Jonathan Taylor leads a talented group of running backs as the best in football.
The running back position, after years of seemingly being devalued, is again an important part of NFL offenses. Some of the best backs are devastating runners, while others are major weapons in the passing game.
Big names have faded and other players have emerged.
Entering 2022, who are the best running backs in the league?
Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar gives his top 11. Check them out below and read his full post for analysis and film breakdowns.
Conner’s 18-touchdown season and more than 1,100 yards from scrimmage weren’t enough to make the cut.
The Arizona Cardinals were very pleased with what they got out of running back James Conner last season in a shared role with Chase Edmonds. It is why they re-signed him to a three-year, $21 million contract this offseason.
His per-year contract average is tied for the 10th-highest among running backs. He is paid like a top-10 back in the league.
Conner ranked 27th in the league in rushing yards with 752, but he did have a total of 1,127 total yards from scrimmage because of his 37 catches for 375 yards. He was tired for second in the NFL with 15 rushing touchdowns.
Of course, he did that in a shared role with Edmonds, playing 58% of the team’s offensive snaps. He was selected to the Pro Bowl.
Entering 2022, he will see his role increase. His usage will probably match what Kenyan Drake had in 2020, who had 239 rushes and 25 receptions.
Conner had 206 total touchdowns last season. Playing a full season, he probably will see 250-plus touches in 2022.
Should he be in the top 11 running backs in the league?
Perhaps. Rashaad Penny of the Seattle Seahawks had a five-game stretch to end last season that was special. He led the NFL with 6.3 yards per attempt, but he has never done much over a full season. He easily could replace Damien Harris, who comes in at No. 11.
With an increased role in 2022, Conner could potentially end up with 1,300-1,500 total yards from scrimmage. Perhaps we can find him on next year’s list.
His age, injuries last season and suspension to start this season make it hard to rank him any higher.
If it were a year ago, people would be talking about Arizona Cardinals wide receiver as one of the top two or three receivers on the planet. He was coming off his first season with the Cardinals in which he set a franchise record in receptions.
In 2021, he only played in 10 games and posted career-lows in receptions and receiving yards, although he did score eight touchdowns in 10 games.
It is never a good thing when the phrases “when healthy” or “when available” appear in a write-up like this one.
However, that is where we find ourselves with DeAndre Hopkins heading into the 2022 campaign.
Last season saw his streak of four-straight years with over 1,000 receiving yards cut short when Hopkins suffered a torn MCL in December, cutting his season short. It was the first time he played less than 15 games in a season, and it limited him to just 42 receptions for 572 yards and eight touchdowns.
Then there is the suspension, which will see Hopkins on the sidelines for the first six games of the 2022 season for violating the league’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs. Hopkins maintains his innocence and is hoping for a reduction in the suspension, but the six games remain in place as of now.
What can the Arizona Cardinals expect when he comes back? A ball-winner on the outside. Whether making tough adjustments like this one against the San Francisco 49ers:
Or working himself free late in the down for this touchdown against the Minnesota Vikings:
Hopkins’ ability in scramble-drill situations is a huge plus for Arizona, given what Kyler Murray does at the quarterback position.
It feels like a snub, but the players who are ranked above Hopkins are Ja’Marr Chase, Tyreek Hill, Justin Jefferson, Cooper Kupp, Stefon Diggs and Davante Adams. It is tough to argue that, right now, Hopkins is better than those guys.
Hopkins was hurt last year, he is now in his 30s and has to deal with a PED suspension.
After his returns in Week 7, if he stays healthy and the Arizona offense goes the way it should with the weapons they have, Hopkins could find himself higher on this list next year.
There are some great ones in the NFL. Arizona’s Zach Ertz doesn’t crack the top 12.
The tight end position is difficult to be great at. Some players are good blockers. Some are fantastic receivers. Few are able to do everything well that they can be asked to do, whether it is playing inline or flexing out wide, in the slot or going in the backfield.
The Arizona Cardinals have a very talented tight end room this room with Zach Ertz, Maxx Williams and second-round rookie Trey McBride. However, in Mark Schofield’s rankings of the top 12 tight ends in the league in 2022 for Touchdown Wire, none of the Cardinals’ tight end make the cut.
Ertz does not make Touchdown Wire’s top 12 tight ends but does get honorable mention.
The Arizona Cardinals acquired tight end Zach Ertz in a trade last season after Maxx Williams suffered a season-ending knee injury. Ertz played in 11 games for the Cardinals and caught 56 passes, tying the single-season franchise record for number of receptions by a tight end. He did that in 11 games.
They re-signed him to a three-year deal.
He is bound to have a record-setting season and he has been one of the league’s best tight ends in the past, but while he is still a solid player, he did not make the cut in Mark Schofield’s rankings of the top 12 tight ends in the NFL for Touchdown Wire.
He just misses the cut and gets honorable mention.
The top of the list includes the Chiefs’ Travis Kelce and the 49ers’ George Kittle. Schofield has Kelce at No. 1 over Kittle, which is certainly debatable.
Should Ertz make the list?
