It took all the way until No. 31, but the Green Bay Packers have finally landed a current player on the NFL Network's countdown of the top 100 players with outside linebacker Clay Matthews.
This is actually a slight fall down the rankings for Matthews. Last year, NFL Network's countdown placed Matthews at No. 27. Strangely, Matthews actually had a much more productive 2012 season than he did in 2011. Despite Green Bay's 15-1 regular season record in 2011, Matthews had a career-low six sacks. In 2012, however, Matthews nearly topped his career-best performance in sacks with 13.
In April, the Packers signed Matthews to a five-year, $66 million contract extension, making him the highest-paid linebacker in the NFL.
The Top 100 countdown, which is voted on by current players, placed Charles Woodson at No. 85. Woodson was still a free agent at the time, but the veteran defensive back has since signed with the Oakland Raiders.
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