A comprehensive guide of Spartans in the NFL

We will always love our Spartans – even once they leave the green and white. Now that the NFL season is in full swing, check in with some of your favorite former Spartans who are killing it in the big leagues.

Jack Allen

A four year starter for the Spartans, this versatile offensive lineman is signed a three year deal with the New Orleans Saints in May 2016. While he played in all of the preseason games, he has yet to see the field during the regular season. He may not get a lot of field time his rookie season, but will be an asset to the Saints moving forward with his ability to play just about anywhere on the O-line.

Le’Veon Bell

Coming off of a three game suspension to start the season, you may expect a running back to be sluggish. Not Bell. In his first game back, Le’Veon rushed for 144 yards and caught 5-6 pass attempts for 34 receiving yards. Drafted in 2013 by the Steelers he has put up reputable numbers the last three years despite battling injury, and will likely be a driving force behind Pittsburgh’s success this season.

In non-football news: Bell is also developing a successful rap career.

Max Bullough

Currently acting as the Texans’ backup middle linebacker, Bullough has had a very respectable season so far. Max, drafted in 2014, has put up 13 total tackles, 10 solo, through the first four games. He is questionable for this weekend’s game against the Vikings as he did not practice on Thursday due to illness.

Aaron Burbridge

This year the 49ers only kept five wide receivers on their initial roster; rookie Burbridge earned himself one of those spots. While he has seen the field in all four of San Fran’s games so far, he only has one reception on the season. But this is not discredit to Aaron. Not only is he battling for an exclusive position, the niners quarterback situation is a bit turbulent. On the other side of the line, Burbridge also has a tackle on a special teams play. As the season progresses, expect to see more from this Antonio Brown-esque receiver.

Shilique Calhoun

Drafted this year by the Raiders, Calhoun has played in all four of the team’s games this season. So far he has put up a tackle assist and a half sack. As he earns more play time throughout the season, I’d expect these numbers to go up.

 

Garrett Celek

Drafted in 2012, Celek has proved himself as a tight end to be reckoned with. In February, the 49ers signed him to a four year extension. Playing in all four of San Fransisco’s games this season, Garrett has had 10 receptions for 131 yards. Last year, he played in 11 games and had 196 yards; this year he will undoubtedly surpass those stats.

Donovan Clark

Donovan got drafted this year by the Chargers despite many projections of free agency. After finding a spot as a backup offensive guard during training camp in San Diego, he sadly tore his ACL in a preseason game against the Cardinals and is projected to be out the remainder of the season.

Connor Cook

Cook was drafted to the Raiders this year and is currently playing behind two experienced quarterbacks. While he has yet to see any regular season field time, he played in all of Oakland’s preseason games and threw 31-56 for 368 yards over the course of the four games.

 

Jack Conklin

The Spartans’ highest drafted player last year, Jack went to the Titans and settled in immediately as their starting right tackle. He has started all four games for Tennessee this season and has solidified his role as a key offensive lineman. Expect continued success in upcoming games from this Spartan dawg.

Kirk Cousins

Perhaps one of the best Cinderella stories of Spartans/NFL history, Kirk Cousins went from sitting behind an arguably very good quarterback, RGIII, to commanding his team. Watching Kirk grow into the professional QB that Spartan nation knew he could be was amazing. So far this season, he has thrown for 1,172 yards and 6 touchdowns.

His best game thus far was against the Browns last week when he went 21-27 and finished with a passer rating of 116.5. Assuming Kirk can tie down a long term deal next year, he undoubtedly has one of the highest success trajectories out of all the Spartans in the NFL.

Darqueze Dennard

Being with the Bengals since 2014, Dennard has been an impressive cornerback in the NFL. Despite battling a shoulder injury that left him on the bench for a good portion of last season and the first game of this year, he has already bounced back. Tallying 10 tackles, eight solo, so far this season, Darqueze is maintaining the No Fly Zone legacy.

Kurtis Drummond

While Kurtis had a good rookie season with the Texans last season, this year hasn’t been as fruitful. Playing in only two of their preseason games and none of the regular season, it will be interesting to see how this young safety fairs this year.

