Unsung heroes of 2025 NFL season: One overlooked/surprise contributor from each NFC team

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We are squarely in recognition season, with the 2026 Pro Bowl Games (Tuesday, Feb. 3 at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN/DisneyXD/NFL+) and NFL Honors (Thursday, Feb. 5 at 9 p.m. ET on NBC/NFL Network/NFL+) coming up. But not EVERY important performance drew public accolades.

Below, Kevin Patra has identified one unsung hero from every NFC team, explaining how each player rose to the occasion in 2025, even if they weren’t officially given their flowers in the form of a Pro Bowl or first-team All-Pro nod. Note: Stats reflect regular-season performance unless otherwise noted. Click here to see the names from the AFC.

The old man can still play. In his return to Arizona, the 39-year-old Campbell generated 6.5 sacks, second most on the team, with 28 QB pressures and 43 total tackles. He added two passes defensed and blocked a field-goal try for the 10th time in his illustrious career. Fourteen of those pressures came while he was being double-teamed, the fifth most such pressures in the NFL in 2025. A lot went wrong in Arizona this season, but bringing back the ageless wonder wasn’t one of them. Imagine the Cards’ defense if Campbell hadn’t been on the field for 17 games.

With many observers focusing on the young edge players in Atlanta’s reworked defense, it seems Onyemata’s play was relatively overlooked. In his third season in ATL, the big man anchored the middle of the defense as a top-10 run defender, earning seven tackles for loss and a career-high 62 tackles; he also added 18 quarterback pressures from his interior position. His 13 run stuffs led the club, with the Falcons allowing a yard more per rush with Onyemata off the field.

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