How Many Former Arizona Wildcats in the NFL Can You Name?

The 2015 NFL Draft is a upon us beginning on Thursday April 30th and running through Saturday May 2nd, we thought we would remind you of all of our Former Arizona Wildcats already playing in the NFL.

We gathered the following information from ESPN and Scout.com on the current players in the NFL.  We have found 14 notable players and will keep digging.  How many can you name?

Who has played the longest in the NFL? The top four longest NFL careers currently are former Chicago Bears linebacker and now Free Agent Lance Briggs who has played the most seasons (12), then there’s New York Jets Nick Folk who has played nine seasons, after that comes Antoine Cason with seven, and Rob Gronkowski (6), the remaining 10 have played five seasons or less.

(Note: Tackles and Outside Linebackers such as Chicago Bears Ebon Britton (5 seasons, drafted 39 overall) are not listed, we will update as we find more information)

The Three most notable players are QB Nick Foles who just got traded by Chip Kelly from Philadelphia to St. Louis (and this sports writer hopes eventually Los Angeles), Superbowl Champion Tight End and party king Rob Gronkowski and Lance Briggs who appeared in Super Bowl XLI.

Lance Briggs is active on Twitter, you can follow him at @LanceBriggs.  Lance and the Chicago Bears parted ways after his contract was up last season.

So Briggs is a Free Agent and is visiting teams as mentioned in a post on Rotoworld.com, “The 49ers are looking to upgrade their linebacker depth after losing Patrick Willis and Chris Borland to retirement. 34-year-old Briggs has struggled with injuries and effectiveness the last two seasons, but could benefit from moving inside in San Francisco. The Bucs and Cowboys also have interest in Briggs. Mar 28 – 2:37 PM”

Feb 1, 2015; Glendale, AZ, USA; New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski celebrates with the Vince Lombardi trophy following the game against the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XLIX at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Ask Any Wildcat fan who the most famous Arizona Wildcat playing in the NFL is and they will say “The Gronk!” Rob “The Gronk” Gronkowski has earned a lot of notariaty for his greatness on the field and his antics off the field. Its hard not to adore him.  You can follow Rob on Twitter at @RobGronkowski.  Gronkowski has earned a number of records, the following is the list according to Wikipedia.com:

NFL records

• Youngest player with 3 touchdown receptions in a game: 21 years, 214 days (2010, vs. Pittsburgh Steelers)
• Youngest player with 3 touchdown receptions in a game, playoffs: 22 years, 275 days (2011 playoffs, vs. Denver Broncos)
• Most touchdown receptions by a tight end, season: 17 (2011)
• Most touchdowns by a tight end, season: 18 (2011)
• First tight end to lead the league in receiving touchdowns (2011)
• Most receiving yards by a tight end, season: 1,327 (2011)
• Most offensive touchdowns in first two seasons: 28 (Tied with Randy Moss)
• Seasons with 10+ touchdowns by a tight end, 4 (2010-2012,2014) (Tied with Antonio Gates)
• Consecutive seasons with 10+ touchdowns by a tight end, 3 (2010-2012)

Patriots franchise records

• Highest receiving yards per game average for a Tight end (season): 82.9 (2011)
• Youngest Patriot with 3 touchdown receptions in a game: 21 years, 214 days (2010, vs. Pittsburgh Steelers)
• Youngest Patriot with 3 touchdown receptions in a game, playoffs: 22 years, 275 days (2011 playoffs, vs. Denver Broncos

Nick Foles 2013 season was epic, he threw seven completed passes for touchdowns without an interception in one NFL Game against the Oakland Raiders.  He is one of only three quarterbacks to have this stat on their record.

According to USA Today’s Nick Schwartz, “Foles’ historic performance has already been recognized at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, where his jersey and a game ball he used to throw his seventh touchdown now sit beside a Peyton Manning jersey.”

In week 9 of the 2014 season, Nick Foles suffered a broken collarbone against the Houston Texans, this injury ended his season.  As far as we know, he is healthy once again and ready to throw more touchdowns for the St. Louis Rams who are in the middle of a stadium controversy and could be moving to Los Angeles if the owner has his way.

According to Sam Farmer and Roger Vincent of the LA Times, “Rams owner Stan Kroenke, who bought 60 acres adjacent to the Forum a year ago, has joined forces with the owners of the 238-acre Hollywood Park site, Stockbridge Capital Group. They plan to add an 80,000-seat NFL stadium and 6,000-seat performance venue to the already-massive development of retail, office, hotel and residential space, Stockbridge and the Kroenke Group told The Times.”

If this eventually does happen, Arizona Wildcat fans in Los Angeles and Orange County will be able to easily travel locally to go and cheer on Nick Foles if all goes well. There are a lot of “ifs” though, if the Rams come to Los Angeles, if the stadium can start construction soon, if the NFL is okay with it, if Nick Foles stays healthy and if the Rams keep Nick Foles as their QB.  But we are hopeful!

You can follow Nick Foles on Twitter at @NFoles_9.

Please let us know if we missed anyone.

BEARDOWN ARIZONA!

Next: Which Former Arizona Wildcat just scored at the buzzer to help his team alive in the NBA Playoffs?