Fresno State Athletics
Bulldogs in the NFL Update
12/21/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
FRESNO, Calif. - We are 15 weeks deep in the NFL season and are closing in on the start of the playoffs. Below is a report updating Red Wavers on the 18 former Bulldogs currently in the NFL.
Two former Bulldogs will be featured in Monday Night Football, as Bear Pascoe and his Detroit Lions will face off against Tyeler Davison and his New Orleans Saints at 5:30 p.m. (Dec. 21).
There are four former Bulldogs currently on NFL teams that have already clinched playoff berths with linebacker Ben Jacobs leading the way with the 14-0 Carolina Panthers. Also already in the playoffs is Davante Adams with the Green Bay Packers, Derron Smith with the Cincinnati Bengals and Ryan Wendell with the New England Patriots.
Last week, ESPN College Football Insider Brett McMurphy reported that Fresno State was one of just five schools with former players starting at quarterback, running back and wide receiver in week 14. The `Dogs were joined by Central Florida, Florida State, Georgia and USC.
UCF, Florida State, Fresno State, Georgia & USC are only schools w/former players starting in NFL's week 14 at QB, RB & WR
— Brett McMurphy (@McMurphyESPN) December 16, 2015
Fresno State's three starters in that group – Derek Carr (Oakland Raiders), Ryan Mathews (Philadelphia Eagles) and Adams (Green Bay Packers) – are responsible for a combined 37 touchdowns this season.
Here is the run-down of the Bulldogs in the NFL:
WR, Davante Adams, Green Bay Packers
Adams played in all 16 games with 11 starts as a rookie in 2014, hauling in 38 receptions for 446 yards (11.7 avg.) and three TDs. He also started both playoff contests and caught eight passes for 124 yards (15.5 avg.) and a TD. This season in 11 games (all starts), he has 43 receptions for 387 yards and one touchdown. Adams caught five passes for 32 yards on Sunday in win at Oakland, pushing the Packers' record up to 10-4 on the season as Green Bay has clinched a playoff berth.
WR, Seyi Ajirotutu, Philadelphia Eagles
Ajirotutu is in his sixth NFL season and first with Philadelphia after spending four of the previous five seasons with the San Diego Chargers. He has played in 69 career games with two starts, catching 25 passes for 424 yards and three touchdowns.
WR, Isaiah Burse, San Diego Chargers
Burse started out the 2015 on the Pittsburgh Steelers practice squad before joining the Chargers practice squad on Nov. 5. He appeared in 12 games as a rookie in 2014 with the Denver Broncos, returning 29 punts for 211 yards (7.3 yards per return).
QB, Derek Carr, Oakland Raiders
In his second season in the NFL as Oakland's starting quarterback, Carr ranks sixth in the NFL with 30 touchdown passes. That total is tied for the second-most touchdown passes in Raider single-season history, four behind Daryle Lamonica's record of 34 set in 1969.
FB, Tyler Clutts, Dallas Cowboys
Clutts is in his fifth NFL season and second full year with the Dallas Cowboys. He has played in 70 career games with 14 starts, including seeing time in all 14 games this year in Dallas with five starts. He caught a touchdown pass against the Green Bay Packers in the 2014 playoffs for the Cowboys.
DT, Tyeler Davison, New Orleans Saints
Davison has played in all 13 games during his rookie seasons with the Saints after being drafted in the fifth round of the NFL Draft. He has started four games this year, recorded 15 tackles and 1.5 sacks on the year.
OT, Bryce Harris, Atlanta Falcons
Harris is in his fourth NFL season and first with the Atlanta Falcons. He was actually signed by the Falcons as a college free agent in April of 2012 coming out of Fresno State, assigned to the Falcons practice squad on Sept. 1, 2012 before being signed by the New Orleans Saints off the Falcons practice squad on Sept. 10, 2012. Harris appeared in 34 games over three seasons with the Saints, making four starts and playing in all 16 games during both the 2013 and 2014 seasons. He has played in one game in 2015 with Atlanta.
