A look at all 45 Hawkeyes in the NFL

It’s that time of the year, where football season begins to feel like it’s nearing. NFL training camp kicks off over the next week, which means a slew of former Iowa Hawkeyes will be getting back on the practice field with their respective NFL squads. Rookies Lukas Van Ness, Jack Cambell, Sam LaPorta, Riley Moss, Kaevon Merriweather, Seth Benson and Monte Pottebaum will be making their first ever appearances in an NFL training camp.

In all, Iowa has 45 players on NFL rosters, including four players on the Tennessee Titans and three players on seven others teams. There is a former Iowa player on 24 of the 32 (75%) NFL teams. We take a look at all 45 players and check out what is in store for them during the 2023 NFL season.

Arizona Cardinals: WR Brandon Smith

Brandon Smith caught six passes for 118 yards and 1 TD for the Cowboys during the preseason last year, but was released in January. He played with the XFL Defenders this spring and caught eigth passes for 118 yards over four games. That earned him a spot with the Cards for training camp.

Atlanta Falcons: TE Parker Hesse

Iowa is so good with tight ends that they produce them at other positions. A DE in college, Hesse made the move to TE after three years with the Titans. He has caught 14 passes for 132 yards over two seasons with the Falcons. Barring an injury, he is the third string guy behind Kyle Pitts and Jonnu Smith.

BALTIMORE: C Tyler Linderbaum, FS Geno Stone, LB Kristian Welch

After getting drafted in the first round of the 2022 draft, Tyler Linderbaum started 17 games as a rookie and rated as the 6th best center in the league last season per Pro Football Focus. He was fourth in the NFL with an 84.2 run block grade and picked up just six penalties (0.35 per gm). Tyler is already one of the best centers in the entire league and the best in the AFC North.

Geno Stone is entering his fourth year with the team and has played in 32 games with eight starts over the last two years. Stone ranked 28th among all safeties last year and will continue to be a rotational man for the Ravens.

One thing that all Iowa linebackers know how to do is play on special teams. Kristian Welch has played in 43 games over three seasons, with nearly all of his playing time coming on special teams. He played 78% of ST snaps last season for the Ravens.

BUFFALO: FS Micah Hyde, DE AJ Epenesa, OG Ike Boettger

An NFL veteran, Micah Hyde is entering his 11th year in the league and he continues to churn out good season after good season. Hyde was out for the year after just two games last season, but the previous year in 2021, he had his third best season per PFF, with 74 tackles and a career-high tying five interceptions. With 114 starts and 144 games played over ten seasons, Micah Hyde has been a model of consistency when it comes to secondary play in the NFL.

AJ Epenesa was a sack machine at Iowa and is coming off a season where he registered a career-high 6.5 sacks. He also played a career-high 438 defensive snaps, with 67.6% of them coming on passing plays. The Bills have a good DE group, but AJE should continue to see snaps.

Ike Boettger is entering his sixth season with the Bills. He started 17 games over the course of two seasons from 2020 -2021, but an achilles injury late in the ’21 season forced him to miss all but one game last season. Ryan Bates started in place of Boettger, but the Bills also drafted O’Cyrus Torrence, so his place on the depth chart is up in the air.

CAROLINA: CB Greg Maybin

Greg Mabin has made his rounds in the NFL over his six-year career. He has played in a combined 45 games for five different teams and will now join the Panthers for 2023. Last season for the Titans, Mabin made 13 tackles over six games. He is currently listed as a projected third-string CB.

CHICAGO: CB Michael Ojemudia

After appearing in 16 games with 11 starts in his rookie season for the Broncos, Ojemudia has played in just six games over the last two seasons. He didn’t grade real well on PFF for his rookie season and that coupled with a few injuries could be why he projected to be on the bottom end of the Bears DB depth chart.

DALLAS: DT Chauncey Golston

Golston has seen action in 30 games over two years (54 tkls) with the Cowboys. Chauncey was last amongst the four interior DL on the team in snaps (278), but PFF gave him the best pass rush grade (72.5) and best overall grade (69.3). How he performs in the preseason could be a big factor in where he lands on the depth chart.

DENVER: LB Josey Jewell, CB Riley Moss, LB Seth Benson

Enetering his sixth year with the Broncos, Josey Jewell is coming off of his best season despite playing in just 13 of 17 games. He averaged 9.85 tkls per game and was graded as the #27 LB in the league. If he can play every game, Josey will easily have another 120 tackle season.

