Sportsnaut
Who is the most overrated player in the NFL? While new stars ascend in the National Football League every year, a reputation can carry a veteran player for a lot longer. Whether it’s fans holding a former All-Pro in high regard or a Pro Bowl player who isn’t quite as good as they’re built up to be, the reputation for some players just doesn’t match their production.
Let’s dive into our list of the most overrated NFL players right now.
While fans might not view Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford as one of the most overrated NFL players in 2025, he makes the list because of what people inside the league believe. When Mike Sando of The Athletic polled talent evaluators around the NFL, they put Stafford in the same tier (Tier 1) as Patrick Mahomes, Joe Burrow, Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen.
Stafford ended last season with the fourth-worst On-Target Rate (74.3 percent) among quarterbacks with 15-plus starts. He also had the second-worst QB rating (50.8) when pressured and was just 15th in QB rating (95.8) on downfield (20-plus yard) throws and was 15th at his position in Adjusted EPA per Play (0.126). Now entering his age-37 season and already struggling to stay healthy, even top-10 quarterback play feels like a stretch.
Related: NFL QB Rankings 2025
Running the football effectively can’t be easy when your starting quarterback is completing under 50 percent of his passes. With that said, it’s not as if Shane Steichen and the Indianapolis Colts offensive line did all they could to help Jonathan Taylor. After all, Indianapolis finished last season ranked fourth in ESPN Run Block Win Rate (74 percent) and this team is just a year removed from fill-in Zack Moss averaging 4.3 yards per carry with 6 touchdowns and 794 rushing yards on 183 attempts.
Related: Best NFL Running Backs 2025
On the surface, Taylor’s 4.7 yards-per-carry average, 11 rushing touchdowns, and 1,431 rushing yards in 14 games look outstanding. However, the veteran running back also ranked 24th in true yards per carry (4.3), 16th in evaded tackles (54), 43rd in juke rate (16.8 percent), and he had the fourth-lowest yards after contact per attempt (1.9) among running backs with 220-plus carries. On top of all that, he’s largely become a non-factor as a receiving threat (12 yards per game) in the last two years.
Some of this might be a bit of a projection for how things are about to go in 2025 for DK Metcalf with the Pittsburgh Steelers. After all, 41-year-old quarterback Aaron Rodgers really doesn’t like No. 1 receivers who tend to operate on their own and don’t run designed, crisp routes. It also won’t help that Metcalf is Rodgers is as inconsistent throwing deep as he was in 2024 (39.7 percent completion rate).
Related: Best NFL Wide Receivers 2025
Metcalf also isn’t exactly coming off a banner...
