Respect is earned.
For the first time since 2018, zero Indianapolis Colts players cracked the NFL’s annual top 100 players list. It’s the 15th edition of the NFL Network countdown in which players voted on their peers to rank the league’s 100 best players ahead of the 2025 season. There were several snubs who could justifiably feel underrated, but it’s downright disrespectful to omit the cornerstone leaders on the Colts.
Is Jonathan Taylor not a top 10 running back? Despite missing three games last season with a high ankle sprain, Taylor (102.2) was one of three tailbacks to average over 100 rushing yards per game. Taylor produced eight games with over 100 rushing yards, which was the third most in the league behind Eagles’ Saquon Barkley (11) and Ravens’ Derrick Henry (9). Taylor earned AFC Offensive Player of the Week after his 218-yard outburst with three rushing touchdowns against the Titans in Week 16, which was the second-best performance of the 2024 season by a running back.
To make matters worse, ten different RBs made the top 100 list, including Barkley (No. 1 – Eagles), Henry (No. 7 – Ravens), Jahmyr Gibbs (No. 27 – Lions), Josh Jacobs (No. 33 – Packers), Joe Mixon (No. 58 – Texans), Bijan Robinson (No. 62 – Falcons), Christian McCaffrey (No. 73 – 49ers), Kyren Williams (No. 85 – Rams), James Cook (No. 89 – Bills), Aaron Jones Sr. (No. 98 – Vikings). Ten members of the Super Bowl LIX champion Philadelphia Eagles made the cut, which is the most by a single team since the list debuted in 2011.
Either the perception of Taylor has shifted dramatically or perhaps it’s the perception of the running back position entirely. Taylor has been absent from the list since 2022, when he was ranked at fifth overall behind Rams’ Cooper Kupp at No. 4, quarterback Aaron Rogers at No. 3 in his last season with the Packers, plus two future first-ballot inductees headed for Canton in Aaron Donald at No. 2 and Tom Brady at No. 1. Taylor has proven he can flip games on its head when healthy and his combination of burst and vision still makes him one of the league’s most dynamic running backs.
Two Colts captains who earned 2024 Associated Press Second-Team All-Pro honors were among the biggest snubs, including left guard Quenton Nelson and linebacker Zaire Franklin. Sure, every player has a different criterion when there are so many positions on the field, but coming off an All-Pro campaign should be an automatic bid to being recognized in the annual top 100 list. Zero guards made the list, but it’s still surprising why an underrated, worthy candidate like Quenton Nelson was omitted in each of the last two seasons. Big Q is one of three offensive linemen in league history to be named to the Pro Bowl in each of his first seven seasons. Nelson last made the list in 2022, coming in at No. 28 overall, and has not missed a game in the last three seasons.
Zaire Franklin is certainly the vocal leader both on the field and inside the locker room. Franklin was honorably mentioned as a notable snub following Monday’s season finale. Last year, Franklin was the first player listed when he made his debut on the 2024 list at No. 100, then backed it up with a Second-Team All-Pro campaign. Franklin led the league with 173 total tackles and his five forced fumbles were the second-most behind Cardinals’ safety Budda Baker. No NFL player has more tackles than Franklin over the course of the last three seasons and no Colts player has more 10-plus tackle performances in franchise history. It must be frustrating for the league-leader in tackles to be left off when 13 different linebackers made this year’s list (15 if you include Packers’ Micah Parsons and Cardinals’ Josh Sweat).
Colts defensive tackle DeForest Buckner enters his tenth NFL season after playing a career-low 11 games while dealing with a high ankle sprain last season. If the three-time pro bowler was disrupting opponents in a bigger market, there’s no doubt Buckner would be a perennial member of the top 100 list. The 6-foot-7, 295-pound, defensive tackle anchors Indy’s defensive front and continues to pose a significant threat by collapsing the pocket against the pass or stuffing the run at the line of scrimmage. Buckner last appeared on the list in 2023 at No. 71, which marked his fourth straight appearance on the list.
Although no Colts players saw their name flash across the NFL Network’s countdown, the snub actually underscores the reality of Indianapolis’ roster, a collection of underrated, undervalued, but talented football players. In a league where respect is earned on the gridiron, not just in preseason rankings, don’t be surprised if the Colts core four forces their way back onto the radar. The absence from the top 100 list may reflect a roster still seeking national recognition after suffering through the last decade of irrelevance, but within Indianapolis, the four cornerstone players such as Buckner, Franklin, Nelson and Taylor are more focused on returning the Colts back into AFC contention.
Listed below are the top 10 offensive/defensive opposing players coming to Lucas Oil Stadium in 2025.
OFFENSE
- 24. Brock Bowers TE – Las Vegas Raiders
- 31. George Kittle TE – San Francisco 49ers
- 32. Nico Collins WR – Houston Texans
- 39. CJ Stroud QB – Houston Texans
- 45. Trent Williams T – San Francisco 49ers
- 47. Tyreek Hill WR – Miami Dolphins
- 58. Joe Mixon RB – Houston Texans
- 61. Brian Thomas Jr. WR – Jacksonville Jaguars
- 64. Bo Nix QB – Denver Broncos
- 65. Trey McBride TE – Arizona Cardinals
DEFENSE
- 9. Patrick Sutrain II CB – Denver Broncos
- 16. Fred Warner LB – San Francisco 49ers
- 18. Derek Stingley Jr. CB – Houston Texans
- 22. Maxx Crosby DE Las Vegas Raiders
- 25. Danielle Hunter DE – Houston Texans
- 34. Budda Baker S – Arizona Cardinals
- 38. Nick Bonitto DE – Denver Broncos
- 46. Will Anderson Jr. DE – Houston Texans
- 57. Nick Bosa DE – San Francisco 49ers
- 63. Josh Hines-Allen DE – Jacksonville Jaguars
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