For the second straight year, Quenton Nelson was recognized by his peers as being among the very best players in the NFL.
The Colts left guard checked in at No. 33 in NFL Network's Top 100 Players of 2021, one year after he was ranked No. 26 heading into the 2020 season.
Nelson, who started all 48 regular season games and all three playoff games for the Colts from 2018-2020, is one of five players in the last 50 years to be named a first-team AP All-Pro in each of his first three seasons (joining Earl Campbell, Keith Jackson, Barry Sanders and Lawrence Taylor). Nelson was also named to the AFC Pro Bowl roster in 2018, 2019 and 2020.
With Nelson bulldozing opposing defenders in the interior, the Colts' defensive line was top 10 in sacks allowed per pass attempt in 2018 (No. 1), 2019 (No. 10) and 2020 (No. 3). According to Pro Football Focus, Nelson has been charged with allowing only three sacks and 43 total pressures in 2,073 pass blocking snaps since debuting in 2018.
"Quenton, he is a generational player that – I'm sorry, I see (John) Hannah and I see him of the last hundred years. I mean that's how good Quenton is," Colts owner and CEO Jim Irsay said earlier this year. "As far as leadership and the type of team guy he is, it's off the charts. He is why the Colts are a physical team. When you're coming to play us, you are coming to play the Big Q and he is the guy that represents us out there and everyone on this roster knows. He is the alpha male holding it down now. That is a tough guy.
"His talents are just remarkable. If he stays healthy, he may (have) 14 All-Pro years in a row."
