5 active NFL players with most appearances in the league ft. Tom Brady
When Tom Brady broke another record with his 600th touchdown pass, it got us wondering about his longevity. He already holds the record for most games in the NFL as a quarterback and has the most games of all active players in the NFL at the moment.
We look at others who can keep Tom Brady company in the top five. Note that the game statistics below only take into account the regular season.
Who else joins Tom Brady in the Top 5 list of long-playing active players?
#5 - Andrew Whitworth, OT and Mason Crosby, K, 231 games
Andrew Whitworth
Andrew Whitworth keeps doing what he does best on the NFL field at the age of 39. Playing as an offensive tackle requires strength and balance and not many people can claim to have it at an advanced age. In the current NFL, no one can come close to him in the offensive tackle position. He is the 'Tom Brady' of offensive tackles.
He was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in 2006 and played with them until 2016. He has since played for the Los Angeles Rams. Whitworth has been selected to the Pro Bowl 4 times, and has made the All-Pro team thrice: twice as a first-teamer and once as a second-teamer.
Mason Crosby
Tied with Andrew Whitworth is kicker Mason Crosby. Drafted in 2007, Crosby has played his entire career for the Green Bay Packers and went to Super Bowl XLV with them. He seems to have gotten better with time. In 2020, he converted all 16 of his field goal attempts for the first time in his career. He has topped the scoring chart once in his career: in his rookie year in 2007 with 141 points.
#4 - Ben Roethlisberger, QB, 239 games
Ben Roethlisberger has been playing with the Pittsburgh Steelers since being drafted in 2004 and would have been the highest-ranked quarterback on this list, were it not for Tom Brady.
In his rookie season, he was named Offensive Rookie of the Year and since then has only gotten better. Roethlisberger has won the Super Bowl twice and lost it once. He has been named to the Pro Bowl six times. In 2014 and 2018, he was the passing yards leader. While this season has seen his output drop from his previous standards, he has inarguably been one of the best quarterbacks of this generation.