Pro Football Focus has begun to unveil its top-101 players from the 2010s decade on Monday. PFF sought to look at the production, efficiency and performance of players during the 2010s decade and narrow them down to a list of 101. They began with players 74-101 and will continue counting down throughout the week to the No. 1 player which will be revealed on Thursday.
No. 101 – DB Eric Berry
“Much of Eric Berry’s legacy will revolve around beating cancer to return to play at an extremely high level. In addition to that incredible achievement, Berry was one of the best players of the past decade. He showed incredible versatility within the Kansas City Chiefs‘ defense, excelling as a deep-lying free safety as well as an in-the-box joker on defense. It speaks to his skill set that his best seasons in terms of overall PFF grade (both well above 85.0) came in completely different roles and responsibilities within the defense.“
For a while, Berry was one of the most exciting defenders on the Chiefs’ defense. Like PFF says, he was a versatile playmaker, with the ability to line up in a variety of different spots. He could act as a ball-hawking deep safety. You could put him in the box against the run. He was a great one-on-one cover guy against tight ends. If you look at his two best seasons in Kansas City, 2010 and 2016, they’re nearly identical from a statistical standpoint with four interceptions, nine passes defended and at least one defensive touchdown in each season.
Unfortunately, Berry’s current legacy with the Chiefs is the $8 million in dead cap space for the 2020 season. While Berry is rumored to be looking for opportunities to continue his playing career, he’s at a bit of a disadvantage due to the COVID-19 pandemic and team doctors being unable to conduct a physical and examine the heel injury which marked his demise in Kansas City.
No. 86 – RB Jamaal Charles
“One of the fastest running backs to play the game, Jamaal Charles had track speed that would break angles and statistics because of how difficult he was to hit, let alone tackle. Though the decade caught only the last few seasons of his career, the sample size for running backs is lower than it is for most positions. And even in those seasons, Charles averaged 5.3 yards per carry, 2.5 of which came after contact. He forced 157 missed tackles on 1,151 carries and generated a first down or touchdown on 26% of his carries.”
PFF failed to mention that the 5.3 yards per carry average from Charles managed to lead all RBs during the 2010s decade. Another crazy thing about this is that Charles played only two full seasons with the Chiefs during the 2010s decade. One of those seasons, Thomas Jones was the starter in Kansas City. All of the other seasons, were only partial because he dealt with injury.
This is a nice example of the analytics matching the film because Charles was one of the most exciting players to watch during his prime in Kansas City. It’s fun to think about what Charles could have done had he been able to play with some better teams and avoid the injury bug during his career. Charles officially retired from football as a member of the Chiefs this past season.
No. 78 – OLB Tamba Hali
“Before J.J.Watt came along, Tamba Hali owned the record for the most total pressures registered in a single season, posting 97 back in 2010. Including the playoffs, Hali got up to 103 pressures that year, which still ranks as one of the most prolific pass-rushing performances we have ever graded at PFF. That season marked the high-point in Hali’s career, a level that he never quite got back to. However, he was a consistently productive pass rusher for years before seeing a decline in the last few seasons of his career. At his best, Hali was one of the most unstoppable pass rushers in the game.“
Hali was a monster on the field for Kansas City for many seasons. He was a student of the game, mastering hand-fighting techniques to better get to the quarterback. From 2011-2015, Hali made five consecutive Pro Bowl appearances. He never dipped below six sacks during that time period and never had less than 11 QB hits. He also recorded 15 forced fumbles during that timeframe.
Hali is certainly deserving of this praise and probably doesn’t get enough credit for the dominance he displayed in his career. While Hali hasn’t yet officially retired, it’s hard to see the 36-year-old pass rusher returning to football. He has a flourishing music career, but one day maybe we’ll see him grace the field again as a coach.
