Lifeline for NFL teams

I have started to go team by team and stating who is the most important player for each team. Who is the player each team can't survive if he is on the sideline? I decided this list would not include quarterbacks. Everyone knows without a quarterback its hard to win but the list with be mostly field by quarterbacks.

AFC South

• Houston Texas: JJ Watt
• If you starting a defense Watt is at the top of the list of players you would want. In only his second year he has turned into a player offenses have to scheme against.
• There isn't a better player in the league at knocking down passes than Watt. He is 6th in the league with 16 passes deflected and the five ahead of him are all defensive backs. The next player not a defensive back is Lance Briggs ranked 42nd with 8 passes deflected. Last year Watt ended the season with 19.
• When teams are practicing for Houston the opposing team will have their quarterback practice by throwing over broom sticks or some object to replicate Watt's arms.
• Watt is second in the NFL with 15.5 sacks and he is right behind the leader who has 17.5 sacks.
• Watt has been shining this year without two defensive studs who went elsewhere. Mario Williams left for the Bills and DeMeco Ryans is playing for the Eagles. Watt has also kept the defense together after losing Brian Cushing who went down with a torn ACL. He is the focus of offenses and sees double teams every week and is still dominating games.
• Indianapolis Colts: Reggie Wayne
• Andrew Luck has had instant success in the NFL but he owes a big thank you to Reggie Wayne. He was a free agent last year and had the chance to leave. He decided to stay, big influence was Chuck Pagano and Luck has taken advantage of him.
• No other receiver has been targeted more than Wayne this season with 162 throws..Wayne is on pace to set a career record for targets, needing 17 to tie his career best. In 2010 he had 111 and had more than 100 two other times.
• Wayne is also third in the league in receptions and yards, with 94 receptions and 1,220 yards. The two players ahead of him in both categories are Calvin Johnson and Brandon Marshall.
• Wayne is on track to play another season without missing a game. The only time he didn't play in every regular  season game was his rookie season in 2001.
• Jacksonville Jaguars: Maurice Jones-Drew
• The Jaguars have been bad this year but if they had MJD they would probably have a few more wins. Since MJD has been out, the Jags have lost 3 games by less than a touchdown
• With the weapons the Jags have on the outside a solid running back could do wonders. Everyone knows what MJD can do if healthy and when he isn't worried about his contract.
• This will be the first time in the last 3 seasons where MJD won't run for at least 1,000 yards. 
• The demand for one running back to carry the rock has dropped but the Jags have shown they need MJD. They have given other running backs the ball with MJD being out and none of them have shown up.
• Tennessee Titans: Chris Johnson
• Johnson being the most important for the Titans is similar to MJD for the Jags. The Titans aren't a good team right now but they are even worse when Johnson doesn't show up.
• Johnson can be Jekyll and Hyde at times but is still a good running back. For the 5th consecutive year he has rushed for more than 1,000 yards.
• Johnson is also putting up these numbers without a solid quarterback. He has been in the league for 5 years and in 4 of those years a different quarterback has led the team in passing. The only quarterback to lead the team in passing for two years is Kerry Collins.