LB, Ben Jacobs, Carolina Panthers
Jacobs recorded one tackle in Sunday's win at New York, helping the Panthers push their record up to a perfect 14-0 this season. Jacobs has played in all 14 wins, recording 10 tackles. He is in his fourth NFL season, playing in five games in 2011 with Cleveland and the last three seasons in Carolina. He has appeared in 35 games with 19 career tackles.
TE, Marcel Jensen, Buffalo Bills
Jensen, in his second NFL season, is currently on the practice squad of the Buffalo Bills. He spent the majority of the season on the Atlanta Falcons practice squad, before being waived on Nov. 24. He spent his rookie year on the Jacksonville Jaguars roster, where he played in four games and made one start. He had three receptions for 48 yards as a rookie.
G, Logan Mankins, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The 11-year NFL veteran is in his second season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He has played and started in 159 career games, as well as all 17 postseason contests. He is a six-time Pro Bowl selection (2007, 2009-13) and five-time All-Pro (first-team: 2010, second-team: 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013). He was selected to the New England Patriots All-2000s team and 50th Anniversary team, as he played for the Patriots for nine seasons (2005-13) before joining Tampa Bay. During his tenure with New England, he was a member of teams that won eight AFC East championships (2005-07, 2009-13) and two AFC championships (2007, 2011).
RB, Ryan Mathews, Philadelphia Eagles A former first-round NFL Draft pick, Mathews is in his first season with the Eagles after spending his first five NFL seasons with the San Diego Chargers. This year he has rushed 98 times for 523 yards with a team-high five touchdowns and caught 17 passes for 126 yards and another touchdown.
WR, Marlon Moore, Cleveland Browns
Appeared in 13 games this season for Cleveland, his second year with the Browns and seventh NFL season overall. Moore has played in 69 career games with three starts, catching 25 passes for 388 yards and three touchdowns in his career.
TE, Bear Pascoe, Detroit Lions
Pascoe was signed on Dec. 15 by the Lions, giving him year seven in the NFL. From 2009-13, he appeared in 66 games with 32 starts in his first five NFL seasons with the New York Giants. In 2014, he played in all 16 games with two starts for the Atlanta Falcons. He has 40 career receptions for 336 yards and two touchdowns. Pascoe's Lions play on Monday Night Football (Dec. 21) at the New Orleans Saints.
CB, Curtis Riley, Tennessee Titans
In his rookie season, he is on the injured reserve list with the Tennessee Titans.
S, Derron Smith, Cincinnati Bengals
Smith has played in all 14 games during his rookie season, helping the 11-3 Cincinnati Bengals already clinch a playoff berth. He has recorded two tackles on the year.
OL, Ryan Wendell, New England Patriots
Wendell is in his seventh NFL season, all with the Patriots. He is currently on the injured reserved list after coming off his 2014 season when he started in 12-of-14 games he played in and helped New England win Super Bowl XLIX. He has played in 79 career games with 49 starts.
G, Cody Wichmann, St. Louis Rams A sixth-round draft pick (215th overall), Wichmann has played in 10 games during his rookie year and started the past five games for St. Louis. He has helped block for running back Todd Gurley, who ranks third in the NFL with 1,023 rushing yards this season.
G-T, Kenny Wiggins, San Diego Chargers
A former practice squad player in Baltimore, San Francisco and with the Chargers, Wiggins spent the second half of the 2013 season on the Bolts' active roster, including during the playoffs, but he did not appear in any games. He has had a breakout season in 2015, playing in 12 games for the Chargers and making seven starts.
Feature Story on Kenny Wiggins from ESPN Staff Writer Eric D. Williams: Link
Other Bulldogs in the NFL
DE, Chris Carter - Played in 13 games with the Bengals this season before being waived on Dec. 15. This is his fifth NFL season and he has played in 46 career games with three different teams.
WR, Josh Harper - Signed as an undratfted free agent with the Oakland Raiders on May 8, 2015. Was waived on Sept. 1.
WR, Devon Wylie - Started the season with the Oakland Raiders during the preseason, then was signed to the Atlanta Falcons practice squad on Oct. 27. Was cut from the practice squad of the Falcons on Dec. 15.
"Be Bold" - The official home of the Fresno State Bulldogs is 940 AM ESPN Radio and ESPN Deportes 1600 AM. Purchase your Bulldog football season tickets by calling 559-278-DOGS.
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