USC Football: 8 Trojans ranked in MMQB’s Top 400 players in NFL

Eight former USC Football stars rank among the best 400 players in the NFL today, as sorted by the MMQB, including four in the Top 100.

USC Football fans don’t need reminding of the Trojans NFL Factory status, but the MMQB provided another feather to add to the cap with the release of their ranking of the 400 best players in pro football.

The MMQB’s ranking was dropped on Tuesday, with USC landing eight representatives in the NFL’s elite, including Top 50 players like Tyron Smith and Jurrell Casey. Of the eight Trojans on the list, all of them were ranked among the best 250 players.

Smith, the seventh-year left tackle for the Dallas Cowboys, just missed out on a Top 10 place at No. 11 on the list, but he does rank as the best tackle in the game.

Landing at No. 41, the Titans’ Jurrell Casey rated fifth among interior defensive lineman and third for 3-4 defensive ends.

Veteran Panthers center Ryan Kalil settled in as the fourth-best center in the NFL and No. 71 overall.

Not far behind, Jets defensive lineman Leonard Williams was ranked No. 74. He stands 12th when looking at interior defensive linemen, but sixth among 3-4 defensive ends.

Clay Matthews of the Green Bay Packers checked in at No. 154, making him the ninth-best 3-4 outside linebacker.

One spot later, Arizona Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer made his appearance at No. 155, 13th among quarterbacks.

Ranking 13th among 4-3 defensive ends, the Vikings’ Everson Griffen placed 172nd on the list.

Finally, Green Bay’s Nick Perry rated No. 226 overall and 12th among 3-4 outside linebackers.

• Tyron Smith — No. 11
• Jurrell Casey — No. 41
• Ryan Kalil — No. 71
• Leonard Williams — No. 74
• Clay Matthews — No.154
• Carson Palmer — No. 155
• Everson Griffen — No. 172
• Nick Perry — No. 226

USC has been a featured figure in MMQB’s offseason ranking endeavors. The publication recently held an all-time draft including 11 former Trojan selections.

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Since USC has seen more players picked in the NFL Draft all-time, it stands to reason there would be plenty of Trojans among the NFL’s best.

This century has only solidified USC’s standing as a producer of NFL talent, with the 15-year veteran Palmer as the oldest Trojan on the list and Williams, who is entering his third season, as the youngest.

The Trojans can expect future iterations of the Top 400 to feature even more USC stars, with new draft picks like Adoree’ Jackson and JuJu Smith-Schuster getting their shot at NFL glory and other promising young NFL players, like Su’a Cravens, Marqise Lee and others beginning their rise.