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SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JANUARY 25: Matthew Stafford #9 of the Los Angeles Rams looks on during the second quarter against the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Championship game at Lumen Field on January 25, 2026 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Jane Gershovich/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The NFL’s Top 100 Players of 2026 list has begun dropping, and it’s almost time to see where Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford lands. With Stafford coming off an MVP season, he’s likely to earn his highest placement ever on the list, but where exactly is uncertain.
The Top 100 Players list recognizes accomplishments from the previous year and ranks players ahead of the upcoming season. Stafford has made the NFL’s Top 100 Players rankings eight times in his career. He made the list five times with the Lions, with the remaining three with Los Angeles. Additionally, the veteran QB has made the list every year he has been with the team, except 2023, when he was coming off an injury-shortened campaign.
Ahead of his time in Hollywood, Stafford’s highest placement in the rankings was No. 31, achieved from 2017-18. Following a three-year hiatus, he returned to the NFL’s Top 100 Players with his highest-ever ranking on the 2022 list at No. 27, thanks to his part in leading the Rams to a second Super Bowl title.
Since then, Stafford was No. 42 on the 2024 list and No. 59 for 2025 after helping guide L.A. to back-to-back playoff appearances.
Stafford is guaranteed to top his ranking from his first season with the Rams, as reigning MVPs generally fare well in the rankings. That has been the case throughout the 2020s, especially given that every NFL MVP has finished in the top three.
| NFL Top 100 Players Year | Reigning MVP Winner/Placement in Rankings | Top Player for that Year |
| 2025 | Josh Allen; No. 3 | Saquon Barkley |
| 2024 | Lamar Jackson; No. 2 | Tyreek Hill |
| 2023 | Patrick Mahomes; No. 1 | Patrick Mahomes |
| 2022 | Aaron Rodgers; No. 3 | Tom Brady |
| 2021 | Aaron Rodgers; No. 3 | Patrick Mahomes |
| 2020 | Lamar Jackson; No. 1 | Lamar Jackson |
Twice in the 2020s, a player has won MVP and finished atop the NFL’s Top 100 Players. The lowest an MVP has placed within the last decade was the Falcons’ Matt Ryan at No. 10 in 2017. Again, Stafford is assured of his highest ranking ever, one that is potentially in the top three, yet he is unlikely to top this year’s list, all thanks to his new teammate acquired this offseason.
Myles Garrett is almost a certainty to top the rankings, given that he is coming off a season where he set the NFL single-season sack record. Either way, the Rams will be well represented on the list this year and could have two players in the top five for the first time since 2019, when Aaron Donald was the top player and Todd Gurley came in at No. 5.
No matter where Stafford is placed on the NFL’s Top 100 Players of 2026, he certainly deserves all the continued accolades coming his way. The Rams will need every bit of his MVP form this upcoming season as he attempts to get his team back to the Super Bowl.
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