The state of Iowa has produced some of the leading stars in NFL history, and there may be set for more players to join that list following the 2023 NFL Draft, as four players from the opening two rounds of that event were taken off the board.
With the 13th pick in the 2023 #NFLDraft, the Packers select Lukas Van Ness 🧀 pic.twitter.com/Fzh1MizzWi
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) April 28, 2023
Defensive end Lukas Van Ness was taken 13th overall by the Green Bay Packers. The Iowa player impressed at the NFL Combine earlier this year, which was enough for the Wisconsin-based franchise to select the Big Ten player.
Two spots later, the New York Jets chose Iowa State defensive end Will McDonald IV who also looked impressive at the NFL Combine. That is a great destination for the former Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year to join as it is a franchise that is heading in the right direction. First-round picks Sauce Gardner, Garrett Wilson, and Jermaine Johnson II all shone with the Jets in 2022.
Linebacker Jack Campbell was the third Iowa player taken in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft. His destination was the Detroit Lions. He won the Butkus Award in 2022, which is handed to the leading linebacker in college football.
Campbell will be joined in Detroit by his Iowa teammate Sam LaPorta. The Lions selected the tight end with their next pick. The 2022 Kwalick-Clark Tight End of the Year ended his college career 14th in the all-time list of receiving yards with Iowa. That is an impressive achievement for a TE. In his final year there, he recorded 58 catches and 657 receiving yards.
With two of their former players in their team, Detroit is a team Iowa fans are going to keep a close eye on during the 2023 NFL season. The Lions are involved in the NFL Kickoff Game against the defending Super Bowl champions, the Kansas City Chiefs. As of June 18th, the Lions are +230 in the sports betting to cause an upset in that game and get their season off to a winning start, something they have not done since 2017.
Hawkeyes Have Produced Three of the Leading TEs in the NFL
Three of the leading tight ends in the NFL played for the Iowa Hawkeyes before joining the professional ranks. T.J. Hockenson, Noah Fant, and George Kittle are all Iowa alumni.
Hockenson, a player who received several accolades, was selected in the first round of the NFL Draft in 2019 by the Detroit Lions. He spent three and a half years with the franchise, scoring 15 touchdowns and recording over 2,000 receiving yards in a Lions jersey.
The 25-year-old was traded to the Minnesota Vikings midway through the 2022 season. He has made a positive start for his new team, forming a great relationship with quarterback Kirk Cousins. Vikings fans will be expecting to see a lot more from the former Hawkeye in 2023, as he will have had a full preseason with the franchise.
Fant opted to declare early for the NFL Draft in 2019. That proved a wise choice as he was selected as a first-round pick by the Denver Broncos who took him off the board. In his rookie campaign, he averaged 14.1 yards per catch in the league. He looked at home in the NFL from his opening game.
Unfortunately for the former Iowa Hawkeye, he was playing in a team that was struggling for results. In 2022, he was traded to the Seattle Seahawks. He played all 17 games in his opening campaign in Seattle, scoring four touchdowns and recording 486 receiving yards.
One of the leading tight ends in the NFL today is San Francisco’s Kittle. The 49ers landed the Iowa player in the fifth round of the 2017 Draft, and that has proven to be one of the best selections of the whole process that year.
The return of George Kittle ‼️#49ers || #FTTB
📷: @49ers pic.twitter.com/1FTD1ZhnwQ— OurSF49ers (@OurSf49ers) September 25, 2022
Kittle is a four-time Pro Bowler, as he was selected for the Pro Bowl in 2018, 2019, 2021, and 2022. He missed out in 2020 as he had to sit out half the season through injury.
The 29-year-old already has over 5,000 receiving yards in the NFL and 31 touchdowns. His best year so far came in 2018 when he finished with 88 receptions and 1,377 receiving yards. One of his touchdowns was an 85-yard play.
Iowa and Iowa State will be hoping more of their former players go to on have success like the above three quarterbacks. With a strong class of rookies joining this year, there is a good chance at least one of those drafted will have a big career in the NFL.