The top 50 AFL players after season 2021 (20-11)

The 2021 season has finally been and gone, with the Dees getting up in the big dance against the Dogs to break a 57-year drought and cap off an action-packed year.

With this, Zero Hanger has collated a list of the top-50 players in the competition now the year is over, with part one containing spots 20 through 11.

The top 50 AFL players after season 2021 (50-41)
The top 50 AFL players after season 2021 (40-31)
The top 50 AFL players after season 2021 (30-21)

20. Harry McKay

The star forward was magnificent this year under David Teague, with the 23-year-old winning a maiden Coleman Medal, boasting a tally of 58 goals in 19 games for the Blues.

McKay has an overwhelming presence down forward, ranked first for contested marks and marks inside 50 per game across the whole competition.

The scary thing is that he is still so young, and with the Blues tying him down until the end of 2023, Michael Voss has the best possible candidate to spearhead his forward-line as the former superstar Lion aims to resurrect the club.

19. Lachie Neale

Last season's Brownlow Medal winner had a considerably tougher 2021, however still retains his spot in the top 20 players in the AFL.

The 28-year-old only managed 17 games after battling injury for portions of the season, however, still finished ninth across the entire league for stoppage clearances in a year where Brisbane faced a fair amount of adversity.

With rumours floating about a return to Fremantle being quashed, Neale has a chance to finally win a flag next year with Brisbane if they can get everything to click after several years of coming close.

18. Tom Mitchell

The Hawks ball magnet had another stellar season and was the club's best player by a fair margin, exemplified by his third Peter Crimmins Medal in five seasons.

In typical fashion, Mitchell was industrious in and around the contest, finishing first across the entire league for handballs per game, disposals per game and effective disposals per game.

2021 was tough for Hawthorn, saying goodbye to the legendary Alastair Clarkson in a messy handover saga that had the club in the headlines for much of the season. However, the glimpses they showed throughout the year displayed the side's potential and the steps they could take under Sam Mitchell.

17. Jarryd Lyons

The former Gold Coast midfielder was incredible for Brisbane this year, showing up on a consistent basis to be one of the fundamental cogs in Chris Fagan's team.

It was certainly a breakout year for the 29-year-old, finishing top 10 in the league for stats such as contested possessions per game, tackles per game and stoppage clearances per game.

After being ditched by the Suns, nobody could have predicted Lyons could turn out to be the player he is right now. With the season he had in 2021, there is no reason he can't improve even more next year.

16. Zach Merrett

The Bombers' classy mid had another stunning year wearing the sash, helping his side to an unlikely appearance in September as well as picking up both an All-Australian blazer and a third club best and fairest.

Merrett - statistically speaking - had his best season yet, with some huge figures accumulated across his 23 games.

The 26-year-old finished second across the league for total uncontested possessions and fourth for effective disposals per game, all while averaging an impressive 31.5 disposals per game.

After signing a contract to keep him at the Hangar until 2027, Merrett is very much in for the long haul with Ben Rutten's side and will be wanting to capture flag No.17 before his time is up.

15. Patrick Dangerfield

The champion that is Patrick Dangerfield faced a fair bit of adversity this year, with his side starting to show their age after so much time spent up the pointy end of the ladder.

'Danger' only managed 16 games in 2021 - his lowest tally since his debut season - but still put up some strong numbers.

The 31-year-old averaged elite figures of 2.9 centre clearances, 5.3 inside 50s and 1.3 shots at goal per match, exemplifying that despite the Cats' poor performances he was still able to continue his trademark burst out of the centre-circle to set up attacks.

It'll be interesting to see how the Cats go in 2022, however whatever happens you can put your money on Dangerfield still having a substantial say.

14. Travis Boak 

The Power veteran has consistently been delivering for his club for years now and 2021 was no different, with the 33-year-old continuing to strengthen his legacy at Alberton Oval.

Boak had one of his most productive seasons yet at the heart of Ken Hinkley's midfield, finishing second in the club's best and fairest and posting some handy stats.

The Victorian finished eleventh across the entire competition for total clearances and contested possessions, and put up elite numbers for his position in score involvements (6.4 per game) and centre clearances (2.9 per game) - not bad for a player entering his 16th year of AFL footy.

13. Tom Hawkins

The 'Tomahawk' has been at the very pinnacle of elite forwards in the competition for years now and 2021 did nothing to tarnish his reputation.

Although he took a while to find his rhythm, the 33-year-old is now arguably considered to be the best key forward in the competition and, despite his Cats having a disappointing end to the year, showed why he still is so good on his day.

Hawkins finished the year with 62 goals across the year in his 25 matches for Chris Scott's side.

His 2.3 marks on lead per match coupled with being ranked first in the competition for total marks inside 50 shows that once he gets a spot to run into, it's game over for opposition defenders.

12. Toby Greene

Once again, Toby Greene was in the spotlight at times this year for the wrong reasons, however the enigmatic forward never failed to excite both GWS fans and neutrals over the course of the year.

Greene solidified himself as one of the most incredible players to watch in the entire competition with his impressive highlight reel, and the 28-year-old had the stats to back it up.

The Giant averaged 2.5 goals per game - elite numbers for a man of his position - and came second in the league for score involvements per game, showing that he was easily the most productive attacker in Leon Cameron's side by some distance.

Although he will miss the first month of season 2022 after making contact with an umpire in week one of the 2021 finals series, Greene will be chomping at the bit to finally win a maiden premiership that has eluded his club for several seasons now.

11. Touk Miller 

With all the young talent that Gold Coast has at their disposal, their best performer in season 2021 came from a breakout star who had been at the club for six years prior.

The 25-year-old midfielder was inseparable from the Sherrin for the vast majority of the year, finishing with less than 30 disposals on just the four occasions.

Miller also polled top five across the entire league in disposals, effective disposals and tackles per game, highlighting the incredible influence he has had on the Suns throughout 2021.

The fact that he is only 25 and his contract expires at the end of next year means that Gold Coast will have a fight on their hands to keep him considering his Victorian citizenship, however, should they manage to keep him, they'll have an incredible ball-winner to build a strong team around.