http://insider.espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/10978595/2014-nfl-offseason-luke-kuechly-nfl-most-overrated-players NFL's most overrated playersKuechly among top individuals earning more credit than they deserveUpdated: May 26, 2014, 11:16 AM ETBy Steve Palazzolo | Pro Football FocusEveryone loves a good list, particularly one ranking the NFL's best players, and the offseason generally finds quite a few to browse through. At PFF, we feel we're as qualified as anyone to put together a list of the league's best players, so we've continued with our traditional Top 101. Part of our uniqueness is the ability to view the entire league through virtually the same set of eyes and within the same system. It's for these reasons that we can minimize bias through our grades to provide a strong snapshot of a player's performance in a given year.As for the list, it's more than just a glance at the grades. We go back and forth internally discussing not only grades but also consistency, role, snap count, postseason work, competition and any other important factors that may go into separating the best players in the league. As with any list, the debate rages on.One thing to remember is that our list is based strictly on 2013 and that we have stuck to the mantra that all positions are created equally to give everyone a shot to make it, thereby avoiding the quarterback-heavy list that would most undoubtedly ensue. We also took the postseason into consideration when accumulating the list.Here's a look at the players many fans and media will be surprised to see at the bottom half of the PFF 101.Luke Kuechly, Carolina Panthers, No. 80The 2013 NFL Defensive Player of the Year at No. 80? Kuechly did have a strong season, but he wasn't even considered for PFF Defensive Player of the Year in what amounted to a two-horse race. Why the disconnect?To start, the success of the Panthers' defense was probably Kuechly's biggest ally. While the defensive player of the year is an individual award, Kuechly got a lot of publicity for being the leader of one of the league's best defenses. While that is a valuable role, there's a good argument to be made that Kuechly isn't even the best player on his defensive unit, never mind the league's best. Teammate Greg Hardy came in at No. 41 in the PFF 101, as he led the way for a Panthers defensive line that dominated up front to the tune of a league-leading 60 sacks as a team. Kuechly wasn't even the highest-ranked linebacker on his team, as Thomas Davis came in at 52nd in the 101. Carolina's defensive success had more to do with a dominant defensive line than anything Kuechly did individually.The second area where Kuechly is lauded is in his high tackle numbers. The NFL credited him with 156 total tackles, good for fourth in the league. The first issue with the stat is the NFL's acknowledgement that the tackle numbers are unofficial and often charted differently around the league. In addition, simply bringing down the ball carrier does not make a play successful, nor does it account for the times a player is beaten in coverage or blocked in the running game. It's not that making tackles is bad; it's just that with the rise in popularity of advanced numbers and statistics, as well as certain companies (PFF) actually grading each and every play in the NFL from a football standpoint, there's really no excuse to rely on primitive, uninformative numbers like total tackles to determine a player's worth.While it may sound like we're diminishing Kuechly's overall play, he does a lot of things well. He is one of the league's best run-stopping inside linebackers, and he may have been the best at shedding blocks at the second level. His plus-6.8 grade against the run ranked third among inside linebackers while picking up a stop on 12.0 percent of his run snaps, also good for third at the position. He also added strong work in coverage, as his plus-2.4 grade ranked 14th among inside linebackers and his 0.81 yards/cover snap came in 13th. The numbers are solid but certainly not the makings of a defensive player of the year candidate, nor a top-50 player in the league. His standing at No. 80 overall seems just about right for 2013.