AFC West

• Denver Broncos: Von Miller
• What Peyton Manning is for the Broncos on offense, Miller is for the defense. 
• In his first two seasons Miller has 27.5 sacks and has three more games left in this season. Currently he is third in the league with 16 sacks, which is only 1.5 sacks behind first place.
• Miller also joined a selective group this year. Miller is only the 4th player to have double-digit sacks in their first two seasons. The other three are Reggie White, Dwight Freeney and Javon Kearse.
• In his rookie season Miller forced 2 fumbles and already this year he has forced 6.
• Miller is the leader of the defense and is being mentioned for Defensive Player of the Year. The defense goes as Miller goes.
• Kansas City Chiefs: Derrick Johnson
• Finding the most important player on a bad team isn't easy. I picked Johnson because even in a bad season his numbers are still there.
• Johnson enters week 14 with 97 tackles and unless something crazy happens he will reach the century mark. This will be his third consecutive year doing so. In the previous two seasons he has finished with 121 and 131 tackles.
• In a game earlier this year against the Chargers, San Diego was held to 50 yards rushing late in the game. Then Johnson leaves the game and the Chargers gain 55 yards on 11 runs.
• Oakland Raiders: Sebastian Janikowski
• On a team that is 3-10, I can only imagine how little scoring the Raiders would do without Janikowski. The best word to describe him is clutch. 
• He was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in the first round of the 2000 draft. Since then he has only missed 4 regular season games.
• In his 13 year career, he has only missed 3 extra points.
• Inside the 40-yard line Janikowski has only missed 12 field goals in his career.
• There are only two other kickers (Phil Dawson & Jason Hanson) who have been in the league longer than Janikowski with only one team.
• San Diego Chargers: Eric Weddle
• Take away Weddle's rookie season, the least amount of tackles in a season is 82. In 2008 he finished the season with 127 tackles which is his career high.
• He entered the league in 2007 and has only missed 4 games.
• On a team that is as bad as the Chargers it is hard to shine individually. It's even harder at the position that Weddle plays at.
• Every year Weddle has recorded at least one interception and in 2011 he finished tied for first in the league with 7.

AFC North

• Cleveland Browns: Joe Thomas
• Take away the quarterback position there may not be a more important position other than the left tackle. He protects the quarterbacks blind side if said quarterback is right-handed. 
• Thomas entered the league in 2007 and hasn't missed a start. According to The News-Herald and Pro Football Focus, Thomas has a 97.8 pass blocking efficiency rating.
• Thomas has only given up 2 sacks this season, 8 hurries and 2 hits.
• With Thomas' ability he doesn't need help on whoever is across from him, typically the opponents best defensive linemen. 
• Thomas has been selected to the Pro-Bowl 5 times and first team All-Pro 3 times.
• Pittsburgh Steelers: Ryan Clark
• I know what the first thought might be. What about Troy Polamalu? This season Polamalu has played in only three games, yet the Steelers have the pass defense. They have only allowed 166 yards through the air and are ranked 5th against the run. Polamalu is one of the best but they are surviving without him.
• In the 17 games the Steelers played last year, they gave up the most passing yards in the one game Clark didn't play in. Clark has Sickle Cell Anemia and is unable to play at high altitude. When they went to Denver for their playoff game last year Clark didn't dress. The Steelers gave up 316 yards through the air, which is the most in the past two seasons. The Steelers opened up this year with another game at Denver, again Clark didn't play. This time the defense gave up 240 yards through the air which is the second most this season.
• Since 2008, Clark's numbers have improved every season. In 2008 he finished with 87 tackles, the next years he has had 89,90 and 100. Currently he has 80 tackles in only 11 games played.
• Clark is also one interception and pass deflected from matching his previous career high in both categories.
• Baltimore Ravens: Ed Reed
• Ed Reed is a freak, that is the best way to describe him. He was drafted in 2002 by the Ravens and neither the franchise or Reed has looked back. There have been 172 regular season games since Reed entered the league and he has played in 256 of those games. He has gone to the Pro-Bowl 8 times and been named All-Pro 5 times. As he ages some claim he is losing a step and he might be but it is hard to notice.
• Reed gives the Ravens the ability to do a lot of things other teams can't do on defense. A lot of it is pre-snap movement. He has the skills to show blitz and at the snap get back to his position. His speed allows him to move around but it is also because of the studying he does. Many of times Reed knows what play the opposing team is running.
• The cliche goes, "defensive backs play defense because they can't catch." This isn't the case for Reed. His ability to find the ball is second to none in the league. Reed is 10th all-time in career interceptions with 61 and has the record for return yards from an interception.
• When he gets the ball don't think he is going down, odds are he will take it to the house. He ranks 5th all-time in non-offensive touchdowns with 13. He is also looking to pitch it if he is going to be tackled or have a teammate pitch it to him if they are going down.
• With his speed and power offensive players have to know where Reed is at all times.
• I will leave you with one more video of Reed. Not only is he the most important Raven but in my opinion he is the best safety to play the game.
• Cincinnati Bengals: AJ Green
• Green is only in his second season but there hasn't been a learning curve for him.
• In his first season he finished with 65 receptions for 1,057 yards and 7 touchdowns. In only 12 games Green has passed last season's stats. He has 76 receptions for 1,107 yards and 10 touchdowns. He is tied for first with touchdowns and is 6th in reception yards.
• The next best receiver on the Bengals roster this year is Andew Hawkins who has 39 receptions for 441 yards.
• Green has almost been targeted the 5th most of any receiver, with 126.
• The franchise record for reception yards in a single season is also possible for Green. The current record is held by Chad Johnson, in 2007 he finished with 1,440 yards. Green needs to average 83.25 yards per game and he will tie that record.

