Father Time is undefeated… Everyone knows that. That’s why it’s so important for NFL players to make the most of their prime years…
Because in a moment’s notice, they can easily go from dominant superstar to being “just another guy”…
Much like these 10 players, who were once NFL superstars, but not anymore!
Khalil Mack
From 2015 to 2020, Mack was on the Mount Rushmore of ACTIVE NFL Defensive players. Aaron Donald has always been in his own class, but Mack was always in the discussion for being the second, third or fourth-best defensive player in the NFL.
But those days are long gone.
Since a monster 2018 season with the Chicago Bears, in which he recorded 12.5 sacks and a career-high six forced fumbles, Mack has yet to record double-digit sacks in a single season.
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In his first year with the Los Angeles Chargers, Mack had just eight sacks and two forced fumbles. And per Pro Football Reference, he had just 18 QB pressures in 2022 despite playing all 17 games.
From 2014 to 2020, Pro Football Focus had Mack graded in the mid-80s or higher. In 2021, his grade was 73.0. And in 2022? His grade was 71.1. That put Mack in PFF’s “above average” category after seven straight years of being graded in the “high quality” and “elite” categories.
Mack is still a very good complement to superstar Joey Bosa. But it’s hard to envision him regaining a superstar-like form at this phase of his career. Not to mention, he’s entering his age-32 season, which is pretty old for an edge rusher.
Michael Thomas
2016 to 2019 Michael Thomas was something else. What an absolute find by the New Orleans Saints in the second round — 47th overall – back in 2016.
Over that four-year span, Thomas recorded four straight seasons of 90-plus catches and over 1,000 receiving yards. He reached the 100-catch mark in 2017, 2018 and 2019.
His 2019 season was MVP-caliber stuff. Thomas had 149 receptions — a single-season record to this day — along with 1,725 yards and nine touchdowns. He was named the Offensive Player of the Year and helped New Orleans to a third straight NFC South division crown.
But those darn injuries have derailed his Hall of Fame trajectory. An ankle injury kept him out for all but seven games in 2020. The same ankle injury kept him sidelined for the entirety of 2021.
Thomas had three touchdowns through the Saints’ first three games in 2022. But then a toe injury kept him out for the final 14 games of the season, and New Orleans’ offense wasn’t the same without him.
The Saints signed Derek Carr as their new franchise QB this offseason. Then they brought back Thomas on a restructured deal, despite speculation he would be cut in a cap-saving move. They’re betting on him getting healthy and being a difference-maker one last time, but we’re not buying it.
Anyone who barely plays in three straight years due to injuries is unlikely to ever be a star again. Thomas is also 30 years of age, which is borderline ancient for a receiver in today’s NFL.
Even if Thomas is healthy, the Saints have Chris Olave, Alvin Kamara, Jamaal Williams and Juwan Johnson. There’s only one football to pass around, and it’s hard to see Thomas being the sole focus of the passing game ever again.
Maybe he’ll stay healthy and be semi-productive in 2023. But Thomas’ short-lived run as a superstar wide receiver is over.
Adam Thielen
Thielen’s storybook run with the Minnesota Vikings ended this offseason, with the 2022 NFC North division champs deciding to release him in a cap-saving move.
The Detroit Lakes, Minnesota native signed with his hometown team as an undrafted free agent in 2014. Thielen broke out in 2016 with 69 catches for 967 yards and five touchdowns.
He followed it up with two straight seasons of 90-plus catches and over 1,200 yards – earning back-to-back Pro Bowl nods. But Thielen, quite frankly, hasn’t been the same since 2018.
He missed six games in 2019. In 2020, he caught 74 passes for 925 yards and 14 touchdowns in 15 contests. Just when it looked liked he was preparing to re-enter superstar territory, Thielen again was hit by regression.
In 2021 and 2022, Thielen finished with 726 and 716 receiving yards, respectively. The latter number is especially noteworthy since he played all 17 games.
Thielen is entering his age-33 season and has a bit of a concerning injury history. Oh, and he’s joining a Carolina Panthers offense that has a fraction of the star power that the Vikings have.
Thielen is Carolina’s top receiver on the depth chart. And hate on Kirk Cousins all you want, but he relentlessly targeted Thielen—who now has to find a way to bounce back with a rookie quarterback throwing him the ball, and no Justin Jefferson around to command the opposing defense’s attention.
Thielen hasn’t been a star for a few years now, and the lack of talent around him all but confirms that he won’t be a star again.
Calais Campbell
Full credit to Campbell for still being a serviceable player in his mid-30s at a physically-demanding position. It truly is admirable stuff.
But let’s be real, he hasn’t been a superstar-level player for a while now. And there’s no reason to think he’ll suddenly find the Fountain of Youth again in 2023.
Campbell, who signed a one-year deal with the Atlanta Falcons in free agency, has been on a limited snap count over the last three years. He played 64 and 62 percent of the Baltimore Ravens’ defensive snaps in 2021 and 2022, respectively.
A six-time Pro Bowler, Campbell has been held to under seven sacks in each of the last four years. His PFF grade has been in the 70s in two of the last three years, too.
Is Campbell still good? Yes. But he isn’t a full-time starter anymore, and he hasn’t been a true game-wrecking pass-rusher since 2020. The man can still play, but by no means is he still a superstar.
