NFL stars emerging from the University of Minnesota are a rarer sight these days than during the golden era of Gophers football, when legends like Bronko Nagurski, Carl Eller, Bobby Bell, and Bud Grant — who starred in three sports before going pro in both the NFL and NBA — once roamed Dinkytown.
Still, the Gophers have produced a steady stream of NFL talent over the last 50 years, and under head coach P.J. Fleck, the program has hit a modern-era high. Since Fleck’s arrival in 2017, 20 Minnesota players have been drafted — the most in any comparable stretch in school history.
That momentum began with former coaches Jerry Kill and Tracy Claeys, who helped send eight Gophers to the NFL between 2014 and 2016. That’s 28 drafted players over the last 11 years — double the total from the previous 11-year span (2002–2013), which saw coaching instability with the exits of Glen Mason and Tim Brewster.
Among the top Gophers to make the jump to the pros in recent years: Antoine Winfield Jr., John Michael Schmitz, Daniel Faalele, Boye Mafe, Blake Cashman, and Rashod Bateman — a standout wide receiver who notched 2,395 yards and 19 touchdowns in 31 college games.
Bateman became the first Gopher taken in the first round of the NFL Draft since 2006 when the Ravens selected him No. 27 overall in 2020. After proving his value early in Baltimore, the team gave him a $12.8 million extension in 2023, tearing up his rookie deal two years early.
Now, Bateman has landed another major payday — a new three-year, $36.75 million extension with $20 million guaranteed, per NFL Network. While all eyes were on Derrick Henry’s arrival in Baltimore, Bateman quietly became Lamar Jackson’s go-to receiver, posting career highs in yards (756) and touchdowns (9) last season.
Bateman will return to Minnesota in Week 10 when the Ravens face the Vikings, marking a fitting homecoming for one of the Gophers’ biggest NFL success stories.
