By Adam
Rank
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NFL.com Writer
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Published: Jan. 22, 2020 at 10:01 a.m.
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Updated: Jan. 22, 2020 at 11:26 a.m.
Time now for Part 2 of our look at the Unsung Heroes of 2019,
this time covering the NFC teams. Of course, if you didn't catch the first
part, on the Unsung Heroes of the AFC, you might want to go ahead and click here. Not
that you need to read that side first. It's not like this is The
Mandalorian or something, where if you miss the first installment,
you've find of missed everything. Just wanted to get you sorted.
Without further ado, here are the
Unsung Heroes (on the field, of course) of the NFC.
ARIZONA CARDINALS: Kenyan Drake, running back. I
swear, I'm not trying to make this about guys who positively impacted my
fantasy team. But NFL fans likely thought it was curious when Arizona traded
for Drake in October -- and then they were probably really curious as to
why he never clicked with the Dolphins after watching Drake do his
best Barry Sanders impression in his first appearance in
a Cardinals uniform, gashing the 49ers for 162 scrimmage
yards and a touchdown. Now, if the future free agent returns to Kliff
Kingsbury's offense, we can only imagine what he'll do in a full season working
with Kyler Murray.
ATLANTA
FALCONS: Grady Jarrett, defensive tackle. Obviously, Julio
Jones and the explosive Falcons offense is what you think of
first when you think about Atlanta. Well, that and the fact that they have a
Chick-fil-A in the stadium. But Jarrett was the Falcons' most consistent
non-Julio Jones player in 2019, finishing with 7.5 sacks, 16 quarterback
hits and 12 tackles for loss. Jarrett proved it was pretty smart to ink him to
a four-year extension heading into the year.
CAROLINA PANTHERS: James
Bradberry, cornerback. I almost want to slot Christian
McCaffrey here, because as praised as he was, it almost seems like he
wasn't given enough respect
in 2019, seeing as he served as the team's top runner (1,387 rushing yards, 15
rushing TDs) and receiver
(116 catches). But it's clear Bradberry deserves love when you consider the NFC
South -- home to headliner receivers like the Saints' Michael Thomas,
the Falcons' Julio Jones and the Bucs' Mike Evans and Chris
Godwin -- might be the toughest division for a cornerback to play in. The
2020 free agent was one of the best, even while going against some of the
business' most elite pass-catchers.
CHICAGO BEARS: Allen
Robinson, wide receiver. Taking the high road,
Robinson said he wouldn't "lose sleep" over his Pro
Bowl snub. But I certainly did. Well, maybe that's a bit of an
exaggeration -- I didn't actually lose sleep over it. Still, Robinson's absence
from the Pro Bowl is clearly preposterous after he had one of the
best seasons of his career, with 98 receptions for 1,147 yards and seven
touchdowns. And while I'm not going to use this forum as an opportunity to bash
the quarterback, it's important to note that this production came on a team
that ranked 25th in passing yards and 29th in overall offense.
DALLAS COWBOYS: Dak
Prescott, quarterback. I tried to avoid listing any
quarterbacks in either conference, because it's tough to be unsung while
playing the game's highest-profile position. And when I did choose one, I
really wanted it to stand out. I already covered Ryan Tannehill in
the AFC half of this exercise, so let's have a word about Dak, who is currently
without a contract for 2020. It's amazing to me that there are still people who
question whether he can lead this team into the future. Let me give you the
short answer: He certainly can. He damn near threw for 5,000 yards this season
and had 30 touchdowns. I guess the expectations surrounding the position, and
maybe some frustration over missing the playoffs, are probably fueling the Dak
doubt. But let me tell you, as a fan of a Bears team that has
struggled to get it right at the quarterback position for years,
the Cowboys are set. So please stop questioning him.
DETROIT LIONS: Trey Flowers, defensive end. The Lions were
a disappointing 3-12-1 in 2019, but you could sense that things were starting
to trend in the right direction, especially defensively. One player who consistently
stood out was Flowers. From Week 3 on, he tied for 10th in the NFL in pressures
(45), according to Next Gen Stats. He also racked up seven sacks and was a
general nuisance up the middle for the Lions.
GREEN BAY
PACKERS: Tramon Williams, cornerback. The Packers got
some great play in the secondary from Williams and Jaire Alexander. And
while Alexander might have been expected to ball out, given his first-round
pedigree and age (22), Williams was out there playing at a high level as both a
slot-corner and outside cornerback as a 36-year-old in a contract year on his
second go-around with the team. And while the optics of the NFC
Championship Game, in which the Packers failed to stop
the 49ers' ground attack, will no doubt linger in your mind, their defense
played well in 2019, and Williams was a huge reason why.