Jadeveon Clowney
Clowney was drafted first overall by the Houston Texans in 2014. The South Carolina star was viewed as a generational talent, but he never quite lived up to that hype.
Make no mistake, Clowney was still great for a period of time. He earned three straight Pro Bowl nods from 2016 to 2018 – showing signs of super-stardom by recording 9.5 sacks in 2017 and nine the following year.
But from 2019 to 2022? Clowney had 14 TOTAL sacks – with nine of those coming in 2021 as a member of the Cleveland Browns. Don’t forget he had zero altogether in eight games for the Tennessee Titans in 2020.
2019 also marks the last year in which PFF graded Clowney in the 80s. He’s been in the 70s ever since — no higher than the 75.8 grade he got in 2022. Again, that means he’s merely above average.
Clowney had just two sacks in his final season with the Browns. And who can forget his unnecessary rant on Myles Garrett?
There’s a reason Clowney is a journeyman. A true superstar doesn’t switch teams as often as he does.
Melvin Gordon
On one hand, Gordon lost a lot of money by holding out on the Chargers in 2019 and signing a cheap two-year deal with the Denver Broncos. On the other hand, he won a Super Bowl 57 ring with the Kansas City Chiefs last season — so, I guess it kinda worked out for him in the end?
Regardless, Gordon’s days as a star running back are long gone. The two-time Pro Bowler had a nice two-year run with Denver in which he surpassed 900 rushing yards both seasons while compiling 17 rushing touchdowns.
But there’s a reason he wound up on the Chiefs’ Super Bowl roster. The Broncos couldn’t wait to get rid of Gordon after five FUMBLES in just 10 games in 2022. In his final year with Denver, Gordon averaged 3.5 yards per carry and 31.8 yards per game.
And now he’s entering his age-30 season, a time where running backs almost always hit a wall and decline quickly. He might make a team’s practice squad in 2023, but he’s no longer a star… Heck, he’s barely even a backup-caliber running back at this point in his career.
Marcus Peters
The Ravens got great value out of Peters in the 2019 trade with the Los Angeles Rams. Peters helped Baltimore to three playoff appearances, earning Pro Bowl and All-Pro Nods in the 2019 season.
Peters and Marlon Humphrey formed one of football’s best cornerback duos. The latter was the shutdown man, while Peters was the ball-hawk. It all worked out beautifully.
But Peters unfortunately missed all of 2021 after suffering an ACL tear just days before Week 1. It’s a tough injury for anyone to come back from, not to mention Peters was entering his age-29 season – and he’s a player who relies greatly on his speed.
According to Pro Football Reference, Peters allowed a whopping 711 receiving yards and seven touchdowns in coverage….even though he missed four games. Opposing QBs had a passer rating of 113.7 when targeting him.
PFF graded him at 64.4 and 67.7 in 2020 and 2022, respectively. Clearly, Peters isn’t an All-Pro corner anymore. His injury history and age are especially concerning factors as he heads into the 2023 campaign.
Keenan Allen
The longtime Chargers’ star has more than surpassed expectations as a third-round pick — 76th overall — in the 2013 draft. Allen has made a strong case for Canton, with 796 receptions for 9,287 yards and 52 touchdowns.
But there’s a reason many thought the Bolts would release Allen this offseason. He’s injury-prone, now on the wrong side of 30 and no longer the team’s number one wideout. That notion instead belongs to Mike Williams.
Allen has missed 10 games over the last three years. And with his age-31 season coming up, it’s simply hard to bet on him getting back to his full-on explosiveness that we saw for nearly a decade. And with Williams taking over as the new go-to receiver for Justin Herbert, it’s just not fair to expect Allen to perform like a superstar anymore.
Anthony Barr
Once a key cog on the Vikings defense, Barr earned four straight Pro Bowl nods from 2015 to 2018.
But Barr, of course, hasn’t been a Pro Bowler since 2018. His PFF grades over the last four years are 60.6, 47.5, 62.9 and 59.7.
Even a one-year stop with the Dallas Cowboys in 2022 was not enough to revive Barr’s career.
There’s a reason the Cowboys had him play less than two-thirds of the defensive snaps last season. He’s borderline starting-caliber at this point.
Barr was once one of football’s best linebackers, but his prime ended quickly. He hasn’t been a star since the 2018 season, and the PFF numbers reflect that. Teams should simply view him as a serviceable depth piece and nothing more.
Allen Robinson
It was fair to chalk down Robinson’s 2021 season with the Chicago Bears as a write-off. He had exceeded 700 yards in each of his previous five healthy seasons, including 1,000-yard campaigns in 2015, 2019 and 2020.
In 12 games for the Bears in 2021, Robinson had 38 catches for 410 yards and a touchdown. When he signed with the defending Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams last year, it just felt like a bounce-back season for A-Rob was inevitable.
But, nope! Robinson was hardly a factor for the Rams — though, to be fair, nothing went right for them in 2022. In 10 games, Robinson had 33 catches for 339 yards and three touchdowns.
His average of 33.9 receiving yards per game marked the lowest of Robinson’s career – excluding 2017 in which he suffered a season-ending ACL tear.
Now about to enter his age-30 season, it looks like Robinson’s time as a superstar wideout is done — and his days in the league may be numbered as well.
Which other active NFL players are no longer superstars?