He is now in his 30s but his ability to impact the passing game probably should put him ahead of two of the final three guys on Schofield’s list — the Steelers’ Pat Freiermuth, ranked at No. 10, and the Bills’ Dawson Knox, coming in at No. 12.
One could argue Ertz could come in ahead of the Lions’ T.J. Hockenson.
Ertz caught more passes than all three players last season. He can line up as an ‘X’ receiver. He can play in the slot. Ertz is not the blocker the other guys are but he is capable.
And with receiver DeAndre Hopkins suspended the first six games of the season, Ertz is likely going to be a focal point of the offense. He built a nice rapport with quarterback Kyler Murray almost immediately and now has had a full offseason to work in the offensive system.
Ertz tied the Cardinals’ record for catches for a tight end. If he is healthy this season, he should obliterate that record of 56 in 2022.
Trent Williams of the 49ers tops the list. Neither of the Cardinals’ starting tackles makes the cut.
The Arizona Cardinals have two offensive tackles they trust to protect the edge for quarterback Kyler Murray. D.J. Humphries and Kelvin Beachum have been more than competent.
However, neither makes the list of the 12 best tackles entering the 2022 season by Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar.
Cleveland’s Joel Bitonio tops the list. See who else makes the cut.
While tackles get the most money and notoriety among offensive linemen, guards are still very important. They have to guard the big guys in the middle of the defense.
The Arizona Cardinals have a new right guard in Will Hernandez and have Justin Pugh at left guard for his fifth season with the team.
Neither is considered one of the best in the league, although Pugh has played pretty well for the Cardinals.
Who are the best guards in the league?
Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar gives us his top 11 guards entering 2022. Check them out below and read his full post for complete analysis.
The Chargers’ Corey Linsley heads this list and the Cardinals’ Rodney Hudson makes it.
Every offensive line needs a quality center to anchor it. His job is the most mentally demanding on the line and he touches the ball every play, getting the ball to the quarterback.
The Arizona Cardinals have a very good center in Rodney Hudson, although his status with the team is uncertain because he did not report for any offseason work.
He is one of the best centers in the league.
Who are the best at the position? Touchdown Wire’s Mark Schofield gives us the top 12 in the NFL. Check them out below and read his full post for complete analysis and breakdown.
Players, coaches and NFL executives give honorable mention.
The Arizona Cardinals acquired tight end Zach Ertz last season in a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles after Maxx Williams went down with a season-ending knee injury. Ertz had been one of the league’s better tight ends but had his production decline and had reached his 30s.
After a productive 11 games with the Cardinals and re-signing to a three-year deal worth more than $31 million, he is still one of the league’s better players.
In ESPN’s rankings of the top 10 tight ends in the NFL, based on voting from players, coaches and executives, Ertz didn’t make the list but did get honorable mention.
Ertz went to the desert to spark his career after a frustrating end to his time in Philly, and he produced 574 yards and three TDs on 56 catches over 11 games with the Cardinals, who acquired him via trade. Ertz turns 32 in November. “He looked refreshed in Arizona. Showed what he can do with capable quarterback play,” an NFC personnel evaluator said. “I thought he had lost a step, but he kept getting open.”
He tied the Cardinals’ franchise single-season record for receptions by a tight end with 56 in only 11 games. If he plays a full season, he is a lock to have perhaps the greatest season for a tight end in franchise history.
He has great chemistry with quarterback Kyler Murray and the Cardinals have a number of pass-catching weapons. He should find himself open a lot in 2022.
After ranking second in ESPN’s rankings in 2021, he falls to No. 7.
Arizona Cardinals fans know that receiver DeAndre Hopkins is one of the best at his position in the NFL. However, he missed the last half of last season with hamstring and knee injuries, and he will be suspended the first six games of the coming season.
Last year, he was ranked the second-best receiver in the NFL. In ESPN’s new rankings entering 2022, based on votes from players, coaches and executives, Hopkins fell to seventh overall.
He is not even the highest-ranked receiver in the NFC West. He trails Davante Adams, Cooper Kupp, Ja’Marr Chase, Justin Jefferson, Tyreek HIll and Stefon Diggs.
Hopkins was on a route to potentially becoming the No. 1 receiver — he ranked No. 2 last year — but then missed seven games because of injury, including a sprained knee that required surgery. Then in May, Hopkins was suspended six games this season for violating the league’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs. Hopkins admitted to a November drug test that contained traced elements of a banned substance, which shocked and confused the player. So Hopkins has work to do to re-enter the top-five discussion.
“He’s still a high-end guy for me because of his ability to battle and make contested catches,” a veteran NFL coach said. “If the ball’s in the air, I trust him to get it. Simple as that.”
The production was still there in limited action, with Arizona quarterback Kyler Murray posting a 95.9 Total QBR when targeting him, including eight touchdowns to zero interceptions. But 42 catches and 572 yards — a pace short of 1,000 yards over a 17-game format — were career lows, and Hopkins has now failed to produce double-digit touchdowns in three straight seasons.
It is easy to forget what impact a player has when he is not on the field, but the emergence of other receivers in the league and his turning 30 now means that he has to do some work to prove he belongs in the same conversation as the top guys on this list.
