Tag: nfl all decade team

Vikings safety Harrison Smith snubbed from NFL’s All-Decade team

Vikings safety Harrison Smith missed out on making the NFL’s All-Decade team.

On Monday afternoon, the NFL came out with the All-Decade team. Two former Vikings made the lists, as Adrian Peterson made the offensive all decade team and Cordarrelle Patterson made it on to the special teams unit. 

One name left off the list that seems to be forgotten in several other conversations is safety Harrison Smith. The three safeties who made it over Smith were Eric Berry, Earl Thomas and Eric Weddle. Smith has been forgotten about in the All-Pro conversations as well.

Even though he doesn’t always get the recognition he deserves, his name should be on this list. Over the last decade, Smith has 658 total tackles, 13 sacks, 56 pass breakups, seven forced fumbles, eight fumble recoveries, 23 interceptions and four touchdowns. 

Thomas, who is arguably the best safety of the last decade, played in two more seasons than Smith and still has similar numbers. Over the last ten seasons, Thomas totaled 713 tackles, two sacks, 30 interceptions, 12 forced fumbles, six fumble recoveries and three total touchdowns. 

Berry has been one of the league’s best, and has one of the best stories in the entire NFL. Although he hasn’t played every season, Berry still totals 445 tackles, 5.5 sacks, 51 pass breakups, four forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and 14 interceptions and five touchdowns. 

Not only has Smith put up some of the best numbers at the position since entering the league, but he has also proven to be extremely durable. This is something that should be taken into account when creating a list like this.

All of the safeties on the list are great safeties, but Smith deserves to be given more respect than he has gotten over the years. He is the center piece to Mike Zimmer’s defense, being utilized as a hybrid safety all over the field. 

Since coming into the league in 2012, Smith has been one of the league’s best safeties. For some reason, his name gets forgotten about when it comes to accolades like this. However, it’s important to remember that Smith is one of the league’s best, and more than likely should have been listed on the All-Decade team.

The NFL 2010s All-Decade Team features several Bucs, but it’s not what you think

Some Tampa Bay Buccaneers players both past and present found themselves on the NFL 2010s All-Decade Team.

The NFL and the Pro Football Hall of Fame announced the 52 players and two head coaches selected to the 2010s All-Decade Team, and, not surprisingly, new Bucs quarterback Tom Brady was named to the squad. Brady was just one of eight players unanimously selected to the team. The two head coaches were Peter Carroll of the Seattle Seahawks and Brady’s old coach in New England, Bill Belichick.

Brady’s inclusion on the list isn’t a major surprise. In fact, several Bucs players made the list, but as Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times points out, all those players joined the Bucs late in their careers.

Take a look.

Once a Buc always a Buc, though, right?

To check out the full list, head on over to NFL.com.

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Irish in the NFL: Zack Martin Named to All-Decade Team

Martin has been a force with the Dallas Cowboys as he’s been elected six times as an All-Pro and been selected for the Pro Bowl on six occasions in his six year career to date. By definition, nobody has dominated their position since 2014 like Martin has.

The NFL’s All-Decade Team for 2010-2019 is out and one former Notre Dame star made the team. As you could probably guess, it was an offensive lineman seeing as so many who came through turned to gold both in college and the pros over the last decade.

Zack Martin, one of the best linemen in the league since the day he was drafted walked away with the honors on Monday afternoon.

Martin has been a force with the Dallas Cowboys as he’s been elected six times as an All-Pro and been selected for the Pro Bowl on six occasions in his six year career to date. By definition, nobody has dominated their position since 2014 like Martin has.

It’s hard to make a case for any Notre Dame players being snubbed offensively. Quenton Nelson has a pair of All-Pro appearances but has only played two seasons. Ronnie Stanley has been good but only 2019 in his career so far has been anywhere near that level and although Notre Dame puts a tight end in the pros just about every year, Kyle Rudolph (the best NFL career of the bunch) doesn’t touch Rob Gronkowski or Travis Kelce in terms of production or dominance.

The defensive side of the ball is another story as plenty of stars were taken in the secondary yet Harrison Smith was not one of them. He might not have the flash as some but I have a hard time believing there were eight better defensive backs in the game since 2012.

Three Saints players make All-Decade Team, but Drew Brees gets snubbed

The Pro Football Hall of Fame’s NFL All-Decade Team for the 2010’s highlighted several New Orleans Saints stars, but snubbed Drew Brees.

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The Pro Football Hall of Fame released its NFL All-Decade Team, and three players familiar to New Orleans Saints fans made the cut. Right guard Jahri Evans and defensive end Cameron Jordan were joined by “flex” running back/punt returner Darren Sproles, who played 48 of his 195 career games (including the playoffs) in black and gold.

Evans and Jordan have spent nearly every NFL snap of their careers in New Orleans, with Jordan not missing a game since his rookie year in 2011. Originally drafted 24th overall out of California, Jordan has gone on to post historically-great numbers for the Saints. His 87 career sacks rank second-most in franchise history, trailing only Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Rickey Jackson (115). If he keeps up the pace, that’s a title Jordan could claim for himself in a few years.

