2024 Pre-Season Rank #24, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #20, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #28, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #30, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #44.  Peak Period: 2015-19

DeAndre Hopkins joins the Baltimore Ravens this year in his quest for his first Super Bowl.  He was as close as he ever was last year, having been traded to Kansas City during the season, but his overall output was 610 Yards, a far cry from the dynamo he was with Houston from 2017 to 2019, and was considered one of the best Wide receivers of the game. 

He is currently the active leader in Receiving Yards (12,965), but we have him ranked below Mike Evans (the most consistent WR of this era), Davante Adams (who has over 100 Touchdowns and is within 1,100 Yards of him), and Tyreek Hill (whose best years were better than Hopkins' best).

Hopkins still has a lot in the tank, and if used and healthy, he can pad those stats, and let’s be honest:  The Wide Receiver logjam is the tightest one in Canton.

2024 Pre-Season Rank #37, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #36, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #47, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #53, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #55. Peak Period: 2016-20

It looks like it is the end of the road for Ezekiel Elliott, who ended his career where it began, in Dallas.

The 2016 Consensus Rookie of the Year was an incredible performer in his first four seasons, winning the Rushing Title as a rookie and again in his third season.  Zeke was considered one of the top rushers from 2016 to 2019, but his production slowed down to where he was a backup in his final two seasons (2023 in New England and 2024 in Dallas).

11,848 Yards from Scrimmage with 88 Touchdowns is a very good career, but it likely won’t cut it in this era. 

2024 Pre-Season Rank #64, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #84, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #84, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #92, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #124.  Peak Period: 2008-12

For the record, we know that the odds of Joe Flacco making it to the Pro Football Hall of Fame are minimal at best, but what he has accomplished in the last few years has been inspirational.

A Super Bowl Champion with the Baltimore Ravens, Flacco was supplanted by Lamar Jackson and continued to work in the NFL as a solid backup.  In 2023, he had to take over for Cleveland in their stretch drive and led them to the playoffs with a 4-1 record.  He also won the AP Comeback Player of the Year.   Last year, he was a Colt, but he begins this campaign as a starter once again, for Cleveland. 

Regardless of how far he gets in the Hall of Fame process, his longevity and dedication to the game are impressive, and he is a player with over 45,000 Yards. 

2024 Pre-Season Rank #31, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #37, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #37, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #59, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #67.  Peak Period: 2011-15.

A change of scenery can change the perception.  Matthew Stafford was a Lion for 12 years, racking up passing yards but only a few wins.  A Pro Bowl once in Detroit, Stafford was entrenched as a second-tier QB.  The Rams traded for him, and he became a Super Bowl Champion in his first year in Los Angeles, gaining national recognition. Articles were written (and scoffed at) proclaiming him a Hall of Famer, and he isn't as of this writing, but he sure is a hell of a lot closer than he was.  Never forget how vital Super Bowl wins are for the Quarterback position for Canton consideration.   

Stafford is now on the north side of 35 and is entering his fifth year in L.A.   His second Pro Bowl in 2023 will help him, but he needs a lot more despite the Super Bowl win.  His key is in his statistical compilation.  Currently, he is tenth in Passing Yards (59,809), and could pass Dan Marino (61,361), Matt Ryan (62,792), and Philip Rivers (63,440), and a top-five spot all-time is in his grasp.  Say what you want about the previously mentioned three QBs, and that they were better than Stafford (we would agree), but he has a ring.