2024 Pre-Season Rank #73, Pre-Season #2023 Pre-Season Rank: #50, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #61, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #114.  Peak Period: 2017-18/2020-23

After rocketing up this list on the strength of a monstrous 2020, where he was third in Defensive Player of the Year voting, Xavien Howard continued to have good years, but in 2023, foot issues hampered his speed. After a sub-par season by his prior standards, Miami released him, and after a year not playing, the Indianapolis Colts signed Howard.  If he can reclaim most of his speed, Howard could still contribute.  Let's see what happens!

2024 Pre-Season Rank #85, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #68, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #77, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #117.  Peak Period: 2018-22

As good as Dalvin Cook was with the Vikings, the elite Running Back is giving way to the elite Wide Receiver, and the Vikings released him after a four-year run of Pro Bowls and over 5,000 Yards.  He joined the New York Jets with high hopes, but he was disappointed with only 214 Yards.  He lasted two Games with the Dallas Cowboys in 2024 and is currently searching for a new home.  Based on the last two years, he won’t find one, and his Hall of Fame chances rest on four potent seasons in Minnesota, and sadly, it won’t come close.

2024 Pre-Season Rank #39, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #69, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #98, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #117.  Peak Period: 2020-24.

What Josh Allen accomplished last season was incredible. 

The Buffalo Bills entered the year battered and bruised, and Allen took the team on his back and brought them to the AFC Championship game, where they fell 32-29 to the Kansas City Chiefs.  Allen won the 2024 MVP, having thrown 3,731 Yards with a 28-6 TD-INT ratio, with 531 Rushing Yards and 12 TDs. 

The MVP was not unexpected for Allen, who has been one of the game’s top dual-threat QBs since 2020, and there is no reason to think he can’t do it again.  The Hall looks for more from a QB, and that comes with a Super Bowl, or at the very least, a Super Bowl appearance.  Allen and the Bills are capable of that, and when that happens, the Hall will come calling.

2024 Pre-Season Rank #99, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #82, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #82, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #115.  Peak Period: 2019-21/23-24

The first three seasons of Kyler Murray’s career were pure excitement.  He won the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2019 and was a Pro Bowl Selection in the next two.  A dual-threat Quarterback, Murray was must-watch television, but 2022 and 2023 saw Murray deal with multiple injuries and a perceived bad attitude.  2024 was the crossroads year, but while healthy, his 3,851 Yards and 21 TDs were not quite the rocket back to where he was.

Again this season, it feels like Murray has a lot to prove to pundits, fans, and himself.  

2024 Pre-Season Rank #43, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #78, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #86, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #113, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #147.  Peak Period: 2020-24.

Baker is already a seven-time Pro Bowl Selection (with a six-year streak_ and a two-time First Team All-Pro.  He is a tackling machine who led the NFL in Solo Tackles in 2019. Although his AV/G is lower than the MPA, his stature among his peers is huge.

The bar for Safeties is high, and Baker (and his peers) have a lot of work to do to gain serious Hall of Fame consideration, but if the NFL were to award All-Half-Decade Awards, Baker would be one.  Still under 30, Baker is the prime spot for a coveted All-Decade spot, and when that happens, you are always in consideration.

2024 Pre-Season Rank #95, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #90, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #86, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #94, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #116.  Peak Period: 2018-22

After three seasons, Janal Adams forced his way out of the New York Jets, and the Seattle Seahawks gave up many high picks to get him. After his third straight Pro Bowl season, Adams was not what Seattle had hoped for, and due to injury, he only played 15 Games over the last three years.

He joins Las Vegas this year, hoping to return to the player who set the single-season record for Sacks for a Defensive Back, 9.5.

2024 Pre-Season Rank #97, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #98, 2022 Pre-Season Rank: #106, 2021 Pre-Season Rank: #125, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #138.  Peak Period 2017-21

The 2017 Defensive Rookie of the Year was a Pro Bowl Selection four times in his first five seasons, but his last three years have been riddled with injury, and Lattimore’s momentum has been derailed.  He has a lot more work to do in the next few seasons to get back on track, but he will now do so as a Washington Commander.  Lattimore could very well be at the crossroads.

