The NFL's best and worst performers

In last year's Quick Reads season-in-review column, we had a very odd perspective on what had happened in 2009. Thanks to a schedule that ranked among the hardest in NFL history, the advanced statistics at Football Outsiders suggested that Tom Brady had been the best quarterback in football.

This year, the numbers say the same thing. We suspect that it will be slightly less controversial this time around. Using our core advanced metrics -- DYAR and DVOA -- we've gone through the full-season totals at each position and identified the best and worst quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers and tight ends from this past season. We also noted which players had their performances most drastically impacted by their schedule, as well as those players who had the biggest improvement or decline in their performance from a year ago.

Our annual disclaimer: Numbers are never perfect. While we certainly believe that our metrics do a better job of analyzing a player's performance than anything else you'll see, there are some things statistics can't account for. We'll point out where the data needs some missing context as warranted. Also, remember that DYAR is a cumulative stat, so players who miss time (like Michael Vick) will find it harder to make it to these leaderboards.

To read the best and worst players at every offensive position this NFL season, you must be an ESPN Insider.

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Bill Barnwell

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Bill Barnwell (@billbarnwell) is a staff writer for Grantland.