Maybe I'm over-reading this, but... the "theme" I saw in the list of the OP was "loudmouth character or controversial big personality" vs "humble steady veteran. "
(Only exception being OBJ v Woods, but before he got here, I thought OBJ was a diva, but now I see him as a great teammate.)
Big controversial personalities? Rodgers, Irvin, Gastineau, Vick, Sapp, Favre... all the guys listed first.
Humble, classy vets? Ryan, Jackson, Bruce, Rice, Donald, Warner..... all the guys listed second.
That's the theme I saw, anyway....