2024 Pre-Season Rank #58, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #74, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #76, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #93, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #128.  Peak Period: 2018-22

DeForest Buckner played his first four seasons with San Francisco. In his first year in Indianapolis (2020), he set a personal best of 16 in Approximate Value and earned his inaugural First Team All-Pro. Throw in a 2021 and 2023 Pro Bowl, and you have a player who is trending well, but still has a lot to do to gain serious Hall of Fame traction.

2024 Pre-Season Rank #63, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #52, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #60, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #56, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #57.  Peak Period: 2015-19.

Missing the entire 2021 Season with a torn ACL, Marcus Peters had a decent 2022 in Baltimore, but it was in the shadow of his past glory.  A three-time leader in Interception Return Yards and former Defensive Rookie of the Year, Peters flamed out badly in Las Vegas and is not the player he used to be, and for the second autumn in a row, is looking for work.  It was a quick fall for a player who was once in the Top Cornerback in the NFL conversation.

2024 Pre-Season Rank #34, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #41, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #55, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #55, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #54.  Peak Period 2016-20

It is usually easy to rank former Defensive Players of the Year, but as we are ten years deep into the career of Stephon Gilmore, we now know what we have. After a decent run in Buffalo, Gilmore had an out-of-nowhere DPOY year in 2019 (though it did follow a good 2018), though he has not matched that year since.

Since then, Gilmore has been a hired gun, playing one year each in Carolina, Indianapolis, and Dallas, and after a one-year deal with Minnesota, he is looking for work in 2025.  His veteran presence still makes him valuable, but bouncing between teams could impact his perception.

2024 Pre-Season Rank #2023 Pre-Season Rank: #53, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #63, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #83, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #94. Peak Period: 2012-16

We argued that Lavonte David was one of the most underrated players of the 2010s, and perhaps in all football history.  Let's say that is true, as underrated players (in their time) have made the Hall, but it is challenging for the career Buccaneer to crack the plane that will give him Canton consideration.   It doesn’t help that. David doesn’t have the sexy stats or even the Pro Bowls (he has only made one)

Hopefully, the Bucs will honor him in some capacity when his career concludes.

2024 Pre-Season Rank #87, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #111, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #132, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #131, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #133.  Peak Period: 2017-19/2022-23

DeMarcus Lawrence has had two two-year Pro Bowl runs in his career with the Dallas Cowboys, and the versatile Defensive End stays under the national radar despite playing for America’s Team.  Lawrence would have to elevate his play to make a Hall of Fame run, or in a lesser field, the Cowboys Ring of Honor.   He will have to have a "second life" in Seattle for any serious Hall of Fame run.

2024 Pre-Season Rank #94, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #93, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #80, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #91, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #99.

Patterson is here primarily because he was the All-Decade selection as a Returner.  Sadly, more prominent All-Decade returners failed to make it as even a Semi-Finalist.  The four-time First Team All-Pro is a free agent, and it looks like his resume has been completed.  Since we have seen expert returners like Billy "White Shoes" Johnson fail to make it as a Finalist, what chance will Patterson have?

2024 Pre-Season Rank #58, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #70, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #101, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #125, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #125.  Peak Period: 2017-21

The last three seasons of Darius Slay’s career in Detroit were phenomenal (2017-19), but they came after three average years and a rookie year in which he only played four Games. Slay joined the Philadelphia Eagles in 2020, where he looked for a shot at the Super Bowl, and last year, “Big Play” Slay got it in Philadelphia’s triumphant win over the Kansas City Chiefs.  With the Eagles, Slay had another three-year streak of Pro Bowls  (2021-23) and proved he still belonged in the upper echelon of Cornerbacks.

Slay enters 2025 with his third team, the Pittsburgh Steelers, and is the active leader in Passes Defended (160, 7th All-Time), and should have some good football left in him to make that Hall of Fame push.

2024 Pre-Season Rank #20, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #23, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #35, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #54, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #73.

The Rams believed that Jalen Ramsey was the best Cornerback in the NFL, and they went all in to get him during the 2019 season when he was disgruntled in Jacksonville.  Ramsey was the top CB in 2020, adding a second First Team All-Pro, a fourth Pro Bowl, and posting a career-high in Approximate Value (15).  Currently, over the AV/G, Ramsey added another Pro Bowl, First Team All-Pro, and, more importantly, a Super Bowl in 2021, proving the Rams right.  Ramsey claimed a sixth Pro Bowl in 2022 and a seventh with his third team in Miami, which was impressive considering he only played ten games in 2023.