Riley Moss was one of the best corners in college football over his last two seasons at Iowa. Last season, 47 tkls, 11 PBU’s and an INT on top of his breakout 2021 season landed Moss as a second round pick. Pat Surtain controls CB1, so it will be Moss and Damarri Mathis battling for the CB2 spot.

A UDFA signing by the Broncos, Seth Benson had 196 tkls over his last two years at Iowa. He is projected to be near the bottom of the Denver LB depth chart, but do not be shocked if he does well in the preseason and becomes a potential ST player.

DETROIT: LB Jack Campbell, TE Sam LaPorta, OT Matt Nelson

No way around it, Jack Campbell and Sam LaPorta will be starters for the Lions this season. Campbell was a first round pick after being named Big Ten DPOY and he will start at MLB. LaPorta caught 58 passes last year and could be the next TJ Hockenson for the Lions.

Matt Nelson was a defensive lineman at Iowa, but has since moved to OT in the NFL with Detroit. He started 11 games in 2021, but had his spot taken by Penei Sewell last season and got just 70 snaps over 11 games.

GREEN BAY: DE Lukas Van Ness, RB Tyler Goodson

Lukas Van Ness had 19 tfl’s and 13 sks over two years with Iowa, which got him selected in the first round of the NFL draft by the Packers. He is projected to be the second-string LOLB, but guys don’t get drafted in the first round to sit the bench. Van Ness will see the field this season.

As a rookie last year, Tyler Goodson rushed for 107 yards on 29 carries during the preseason, but spent the regular season on the practice squad. This years preseason will be another chance to turn some heads in the Packers front office.

HOUSTON: CB Desmond King II, LB Christian Kirksey

Desmond King II is entering his seventh year in the league and has been a solid player for a couple of different teams. King has started 53 games for three teams, as both a NB and a punt returner. He logged 89 tkls last season and was rated as the #20 CB in the NFL. King will be the leader of the Houston secondary again in 2023.

Christian Kirksey has been a good LB in the NFL for nearly a decade, as he enters his tenth season in the league. Kirksey has logged 75+ tkls in six seasons and 100+ tkls three times. His 78,1 pass rush grade was 7th best. The Texans signed Denzel Perryman in the offseason, so Kirksey will have to battle for a starting spot.

JACKSONVILLE: OG Brandon Scherff, QB CJ Beathard, OT Coy Cronk

Brandon Scherff is entering his ninth year in the league and his second with the Jags. He graded as a top 20 OG in each of his first seven seasons, including 4th in 2020, but is looking to bounce back after falling to 43rd/77 last year. Scherff is a five-time Pro Bowl selection.

CJ Beathard is entering his sixth year in the league and third with the Jaguars. He has had a respectable career, starting 12 games over five seasons as a backup QB with 3537 yards and 18 TD’s. Being an NFL backup QB isn’t a bad way to collect a paycheck and he must be ready just in case of an injury to Trevor Lawrence.

Coy Cronk spent the majority of his rookie season with Jacksonville on the practice squad. He is the projected second-string LT behind Walker Little.

KANSAS CITY: WR Ihmir Smith-Marsette

Smith-Marsette started his career with the Vikings in 2021 and had five catches for 116 yds and 2 TD’s, but was waived prior to last season. He was active for six games last year with Chicago, but fumbled on his only catch of the year and was waived. The Chiefs picked him up and he spent the majority of the end of the year on the practice squad.

LA CHARGERS: LB Nick Niemann

Brother of Titan Ben Niemann, Nick is entering his third year in the league with the Chargers. He has played in 34 games over two years, but has almost exclusively been on special teams, where he has racked up 25 tackles. He is projected to be second-string at ILB behind Kenneth Murray and Eric Kendricks, so expect him to be a ST player again.

LA RAMS: OT Alaric Jackson, LB Zach VanValkenburg

Alaric Jackson enters his third season with the Rams and was a starter last season, until issues with blood clots sidelined him after just eight games. Jackson will battle Joe Noteboom for the starting LT spot this year.

Zach VanValkenburg recorded at least one tackle in each preseason game, including one sack for the Raiders last season, but he was released from the practice squad and signed by the Rams. He will be battling for a roster spot in the preseason.

MINNESOTA: TE TJ Hockenson

TJ Hockenson has been a productive tight end in all four of his seasons in the league, including two Pro Bowl selections, but was traded from the Lions to the Vikings midway through last season. He averaged six catches per game in ten games for Minnesota and was graded by PFF (73.2) as a top ten TE in the league. He was also tagged with just three drops (4.1%) with Minnesota. If last year was any indication (8.6 tgt per gm), the Vikings will use Hockenson a liberal amount.