Bennie Fowler

After playing every game for the Broncos last year, he suffered an elbow injury during practice this summer and missed the first two regular season games. Getting back in the swing of things, he has had one reception so far this season. Bennie has potential to be great though, especially considering the super bowl ring he has under his belt, and the fact that he caught the last pass ever thrown by Peyton Manning.

Will Gholston

Having played for the Buccaneers since 2013, Gholston has developed into a dependable defensive end. He’s played all four games so far this season and has wracked up 10 solo tackles – 12 total – as well as half a sack.

Joel Heath

Another of the collection of Spartans on the Texans, Joel has had a respectable rookie season so far. While he has only played one game so far, he did tally a tackle in it. He is a strong player who will fit in great at Houston as he continues to develop.

Brian Hoyer

Hoyer has a lot of league experience. He has played behind and started for a variety of good players and teams. After having a great regular season playing for the Texans last year, his playoff performance left him without a team. Luckily for the Bears, they picked him up. After Cutler went down with a thumb injury two weeks ago, Hoyer once again got to step up and prove how strong of a quarterback he is. Going 28-36 and throwing for 302 yards last week, he led the previously winless Bears to a W over the Lions. Rumor has it, even once Cutler is healthy, Brian may get to keep the starting spot.

 

Jeremy Langford

As a rookie last season, Jeremy was able to capitalize on a injury to Matt Forte to earn him a spot as the top running back for the Chicago Bears. Chicago had so much faith in him, they didn’t bother re-signing Forte this year. Sadly, Langford suffered a severely sprained ankle during the third game of the season. While he put up great stats (116 rushing and 27 receiving yards) in the first 2.5 games that he played, he will have to fight back to earn his starting role as rookie Howard stepped up in his absence last week.

Tony Lippett

When he got drafted to the Dolphins, Tony switched from his college role of wide receiver to play cornerback for Miami. So far in his second season, he has seen the field in each of the first four games, picking up 6 total tackles and 2 passes defended. A player as versatile as Lippett is likely to be successful moving forward in the league as he proved during his time with the Spartans.

Keith Mumphery

Keith had a great rookie season playing for the Texans, but this year has proved a bit more challenging. With rookie B1G rival Braxton Miller joining Houston this season, Mumphery has stiff competition in the role as receiver. Hopefully we can see Keith earn some playing time this year.

Domata Peko

Peko has been a powerhouse defensive tackle for the Bengals since 2006. For the past nine years Domata has started every game that he has been healthy for. So far this season he has started every game, tallying 7 solo and 14 total tackles, as well as a pass defended. He is undoubtedly one of the more successful Spartans in the league.

Marcus Rush

While he has yet to play a snap for the 49ers, Rush is a young, powerful linebacker that could be very useful for San Francisco. He’s been playing very well on the practice squad, and the niners defensive coordinator says that he will be “shocked” if Rush remains on the practice squad the whole season.

Dion Sims

In his fourth season with the Dolphins, Sims has proved himself a reliable tight end. This season he has 6 receptions for 76 yards. His best game so far came against the Browns when he 4 catches for 46 yards.

Drew Stanton

Another to add to the list of experienced Spartans in the league, Drew Stanton is now playing behind Carson Palmer on the Cardinals. After Palmer went down with a concussion against the Rams, Stanton got to step into the starting position. While his completion percentage was not the best, he did throw for two touchdowns and zero interceptions. While Stanton may not bump Palmer out of his position long-term, he is more than capable of filling in.

Lawrence Thomas

After earning a spot as a Jets defensive end, Thomas delivered in the first few games, with four total tackles and a stuff. Sadly he tore his labrum (shoulder) last week and has now been placed on injured reserve.

Trae Waynes

He’s undoubtedly lived up to the hype. So far in his second season with the Vikings he has been insanely impressive. In their first game against the Rams, he had 10 solo tackles, a team high. Since then he’s added another eight total tackles, and two picks – one against Aaron Rodgers and one against Cam Newton.

Jerel Worthy

This defensive tackle now plays for the Buffalo Bills and has improved considerably since last season. He has already played more games this season (four) than he did all of 2015 (two). On top of that, he’s also tallied four tackles. It will be exciting to see where the rest of 2016 takes him.