Kyle Raymond Orton is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback. He played college football for Purdue, where he started four straight bowl games. He was selected by the Chicago Bears in the fourth round of the 2005 NFL draft. After an injury to Bears starter Rex Grossman, Orton was pressed into service as the starting quarterback during his rookie year, starting the first 14 games of the 2005 season, but was replaced by Grossman for the playoffs that year. Orton did not play at all in 2006, and sparingly in 2007. He regained his starting job from Grossman in 2008, but the team finished a disappointing 9–7 and out of the playoffs. In the offseason of that year, he was traded to the Denver Broncos.
Lawrence James Henry Tynes is a former professional football placekicker. After he played soccer for Milton High School, a coach suggested he try out for the football team as a kicker. He played college football at Troy and was signed by the Kansas City Chiefs as an undrafted free agent in 2001. He spent two seasons on the practice squad in Kansas City, then played in NFL Europe and in the Canadian Football League (CFL). He came back to Kansas City and played for the Chiefs for three seasons, and was then traded to the Giants in 2007. In his first season with the Giants, he kicked the game-winning field goal in overtime against the Green Bay Packers in the 2007–08 NFC Championship Game, which qualified the Giants for Super Bowl XLII. Four years later, he kicked another overtime field goal against the San Francisco 49ers in the 2011–12 NFC Championship Game, which qualified the Giants for Super Bowl XLVI. He experienced his best success with the Giants, winning Super Bowl championships in 2007 and 2011, defeating the New England Patriots in both games.
Vincent Lamar Wilfork is an American former professional football player who was a nose tackle in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons, primarily with the New England Patriots. He played college football for the Miami Hurricanes and was selected by the Patriots in the first round of the 2004 NFL draft. He also played two seasons for the Houston Texans before retiring following the 2016 season. Along with Tom Brady, Wilfork is the only Patriots player to win the Super Bowl in both decades of the Patriots dynasty.
The 1993 NFL season was the 74th regular season of the National Football League (NFL). It was the only season in league history where all NFL teams were originally scheduled to play their 16-game schedule over a span of 18 weeks and did so, where all of the Week 2 scheduled games were moved to an 18th week and the entire postseason was delayed by 7 days before starting). After the success of expanding the regular season to a period of 17 weeks in 1990, the league hoped this new schedule would generate even more revenue. This was also done to avoid scheduling playoff games on January 1 and competing with college football bowl games. The NFL's teams, however, felt that having two weeks off during the regular season was too disruptive for their weekly routines, and thus the regular season reverted to 17 weeks immediately after the season ended. 2021 marked the first season where an 18-week schedule would include 17 regular-season games.
Kristopher Clayton Brown is a former American football placekicker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for twelve seasons in the late 1990s and 2000s. He played college football for the University of Nebraska, and was drafted in the seventh round of the 1999 NFL draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers. In the first six years of his NFL career, he converted 132 of 173 field goals (76%) and scored 573 points. He was a key player for the expansion Houston Texans, being their placekicker for the entirety of the team's existence until 2010. He also played for the San Diego Chargers and Dallas Cowboys.
Super Bowl XLVI was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion New York Giants and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 2011 season. The Giants defeated the Patriots by the score of 21–17. The game was played on February 5, 2012, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, the first time that the Super Bowl was played in Indiana.
Robert "Rocky" Eugene Bernard Jr. is an American former professional football defensive tackle. He was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the fifth round of the 2002 NFL draft. He played college football at Texas A&M.
James Eric Berry is an American former professional football safety who played in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Tennessee Volunteers, where he was a two-time unanimous All-American and recognized as the best collegiate defensive back in the country. He was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs fifth overall in the 2010 NFL draft. Berry was voted to the Pro Bowl five times and named first-team All-Pro three times.
Aqib Talib is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at the University of Kansas, where he received consensus All-American honors, and was selected by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the first round of the 2008 NFL draft. Talib also played for the New England Patriots, Denver Broncos, and Los Angeles Rams, winning Super Bowl 50 with Denver. In 2020, he made his debut as an analyst for NFL on Fox.
Martellus Demond Bennett is an American former professional football tight end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 10 seasons. He played college football for the Texas A&M Aggies football and was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the second round of the 2008 NFL draft. Bennett was a member of five teams during his career, most notably the Chicago Bears, with whom he earned Pro Bowl honors, and the New England Patriots, with whom he won Super Bowl LI. After retiring, Bennett became a children's author and published books under his publication company The Imagination Agency. He is the younger brother of former defensive end Michael Bennett.
Axel Edward Brian Hoyer is an American professional football quarterback. Since joining the NFL in 2009 as an undrafted free agent, he has started for eight different teams, the second-most in league history. Hoyer's longest stint has been with the New England Patriots for eight non-consecutive seasons, primarily as a backup, and he was a member of the team that won Super Bowl LIII. His most successful season was with the Houston Texans in 2015, when he helped lead them to a division title.
Daniel James Amendola is an American former professional football wide receiver. He played college football for the Texas Tech Red Raiders and was signed by the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2008.
McKenna Sean "Bear" Pascoe is a former American football tight end. He was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the sixth round of the 2009 NFL draft. He played college football at Fresno State.
Robert James Gronkowski is an American former professional football tight end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons. Nicknamed "Gronk", Gronkowski played nine seasons for the New England Patriots, then played his final two seasons for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Regarded as one of the greatest tight ends of all time, he is a four-time Super Bowl champion, a five-time Pro Bowl selection, a four-time first-team All-Pro selection, and was selected to the NFL 2010s All-Decade Team and NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team.
Jason Andrew Pierre-Paul is an American professional football linebacker. He played college football for the South Florida Bulls and was selected by the New York Giants in the first round of the 2010 NFL draft. With the Giants, Pierre-Paul made two Pro Bowls, was first-team All-Pro and won Super Bowl XLVI. With the Buccaneers, Pierre-Paul made his third Pro Bowl and won Super Bowl LV.
Shane Patrick-Henry Vereen is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the California Golden Bears and was selected by the New England Patriots in the second round of the 2011 NFL draft.
Nathaniel Perry Solder is an American former professional football player who was an offensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Colorado Buffaloes, and was recognized as a consensus All-American. He was selected by the New England Patriots in the first round of the 2011 NFL draft and won two Super Bowls as a member of the team.
Virgil Leo Green is an American college football coach and former professional tight end. He is the tight ends coach for the University of Nevada, Reno, a position he has held since 2023. He played college football at Nevada and was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the seventh round of the 2011 NFL draft.
Tyrann Devine Mathieu is an American professional football safety for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the LSU Tigers. In college he developed a reputation for causing turnovers, setting a Southeastern Conference (SEC) record with 11 career forced fumbles and earning the nickname "the Honey Badger" after the mammal of the same name. In his sophomore season, he was recognized as a consensus All-American, won the Chuck Bednarik Award as the best defensive player in college football, and was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy. Mathieu was dismissed from the LSU football program after that season due to a violation of team rules.
