If a picture's worth a thousand words, the National Football League's photo catalogue is spectacularly verbose. Over the past century, this game has produced many of the most enduring images in sports, from Jack Lambert's gap-toothed grimace to Pat Tillman's triumphant trot, from Dwight Clark's leaping catch to Odell Beckham's mind-bending snatch. Through the decades, the gridiron has proven to be a shutterbug's paradise, immensely fertile ground for photography.

In honor of the NFL's 100th season, a panel of the top photographers and photo editors in the field have selected the 100 greatest pictures in league history: