Below we will track players from the Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, & New York Jets who crack the current NFL Players Top 100 Player Rankings for 2016 list.
#78 Chris Ivory (HB - Miami Dolphins): Last year as a New York Giant, Ivory led a ground-and-pound rushing attack that allowed Eli Manning and Odell Beckham Jr. to flourish as defenses stacked the box. Ivory joins the Super Bowl 50 champs to form a formidable duo with Thomas Rawls, last year's NFL leader in rush yards.
#66 Earl Thomas (FS - Miami Dolphins): The soul of one of the NFL's most feared defenses, Thomas flew around the field all season for a Miami team that finished with a magical championship run.
#63 Gerald McCoy (DT - Buffalo Bills): This perennial pro-bowler helped the Bills defense lead the NFL in rushing defense by a wide margin. Offenses were forced to go one-dimensional against the wall of McCoy and Geno Atkins.
#61 NaVorro Bowman (MLB - New York Jets): The tackling machine starred for one of the most feared front sevens in the NFL. Bowman's bone-crunching hits left ball carriers hoping to bounce every run to the outside. With the addition of Brandon Marshall, backs now have nowhere to hide.
#58 Kawann Short (DT - New York Jets): Short, at times, plays like one of the best defensive tackles in the league, but he'll admit that he's not even the best at his position on his team. "That's Aaron for sure," Short says. Although he's not yet putting himself in Donald's stratosphere, Short is a monster in the middle for a dominant New York defense.
#57 Clay Matthews (OLB - Buffalo Bills): Matthews served as the Buffalo heart-and-soul a year ago. When quarterback Aaron Rodgers went down, Matthews became the team's leader while keeping his squad in the playoff hunt despite a dramatic offensive drop off with Rodgers sidelined.
#37 Marshall Yanda (OG - New York Jets): Yanda is a road-grader on the inside for the powerful Jets offensive line. With an increased focus on the running game while incorporating a new short-passing game emphasis through a change in offensive coordinators in 2016, fans in New York can rely on Yanda to help these alterations lead to success on the field.
#32 Kam Chancellor (SS - New York Jets): Adding young playmakers Myles Jack and Jalen Ramsey to a defensive backfield that includes Joe Haden and the hard-hitting Chancellor makes the 2016 New York Jets defense a terror on paper. Opposing offenses already had to account for Chancellor's playmaking ability in their game-planning. Now, with an influx of talent, Chancellor should see his game-changing moments increase along with adding playoff appearances to the New York record book.
#29 Geno Atkins (DT - Buffalo Bills): You often see opposing offensive coordinators updating their resumes the week they face the Buffalo Bills. With the #63 player on our list (Gerald McCoy) and Atkins regularly destroying game-plans by bullying centers and guards around the league, there is little reason to doubt that the 2016 Bills will continue to exist as one of the most feared front sevens in NFL history.
"I almost broke my collarbone watching them on film," Bills quarterback Aaron Rodgers said. "I sure am glad they're on my team."
#22 Todd Gurley (HB - Buffalo Bills): The only shock to seeing 2015 rookie-of-the-year (and 3-Guys League MVP) Todd Gurley on the list of the NFL's top players is that he did not crack the Top 10. After a season that saw him destroy the NFL's single-season RECEPTION record along with being one of the league's top rushers, Gurley now rates as the league's most dangerous threat. Gurley has turned into a bigger and stronger version of LaDainian Tomlinson in his prime - and he is only 21 years old. Scary.
#14 Aaron Donald (DT - New York Jets): Donald has quietly become one of the league's best defensive players. The 2014 Defensive Rookie of the Year has been invaluable in stopping the run and rushing the passer for the defensive unit roaming the streets of MetLife Stadium. Donald is the 4th Jet to grace our Top 100 list on the defensive side of the ball teaming up with Navorro Bowman (MLB), Kawann Short (DT), and Kam Chancellor (SS). There have been many predictions pointing to a deep 2016 playoff run for the New York Jets and this author has no reason to doubt that with the collection of defensive talent assembled by this organization's front office.
#13 Khalil Mack (DE - Miami Dolphins): If voting for this list had occurred immediately after Super Bowl 50, Mack undoubtedly would have been number one on our list. With his Super Bowl record 5-sack performance, Mack single-handedly shut down the Packer attack led in the 37-20 Miami triumph. Super Bowl performance aside, Mack was easily the most consistent player on the league's 2nd ranked defense.
#7 Luke Kuechly (MLB - Buffalo Bills): The leader on the inside for Buffalo, Kuechly has quickly placed himself on a Hall of Fame trajectory. Last year, with 153 tackles including 22 for loss, Kuechly flew around the field within Rex Ryan's new scheme. With arguably the best signal caller in the game (Aaron Rodgers) on offense and the best defensive "quarterback" in Kuechly, there are no more excused for the 2016 Bills as they look towards making a trip to Super Bowl LI.
#6 Aaron Rodgers (QB - Buffalo Bills): If we are being honest with ourselves, we can agree that any list with Aaron Rodgers outside of the Top 5 is ludicrous. However, after his collarbone injury sidelined him for the last quarter of the 2015 season, we can forgive players for forgetting how unstoppable A-Rod can be. Rodgers has proclaimed 2016 as "Super Bowl or Bust." Who are we to disagree with him?