The knock on Ramsey is that he is now on his fourth team, the Pittsburgh Steelers, but he is still excellent, and he begins this year supplanting the now-retired Patrick Peterson as the highest-ranked Cornerback on the Notinhallloffame Active Football Monitor.

2024 Pre-Season Rank #28, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #33, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #38, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #75, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #87.  Peak Period: 2017-21

In the first six seasons of Cameron Heyward's career, there was no mention of him ever sniffing the Hall of Fame. The next six years would change everything, as Heyward’s production increased, and he strung together a six-year Pro Bowl streak (2017-22) that included three First Team All-Pros.  Heyward was not just a consummate disruptor; he was an all-around role model who won the 2023 Walter Payton Man of the Year Award.

Last season at the age of 35, Heyward added his seventh Pro Bowl, but because his role is not purely as a pass-rusher, his 88.5 Sacks and 133 Tackles for Loss do not jump off the page, though, of course, we suspect (or hope), the Hall of Fame voters know this.

2024 Pre-Season Rank #56, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #63, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #99, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #108, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #140.  Peak Period 2019-23.

Minkah Fitzpatrick was traded back to the team that dealt him to Pittsburgh, the Miami Dolphins, and since he debuted in 2018, he has been one of the top Safeties in Football. 

Fitzpatrick went to four Pro Bowls and earned three First Team All-Pros as a Steeler, and earned the reputation of having one of the highest football IQs.  Able to shift effortlessly in any Defensive Back position, Fitzpatrick is still in his prime.  If he remains healthy and replicates what he did the last five years, Canton should come calling, even though Safeties have a hard time gaining induction.

2024 Pre-Season Rank #57, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #87, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #102 2021 Pre-Season Rank #102, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #90.  Peak Period: 2018-19/2022-24

We said a couple of years ago that “Hunter is a pick for a lot of people to have a breakout defensive campaign, and he is coming off of back-to-back Pro Bowl and 14.5 Sack years”.  That didn’t happen, as he missed the entire 2020 season with a neck injury and was not great in 2021.  Healthy in 2022, Hunter responded with two straight Pro Bowl years and is coming off his highest Sack number (16) and a league-leading 23 Tackles for Loss.

After eight years in Minnesota, Hunter is now in his second year as a Houston Texan, and if he can build off of his last two years, Hunter could quietly make a Hall of Fame run.

2024 Pre-Season Rank #11: 2023 Pre-Season Rank #15, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #24, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #68, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #102.  Peak Period: 2019-23.

Watching T.J. Watt rocket through this rank reminds us of how his older brother, J.J., did the same thing.

A Pittsburgh Steeler for all of his eight seasons, Watt has been the game’s top pass-rusher through most of it, winning three Sack Titles (2020, 2021 & 2023), two Tackles For Loss Titles (2020 & 2021), and was the Defensive Player of the Year in 2021.  Watt has been so dominant that he was the runner-up for the DPOY twice (in 2020 & 2023), third in 2019, and fourth last year.  He also led the NFL in Forced Fumbles twice (2019 & 2024) and last season joined the 100-Sack club.

Watt is Canton-bound, and the only sad thing is that his bust can’t be beside J.J..

2024 Pe-Season Rank #17, 2023 Pre-Season Rank #34, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #53, 2021 Pre-Season Rank #99, 2020 Pre-Season Rank #144.  Peak Period: 2020-24

What would the Cleveland Browns be without Myles Garrett over the last seven years?

In the off-season, Garrett asked for a trade, frustrated by the constant turmoil and failure of the organization to build around him, but he signed a contract extension with a fat contract to stay, and you can’t blame Cleveland for breaking the bank to keep him.

Garrett has been a First Team All-Pro four of the last five seasons, and the Defensive End won the 2023 Defensive Player of the Year, while finishing third last season.  Breaking 100 Sacks last year, Garrett always seems to have a nose for wherever the ball is.  He is also on a seven-year streak of at least 10 Sacks and 18 Tackles for Loss.

Garrett’s elite period rivals many Hall of Fame Defensive Ends, and he is only 30.