With approximately 250 players on active NFL rosters or practice squads each Sunday, there are numerous NFLPA Collegiate Bowl standouts every week around the league. The NFLPA Collegiate Bowl, known for being the most diverse all-star game on the NFL Draft circuit has announced the 11th annual event will be held on Saturday, January 28th, 2023, and will air on NFL Network. While we await the next class to be announced, here’s a look at some of the notable alumni who made an impact in NFL week ten action!
Marquez Valdes-Scantling
Patience is a virtue when playing with Patrick Mahomes. The Kansas City Chiefs quarterback shows no favoritism and tends to get all his wideouts involved, which was on display once again this past week, as he connected with nine different pass-catchers. NFLPA Bowl alumni Marcus Valdes Scantling, much like most of his career coming out of USF, was sure to maximize his opportunities on Sunday, nabbing three of his four targets for 60 receiving yards and his first touchdown in a Chiefs uniform. After inking a three-year, $30M contract during the offseason, ‘MVS’ has proven to be one of the more shrewd free agent signings, as he is third on the team in receptions (26) and receiving yards (441), while averaging an impressive 17 yards per catch!
Kendall Hinton
One NFLPA Bowl pro who hinted success was in his near future is Denver Broncos wideout Kendall Hinton, who had a season-high four catches this past week, for 62 receiving yards. Halfway through the season, the former Wake Forest quarterback needs just five yards to match last year’s total of 175 receiving yards. Hinton has shown vast development due to his hard work and dedication, hence his snap count has also nearly doubled, as he has played in 45% of the Broncos snaps on offense. While the Denver hosts the Las Vegas Raiders this week, next week, Hinton will be back home in front of his hometown, as the Broncos travel to the Carolina Panthers for Thanksgiving weekend.
Jake Hansen
When linebacker Jake Hansen went undrafted following the 2022 NFL Draft, he figured signing with the Houston Texans would be his best landing spot. After all, Texans head coach Lovie Smith was Hansen’s coach at Illinois. That decision has begun to pay dividends, as Hansen saw action for the second consecutive week, accumulating 17 snaps at linebacker and 11 reps on special teams, while picking up a pair of tackles against the New York Giants. Hansen very well appears to be part of the youth movement going on in Houston, which has one of the youngest rosters in the NFL and fielded 10 rookies on Sunday.
Frankie Luvu
Carolina Panthers linebacker Frankie Luvu has proven to have a true nose for the football. The fifth-year veteran out of Washington State notched a career-high 12 tackles, playing 100% of the snaps on defense, to help guide the Panthers over the Atlanta Falcons and keep them alive in the NFC South divisional race. It was his third double-digit tackle game of the year, as he now has totaled 56 tackles on the season (tied for second on the team). Look out for Luvu, as Carolina looks to keep it rolling against the Baltimore Ravens this week.
Jordan Kunaszyk / D’Anthony Bell
The Cleveland Browns have two NFLPA Bowl alumni stating a case to be building blocks of the future in linebacker Jordan Kunaszyk and rookie safety D’Anthony Bell. The Cal product Kunaszyk, whom we highlighted earlier in the season, is coming off his best game as a pro, with five tackles, including one for loss this past week against the Cleveland Browns. In that same game, the underdog Bell, who played at four different colleges, also had a pair of tackles. The dynamic play of this duo should give the Browns some positive reinforcement moving forward.
NFLPA Collegiate Bowl Alumni Spotlight
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