Just as he does every year, CBS Sports senior NFL writer Pete Prisco has released his list of the top 100 players for the upcoming NFL season. The list is led by Los Angeles Rams edge rusher Myles Garrett and bookended by Chicago Bears tight end Colston Loveland.
The former has obviously been on the list for many years in a row, but the latter is a new entrant after putting together an exciting rookie season. With that in mind, we wanted to take a look at Prisco’s list from a specific perspective, grouping players into five categories:
- Who’s new to the list this year?
- Who dropped off the list from last year?
- Which entrants were the biggest risers from year to year?
- Which entrants were the biggest fallers from year to year?
- Which entrants saw their rankings stay mostly stable?
Over a quarter of the list (27 players), for example, consists of new entrants to the top 100. This group is led by Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, who skyrocketed all the way to No. 2 after winning the MVP award last season.
Correspondingly, exactly 27 players dropped off from last year’s list. This group is “led” by former Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill, who ranked No. 30 last year before suffering a devastating injury that ended his 2025 campaign and then being cut earlier this offseason.
Meanwhile, there are 24 players who saw at least a 10-spot jump from where they were in 2025, and 26 who saw at least a 10-spot drop-off. The biggest risers are led by Seattle Seahawks defensive back Devon Witherspoon, who jumped 60 spots from No. 84 to No. 24, while the fallers are “led” by Pittsburgh Steelers edge rusher T.J. Watt, who fell 77 spots from No. 11 to No. 88.
That leaves 23 players whose rankings stayed within a 10-spot radius from year to year. The players in this group range from Las Vegas Raiders (still) edge rusher Maxx Crosby to San Francisco 49ers tackle Trent Williams, and also include Chicago Bears guard Joe Thuney, who was the only player whose ranking (55) stayed exactly the same from one year to the next.
In the space below, you can see who qualified for each list.
