The latest edition of theScore's Eras project, which celebrates greatness in every major sport, ranks and discusses the best 25 NFL players of the past 25 seasons.
Stats and achievements compiled before the 25-year period - 1999-2023 - don't count for this exercise. For example, Ray Lewis was evaluated as an eight-time (not a 10-time) All-Pro.
Monday: Introductory essay and players 21-25
Tuesday: Players 16-20
Era teams: Pittsburgh Steelers 2003-14
Signature performance: While Polamalu delivered scores of highlight-reel plays, the performance that stands out most is when he sent the Steelers to Super Bowl XLIII with a legendary AFC Championship Game.
Ahead by two points with four minutes remaining, the Steelers' defense needed to make a play to finish off the archrival Ravens. Like many times before, Polamalu stepped up. Intercepting Joe Flacco, he weaved downfield to find the end zone for a game-clinching pick-6.
As CBS' Jim Nantz remarked, Pittsburgh went to Super Bowl No. 43 thanks to another clutch play from No. 43.
Why he's here: Some great safeties were ball hawks or heavy hitters, but Polamalu's contributions don't fit into one box. He could do it all.
Polamalu was an improviser who operated with the freedom to roam. He could be anywhere at any given moment: the back of the secondary, the flat, the middle of the field, or even the line of scrimmage. Quarterbacks had to scramble before the snap to locate and account for him.
The face of the Steelers' feared 2000s defenses, Polamalu won two Super Bowls and earned Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2010. He snared 32 career interceptions, with 17 coming from 2008-10. He also forced 14 fumbles and tallied 56 tackles for loss, 12 sacks, and five defensive touchdowns.
Highlights captured the essence of Polamalu's ability. There were the terrific one-handed interceptions against the Chargers in 2008 and Titans in the 2009 season opener. There was the diving leap over the line of scrimmage to foil a QB sneak against the Titans in 2010. With his telepathic instincts and knack for pulling out big plays, Polamalu was always in position to deliver a knockout blow.
While other safeties shined in specific areas, Polamalu was a jack-of-all-trades unicorn whose skill set may never be replicated. - Daniel Valente
Era teams: Kansas City Chiefs 1999-2008, Atlanta Falcons 2009-13
Signature performance: Steadiness was Gonzalez's hallmark, but he also broke open games, like when his seven catches for 140 yards and three touchdowns powered a 48-30 rout of the Dolphins in 2002.
The 8-8 Chiefs ranked first in scoring and last in defensive yardage that season. The explosiveness of one Kansas City unit and frailty of the other produced shootouts that Gonzalez shone in.
Why he's here: Gonzalez helped create a player archetype: the catch-first tight end. When he debuted in 1997, no TE had amassed the combined output of 700 career receptions (Gonzalez finished with 1,325), 8,000 receiving yards (he had 15,127), or 55 touchdowns (he had 111). He smashed milestones and debunked preconceptions about the position's limits.
Because he produced with metronomic consistency, Gonzalez earned 14 Pro Bowl invitations (one shy of Tom Brady's record) in our 25-year window. Only Jerry Rice had more 800-yard seasons than Gonzalez's 13. A college basketball forward at Cal, he used those skills to box out or outleap defenders all over the field and popularized the crossbar dunk in the NFL.
Gonzalez was extremely durable, missing just two of 272 games due to injury, and he was protective of the pigskin, fumbling once between his fourth and 17th seasons. Chiefs QB Trent Green managed the league's nastiest offense for part of the 2000s by handing the ball to Priest Holmes and firing it high above the coverage for Gonzalez to grab.
Many of Gonzalez's teams fielded weak defenses. He only reached six postseasons, hauled in four playoff TDs, and won a lone round with Matt Ryan's Falcons. Every other element of his resume sparkles. - Nick Faris
Era teams: Oakland Raiders 1999-2005, 2013-15; Green Bay Packers 2006-12
Signature performance: Woodson was named Defensive Player of the Year in 2009, and his main game during that spectacular season came in a smackdown of the Lions on Thanksgiving. He became the first NFL player to record two interceptions, a sack, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery in the same game.
Woodson added seven tackles and four pass breakups to go along with a 38-yard pick-6 and helped the Packers lock down Calvin Johnson, limiting the Hall of Fame receiver to two catches for 10 yards on 12 targets.
At 33 years old, Woodson finished 2009 with a league-best nine interceptions and three pick-6s.
Why he's here: Woodson's outstanding instincts and rare longevity - he appeared in more than 250 games - made him one of the NFL's most unique defensive backs.
Agile and versatile, he played his first 14 seasons as a cornerback before moving primarily to safety for four years to end his career. He earned first-team All-Pro nods in three different decades.
