Wisconsin's 2018 football season is right around the corner, so BadgerBlitz.com contributors Jon McNamara, John Veldhuis, Jon Gorman and Jonathan Mills ranked the Top 30 players who we think are the keys to success for Paul Chryst's squad this year.

Playing time, past performance and positional depth all factored in to our individual rankings, which were combined into a final score.

30: CHRIS JAMES / 29: ANTHONY LOTTI / 28: JAKE FERGUSON / 27: ALEC INGOLD / 26: BRYSON WILLIAMS / 25: MADISON CONE / 24: RAFAEL GAGLIANONE / 23: BEAU BENZSCHAWEL / 22: AARON VOPAL / 21: SCOTT NELSON / 20: CAESAR WILLIAMS / 19: TYLER BIADASZ / 18: KYLE PENNISTON

It seems a little hard to believe that A.J. Taylor will be a junior in 2018, but he's primed to be a big part of Wisconsin's passing offense this fall after he finished the 2017 season on a high note. His eight catches for 105 yards (with one touchdown) helped power the Badgers to their win over Miami in the Orange Bowl, and he has a chance to be a strong complement to No. 1 wide receiver Quintez Cephus this year.

Taylor got plenty of chances to hone his craft during spring camp, too. A rash of injuries (including some nagging ones from the end of the season) meant that Taylor was one of just a handful of healthy receivers - and the only one who saw significant playing time in 2017. Taylor soaked up those extra reps and got to spend plenty of time working with quarterback Alex Hornibrook, so we'll see if that extra practice time will help both players take their games to the next level.

In fact, I think you can make a solid case that Taylor could wind up leading the team in catches this fall. Hornibrook looked for Taylor in some tight spaces last year, and Taylor is proving that he can be trusted to reel those balls in over the middle of the field. Quintez Cephus is almost sure to draw a lot of attention from opposing defenses, and that could open things up for Taylor to take his game to another level during his junior season.

Another wide receiver, this player added a new dimension to Wisconsin's offense in his first year as a significant contributor.

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John Veldhuis covers Wisconsin football, basketball and recruiting for BadgerBlitz.com on the Rivals.com network. Follow him on Twitter at @JohnVeldhuis.