Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce land in NFL’s Top 10 players for 2022

The Kansas City Chiefs have placed two stars in the top 10 of the NFL’s Top 100 Players for 2022.

It wasn’t so long ago that the Kansas City Chiefs roster dominated the annual list of the Top 100 players within the National Football League. The team had plenty of star power on both sides of the ball and those pillars carried the team to one Super Bowl championship, one other appearance, and four straight conference championship games.

This year, things look different for a Chiefs team that has shed some of those household names for the sake of a youth movement. That’s why Chiefs Kingdom hasn’t heard nearly as much chatter about the 2022 edition of the NFL’s Top 100 Players given that there are only three total Chiefs players represented. The good news is that the team’s superstars remain in place, which is why the Chiefs have two of the top 10: quarterback Patrick Mahomes and tight end Travis Kelce.

On this year’s list, Mahomes dropped seven spots from No. 1 in 2021 to No. 8 overall. He’s also the third quarterback listed overall behind future Hall of Fame veterans Tom Brady of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (No. 1) and Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers (No. 3). Mahomes had a bit of a down year statistically speaking when compared with his own historic norms, but he was still in the MVP conversation for much of the season.

As for Kelce, he lands one spot lower than last season at No. 10 overall and is the highest-ranked tight end in the game. That’s good since he’s basically redefining what is possible production-wise at the position. He owns an NFL-record six straight seasons with 1,000 receiving yards or more for a tight end, a mark he’s extended for the last three seasons. He had 92 receptions and 9 touchdowns last year for the Chiefs.

Former Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill landed at No.15 for the second straight year and is part of the exodus of star power on this team along with safety Tyrann Mathieu, who was also a staple of these countdowns. The only other member of the Chiefs to land on this list is defensive tackle Chris Jones who comes in at No. 39 after sitting as high as No. 34 last season.