The former Michigan stud and Heisman Trophy winner entered the league as the No. 4 pick in 1998. Even though his Defensive Rookie of the Year season doesn't count in this exercise, his resume is as impressive as it gets. Woodson is the Raiders' all-time leader in pass breakups (84) and the Packers' leader in defensive TDs (10).
Woodson's 65 career interceptions are tied for fifth on the all-time leaderboard. His 11 pick-6s rank second, and he owns the record for most consecutive seasons with an interception-return touchdown (six). A Super Bowl champion and member of the 2000s All-Decade team, Woodson is one of just two players with at least 50 interceptions and 20 sacks. - Caio Miari
Era teams: San Diego Chargers 2001-05, New Orleans Saints 2006-20
Signature performance: The Saints couldn't have picked a better person or quarterback to lead the franchise to its only Super Bowl victory. Brees, who signed with New Orleans a year after Hurricane Katrina caused catastrophic damage to the region, brought fans along for the ride of a lifetime with his 2009 championship campaign.
The signal-caller with the dynamite arm gave them a legitimate reason to believe by storming to a 13-0 start. The events of Nov. 30, 2009, captured Brees' magic: He outclassed the legendary Tom Brady in a 38-17 blowout win. His final line read 371 yards, five touchdowns, no interceptions, and a perfect 158.3 passer rating.
Brees saved his best performances for last, as he was nearly flawless in the postseason. He completed just over 70% of his passes for eight touchdowns and didn't throw a single interception. At the end of it all, Brees lifted the Lombardi Trophy and made New Orleans a city of champions.
Why he's here: Many people had serious doubts about Brees' long-term career prospects after his tenure in San Diego ended with a torn labrum and rotator cuff in the 2005 season finale. Few would have believed he'd return from those injuries to become a Super Bowl MVP, the face of a new franchise, and, at one point, the all-time passing yards leader.
His story's one of perseverance - something he showed multiple times in the NFL.
Brees repaid the Saints for taking a chance on him as a free agent. His rocket arm powered him to a record five 5,000-plus yard seasons and a career-high 5,476 yards in 2011, the second most in NFL history. After his injury, Brees led the league in passing yards in seven seasons and in passing touchdowns on four occasions.
At his peak, Brees fired unstoppable lasers past all levels of the defense. He changed his game by necessity late in his career. When his arm finally showed the effects of wear and tear, Brees' football IQ helped him transform into a game-manager who elected to inflict death by a thousand cuts. The Saints went 12-4 in his final season and even won a playoff game.
The numbers don't fully capture the significance of Brees' journey. He built his reputation as a lethal, record-setting passer on the ruins of all the obstacles that were supposed to keep him down. - Valente
Era teams: Minnesota Vikings 2007-16; New Orleans Saints, Arizona Cardinals 2017; Washington 2018-19; Detroit Lions 2020; Tennessee Titans, Seattle Seahawks 2021
Signature performance: There's no other choice than Peterson's epic 2012 season, when he rushed for 2,097 yards - eight short of Eric Dickerson's NFL record.
Forget Dickerson and the record, though. Peterson's season for the ages might have been the greatest rushing performance of all time because he did it less than a year after tearing his ACL.
Peterson was injured in December 2011 and returned to the starting lineup for Week 1 of the 2012 season. He rushed for under 100 yards in five of his first six games. From there, Peterson eclipsed triple digits in nine of the final 10 games, cleared 200 yards twice in December, and added 199 yards in the regular-season finale.
The star back led a Vikings team quarterbacked by Christian Ponder to 10 wins and a playoff appearance. His efforts were recognized with the league MVP award. Peterson remains the last non-QB to win that trophy.
Why he's here: Peterson became the league's top rusher at breakneck speed and followed that up with an historically great peak. He delivered at a generational level from the moment he stepped into the NFL as the No. 7 pick in 2007.
It took Peterson just five career games to enjoy his first 200-yard performance. He put up 224 yards and three touchdowns on the ground against the Bears. Three weeks later, he rushed for a single-game record 296 yards and tacked on three more scores as the Vikings trounced the Chargers.
Peterson didn't let up there. He led the league in rushing in 2008 with 1,760 yards and repeated the feat in 2012 (2,097) and 2015 (1,485). He ranked second in the era in career rushing yards (14,918), TDs (120), and first downs (717) as the centerpiece of Minnesota offenses that rarely passed the ball well.
In the twilight of his career, Peterson evolved into a mercenary who still did damage. He and Frank Gore were the only running backs in the era to record a 1,000-yard season after turning 33. Peterson also produced 604 yards in 2020 at the age of 35, by which time most rushers are long retired.
From beginning to end, Peterson never failed to accomplish the unprecedented or the unthinkable. - Valente
Follow the rollout all week long. Thursday: Nos. 6-10.
Nick Faris, Caio Miari, and Daniel Valente cover the NFL at theScore.
