As we near the midpoint of the NFL’s regular season, it’s fitting to check in on the University of Wisconsin football team alumni of years past and how they are faring in the professional ranks. The Badgers have produced five draftees across the past two years, but it’s been the veterans who’ve stood out at the next level in 2024.
Zack Baun, a linebacker selected in the third round of the 2020 NFL Draft, leads the Philadelphia Eagles in tackles with 69, which ranks 11th in the NFL. He’s one of two players to have at least 55 tackles with fewer than seven games played. The fifth-year pro has also added two sacks, tying his career high in the category. Baun’s efforts have helped the Eagles start 4-2 while allowing the seventh fewest points per game in the NFL.
Andrew Van Ginkel has had a similar positive impact from the linebacker position for the Minnesota Vikings, being the only player in the NFL with multiple interceptions returned for touchdowns. Drafted a year before Baun, Van Ginkel is in his first season with the Vikings and has already racked up five sacks. His career high is six sacks, which he set in 2023 with the Miami Dolphins. Similarly to Baun, Van Ginkel has his team positioned toward the top of the NFC, as the Vikings boast a 5-2 record.
The return of a friendly face highlighted Week 7 of the NFL regular season, with Russell Wilson making his 2024 debut after sustaining a calf injury leading up to the campaign. Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin received some pushback for turning to Wilson in Week 7 after Justin Fields led the team to a 4-2 record. But, Wilson and Tomlin quieted any critics with a dominant 37-15 win over the Jets.
Pittsburgh’s 37 points were a season high and Wilson threw for 264 yards and two touchdowns while adding another touchdown on the ground. He didn’t turn the ball over in the win. The outing served as a reminder of Wilson’s excellence after a pair of down years in Denver where he logged a quarterback rating of 38.7 and 51.5 — the two worst ratings of his career — respectively.
Wilson isn’t the only former Badger wearing black and gold on Sundays, with the Steelers defense being home to four Wisconsin football alumni. T.J. Watt headlines the group, but Nick Herbig, Keeanu Benton and Isaiahh Loudermilk are also important pieces to the unit. Watt may only have 26 tackles through seven games, but he’s generated 4.5 sacks and has eight tackles for loss. He had a nose for the football in October, forcing three fumbles and defending one pass during his first three games of the month.
In years past, it’s been Watt wrecking games on his lonesome. In 2024, he’s got a fellow game wrecker alongside him in Herbig. Entering his second NFL season, Herbig has generated 2.5 sacks in five games and has teamed up with Watt to pressure the quarterback on multiple occasions. Herbig has also forced and recovered a fumble. But, Herbig hasn’t played since Week 5 due to a hamstring injury. Loudermilk and Benton are part of Pittsburgh’s defensive line rotation and have combined for 22 tackles through eight weeks.
It’s tough to imagine a better start to Leo Chenal’s NFL career. Selected in the third round of the 2022 NFL Draft, he’s won back-to-back Super Bowls with the Chiefs and became an impact player for the team. In 2024, he’s racked up 27 tackles, forced a pair of fumbles and defended three passes. Chenal and the Chiefs are the only undefeated team in the league after eight weeks and are firmly in contention for the NFL’s first three-peat of the Super Bowl era.
There’s also been a pair of Badgers making noise in Chicago, with T.J. Edwards and Jack Sanborn making up a significant portion of the Bears’ linebacking corps. Edwards leads the team in tackles with 32, with a forced and recovered fumble. Sanborn has been quieter, tallying 6 tackles and a sack over 7 games. Though the Bears are in last place in the NFC North, they hold a 4-3 record and appear to be on an upward swing with Caleb Williams under center. The turnaround in Chicago shouldn’t be attributed solely to the arrival of Williams, as the Bears defense hasn’t allowed more than 21 points in 12 straight games.
On the opposite side of the ball, Jonathan Taylor and Dare Ogunbowale have had an up-and-down season. Taylor missed three straight games due to an ankle injury, but he rumbled for 349 yards and four touchdowns during the Indianapolis Colts’ first four contests. He eclipsed 100 rushing yards twice in that four-game stretch and did so again in his return to action Week 8 against Ogunbowale and the Texans.
Ogunbowale may not have the featured role that Taylor does, mixing in primarily on passing downs behind starter Joe Mixon. But, Ogunbowale has made his presence felt, scoring the go-ahead touchdown in Week 4 against the Jaguars and tallying 87 yards from scrimmage in Week 5 while Mixon was sidelined due to injury. Ogunbowale has caught 15 passes for 155 yards on the season and even forced a fumble on special teams.
Jake Ferguson rounds out the batch of former Badgers on offense, and he too has missed some time due to injury. The tight end was idle for the Cowboys Week 2 loss to the New Orleans Saints but has still caught 31 passes for 263 yards through six games in 2024. The third-year pro enjoyed a breakout 2023 campaign in which he logged 71 receptions for 761 yards and five touchdowns, and he has established himself as an above-average tight end in the NFL.
The regular season may be halfway complete but there’s still plenty of opportunities for the Badgers of the NFL to keep shining, and perhaps finish the season hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.