As for Evans: his NFL career turned out to be greater than anyone could have imagined, given where it started. He joined the Saints in 2006 as that year’s 108th overall pick out of Bloomburg, a small school in Pennsylvania. Five appearances on the All-Pro list (four times on the first team), six Pro Bowl nods, and a Super Bowl victory later, he has to be seen as one of the greatest offensive linemen in team history. It’s awesome to see him earn this recognition.

But it’s disappointing to see Drew Brees passed over in favor of Aaron Rodgers, who has accomplished less with a significantly better supporting cast over the last decade. Rodgers has been fortunate to work with a rotating cast of Pro Bowl wide receivers including Davante Adams, Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb, and Greg Jennings throughout the 2010’s, while none of Brees’ wide receivers reached the all-star game until Michael Thomas did so in 2017.

And that’s before you get into the defensive help; Rodgers was able to lean on Pro Bowl talents like defensive linemen B.J. Raji, Mike Daniels, Kenny Clark, Za’Darius Smith, and linebacker Clay Matthews (selected to five Pro Bowls), as well as defensive backs including Charles Woodson, Sam Shields, Nick Collins, Tramon Williams, and HaHa Clinton-Dix. Meanwhile, Brees was tearing his hair out while saddled with several of the worst defenses in NFL history.

So, sure, these selections are based off of individual performance. But you have to think Brees’ last ten years are perceived differently if he could have counted on his defense to hold a last-minute lead every now and then. Maybe the 2020’s will begin on a different note.

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Georgia Bulldog great makes NFL’s all-decade team

The NFL announced their all-decade team for the 2010s decade. One former Georgia Bulldog made the team.

The NFL announced their all-decade team for the 2010s decade. Tom Brady, Joe Thomas, Marshal Yanda, J.J. Watt, Aaron Donald, Von Miller, Justin Tucker, and Adrian Peterson headline the team as unanimous all-decade selections.

Former Georgia Bulldogs defensive tackle Geno Atkins is the only Dawg to make the team. Atkins has been a standout for the Bengals throughout the decade. Other potential UGA candidates for the team included: Todd Gurley, Champ Bailey, Justin Houston (89.5 sacks in the decade), A.J. Green, Thomas Davis, David Andrews, and more.

Here’s the offensive and defensive selections for the 2010s all-decade team:

Do you think any Georgia Bulldogs got snubbed? It’s hard to argue with a lot of the selections, especially the unanimous ones. D’Andre Swift has been compared to one of the all-decade selections ahead of the NFL Draft.

Interestingly, there are all outside linebackers on the team rush the passer (Thomas Davis would fit the bill as an OLB who didn’t play in a 3-4 defense). Speaking of outside linebackers, Justin Houston recorded 28 sacks more than Khalil Mack during the 2010s decade, but Houston failed to make the team.

There are only four receivers on the team, while there’s four offensive guards and four tackles, so the receivers position is a little bit light. Would A.J. Green have been the fifth receiver on the team?

The honor is well-deserved for Geno Atkins, who recorded 75.5 sacks and 383 tackles over the decade. Atkins is an eight-time Pro Bowl selection and is a role-model for modern NFL defensive tackles.

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4 Bills connections found on NFL All-Decade team

Those four Buffalo Bills players are Frank Gore, Marshawn Lynch, LeSean McCoy and Jason Peters. 

The Buffalo Bills haven’t been known for the high-flying offense in recent years… or the past decade. In fact, during the 2010s, the team was mostly known for average play and close-but-no-playoffs. (Thankfully, that’s changed).

Still, the Bills landed four players in the NFL’s recently released All-Decade team from the 2010s. Those four players are Frank Gore, Marshawn Lynch, LeSean McCoy and Jason Peters.

Starting with the most recent, Gore spent the 2019 season on the Bills. He rushed for 599 yards in his lone season with the Bills and added two scores. Early in the year he was particularly effective but slowed down later on.

McCoy was also technically on the Bills roster for the 2019 league year, but he didn’t make it out of training camp as Buffalo cut him. He latched on with the Chiefs and still struggled to find the field. McCoy was inactive during their Super Bowl run, but while with the Bills, McCoy was supremely effective for most of his tenure.

In 2015, McCoy was traded to the Bills for linebacker Kiko Alonso in a deal with the Eagles. Of his 11,071 career yards, 3,814 came via the Bills. One of former general manager Doug Whaley’s smartest moves.

Lynch is the final running back connected to the Bills here. In fact, four in total made the final decade cut. Only Adrian Peterson never played for the Bills. The former 2007 first-round pick of the Bills started his career in Buffalo, rushing for 2,765 yards in four seasons. He then spent another seven with the Seahawks, winning a Super Bowl there. Lynch most recently played for the Raiders.

Finally there’s offensive lineman Jason Peters. Admittedly all four players listed have a Bills “connection.” However, they made a “name” for themselves elsewhere. Despite that, Peters might have the Bills to thank the most. He went undrafted out of Arkansas in 2004 and Buffalo helped convert him from a tight end to a potentially future Hall of Fame left tackle. After five years with the Bills, he jumped ship to the Eagles after holding out for a new contract from the Bills, where he played the past 11 seasons as one of the NFL’s best linemen.

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