffalo Bills: Bruce Smith
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The sack icon was a high-caliber pass rusher into his late 30s, using his nearly unblockable spin move to harass quarterbacks and help the Bills to their franchise pinnacle. The 1985 No. 1 overall pick possessed an all-around game that allowed him to stay a starter for 18 years en route to an NFL-record 200 QB drops. Twice the Defensive Player of the Year, Smith earned eight First-Team All-Pro honors and anchored Buffalo's defenses throughout the team's run atop the AFC East and, later, the conference. Even when taking the four Redskins seasons off his resume, this isn't particularly close. 

 
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Carolina Panthers: Steve Smith

Carolina Panthers: Steve Smith
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Although Luke Kuechly may climb to this spot, Smith holds it due to his peak and longevity. The diminutive wideout thrived in huge spots — combining for 739 yards between the 2003 and '05 postseasons, highlighted by an incineration of the 2005 Bears secondary (218 yards, two touchdowns) — and was Carolina's WR1 into the Cam Newton years. Smith does not have Kuechly's honors (five First-Team All-Pros to one) but was one of the most electric pass catchers of his era. Smith beat the odds to the league's top tier, getting there despite some down years for Panthers quarterbacks.

 
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Chicago Bears: Walter Payton

Chicago Bears: Walter Payton
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It is impossible to tell the NFL's story without Sweetness, the pick for a franchise that has celebrated 11 NFL championships. Payton was there for only one, but he was the go-to player for a team on the short list for greatest ever. The relentless runner is on the very short list for greatest running back in league history. He held the career rushing record for 18 years, had the single-game record longer than anyone (275 yards in a 1977 game) and his consistency towered over contemporaries. Payton dominated for years against defenses geared around stopping him and was still elite by the time the Bears assembled their 1985 superpower.

 
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Cincinnati Bengals: Anthony Munoz

Cincinnati Bengals: Anthony Munoz
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A sizable gap exists between the Bengals' greatest and second-greatest players, with Munoz setting the standard on the left edge throughout the 1980s. The Bengals left tackle was a First-Team All-Pro nine  times. Since the AFL-NFL merger made it far more difficult to attain this honor, only Jerry Rice has more. Combining top-flight technique with superb athleticism for his position, Munoz anchored both of the Bengals' Super Bowl offenses — helping Ken Anderson and Boomer Esiason to MVP honors. When the NFL unveils its All-Century team, the 13-year veteran has a strong argument to be the first-unit left tackle.

 
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Cleveland Browns: Jim Brown

Cleveland Browns: Jim Brown
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Brown brings the necessary components to hold his own in the "greatest player ever" debate. Displaying ruthless consistency, the Browns running back obliterated the eye test annually and towered over his peers in a way few athletes ever have. Brown must be grouped on the Ruth-Jordan-Serena-Bolt tier in the latter category. The Syracuse product played through only his age-29 season; he won eight rushing titles. The complete package for his era and future generations, the nine-year Browns great led the franchise to the 1964 NFL title and three championship games. 

 
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Dallas Cowboys: Bob Lilly

Dallas Cowboys: Bob Lilly
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Competing with Emmitt Smith, Roger Staubach and Larry Allen, "Mr. Cowboy" excelled for longer than each and was the key defensive figure in the franchise's rise to an unassailable perch in the American sports lexicon. A raw-powered technician, Lilly was about as reliable as it gets. A defensive tackle in Dallas' Doomsday defense, Lilly made it through 14 seasons without missing a game and helped the Cowboys rise from expansion team to NFC force. Lilly delivered the most memorable play in the Cowboys' first Super Bowl win, too: a 29-yard sack of Bob Griese in a game featuring no Dolphins TDs. 

 
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Denver Broncos: John Elway

Denver Broncos: John Elway
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The most talented quarterback of his era and perhaps of all time, Elway elevated middling Broncos teams for much of his career. His right arm (with high-level pocket evasiveness) represents one of the most effective weapons on which a team has relied, and despite Terrell Davis boosting Denver's late-1990s Super Bowl champion teams, Elway remained one of the league's best until his retirement. Elway led three overachieving squads to Super Bowls in the late '80s and made the Broncos perennial contenders after they'd spent most of their 20-plus years of existence as one of the AFC's worst teams.

 
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Detroit Lions: Barry Sanders

Detroit Lions: Barry Sanders
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If there was a more thrilling runner to watch, point him out. Sanders was not an ideal back around whom aspiring runners could model themselves. His stop-start action was not recommended study, and his defining gift — a career-long ability to make defenders whiff —was a skill not worth learning...because no one was on his level. The former Heisman Trophy winner threw in elite speed that made for unparalleled NFL aesthetics. Sanders carried the Lions for 10 years, doing so mostly without reliable quarterbacks. Third all time in rushing (15,269 yards), Sanders has 1,306 more yards than anyone through 10 seasons.

