“Quinnen Williams Slides to No. 87 in NFL Top 100 for 2025 Despite Dominating Early Down Pressure Back-to-Back Seasons”

The announcement of the NFL Top 100 list for 2025 sent ripples of conversation and controversy across the football world, as it does every year. While some players celebrated well-deserved jumps and debuts, others found themselves sliding down the rankings, sparking debate among fans, analysts, and fellow players alike. Few descents were as head-scratching or as hotly contested as that of New York Jets defensive tackle Quinnen Williams, who plummeted a staggering 50 spots to land at No. 87. This demotion came despite a season where he continued to be a disruptive force on the interior, a fact that was arguably overshadowed by the Jets’ overall struggles and the inherent human nature of the voting process. To truly understand the baffling nature of Williams’s new ranking, one must look beyond the surface-level statistics and delve into the nuances of his performance, particularly his unparalleled ability to generate pressure on early downs, a metric that speaks to his consistent, game-changing impact.

The very premise of the NFL Top 100, which is a list voted on by the players themselves, is that it reflects the collective respect and fear a player commands from his peers. In that sense, a drop of this magnitude would suggest a dramatic loss of that respect. Yet, a closer examination of Williams’s 2024 season paints a picture of a player who, while perhaps not reaching the historic heights of his All-Pro 2022 campaign, was still a dominant presence. He finished the season with 6 sacks and 54 total pressures, which ranked him seventh among all interior defensive linemen. For most players, this would be considered a career year, or at the very least, a season of high-end production. For Williams, who had set a new standard for himself, it was perceived as a “down year,” a testament to the immense expectations he has created. This is where the narrative begins to diverge from the reality of his on-field value. The players who voted may have been swayed by a few factors: the Jets’ dismal 5-12 record, a nagging hamstring injury that he battled, and the simple fact that his sack total didn’t double digits. However, a player’s worth is not solely determined by the box score, and the true measure of Williams’s influence is in his consistent ability to wreck an offense’s plans before they can even get started.

This brings us to the most compelling argument for his higher placement: his dominance on early downs. According to data, Quinnen Williams generated pressure on 11.2% of his pass rushes on early downs in 2024. This was the fifth-highest rate among all defensive tackles who met the qualifying criteria. What makes this statistic so remarkable is that it wasn’t a one-time anomaly. He achieved a similar, top-five ranking in the same category the previous season. This back-to-back dominance in a critical area of the game is what makes his drop to No. 87 so perplexing. Early-down pressure is a silent killer for opposing offenses. It forces quarterbacks to get rid of the ball faster than they want to, disrupts the timing of play-action passes, and can completely derail a team’s game plan. It’s the kind of pressure that leads to third-and-long situations, creating a domino effect that can be felt throughout the entire defensive unit. Williams is the engine of this disruption. His ability to win his one-on-one matchups on first and second downs is what frees up other players on the Jets’ defense to make plays. He commands double teams, opening up lanes for his teammates. He collapses the pocket from the inside, forcing quarterbacks to scramble into the waiting arms of edge rushers. This is the kind of impact that doesn’t always show up on a stat sheet, but it is the lifeblood of a successful defensive scheme.

The argument for Williams’s lower ranking seems to hinge on a few specific points, particularly his perceived decline in run defense. Pro Football Focus, for example, noted a significant decrease in his run defense grade from a stellar 90.4 in 2023 to a 57.5 in 2024. This is a substantial drop and a valid point of concern. However, it’s worth contextualizing this grade. Williams battled a hamstring injury for much of the season, which undoubtedly affected his explosiveness and ability to anchor against the run. Furthermore, the Jets’ defensive unit as a whole was underperforming, and it’s difficult for any single player, no matter how talented, to maintain elite-level play when the surrounding cast is struggling. Even with the dip, Williams was still considered a “plus-pass rusher from the interior,” and his 54 pressures are a testament to his continued value. The NFL Top 100 is often a list that values sacks and splash plays over consistent, grinding production, and Williams’s 2024 season was more of the latter. His sacks, while respectable, were not in the double digits that he recorded in 2022. It is easy for players, when voting, to be swayed by the highlights they see on television, the sacks and turnovers that are replayed a hundred times over. They may not be as keenly aware of the early-down pressures that force an incomplete pass or a hurried throw.

The narrative surrounding Williams’s slide is a classic example of how a player’s previous success can become a double-edged sword. When he was a First-Team All-Pro in 2022, his ranking soared into the Top 40. He set a new, impossibly high bar for himself. A season that would be celebrated for a lesser player is, for him, considered a disappointment. The Jets’ apathetic 2024 campaign, which saw the midseason firing of head coach Robert Saleh and another playoff-less year, also played a role. A rising tide lifts all boats, and a sinking ship can drag even its best players down with it. It’s harder to get noticed and to earn the respect of your peers when your team is constantly losing and the on-field environment is chaotic. It’s a testament to Williams’s individual talent that he was still a Pro Bowler and managed to make the list at all. Yet, for a player who is still widely regarded as one of the best interior defensive linemen in the game by coaches, scouts, and executives, the No. 87 ranking feels like a profound misunderstanding of his value.

Looking ahead to the 2025 season, the narrative around Williams will be fascinating to watch. He is entering the new season with a new head coach, Aaron Glenn, and a renewed sense of purpose. The perceived snub from his peers could be a powerful motivator. Williams has always been a force of nature, a player with a unique blend of size, speed, and power. He is the kind of player who can single-handedly change the momentum of a game. While his peers may have ranked him lower this time around, the respect for his on-field ability is still palpable. All-Pro offensive tackle Lane Johnson, for example, offered high praise for Williams, acknowledging his “elite” power-speed blend. This is the kind of feedback that truly matters, the kind that comes from a player who has to line up against him. Williams is a generational talent, and even in a “down year,” he was more productive and more disruptive than the vast majority of his positional peers. His slide to No. 87 is not a reflection of a decline in his talent, but rather a reminder of the subjective nature of these rankings and the power of narrative over reality. As the 2025 season unfolds, Quinnen Williams has every opportunity to climb back up the list and remind everyone exactly why he is considered one of the most dominant forces in the NFL. The fire has been lit, and the league should be on notice.