Two former Badger legends crack ESPN’s top 100 NFL players list

Two former Badger legends crack ESPN’s top 100 NFL players list

Wisconsin football alumni Jonathan Taylor and T.J. Watt cracked ESPN’s list of the top 100 players in the NFL on Monday.

Taylor, who is the Indianapolis Colts’ starting running back, landed at No. 90. Watt, an outside linebacker for the Pittsburgh Steelers, slotted in at No. 10.

With the 2024 NFL season just around the corner, the outlet requested a panel of dozens of ESPN NFL experts to rate athletes solely based on what they believe will transpire during the 2024 slate. A total of 27 teams cracked the list while wide receivers spearheaded the positional count with 19 pass-catchers on the 100-player list.

Taylor, who departed Madison in 2019 after pocketing two consecutive Doak Walker Awards and being named a back-to-back unanimous first-team All-America team member, enters this season as one of the NFL’s premier running backs.

Before suffering a pair of injuries in 2022 and 2023, Taylor amassed over 1,800 rushing yards for the Indianapolis Colts in 2021 with Carson Wentz at quarterback.

Now, former Florida Gator Anthony Richardson will take the helm for what could be his first full season as a Colt. A dynamic runner, Richardson is bound to add a layer to Indianapolis’ offense this fall.

Here’s what The Athletic senior writer Stephen Holder had to say about Richardson’s potential impact on Taylor’s 2024 output:

“The young quarterback’s feared running ability will likely create some tough choices for defenders that could benefit Taylor. He has 104.5 scrimmage yards per game since coming into the league in 2020, ranking second behind Derrick Henry’s 114.9 scrimmage yards.”

Watt, meanwhile, will suit up for his eighth NFL slate for the Pittsburgh Steelers at linebacker. He already has six Pro Bowls, four First-Team All-Pro honors, 96.5 total sacks and 107 tackles for loss under his belt during in his first seven seasons as a professional.

Watt’s trophy shelf also includes a Defensive Player of the Year honor in 2021 and three sack titles (2020, 2021 and 2023). Outside of Cleveland Browns’ edge Myles Garrett, Watt is arguably the best defensive player in the NFL.

This is what ESPN’s Steelers’ beat reporter Brooke Pryor said about Watt:

“It’s hard to overstate Watt’s dominance. The game-wrecking outside linebacker led the league with 19 sacks last season. And despite missing nearly half of the 2022 season, Watt still leads the NFL with 47 sacks over the past three years. He’s showing little sign of slowing down as he enters his eighth NFL season, and Alex Highsmith’s continued development opposite of him only helps Watt’s effectiveness.”