Top NFL Players of 2023
The NFL 2022/23 season began, as usual, on the first Monday of September and finished in early January before getting into the playoffs. By the time Rhianna took to the stage to announce the midpoint of Super Bowl LVII, it was clear that the season had been far from business as usual.
At the start of the season, the NFL’s margin of victory was at a mere 8.9 points, the lowest in NFL’s history. Most major online bookies worldwide had early predictions that the Buccaneers and Packers were going to be heading up the Super Bowl however they soon began to fade away.
This was a season for the underdog: the bottom 25 teams finished the regular season with 400 points or even better. This has never happened in the history of the NFL. The last time anything like this happened was in 1995 when just 7 of the lower league teams got to within a mere sniffing distance of 400 points.
There were other surprises too, the Chiefs lost to the Bengals and Bills and the Eagles lost out to the Cowboys and Commanders, before eventually facing off at the Super Bowl. And the biggest surprise of all may have been when the Kansas City Chiefs defeated favorites, the Philadelphia Eagles.
All the while some of the best players in the sport were pushing themselves to the ultimate limit and, in some cases, beyond. So, let’s take a look at five of the best NFL Players of 2023.
Patrick Mahomes II
He’s been called a once-in-a-generation talent, which says all you need to know about this superlative quarterback. He’s only 27 too, which means we might just be seeing the making of an all-time great.
It’s not just his own team that thinks he’s the best either. His rival, Bengals’ Joe Burrow, thinks Patrick Mahomes is the best NFL quarterback too.
- Career Highlights:
- Super Bowl champion (LIV)
- Super Bowl MVP (LIV)
- 5 times Pro Bowl (2018–2022)
- NFL Most Valuable Player (2018)
- NFL Offensive Player of the Year (2018)
Justin Jefferson
This ace wide receiver isn’t just a star player when it comes to outthinking the defense. He’s incredibly fast as well and, just like Mahomes, he’s only just begun his NFL career. According to the press, he might be the highest-paid NFL non-quarterback player in history as well.
- Career Highlights:
- 3 times Pro Bowl (2020–2022)
- 2 times Second-team All-Pro (2020, 2021)
- PFWA All-Rookie Team (2020)
Joe Burrow
He may be Mr. Cool on the pitch, but this forward-thinking quarterback is also known for his intelligent gameplay with an uncanny ability to perform under pressure. He’s also been credited with seriously adding to the success of his team, the Cincinnati Bengals’.
He’s no egotist either as we saw from his comments regarding Mahomes, adding, ‘If you don’t have good players around the quarterback, you’re not going to be a very good team’.
- Career Highlights:
- Pro Bowl (2022)
- NFL Comeback Player of the Year (2021)
- NFL completion percentage leader (2021)
Travis Kelce
One of the best tight ends of all time? He’s big, fit, and experienced and when paired with the right team, he’s quite simply phenomenal. Off the pitch, he’s known for his wit and always has a memorable worldly-wise quote or two up his sleeve. Over to you, Travis…
“Blocking is part physicality and part physics. You have to be the lower man and get your hands inside to control your opponent’s mass. If you have short footwork, tight hands, and if you play low, you can hold your own”.
- Career Highlights:
- 8 times Pro Bowl (2015–2022)
- 3 times Second-team All-Pro (2017, 2019, 2021
- 3 times First-team All-Pro (2016, 2018, 2020)
- NFL 2010s All-Decade Team
- Super Bowl champion (LIV)
Ja’Marr Chase
He’s only been a pro for two years, yet already he’s the makings of a wide receiver all-time great. Lightning fast and as dangerous in the pocket as he is in the downfield, and let’s not forget, he’s only 22.
Not that Chase doesn’t know how good he is, by the way. He’s even on record for saying that he believes he’s a cut above everyone else.
- Career Highlights:
- 2 times Pro Bowl (2021, 2022)
- NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year (2021)
- Second-team All-Pro (2021)
- PFWA All-Rookie Team (2021)
These five players have made an incredible contribution to American Football in the past few years and have undoubtedly helped to make the 22/23 season one of the best.
But we’ll leave you with this tantalizing thought. We only mentioned five of the top NFL players of 2023, how about Nick Bosa, Josh Allen, Tyrek Hill, Christian McCaffrey, Chris Jones…
For fans of the NFL, this is a great time to be alive, in fact, this could even be a golden age to rival 2006-2011. Watch this space.
