ESPN has released their top 100 players for 2019 and the Kansas City Chiefs have tied with the most players on the list with seven overall.
With just two weeks to go before the regular season begins, ESPN has put out its annual list of top 100 players for the upcoming season (sound familiar?), and the Kansas City Chiefs have tied (New Orleans Saints) for the most players on the list with seven.
If you already watched the National Football League’s own countdown of its top 100 players, you might be surprised to see the Chiefs add another one to the list—given that K.C. had six on the NFL’s version.
Over at ESPN, Patrick Mahomes comes in at No. 2 overall behind the best defensive player in the game, Aaron Donald, defensive tackle for the Los Angeles Rams.
From there, two of Mahomes’ favorite pass catchers were listed with wide receiver Tyreek Hill and tight end Travis Kelce at No. 16 and No. 18, respectively. What’s interesting about Hill is that the offseason drama around the investigation into child abuse and neglect at his house doesn’t seem to have phased voters at all, a good sign that the cloud of negative PR might lift even more over time. As for Kelce, he was the first tight end on the list.
From there, the defense begins to take over with the sighting of defensive linemen Chris Jones and Frank Clark at No. 40 and 58, respectively. Jones is looking for a major payday after finishing third in the NFL in sacks with 15.5, a tremendous figure for an interior pass rusher. Clark is the team’s sexy new import after general manager Brett Veach released Justin Houston and traded Dee Ford in order to afford Clark in the team’s offseason blockbuster.
The unexpected face on this list, or at least the one left off of the NFL’s Top 100, is safety Tyrann Mathieu, the Chiefs big offseason signing brought in to take the place of Eric Berry in the secondary. Mathieu comes in at No. 86 despite being left off the other list completely.
Rounding things out is right tackle Mitchell Schwartz at No. 92, around the same general place he landed on the NFL’s list, and another solid sign that Schwartz is finally earning the sort of respect he deserves in league circles. The three-time All-Pro tackle has somehow never made a Pro Bowl in his career.