5 Notable NFL Oregon College Alumni

The 2016 Draft is this Thursday, and football fans will be watching closely to see what new rising star will find themselves on what team. With no official NFL team in Oregon, fans in the Portland area may be divisive on where their allegiances lie. So let’s come together and remember which previous draft picks came from one of the state’s big football schools. Be them a Duck or a Beaver, here are five notable players currently in the NFL that were drafted out of an Oregon school and how they fared last season, according to espn.com.

LeGarrette Blount- RB, New England Patriots
University of Oregon

Blount became a Duck in his junior year of college, quickly landing on some NFL teams’ radars. He was drafted by the Tennessee Titans and played with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers before becoming a Patriot (a short stint with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2014 notwithstanding). Blount racked up 703 rushing yards and 6 rushing touchdowns in 12 games last season, before a hip injury in December left him watching from the bench. He will return with New England for the 2016 season, his seventh overall.

Brandin Cooks- WR, New Orleans Saints
Oregon State University

Cooks played for OSU before heading down to the Big Easy, where he and current Pittsburgh Steeler Markus Wheaton were a formidable pair. After being drafted by the Saints in 2014, he broke his thumb mid-game and was out for the rest of the season. Last year, he racked up 1,138 total receiving yards and 9 receiving touchdowns. He will return this year for his third consecutive season with New Orleans.

Marcus Mariota- QB, Tennessee Titans
University of Oregon

Considering Mariota was the first Duck in school history to finish a season with more than 4,000 total offensive yards and to win a Heisman Trophy, it was hardly shocking that he’d be one of the most sought-after quarterbacks for the 2015 draft. He was quickly swept up by the Titans after Tampa Bay used their first-round pick on current quarterback Jameis Winston. For his first NFL season, he had 2,818 passing yards with 19 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He will look to boost those numbers when he returns with Tennessee this season.

Jonathan Stewart- RB, Carolina Panthers
University of Oregon

Stewart played three seasons as a Duck before being selected in the 2008 Draft by the Carolina Panthers, with whom he now enters his ninth season. He had 989 rushing yards and 6 touchdowns last year, as well as one additional receiving touchdown. He missed the last three regular season games due to a foot injury, but was back postseason and went to the Super Bowl. Though Carolina fell to Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos, Stewart still rushed for 29 yards and scored a touchdown.


Markus Wheaton- WR, Pittsburgh Steelers
Oregon State University

Wheaton played four seasons as a Beaver before being selected by the Steelers in the 2013 Draft. Last year’s regular season saw him finish 44 receptions for 749 yards and 5 touchdowns. He racked up an additional 53 yards in the postseason before Pittsburgh fell to the Broncos, but no touchdowns. He will return this year with the Steelers for his fourth consecutive season.