Matt Forte is entering his ninth NFL season. How productive has he been thus far? Forte is one of five players in NFL history with 1,200-plus scrimmage yards in each of his first eight seasons. The others: Curtis Martin (Hall of Famer), Barry Sanders (HOF), LaDainian Tomlinson and Ricky Watters.

Allen Hurns went undrafted out of the University of Miami (Florida) in 2014, and maybe that has been a motivating factor for him. Hurns has 1,708 receiving yards, the most in NFL history by an undrafted player over his first two seasons. Hurns passed former record-holder, Wayne Chrebet (1,635), in Week 16 of 2015 by turning in a 107-yard performance against the Saints.

The Steelers have been synonymous with great defense throughout the history of their franchise. And Cameron Heyward is doing his best to make his mark and continue that legacy. Since the NFL went to a 16-game regular season in 1978, Heyward is the only Steeler to play in all 80 games and record at least 20 sacks in his first five seasons. It's a feat some other standout Pittsburgh defensive stars -- James Harrison, Kevin Greene, Greg Lloyd and Joey Porter -- never achieved.

Football is a team game, but Julian Edelman's impact on the Patriots last season showed just how important he is to the team. Before Edelman broke his ankle in Week 10, the Patriots were 9-0, scoring 33.7 points per game with Tom Brady averaging 338.1 passing yards per game. But after Edelman went down, the Patriots finished the regular season 3-4, averaged 23.1 PPG and Brady plummeted to 246.7 passing YPG.

Jonathan Stewart is part of one of the most dominant rushing attacks of this generation. The Carolina Panthers have an active streak of 100-plus rushing yards in 32 straight games, including the playoffs. That's the longest streak since the Steelers (1974-76), led by Franco Harris and Rocky Bleier, rattled off 37 straight games of 100-plus rushing yards.

Kirk Cousins had a season to remember in 2015. He became the only Redskins QB to a throw at least one TD pass in every game of a 16-game season (Sonny Jurgensen did so in 1967 in a 14-game season). But it was Cousins' play downs the stretch where he shined brightest. Cousins joined Aaron Rodgers (2012) as the only two QBs in NFL history to pass for three-plus TDs with zero interceptions in each of the final three games of the season.

Tamba Hali had 6.5 sacks in 2015, which marked the ninth time he has recorded at least six sacks in a season. Since coming into the league in 2006, only DeMarcus Ware (10) has more seasons with at least six sacks. And in Chiefs history, only sack-master Derrick Thomas (11) had more six-sack seasons than Hali.

Telvin Smith is a tackling machine. Last year, in his second season, Smith tallied 128 tackles to tie him for sixth most in the NFL. That brought his career total to 227 tackles, which are the most in Jaguars history over a player's first two seasons.

Delaine Walker is getting better with age. 2015 marked his 10th NFL season, and easily his best ever as he set career highs in receptions (94) and receiving yards (1,088). His receiving-yards total was the best mark in Titans/Oilers single-season history, surpassing the likes of Frank Wycheck and Hall of Famer Dave Casper.

Since joining the Chiefs in 2013, Alex Smith has been the epitome of efficiency. He has ranked in the top 10 of TD-INT ratio each of the last three seasons. But in 2015, Smith put on a clinic on how to take care of the football. He played nine straight games without throwing a single interception. Smith's 312 pass attempts without an interception are the most in Chiefs history and second-most in NFL history behind Tom Brady from 2010-11 (358).