5 NFL Players That Will Have Huge Seasons in 2020 – 2021
5 NFL players who will become stars next season
A star is someone who can change the game in a such a way where the opposing team has to game plan around them, someone like Aaron Donald, someone who opponents have to focus on. But there are players who are stars that are not Aaron Donald or Patrick Mahomes, To be a star it doesn’t mean you’re a top 10 player in the NFL, it means you are a significantly good player who plays your position well. Below are my top 5 picks for players that will become stars next season.
DeForest Buckner
A crucial part of the best defensive line in football last season for the San Francisco 49ers was DeForest Buckner. Buckner posted 7.5 sacks, 5th among defensive tackles. He was also 6th amongst DT’s for total tackles. He had an impressive season among many other great pass rushers. But now a member of the Indianapolis Colts he will have to show his talents without the skills of other great pass rushers around him. Because the Colts have a solid defensive line, Buckner will look to solidify himself as the best player on that line. A new team creates more room for improvement and the Colts are looking to make a push for a playoff run with the addition of Buckner, along with quarterback Phillip Rivers. After an impressive season like that, I look forward to Buckner getting double digit sacks, around 10, as well as being in the top 5 for tackles among all DT’s.
Terry McLaurin
One of the biggest steals from the 2019 NFL draft, McLaurin showed real skill after being picked up in the second round by the Washington Redskins. Last year McLaurin had 919 yards on just 93 targets. When quarterback Dwayne Haskins and McLaurin connected it was 10 yard gain after 10 yard gain between the two. With a new head coach, Ron Riviera, it will be interesting to see how the offence runs after Carolina’s offence was centered around star running back Christian McCaffery. An impressive stat from Terry McLaurin last season was his 0 fumbles,. Next season it’s McLaurin’s year to prove that he is a star and a legitimate number 1 receiver. With the continued improvement of himself and quarterback Haskins Jr., an entire year at the number one spot Terry McLaurin could put up a 1300 yard plus season being targeted more that 120 times.
Daniel Jones
After facing heavy criticism for taking Jones with the 6th pick, the Giants have shown a lot of faith in him, starting him early in the season against Tampa Bay, where he gave a solid performance running in the game winning touchdown. Jones had problems holding onto the football having 12 fumbles in his rookie season, but that is a fixable error. Jones said in a interview that that was his number one priority this off-season was keeping his hold on the football. With new head coach Joe Judge and offensive coordinator Jason Garrett the Giants offence might be one of the best in the NFL with rookie Andrew Thomas at the left tackle spot. In Dallas Jason Garrett had a top offence in the NFL with quarterback Dak Prescott throwing 30 touchdowns as well as being only behind Jameis Winston for passing yards. Jones will be throwing the ball a lot more and the offence might run smoother than when Pat Shurmur was the head coach. Although Jones had a fumble problem, the rest of his game looked particularly good throwing 24 touchdowns to only 12 interceptions, It will be interesting to see if Jones gets close to the same numbers as Prescott did last season. Jones showed that he was a dual threat in the run game having the 15th most carries but the 7th most rushing yards from a quarterback. Daniel Jones is a promising quarterback, but turnovers are what held him back. If Jones can throw 26-28 touchdowns to 12-16 turnovers he has a chance of making an all pro team.
Deebo Samuel
It seemed on that playoff push to the Super Bowl every big play was a throw to the rookie Deebo Samuel. Samuel showed his strength and grit, breaking tackles and fighting for extra yards, a quality that is rare among young wide outs. After the loss of last year’s number one receiver Emmanuel Sanders the 49ers will look for big production from the second-year receiver. In the regular season Samuel had 6 total touchdowns 3 receiving and 3 rushing. He is a rare player who can do both at a high level, a receiver who can run the football well. He only started 11 games and brought in 802 yards with just 81 targets, and he was 13th amongst all players in YAC drawing comparisons to players like Golden Tate. Just like McLaurin, a season for Samuel as the true number 1 receiver will be greatly beneficial, not only for Samuel but for quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, who many doubt has the ability to throw the ball, but this duo will turn heads next season as a top quarter back wide out duo like Tyreek Hill and Patrick Mahomes or Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams.
Tre’Davious White
A top corner in the NFL, White is already a star, but I believe after this season White will be in the running for defensive player of the year. White had a great statistical season playing at the level of the best at his position. In his third season White picked off 6 passes and tied for the most interceptions to go along with 17 pass defenses. White’s impressive stats didn’t stop there, he also had 58 tackles more than this years defensive player of the year Stephon Gilmore. His stats are very comparable as White had 58 tackles to Gilmore’s 53, both had 6 interceptions but White did something Gilmore didn’t, White had 2 forced fumbles and 1 sack. The only stat White had lower than this years defensive player of the year was his pass defenses. If the Buffalo Bills have a top defense which they are expected to have, I could see a possibility where Tre’Davious White is the best defender in the NFL and wins the award that says that. White has been overlooked but if he puts up 60 tackles 5-8 interceptions and 18-20 pass defenses there will be no denying his skill and talent at his position.
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