 
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Green Bay Packers: Don Hutson

Green Bay Packers: Don Hutson
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The Packers rostered Hall of Famers across formations during Vince Lombardi's era and have employed two of the league's best quarterbacks. But their most prolific player suited up over 70 years ago. An argument can be made Hutson was not the Packers' best player, with the NFL of the 1930s and '40s not what it later became. But the league's first deep threat was unrivaled to an insane degree in his day. Hutson's best season, 1942, featured 1,211 yards — 640 more than second place — and 17 TD grabs (nine more than second). Hutson finished with 99 TD receptions. The second place number when he retired: 37. This was all-time dominance.

 
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Houston Texans: J.J. Watt

Houston Texans: J.J. Watt
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Watt eclipsed perennial Pro Bowler Andre Johnson for this distinction rather quickly. The pass rusher became this century's most destructive defender, and while he will need a few more years to be grouped with the all-time greats (for longevity purposes), Watt has dominated in the most difficult era for defensive players to do so. Twelve players have recorded double-digit sacks; Watt is the only one to do so twice. Watt, whose 39 tackles for loss in 2012 are comically ahead of the competition in that stat's history, joins Lawrence Taylor as the only three-time Defensive Players of the Year. He has a chance to elevate into LT's stratum. 

 
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Indianapolis Colts: Peyton Manning

Indianapolis Colts: Peyton Manning
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When limiting the discussion to Manning's Colts days, the all-time great lands in a debate against Johnny Unitas. Both were five-time First-Team All-Pros. Both advanced their positional capabilities like no one else in their respective eras. But Manning earned five of his seven All-Pro top spots in Indianapolis and competed against far more passers to do so than Unitas. The Colts survived Unitas' decline and late-career absences;  the modern Colts fell off a cliff in Manning's 2011 injury season. The record five-time MVP (four as a Colt) turned the team into a contender quickly and later recreated the act in Denver.

 
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Jacksonville Jaguars: Tony Boselli

Jacksonville Jaguars: Tony Boselli
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Even though Boselli's Jaguars career ended early because of shoulder trouble, no extrapolation is required here. The stalwart left tackle played six Jacksonville years; his three First-Team All-Pro honors are three times as many as any other Jaguar. A standout blocker in an elite era for left tackles, Boselli played at the same time as Jonathan Ogden, Walter Jones and Orlando Pace. None of these Hall of Famers bumped Boselli off his All-Pro perch from 1997-99, and that period doubled as the finest in Jags history. The former No. 2 overall pick has a Terrell Davis-esque case for the Hall.

 
16 of 32

Kansas City Chiefs: Bobby Bell

Kansas City Chiefs: Bobby Bell
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The Chiefs employed all-timers in Derrick Thomas, Tony Gonzalez and Willie Lanier. The pick here is an ahead-of-his-time outside linebacker and the Chiefs' first Hall of Famer. When adjusted for era, Bell may be the most gifted off-ball 'backer in NFL history. Bell possessed athleticism that allowed for versatility in the 1960s and would have enabled him to play in future eras. Bell's highlights are stunning, and he played vital roles for stellar Chiefs defenses. En route to six First-Team All-Pro cameos and nine Pro Bowls, Bell intercepted 26 passes and notched six return TDs — tied for most ever by a linebacker.

 
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Los Angeles/San Diego Chargers: Junior Seau

Los Angeles/San Diego Chargers: Junior Seau
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Would you rather have 13 years of Seau or nine years of Lance Alworth? Seau reigned throughout the 1990s and played until he was 40. From 1991-2002, Seau made 12 Pro Bowls and six All-Pro First Teams — all in San Diego. The off-ball linebacker helped the 1992 Chargers become the first 0-4 team to make the playoffs and was (by far) the best player on the '94 Bolts, the franchise's only Super Bowl entrant. No. 4 on the NFL's solo tackles list, Seau crafted one of the longest primes of any NFL defender. He wasn't confined to coverage and run stoppage, either, recording 56.5 sacks (three seven-sack slates).

 
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Los Angeles Rams: Deacon Jones

Los Angeles Rams: Deacon Jones
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Jones edges out Fearsome Foursome mate Merlin Olsen. A 14th-round pick who attended two small colleges, Jones is one of the NFL's great success stories. Nearly 50 years before Von Miller started haunting right tackles, the Rams left defensive end was punishing them at a historic rate. Coiner of the "sack" term and prodigious user of the since-banned head slap, Jones unofficially rampaged to 173.5 sacks. That would rank third all time. The Rams began their rise as Jones' run of six straight All-Pro First Teams began in 1965. The NFL needs to make a better effort to chart pre-1982 sacks; Jones' work would be the top priority.