LOS ANGELES RAMS: Cooper Kupp, wide receiver. Obviously,
Kupp means a lot to people who participate in fantasy football, but I'm
curious how much of a hero he remains to the casual fan. It's sort of
unbelievable that he was able to return from 2018's ACL injury and lead
the Rams in receptions (87), receiving yards (1,062) and touchdowns
(10) in 2019. Although the offense changed a bit down the stretch, and we saw
more of tight end Tyler Higbee as the season went on, Kupp still had
a touchdown in each of his final five games of the season.
MINNESOTA
VIKINGS: Anthony Harris, safety. Consistently overlooked,
Harris rarely misses a tackle and is a pretty good ballhawk, having posted nine
interceptions over the last two seasons. If the Vikings allow him to
walk as a free agent, he'll be considered one of the top players available,
maybe next to Amari Cooper. If Minnesota is going to remain competitive in
the NFC North, this team needs to hang on to players like Harris.
NEW ORLEANS
SAINTS: Vonn Bell, safety. Don't be the person who
wants me to mention Taysom Hill. He became one of the most popular players
in the league, and his praises were sung more than Purple Rain. So let's give a
little bit of love to Bell, who stood out in the secondary for
the Saints in the final year of his rookie contract. He created turnovers
and led the NFL with five fumble recoveries. He scored a touchdown this season.
He provided a stabilizing force on the back end of the Saints' defense,
which ranked seventh against the pass and ninth overall.
NEW YORK
GIANTS: Kaden Smith, tight end. Tight end Evan
Engram was poised for a breakout season in 2019, but injuries limited him
to eight games. Smith, meanwhile, raised questions about Engram's expendability
with his performance as Engram's replacement. Dude had at least five receptions
in four of the last six games for the Giants -- not bad for a guy who
was cut by the 49ers. (It's about time somebody benefited the other way from that.)
Smith was at his best in his final two games, posting a pair of touchdown
receptions against the Redskins, including the winner in overtime, in Week
16, then tallying eight receptions for 98 yards against the Eagles in
Week 17.
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES: Greg Ward, wide receiver. Carson
Wentz went down with a head injury during the team's playoff loss to
the Seahawks, and his backup, Josh McCown, played despite having his
hamstring ripped from the bone. Now, if McCown hadn't been able to continue, do
you know who would have been his replacement?
That's right: Ward, who played quarterback at the University of Houston. That
would have only added to the legend of Ward, who had already become a huge part
of the Eagles' offense as a receiver, with injuries hitting that position as well.
SAN FRANCISCO
49ERS: Arik Armstead, defensive end. The 49ers enjoyed
a lot of success in 2019 thanks to bounce-back seasons from
quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and cornerback Richard
Sherman -- but Armstead's breakout year was just as big. The 2015
first-round pick had never quite lived up to his potential with 49ers, but
in the final year of his rookie contract, he registered career highs in sacks
(10) and tackles for loss (11). That sack total topped his results from his
previous four seasons combined and also led the team.
SEATTLE
SEAHAWKS: Joey Hunt, center. Everyone celebrated the
return of Marshawn Lynch to the Seahawks, but some of the
success of the running game in 2019 -- including the great campaign Chris
Carson put together before being lost with a hip injury in Week 16 --
could be attributed to what Hunt was able to do up front. Hunt, working on a
one-year deal, started eight games at center after taking over for Justin
Britt, who was lost for the season with an ACL tear in Week 8. But what's more
incredible is that Hunt suffered a fracture in his fibula in Week 9
and continued to play through it for the rest of the year.
TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS: Carlton Davis, cornerback. Davis
is poised to become one of the big names at the position in the coming years.
He took a larger role with the team after former first-round pick Vernon
Hargreaves was released in November, and the Buccaneers became one of
the toughest teams to throw on over the final eight games of the season, with
Tampa finishing 5-3. From Week 12 (the first game of the post-Hargreaves era)
to Week 17, the Bucs posted a passer rating allowed of 70.5, third best in the
NFL over that span. Davis was often asked to lock down the opponent's No. 1
receiver, and he often delivered. It's funny; I know, fantasy-wise, people
loved to play opposing players against the Bucs' defense. That stopped in the
second half of the season. Most notably because of Davis.
WASHINGTON
REDSKINS: Quinton Dunbar, cornerback. There were few, if
any, corners who played at a higher level than Dunbar in 2019. He allowed a
passer rating of just 56.9, which ranked in the top 10 among cornerbacks, per
PFF. And before he landed on injured reserve in December, he moved
past Josh Norman as the cornerback who is most crucial to
the Redskins success. Dunbar should be a key part of Ron Rivera's
defense moving forward.