The Minnesota Vikings’ defensive tackle apparently was not good enough to be considered among the 100 best NFL players heading into 2017.
After finishing the best season of his career in 2016, Minnesota Vikings defensive tackle Linval Joseph was awarded with his very first appearance in the Pro Bowl. During his third year with the Vikings, Joseph set or tied single-season career highs for sacks (4.0), total tackles (77), and fumbles forced (3).
Despite his efforts last season, the defensive tackle was not among those included in the list of the NFL’s Top 100 players for 2017. After being a part of the 2016 version of the list (ranked 76), it seems a bit odd that Joseph was not on this year’s considering he actually had an better season in 2016 than he did in 2015.
However, it was later revealed in a recent video published on the league’s official YouTube channel that Joseph finished as the 104th ranked player for 2017, just short of the top 100.
Included among the players that finished ahead of the Minnesota defensive tackle on this year’s list were New Orleans Saints running back Adrian Peterson (98), Green Bay Packers linebacker Clay Matthews (82), Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith (81), and nine defensive tackles not named Linval Joseph.
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Since this list is voted on by the NFL’s players themselves, the Vikings’ defensive tackle will likely be spending the entire 2017 season proving his peers wrong. So when opposing players see Joseph pounding their quarterback into the ground this year, they only have themselves to thank for angering Minnesota’s talented defensive tackle.