NEW ORLEANS: DT Jack Heflin

Jack Heflin is entering his third year in the league and was signed by the New Orleans Saints over the offseason. He spent his first year with the Packers and second year with the Giants and was primarily a practice squad player. Heflin has appeared in five games for 40 snaps in his career.

NY GIANTS: LS Casey Kreiter, S Dane Belton

Casey Kreiter is entering his eighth year in the league and has quietly played in 108 games as a longsnapper for the Broncos and Giants. He was a Pro Bowl selection in 2018 and has played in every game for the last six seasons.

As a rookie last season, Dane Belton appeared in 15 games with five starts for the Giants. He racked up 31 tackles and two interceptions, but graded the worst out of the four safeties on the team. The hope is that he can make a jump in his second year and continue to be part of the safety rotation.

PITTSBURGH: OL James Daniels, FB Monte Pottebaum

After spending his first four years in the league with the Bears, James Daniels started every game on the Steelers offensive line last season. He graded as the #24 OG in the league and was top 20 in pass blocking. Daniels has made 65 starts over five seasons and is projected to once again be one of the better guards in the league.

An undrafted free agent after last draft, Monte Pottebaum was picked up by the Steelers and will be the second-string fullback in his rookie season. He played in 45 games at Iowa, as mostly a blocker, but finished with 167 total yards and 30 touches in his career.

SEATTLE: TE Noah Fant

The other Iowa tight end drafted in the first round of the 2019 draft, Fant gets overshadowed a bit because of how good Hockenson and Kittle have been. Fant has caught 220 passes (55 per yr) and 14 TD’s over four seasons with the Broncos and Seahawks. He saw the most snaps of the TE trio in Seattle last year, but will likely still split time with Dissly and Parkinson.

SAN FRANCISCO: TE George Kittle

The leader of Iowa’s TEU group in the NFL has been one of the best in the league since he stepped on the field in 2017. Kittle is a four-time Pro Bowl selection and has accumulated over 5000 yards on 395 catches over six seasons with the 49ers. Last season, Kittle graded as the #2 overall TE (84.7) in the NFL behind Travis Kelce, with the #2 receiving grade and #4 run blocking grade. George will once again be one of the best this season.

TAMPA BAY: OT Tristan Wirfs, LB Anthony Nelson, S Kaevon Merriweather

Tristan Wirfs is entering his fourth year in the league and has started every game he has played in with the Bucs. Despite missing four games last season, Wirfs still graded as the #7 OT in the NFL and has been in the top ten at his position in all three years. He is a two-time Pro Bowl selection and if he stays on his current pace, he will rack up many more of those in his career.

Anthony Nelson has been a nice rotational piece for the Buccaneers the last couple of seasons and last year, he had career-highs in tackles (46), sacks (5.5) and forced fumbles (3). An injury to Shaq Barrett helped him get more snaps, but Nelson should continue to see a decent amount of snaps this season.

Kaevon Merriweather saw his playing time increase significantly over the course of his Iowa career, as he finally became a full-time starter last season. He totaled 47 tackles and three interceptions, which got him a UDFA signing with Tampa Bay. He is projected to start his rookie year as FS3 behind Antoine Winfield Jr and Nolan Turner.

TENNESSEE: S Amani Hooker, K Caleb Shudak, LB Ben Niemann, DT Jaleel Johnson

Amani Hooker is entering his fifth season with the Titans and is looking for some better luck on the injury front this season. He has started all 21 games he has played in the last two seasons, but injuries to his foot, shoulder and knee have forced him to miss time. When he is healthy he can be one of the best in the league, as he was graded as the #3 FS in the league in 2021. Hooker has 179 career tackles and 6 INT’s.

Caleb Shudak appeared in one game as a rookie last season, making three of four field goals and one PAT against the Bengals. The Titans released Randy Bullock in February, so Shudak moves into the starting role this season.

A free agent pickup this offseason, Niemann spent four years with KC and last year with Arizona, as a part-time starter/rotation player. His last three seasons with the Chiefs he averaged 52.3 tackles per season, but had a career-high nine starts and 70 tackles with the Cardinals last year. Niemann was graded as the #28 LB in the league and will push Monty Rice for the starting LILB spot.

After spending four years with the Vikings, Jaleel Johnson has bounced around now to his fourth team in two years. He made 16 starts in 2020 with Minnesota (44 tkls), but has just one start and 21 games in the last two years.