Two former Notre Dame OL voted onto Top 100 NFL Players of 2022 list
Notre Dame is once again represented on NFL Network’s annual top 100 players list with a pair of All-Pro offensive linemen. Guards Quenton Nelson and Zack Martin made the cut for The Top 100 Players of 2022, as voted on by their peers. The list was released in three segments earlier this month.
Nelson is the No. 28 ranked player and the top guard on the list. Martin is No. 68 and the third-rated guard, behind Nelson and the Cleveland Browns’ Joel Bitonio (No. 55). They’re the only two Irish players to make the list.
It’s the third straight year Nelson’s fellow NFL players voted him the top guard. His overall ranking is a five-spot jump from his placement last season. He’s the second-highest offensive lineman, behind only San Francisco 49ers tackle Trent Williams (No. 14).
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Nelson is entering his fifth NFL season, all with the Indianapolis Colts. He was a first-team All-Pro selection in each of his first three seasons and earned second-team honors in 2021. He has allowed just two sacks in 61 career starts at left guard. The Colts took him with the sixth overall pick in 2018.
“He’s a mauler, but he’s also technical,” Browns guard Wyatt Teller said. “His fundamentals are great. That’s what makes him the kind of player he is.”
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Martin has made 120 starts – most of them at right guard – for the Dallas Cowboys since they drafted him with the No. 16 overall pick in 2014. He has missed only nine games in his career and earned All-Pro recognition in all but one of his eight seasons. He was a first-team All-Pro selection in 2021. Last season was his fifth without committing a single holding penalty.
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This year is the sixth time Martin has been voted onto the top 100 list, the most appearances by a guard since the top 100 was created in 2011. He was the No. 85 player on the 2021 list and has appeared on it every season since 2017. This year, he’s the sixth-ranked offensive lineman — behind Williams, Nelson, Tampa Bay Buccaneers tackle Tristan Wirfs (No. 41), Bitonio and Los Angeles Chargers center Cory Linsley (No. 60).
“He’s a dominating run blocker and dominating pass blocker,” Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce said of Martin. “There really isn’t any weak spot in Zack’s game. He’s a really balanced player. You never catch him off guard.”
Notre Dame is one of 22 teams with at least two players on the 2022 top 100. Ohio State and LSU tied for the most, with six apiece. Oklahoma and Alabama tied for second, with five. The Irish are the only college team with multiple offensive linemen on this year’s list.
Martin was Notre Dame’s starting left tackle from 2010-13. Nelson started at left guard for the Irish from 2015-17.
