We all know the guys that the media loves to rave about. The Lamar Jackson‘s, the Derrick Henry’s, and Tyreek Hill’s. The guys that everyone buys the jerseys, the guys that get the MVP chants, and the guys that the sports analyst can’t stop talking about. And they absolutely deserve the accolades. But there are some really super players out there playing some elite football that for some reason, just don’t get the attention. We are going to take a little look at some of the best underrated players going right now.
QBs
Kirk Cousins;
There just is not a QB who can create more controversy and a conversation amongst fans, than Kirk Cousins.
Regardless of how well he plays, and regardless of how many yards or touchdowns he throws, there’s always that group of fans who dislike him. But the fact of the matter is, Kirk Cousins has been playing absolutely lights out this season. When he threw for 341 and 3 TDs in a huge 34-31 win vs Green Bay, he played one of the best games of his career. This season so far he has completed 68% and lit up teams for 21 TD passes to just 2 picks, those ratios are better than both legendary Tom Brady and MVP candidate Kyler Murray. A QB only being judged only by a teams wins is juvenile.
Derek Carr;
Derek Carr has often been criticized for his inability to push the ball downfield. But this year he has been better pushing it downfield then he has been in his last 5 years of playing. It appears that he has gained complete trust in his wide receivers and obviously having a receiving beast like Darren Waller at tight end, it’s certainly a great bonus for any QB. Derek this year has tossed 3400+ YDs for Vegas along with 8.3 YPA. Leading the NFL in YDs /game, and his YPA is tops amongst QBs with 360+ passing attempts. Time for respect.
RBs
Nick Chubb;
When most people think of running backs in the NFL in this day and age, they typically think of Derrick Henry, the 6-3 250 lb monster in Tennessee. Or even Dalvin Cook or Christian McCaffrey. But for some reason, Nick Chubb doesn’t seem to get the recognition that he deserves. With power and speed, the former Georgia RB has been grabbing a whopping 6.0 yards per carry and has hit paydirt 6 times this season in just 8 games. He brings speed and power. Everything a team wants from their RB.
James Robinson;
Playing for a very poor team is typically not going to get anyone any semblance of good attention. James Robinson has steadily been the best player in Jacksonville for the last 2 years. He has had 9 games with 65 + yards and a TD over 23 games played. He quietly had 1400+ scrimmage yards last season and is bringing a 5.1 YDs /attempts and has 7 TDs this season, which drops him into top 7 RBs in the leaderboard, in just 9 games.
WRs
Deebo Samuel;
Deebo, I think gets overlooked often because of the attention that their QB situation draws. With a thick built speed to tear up the field for YAC, as he is a very strong physical running WR, he is a matchup problem for almost any team that plays the Niners. He is currently tops in the NFL in yards after catch with 525, and he is shouldering a bigtime 18.1 YD /catch around. He can easily take a 3-yard slant for 15 to 20 in a few brief rocketing moments. Whether it’s just by flying past linebackers or muscling down DBs. Why is there not more talk about this guy?
Mike Williams;
The 27 year old wide out, has had a very interesting career.
In 2017 – he was considered to be one of the more promising young wide receivers coming into the league, when drafted out of Clemson. When playing in college, he was almost an enigma with some inconsistencies yet showing signs of big play ability. But then he ran into some issues with getting open, and finding the endzone – but suddenly now in 2021 he has 705 receiving yards and 7 TDs, at 6-4 and 220, he is a treat to watch go up for the ball, and is a real issue for DBs to handle. With 26% less targets as his WR1 counterpart, he still leads the team with 7 receiving scores, he has finally seemed to fully catch a hold of the game, and I don’t think he’s going back. It’s time for people to pay a little more attention to Big Mike Williams.
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