Elite 101

I have stepped up to the plate more than 9,000 times in my career. In my mind, you know how many hits I thought I was gonna get? More than 9,000.

When I think about the toughest players I’ve faced in my seven-plus years in the league, those who come to mind are the ones I’ve played against a lot.

I’m going to go a different route, with more of a variety. Because there are so many guys who are tough to guard.

"Quiet on set! Silence your cellphones, and remember, please, no flash photography. This is Jaylon Smith’s 5 Toughest — take 1."

Look, I’m here today to talk about the toughest players I’ve ever faced.

"""I don’t care if you average 40, or if you’re supposed to be the best player in the world. I’m here to battle every night. And I think I can play with the bes

Cincinnati Reds pitcher Wade Miley names the five toughest hitters in baseball that he's ever faced.

It really is like the W has entered into some golden age of exciting young players.

So ... what's a Glue Guy? Well, it's not the David Ross that Theo said he'd heard about back in 2008. In fact, it's the opposite.

The Players’ Tribune recruited two pros to draft an All-Decade womens’ hoops team — college edition.

I’m going to give you the five players that I hate playing against the most, in no particular order. Right now.

Even though I’m not going one-on-one against somebody the whole game, there are players I know I’m going to have to deal with at some point.

I’ll be real with you: I think I can match up with just about anybody. There’s not a lot of guys in this league who are tough for me to guard. It’s a short list

Here’s what I love — and in some cases what really concerns me — about the top five quarterbacks in this year’s draft.

The Featherweight fighter walks through controversial calls that have stuck with him over the years, the hardest shot he has ever been hit with, and a kick that

I decided, you know what, screw all of that — every time I’m touching it, I’m shooting it. It’s just basketball, right?

I’ve made my fair share of lists over the years, but never anything quite like this.

All the guys on this list are athletic — beyond athletic.

It’s not just the guys who put up big numbers who are difficult to cover.

It’s like "The Art of War" — you gotta know your enemy just as well as you know yourself.

This is my attempt at taking you a little deeper inside the game that I love. Honestly, I probably could have made this 20 players long — but here are the five

I developed almost every skill that makes me a great pass rusher by playing another sport. And without those skills, I would never have made it to the NFL, let

In this league, if you’re not the strongest, fastest or most talented, you gotta outwork everybody else. Outthink ’em. Outlast ’em.

When I was a kid, I used to be like a professional juggler in training. That’s funny, right? In elementary school, I didn’t even play sports, I was just straigh