Stefon Diggs, Pat Elflein make ESPN’s Under-25 starting lineup

The folks over at ESPN have put together what they feel is the best starting lineup of players under the age of 25 in the National Football League. There are two members of the Minnesota Vikings on the list, neither of whom should be a surprise.

At wide receiver, Stefon Diggs made the squad, receiving 53.5% of the votes from the group of 43 ESPN Insiders that were polled. He was joined by Kansas City Chiefs’ receiver Tyreek Hill, who got the same percentage of votes as Diggs did. Here’s what ESPN had to say about Diggs.

Diggs, 24, has shown the ability to dominate in different ways at the NFL level. He excelled as a vertical threat as a rookie, chewed up catches in a volume role as a sophomore and took another step in his third season. When the ball is in the air, Diggs is a good bet to win in man-to-man coverage.

Diggs is joined on the Under-25 team by center Pat Elflein. Elflein, who had a very good rookie season for the Vikings, got a higher percentage of votes at his postion than Diggs got at his, bringing home 60.5% of the votes.

The center position involves more than just meets the eye; Elflein, 24, absorbs great responsibility pre-snap in getting the offensive line in sync. His acclimation to the pro game from his college days was an expedient one.

Defensive end Danielle Hunter did not make the list at his position, as those spots were filled by Joey Bosa of the Los Angeles Chargers and Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns. I guess Hunter is just going to have to settle for that big ol’ contract extension as a consolation prize.