NEW YORK — Earl Thomas bounced back from a broken leg that had him contemplating retirement to reclaiming his place as the NFL's top safety.
The Seattle Seahawks' playmaking star and defensive leader was voted the league's No. 1 player at his position in The Associated Press positional rankings.
Thomas easily beat out Minnesota's Harrison Smith and Kansas City's Eric Berry in the voting, which was conducted by Pro Football Hall of Famer James Lofton and 10 AP football writers.
"Forget the other Legion of Boom members, Thomas is the key to Seattle's secondary and defense overall," said AP Pro Football Writer Barry Wilner, who's based in New York.