RENTON, Wash. -- Defensive end Cliff Avril, who had eight sacks last season and forced five fumbles, is the fifth Seattle Seahawks player to make ESPN.com’s countdown of the top 100 NFL players on offense and defense.

Avril, 28, checks in a No. 57. He was everything the Seahawks hoped he would be in his first season in Seattle. Avril (6-foot-3, 260 pounds) came off the bench as a pass-rush specialist, consistently disrupting the opposing team’s passing game.

Avril’s initial step off the edge is as quick as any player in the league, but his specialty is his ability to slap the ball out of the quarterback’s hands.

ESPN Stats & Information says Avril was one of two defensive ends last season with at least five sacks and five forced fumbles. The other was St. Louis defensive end Robert Quinn.

Including the postseason, the only player with more forced fumbles over the past three seasons than Avril (15) is Chicago Bears cornerback Charles Tillman (17).

The other four Seahawks who appeared on the countdown were defensive tackle Brandon Mebane (No. 94), linebacker/defensive end Bruce Irvin (No. 87), center Max Unger (No. 84) and offensive tackle Russell Okung (No. 65).