 
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Miami Dolphins: Dan Marino

Miami Dolphins: Dan Marino
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Regardless of the numbers today's quarterbacks post in this friendlier era, Marino's 1984 season (5,084 yards and 48 touchdown passes, the latter figure breaking George Blanda's record by 12 ) is probably still the standard for this position. The Dolphins icon continued to be the NFL's most prolific passer well into the 1990s. Although Marino did not have the postseason success Joe Montana or John Elway did, Miami featured one 1,000-yard rusher ( trivia) during his 17 seasons and rarely deployed reliable defenses. The Dolphins of the early '70s accomplished more in January, but there is no debate here.

 
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Minnesota Vikings: Alan Page

Minnesota Vikings: Alan Page
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This was a close call featuring skill-position superstars Cris Carter and Adrian Peterson, along with Hall of Fame quarterback Fran Tarkenton. The Vikings, though, made Super Bowl IV without Tarkenton and featured a top-three defense six times from 1969-76. Page was that defense's best player. The Minnesota defensive tackle, who forged a new path for his position as an interior rusher, was the first defender to be named Associated Press MVP, doing so in 1971. The Pro Football Hall of Fame credits the top Purple People Eater with 173 sacks — which would be 35.5 more than the next-best defensive tackle's total. 

 
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New England Patriots: Tom Brady

New England Patriots: Tom Brady
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Brady undoubtedly landed in an ideal situation under Bill Belichick, but it is impossible to diminish what the Patriots have done during his tenure. And among Patriots, this is not remotely a debate. Brady's playoff numbers dwarf everyone else's; he has twice as many postseason passing yards as anyone not named Peyton Manning. Now combining nearly unparalleled longevity with preposterous big-stage volume, Brady has led the way in the Pats becoming this era's greatest dynasty and one of the best ever. He's this generation's defining football player.

 
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New Orleans Saints: Drew Brees

New Orleans Saints: Drew Brees
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The Saints before Brees: one playoff win in 29 years. Since Brees' 2006 arrival, they have eight. This marks one of the bigger gaps on this list, with Brees in New Orleans morphing from an inconsistent starter coming off injury to the league's passing yardage kingpin. The 40-year-old is in line to become the touchdown pass leader this season and in his 18th year was the MVP runner-up and Pro Football Focus' top passer. The Super Bowl XLIV MVP holds four of the top five completion percentage figures and is the career leader (67.3 percent). He's meant more to a franchise than almost any player of his generation.

 
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New York Giants: Lawrence Taylor

New York Giants: Lawrence Taylor
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Quarterbacks and coaches receive most of the credit for moving the game forward; Taylor played a part in the NFL's modern transformation as well. The game's premier edge rusher, Taylor was so adept at pursuing quarterbacks as a rookie that the NFL finally made sacks a stat category in 1982. The Giants built stout defenses around their unrivaled chess piece, and the terrifying pressure artist was the last defensive player to earn MVP acclaim (1986). The eight-time First-Team All-Pro blazed a trail that led to players with a semblance of his skill set earning paychecks nearly every other position cannot command.

 
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New York Jets: Don Maynard

New York Jets: Don Maynard
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The choice over Joe Namath: his top aerial target. Maynard was an upper-echelon player for longer than his quarterback was, and the original Titan/Jet helped put Broadway Joe in position to make his guarantee. Maynard's 52-yard reception in the 1968 AFL championship game put the Jets in position for a game-winning touchdown, and the Jets' top wideout scored that, too. Maynard (four 1,200-yard seasons in the 1960s and a perennial Pro Bowler in his 30s) retired with 1,500 more receiving yards than anyone else and still sits in the top 30 all time.

 
25 of 32

Oakland Raiders: Gene Upshaw

Oakland Raiders: Gene Upshaw
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The Raiders' early-1970s offensive lines were one of the NFL's greatest position groups, with four Hall of Famers starting. Upshaw starred on those units and became a team leader for two Super Bowl-winning outfits. An imposing presence for defensive linemen to conquer, Upshaw made nine Pro Bowls from 1968-77 and is the only player to suit up for Super Bowls in three decades. During that 10-year span, the Raiders did not finish outside the top 10 in rushing. Although Art Shell and AFL blocking machine Jim Otto had plenty to do with this, Upshaw gets the nod.

