I could start back from the inception of football. Where the game was a muddled version of rugby, without pads and forward passes. I could explain all of that and relate it to now, but we all know how different football is today.

Now, if you breathe on a quarterback or tap a receiver beyond five yards, it’s a penalty. However, I’m not here to talk about how football has gone soft or that the game is dying. It’s a new age in the NFL. Some people think it’s good. Some think it’s bad. No matter what way you look at it, it’s undoubtedly a new league. Not just the rules have changed. It’s a new collection of talent. There’s a new collection of stars, and I’m here to dive into it.

2014 Draft

To me, this revolution started with the 2014 draft. A first round that featured Odell Beckham Jr., Khalil Mack, Aaron Donald, Zach Martin, and Mike Evans. Second round picks included Derek Carr and Jarvis Landry. The fourth round brought Devonta Freeman. Even the fifth gave us Telvin Smith.

I know what you’re thinking. Every draft has first-round superstars and late-round steals, but 2014 is more than that. Following the disappointing 2013 draft that, to date, only has two Pro-Bowlers selected in the top ten (Ezekiel Ansah and Lane Johnson), and several busts (Luke Joeckel – second pick, Dion Jordan – third pick, Dee Milliner – ninth pick, and EJ Manuel – 16th pick), people began to lose faith in the drafting process as a whole. The 2014 class was looked upon to produce stars by the league, and boy did it ever.

Odell Beckham Jr.

After Tom Brady, there’s no NFL player more recognizable than OBJ. His rookie season was one of the greatest in the history of football. Odell had 91 catches, 1,305 yards, and 12 TDs in just 12 games. His one-handed, three finger, full extension, ball nowhere near him, catch on Sunday Night Football is one of the most iconic plays in NFL history. In that one moment, football produced the games newest, brightest star. Odell was just the first though. He, along with the fantastic 2014 class, laid the foundation for the bright stars that the NFL has today.

2015 and Running Backs

You could argue that the 2015 draft class is one of the more forgettable ones in NFL history, but it re-revolutionized one of the most important aspects of 2018 football, the running back position.

Sit back for a second and understand what the position was at the time.

The 2013 and 2014 drafts featured a whopping zero RBs selected in the first round. The first one taken in 2014 was Bishop Sankey at pick 54, the latest that the first RB was taken in the history of the draft. 2014 also featured a group of forgettable or aging rushers who led the way. Outside of budding star Le’Veon Bell, the top 10 rushers included DeMarco Murray, LeSean McCoy, Marshawn Lynch, Justin Forsett, Arian Foster, Eddie Lacy, Jeremy Hill, Frank Gore, and Lamar Miller. None of which are near the top today. However, in the 2015 draft, two guys had a chance to change that.

Todd Gurley and Melvin Gordon

Gurley and Gordon were always considered elite NFL prospects, but many felt that with the declining state of the position, in terms of draftability, that there was a chance that both fell to the second round.

Out of Georiga, Gurley was considered the better prospect, but he tore his ACL in his final year at college, while Gordon was coming fresh off a 2,587-yard season (second most in NCAA history).

Throughout the draft process, both were able to squash concerns about them being ordinary running backs, and by draft day, it was a matter of when, not if, they would be taken on Day 1.

If you want to argue that these aren’t the two best RBs in the NFL, understand their significance in re-inventing what was becoming a lost position. Had Gurley not had the magical rookie season that he did, it’s a legitimate question whether guys like Ezekiel Elliot, Leonard Fournette, and Saquon Barkley would’ve been selected as high as they were.

The 2016 Top 5

It seems that whenever there’s a draft that has a surplus of talent at the top, one of the first few picks turns into a super-bust when compared to the others. Often the top-five picks of a draft are looked at as a special group of their own. I don’t think in order to have a special draft class you need five Hall of Famers at the very top, but usually, you have a handful of guys who have successful NFL careers.

You could look at 1996 with three pro bowlers, a HOFer (Jonathan Odgen), but then Cedric Jones. Point to 2001 with three pro bowlers, a HOFer (Ladian Tomlinson), but then Gerard Warren. Even the legendary 1989 class had four HOFers in Troy Aikman, Barry Sanders, Derrick Thomas, and Deion Sanders. However, that class also yielded the infamous Tony Mandarich.

That’s what has made the top-five from 2016 so special early on in their careers. Every single one of them has checked off each box that indicates that they’re destined for superstardom.

Carson Wentz was well on his way to an MVP award before tearing his ACL.

Jared Goff is the leader of the NFC’s most explosive offense and has looked like an All-Pro in the process.

Joey Bosa collected a Defensive Rookie of the Year Award and was named to his first Pro-Bowl in his second season.

Jalen Ramsey is, in experts’ minds, a top-two cornerback in the game already.

Ezekiel Elliot, a running back whose path was paved by Todd Gurley and Melvin Gordon, has led the NFL in yards/game in his first two seasons, as well as the young 2018 season.

2017 and 2018 New Talent Wave

The way talent was drafted and played from 2014-16 has allowed teams to get rookies on their teams and on the fields at a rate that has completely changed the landscape of football. Running backs taken in the top 10 like Fournette, Christian McCaffrey, and Saquon Barkley have made tremendous impacts already for winning football.

In these two years combined, eight teams have selected quarterbacks in the first round, a quarter of the league, with seven of them already starting. From that group, Patrick Mahomes already is an MVP candidate, with a supporting cast that has taken over the league. Then you have teams like the Saints who completely changed the identity of their team in one draft, taking both the Offensive and Defensive Rookies of the Year in one draft.

In that paragraph alone 12 teams were referenced, having promising and potentially franchise altering talents. There are guys across the league that I didn’t mention yet that are slowly overtaking others as the best in the league. Players like Michael Thomas, Juju Smith-Schuster, Myles Garrett, Darius Leonard, T.J. Watt, and Xavien Howard, just to name a few.

It’s obvious that there’s a new talent wave happening in the NFL, but that’s always the case. There’s something different about this one, though. Hall of Famers are leaving, second-year players are annually becoming MVP and DPOY candidates. The league is changing, and it’s for the better. This is the NFL Revolution.

Want to discuss or argue, hit me up on Twitter or Instagram @MS_Persources