blacksaint

To commemorate USA TODAY's 25th anniversary, a panel of USA TODAY's NFL reporters and editors produced an anthology of the 25 best NFL players of the past 25 years.


Rank___Player______________Story

1. Joe Montana_____Montana's Super success raised the bar

2. Jerry Rice_______Rice ran away from the field with grace

3. Walter Payton____Payton did sweet work as rushing king

4. Lawrence Taylor___The original L.T. brought QBs to their knees

5. Reggie White______White administered rare level of play

6. John Elway_______Elway left NFL as a winner

7. Emmitt Smith_____Emmitt Smith surpassed all runners

8. Ronnie Lott_______Lott made waves with hard-hitting style

9. Tom Brady_______Brady climbed fast to Super heights

10. Barry Sanders____Sanders left them wanting more

11. Dan Marino______Marino re-wrote the NFL passing records

12. Peyton Manning___Peyton's place secure in NFL annals

13. Anthony Munoz____Munoz set standard on the O-line

14. Brett Favre_______Favre made Green Bay important again

15. Bruce Smith______Smith sacked his way to the top

16. Deion Sanders____Deion played his way into 'Prime Time'

17. Mike Singletary___Singletary renowned for intimidating presence

18. Ray Lewis_______The ultimate defender — Ray Lewis

19. Marshall Faulk____Faulk brought double threat to new level

20. Troy Aikman_____Aikman rescued 'America's Team'

21. LaDainian Tomlinson__Tomlinson still climbing list of NFL greats

22. Rod Woodson_____Woodson set new standard in backfield

23. Terry Bradshaw___Playoff success carried Bradshaw into Hall

24. Steve Young_____After wait, Young made lasting run into NFL history

25. Eric Dickerson____Dickerson blazed early path to NFL immortality

"Tom Brady sits a lil too high on this list, and a few players are definitely missing as well. This list leaves a lot to be debated"

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