ESPN Top Ranked Safeties (Harper 13, Jenkins 15)

Danno · 05-04-2011, 05:45 PM

ESPN.com's NFL writers rank the top 10 safeties in the league today. Next week: top 10 owners.

When it comes to rating NFL safeties, there's Troy Polamalu and Ed Reed followed by a huge gap before everyone else.

As expected, the star safeties for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens dominated ESPN.com's positional Power Rankings this week. No other safety received a vote higher than third place.

Ranking the Safeties
1. Troy Polamalu, Pittsburgh Steelers
2. Ed Reed, Baltimore Ravens
3. Nick Collins, Green Bay Packers
4. Adrian Wilson, Arizona Cardinals
5. Eric Berry, Kansas City Chiefs
6. Michael Griffin, Tennessee Titans
7. Donte Whitner, Buffalo Bills
8. B. Meriweather, New England Patriots
9. Antrel Rolle, New York Giants
10. LaRon Landry, Washington Redskins
10. Antoine Bethea, Indianapolis Colts
12 Ryan Clark
13 Roman Harper
14 Oshiomogho Atogwe
15 Malcolm Jenkins
16 Eric Weddle

But what is surprising is that Polamalu -- the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year -- became the first player in this year's series to sweep all eight first-place votes. Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots did the same among head coaches.

This should finally put to rest the "Troy Reed" debate that has been raging for years between these two great safeties. According to our panel, there is a clear separation between the two. Reed received all second-place votes to finish with 72 points.

"Polamalu and Reed are the secondary's version of Tom Brady and Peyton Manning. They are the gold standard of safety play," AFC West blogger Bill Williamson said. "While Reed is great, Polamalu is stunning. I've never seen him play and not make a jaw-dropping play." ...

Power Rankings: Top 10 NFL safeties - AFC North Blog - ESPN

Interesting. I wish they had ranked Free and Strong separately.

05-04-2011, 05:45 PM	#1
Danno Truth Addict Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Spanish Fort, AL (via NO and B/R) Posts: 24,747	ESPN Top Ranked Safeties (Harper 13, Jenkins 15) ESPN.com's NFL writers rank the top 10 safeties in the league today. Next week: top 10 owners. When it comes to rating NFL safeties, there's Troy Polamalu and Ed Reed followed by a huge gap before everyone else. As expected, the star safeties for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens dominated ESPN.com's positional Power Rankings this week. No other safety received a vote higher than third place. Ranking the Safeties 1. Troy Polamalu, Pittsburgh Steelers 2. Ed Reed, Baltimore Ravens 3. Nick Collins, Green Bay Packers 4. Adrian Wilson, Arizona Cardinals 5. Eric Berry, Kansas City Chiefs 6. Michael Griffin, Tennessee Titans 7. Donte Whitner, Buffalo Bills 8. B. Meriweather, New England Patriots 9. Antrel Rolle, New York Giants 10. LaRon Landry, Washington Redskins 10. Antoine Bethea, Indianapolis Colts 12 Ryan Clark 13 Roman Harper 14 Oshiomogho Atogwe 15 Malcolm Jenkins 16 Eric Weddle But what is surprising is that Polamalu -- the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year -- became the first player in this year's series to sweep all eight first-place votes. Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots did the same among head coaches. This should finally put to rest the "Troy Reed" debate that has been raging for years between these two great safeties. According to our panel, there is a clear separation between the two. Reed received all second-place votes to finish with 72 points. "Polamalu and Reed are the secondary's version of Tom Brady and Peyton Manning. They are the gold standard of safety play," AFC West blogger Bill Williamson said. "While Reed is great, Polamalu is stunning. I've never seen him play and not make a jaw-dropping play." ... Power Rankings: Top 10 NFL safeties - AFC North Blog - ESPN Interesting. I wish they had ranked Free and Strong separately.