As the NFL kicks off on Thursday night, it is time to look at what the Illinois football team will have on the field at the next level.
The narrative that the Illini can’t put players into the NFL needs to be put to bed. Entering the 2025 season, there are more Illinois players in the NFL right now than I have ever seen before.
On active NFL rosters, according to ESPN, there are a total of 23 former Illini players either on the first, second, or third strings.
A more eye-opening number lands in the first string. It is hard to just make an NFL roster, let alone start for a franchise. Illinois has a total of 11 players who are currently projected to be on the first string of an NFL team this season.
Think about that for a second. 11 starters for NFL teams are coming from the Illinois football program. So, if you add up the offensive and defensive starters, plus the kicker and punter, that is 768 starters in the NFL. Illinois has 1.4% of all NFL starters.
1st String | 2nd String | 3rd String | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
RG Isaiah Adams | Arizona Cardinals | WR Casey Washington | Atlanta Falcons | TE Tip Reiman | Arizona Cardinals |
RB Chase Brown | Cincinnati Bengals | WR Pat Bryant | Denver Broncos | C Doug Kramer | Chicago Bears |
C Teddy Karras | Cincinnati Bengals | LG Alex Palczewski | Denver Broncos | QB Tommy DeVito | New England Patriots |
FS Kerby Joseph | Detroit Lions | LB Jake Hansen | Houston Texans | ||
CB Nate Hobbs | Green Bay Packers | DE Dawuane Smoot | Jacksonville Jaguars | ||
SS Tony Adams | New York Jets | ILB Del'Shawn Phillips | Los Angeles Chargers | ||
FS Sydney Brown | Philadelphia Eagles | LT Vederian Lowe | New England Patriots | ||
NB Devon Witherspoon | Seattle Seahawks | LB Jihad Ward | Tennessee Titans | ||
K Chase McLaughlin | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | DT Jer'Zhan Newton | Washington Commanders | ||
RG Nick Allegretti | Washington Commanders | ||||
FS Quan Martin | Washington Commanders |
You also have 17 different NFL teams represented by Illinois players. That is a nice spread of talent across the most famous sport in the world.
The first Illinois player up for the 2025 season is Sydney Brown. He is starting at free safety for the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday night football against the Dallas Cowboys.
There are some serious Super Bowl hopes for former Illinois football players
The Super Bowl is the pinnacle of the NFL, and Illinois players have had plenty of experience with the Lombardi Trophy. Starters Teddy Karras, Sydney Brown, and Nick Allegretti have all hoisted the coveted prize.
Entering the 2025 season, plenty of former Illini are looking to get their hands on the title as well. Chase Brown has a chance to get there, along with Karras, with the Cincinnati Bengals. Kerby Joseph will help lead a talented Detroit Lions team.
Who will win the Super Bowl? We will know months from now. The only thing I can guarantee right now is that Illinois has a 53.1% chance of having a player on the winning roster. Those are pretty good odds.