There are a lot of ways you can go with this answer, but I'm going to consider the best player at the start of the 2016 season, not necessarily career-wise -- and my choice is
Tony Romo. He still can play at a high level at his position, especially with rookie
Ezekiel Elliott set to rejuvenate the
Cowboys' running game. I'll take Romo over
Chargers tight end
Antonio Gates, who is at the end of his career, and
Colts kicker
Adam Vinatieri, who does not have the kickoff leg anymore.
I think
Chris Harris Jr. was overshadowed by some of Denver's other defensive players --
Aqib Talib and
Von Miller, among others. He's probably one of the best cornerbacks that nobody has talked about over the last couple of years. He is very physical, challenges every single play and has great recovery speed.
Tony Romo is the obvious choice. He's been a good player for 10 years, and I'd still pick him, even considering his injuries last season. We used to see more undrafted quarterbacks -- guys like Jake Delhomme and Kurt Warner -- but you don't get much of that anymore. There are a lot of NFL teams trying to find a
Tony Romo, a guy who can produce and lead the organization to the postseason.
I'm going to go with
Jason Peters, and here's why. As an undrafted tight end out of Arkansas, he had to switch to offensive tackle -- and not only did he learn to play the position, he played it at an All-Pro level, and he's been at it for 12 seasons. When you factor in the difficulty of the position switch and the level at which he's played, making the
Pro Bowl eight times and earning two All-Pro nods, Peters gets my vote.
There are a number of outstanding undrafted free agents playing in the NFL today, from kickers to offensive linemen to quarterbacks. There is somebody of quality playing at all the positions. But my guy is
Tony Romo. In his career, he has completed 65.3 percent of his passes, which is second-best to
Drew Brees (66.4 percent) among active quarterbacks. He also has 247 touchdown passes, 117 interceptions and a 97.1 passer rating. In the six playoff games he's started, Romo has eight touchdown passes against just two interceptions.
I think that everybody saw what Romo means to the
Dallas Cowboys last season. In 2014, the
Cowboys finished 12-4 and won the NFC East. In 2015, Romo was hurt in Week 2, and the
Cowboys won just two more games the rest of the season. Romo means so much to this team, from his ability to make plays to his leadership. That is why I have this four-time Pro Bowler as my top undrafted free agent in the NFL.