AFC East

• Buffalo Bills: CJ Spiller
• Looking at the Bills they are a team in the middle of the pack, 5-7 on the season. Quarterback play is shaky and the defense hasn't been what people believed it was going to be. The one stabilizing player is Spiller.
• In rushing yards Spiller is 10th in the league with 907 yards but looking closer you will see how important he is. He has only had 137, Frank Gore who is 9th in rushing has 199 carries for 972 yards. Everyone else has more than 200 carries. Spiller has less carries because the Bills also have Fred Jackson. The stat to look at is yards per carry
• Spiller is second in the league with 6.6 ypc. The only player ahead of him is RG3 with 6.8 ypc.
• Spiller is also a dynamic player in the passing game for the Bills. He is 4th on the team in receptions and yards with 33 catches for 339 yards. This puts him in the top-10 among running backs catching the ball.
• Miami Dolphins: Karlos Dansby
• Dansby joined the Dolphins in 2010 and has been worth every penny.
• Currently he has 93 tackles on the season. In his first season, playing 14 games he had 95 tackles and last year playing the entire season he has 103 tackles.
• The Dolphins have lost players either by trade or free agency and Dansby's numbers haven't dropped. 
• The year before Dansby joined the Dolphins, the defense gave up 114 yards on the ground. In 2010 that number dropped to 100 ypg. Last year the defense held opponents to only 95 ypg and currently they are holding opponents to 97 ypg.
• New England Patriots: Vince Wilfork
• The Patriots on offense is almost a plug and play team. Outside of Tom Brady, they just insert and keep winning. On defense there has been moments of greatness and other times they have been dismal. 
• I don't think anyone is going to say Wilfork's stats are amazing but at his position he isn't going to fill up the stat sheet.
• Wilfork joined the Patriots in 2004 and hasn't left, playing at least 13 games in every season. 
• Wilfork weights a solid 325 and is still playing more than 86% of the snaps on defense. A player of his size typically doesn't see the field as often as Wilfork does. 
• New York Jets: Nick Mangold
• The Jets are bad and at times laughable on offense. This team over the years has been carried by the defense. Most people would state Darrelle Revis is the best player cornerback and most important player for the Jets. Except without Revis the passing defense is still 4th in the country. With Antonio Cromartie and LaRon Landry the Jets have been able to survive without their shutdown corner and Revis Island.
• The player the Jets need the most is Mangold. If he was to leave the offense that is having trouble right now would be a mess.
• The past three seasons Mangold has been voted All-Pro and the past four seasons he has gone to the Pro Bowl. In 2010 he became the highest paid center in the game. 
• In his first five seasons with the Jets he didn't miss a game, last year he played in 14 of 16 games.
• Before the start of the 2011 season, Mangold averaged one sack in ever 10 games.

*All stats without a link attached with it were acquired from ESPN.com and pro-football-reference.com*