Skip to main content
texas logo

Vernon Broughton picked by New Orleans in the third round of the NFL Draft

by:keenanwomack•about 22 hours
Vernon Broughton
Vernon Broughton (Will Gallagher/Inside Texas)

Longhorns defensive tackle Vernon Broughton, a 6-foot-5, 290-pound senior that recorded 39 tackles, four sacks, and two forced fumbles last season, has been selected in round three by the New Orleans Saints in the 2025 NFL Draft. 

[Join Inside Texas TODAY and get FOUR MONTHS for just ONE DOLLAR!]

After being a rotational defensive linemen for the four three seasons, Broughton came into his own in his senior campaign, helping to anchor a unit that ranked top five in several crucial categories including opponent rushing average, where they gave up just 3.2 yards per attempt. Texas ranked 12th nationally in both that area as well as in opponent total rush yards per game at 109.9. 

Coming out of Cy Ridge in Houston, Broughton was a four-star recruit according to the On3 Industry Ranking, and became a member of a very special class of players that helped turn a once-struggling Texas Longhorns program into a competitive one by the end of his collegiate career. 

The On3 Industry Ranking had him as the 116th-ranked player in the country, the 16th-ranked defensive lineman, and the 14th-ranked player in the state when he committed to Texas on July 17 of 2019. He played in the 2020 Under Armour All-America Game, and was a finalist for the 2019 Watkins Award for African-American high school scholar athletes. 

Broughton redshirted his freshman season in 2020, playing in just two games, but played in 54 games over the next four seasons, where he totaled 70 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, and 6.5 sacks for his career. 

Broughton provided not only solid play on the field, but scholarly excellence off of it, as he was named to the Academic All-Big 12 First Team in 2021. He was the Big 12 Comissioner’s Honor Roll in fall of 2020, spring of 2021, and spring of 2022. 

[Order THE LONGHORN ALPHABET today and teach your little ones the A to Z’s of Texas Football!]

He had strong showings throughout the season, including versus Georgia in the SEC Title Game (six tackles) and against Texas A&M in the Lone Star Showdown (four tackles, two tackles for loss, two sacks, two hurries, and a crucial fumble recovery). 

You may also like