Colts’ T.Y. Hilton appears on NFL Top 100 countdown at number 61

Indianapolis Colts wide receiver T.Y. Hilton led the NFL in receiving yards in 2016, and that earned him a spot on this year’s countdown of the league’s best players.

NFL Network does a countdown each year ranking the top 100 NFL players as voted on by other players, and the current series is underway. Tonight, T.Y. Hilton checked in at number 61.

It was a career year for Hilton, who led the league with 1,448 yards receiving. He did so while catching 91 passes (also a career high) and six touchdowns, while leading the league with 28 receptions of 20+ yards and finishing second in the NFL in receiving first downs (66). He averaged 15.9 yards per catch, which was tenth-best among qualified players. So, to put it a different way, Hilton ranked in the top ten in the NFL last year in receiving yards, receptions, 28+ yard receptions, yards per catch, and targets. There’s no denying his worthiness of being on this list.

Every year there’s the same discussion about how much value to put into lists like these, and the answer is not much. After all, Adrian Peterson made this year’s list at number 98 after a season in which he played in just three games, had just 37 carries, and averaged just 1.9 yards per rush. The list is far from decisive when determining who had the best 2016 season, but it’s nevertheless a fun thing to pay attention to during the offseason. Last year, Hilton just missed the cut, but in 2015 he checked in at number 35 overall.

It’s especially fun when the Colts are represented, and T.Y. Hilton becomes the first Colts player to make this year’s list. Andrew Luck should obviously make it as well (numbers 61-100 have been revealed so far), but there’s no other obvious candidate for the Colts.

You can check out the full list, as far as it’s been revealed so far, here.