 
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Philadelphia Eagles: Reggie White

Philadelphia Eagles: Reggie White
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Unlike the Chargers, where the choice was a great player who spent more time with the team, White is the Eagles pick over Chuck Bednarik (14 Eagles seasons). The difference: White (eight Eagles years) is a top-10 all-time NFLer and did his best work in Philadelphia. A nightmare blocking assignment from his left end position, White reached 198 sacks in 232 games. It took Bruce Smith 275 games to eclipse that record. A bull-rushing terror who could do just about everything well, White was a six-time All-Pro with the Eagles and racked up 21 sacks in 12 games in the strike-altered 1987 season. 

 
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Pittsburgh Steelers: Joe Greene

Pittsburgh Steelers: Joe Greene
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The Steel Curtain's fulcrum, Greene arrived and led the charge in changing a long-woeful franchise's trajectory. Before Greene, Pittsburgh possessed one of the NFL's worst defenses. By his fourth season — before some of the Steelers' other all-timers got there — the team began one of the greatest stretches of any unit in NFL history. The 1976 Steelers pitched five shutouts and allowed 22 total points in their final eight regular-season games. Their gap-shooting defensive tackle, a 10-time Pro Bowler, did the most to make that possible and anchored four Super Bowl championship defenses. 

 
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San Francisco 49ers: Jerry Rice

San Francisco 49ers: Jerry Rice
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Rice's numbers do not read like someone from the era he played. Exiting the game before the passing boom of the past 15 years, Rice has records that are not in danger of falling. The 20-year veteran's apex looks more like an impossibly wide plateau, with the 49er legend posting 10 1,200-yard seasons in an 11-season span. In the one year Rice fell short of that, he shattered the NFL's single-season receiving TD record (22 in 1987's 12-game, strike-shortened season). A 10-time First-Team All-Pro who was still in high gear at 40 in Oakland, Rice has the best modern-era claim to being the NFL's greatest player.

 
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Seattle Seahawks: Steve Largent

Seattle Seahawks: Steve Largent
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Had the Legion of Boom stayed together, Earl Thomas could have made a run at this. Hall of Famer Walter Jones is in this conversation, and Russell Wilson may earn this distinction soon. But Largent retired with the NFL's key receiving records and was the face of the Seahawks for years. A 14-year Seahawk, Largent managed 100 touchdown catches on 13,019 yards despite being a smaller wideout with average speed. The fourth-round pick was the engine for the Jim Zorn- and Dave Krieg-piloted offenses that thrived during an underrated period for this franchise. Seattle made the playoffs four times from 1983-88.

 
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Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Derrick Brooks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Derrick Brooks
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The leader of the Buccaneers' transcendent 2002 defense, Brooks enjoyed one of the best seasons in NFL history that year. Counting the playoffs, the Bucs defense scored nine touchdowns. Brooks tallied five, including the third pick-six of Rich Gannon in a Super Bowl XXXVII rout. That got Jon Gruden a little fired up . The sideline-to-sideline piece of the Tampa-2 defense made 11 Pro Bowls — most ever for a 4-3 outside linebacker — and joined Warren Sapp and John Lynch in reviving perhaps the NFL's most dismal franchise entering the late 1990s. 

 
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Tennessee Titans/Houston Oilers: Bruce Matthews

Tennessee Titans/Houston Oilers: Bruce Matthews
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An Oiler before Warren Moon's arrival and a Titan until Steve McNair's seventh season, Matthews pieced together one of the most unique careers in NFL history. The 19-year veteran not only played more games than any offensive lineman ever (296 — 33 more than any other pure O-lineman), but he also excelled at all three positions up front. Matthews was a tackle when Moon arrived in 1984 and spent lengthy stretches at center and guard in Houston and Tennessee, earning First-Team All-Pro honors at both inside positions. At 39 in 2000, Matthews became the oldest non-quarterback or kicker to earn First-Team All-Pro acclaim.

 
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Washington Redskins: Sammy Baugh

Washington Redskins: Sammy Baugh
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Before Baugh, NFL offenses were aerially limited. When the Redskins star retired, he had 50 more touchdown passes than anyone else. Washington's fortunes changed in Baugh's rookie year. The No. 6 overall pick, Baugh scorched the Bears for 335 yards and three TD passes to lift the Redskins to the 1937 NFL title. Baugh helped Washington to four more championship games and nearly hit 3,000 yards in 1947. This is to say nothing of his non-quarterback exploits. Baugh once averaged 51.4 yards per punt (still a record) in 1938 and snared 11 INTs in '43. He was one of the most dominant players in league history.

Sam Robinson is a Kansas City, Mo.-based writer who mostly writes about the NFL. He has covered sports for nearly 10 years. Boxing, the Royals and Pandora stations featuring female rock protagonists are some of his go-tos. Occasionally interesting tweets @SRobinson25.

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