Los Angeles Rams | |||||
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Position: | Offensive line coach | ||||
Personal information | |||||
Born: | Diamond Bar, California, U.S. | March 4, 1986||||
Height: | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||
Weight: | 300 lb (136 kg) | ||||
Career information | |||||
High school: | Diamond Bar (CA) | ||||
College: | Fresno State | ||||
Undrafted: | 2008 | ||||
Career history | |||||
As a player: | |||||
As a coach: | |||||
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Career highlights and awards | |||||
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Career NFL statistics | |||||
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Player stats at NFL.com |
Ryan Robert Wendell [1] (born March 4, 1986) is a former American football center who played his first eight seasons with the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He was signed by the Patriots as an undrafted free agent in 2008. He played college football at Fresno State. He has also played for the Carolina Panthers.
Wendell was born in Diamond Bar, California. He attended Diamond Bar High School where he played football as both an offensive and defensive lineman. His jersey number was retired and he is a member of the school's hall of fame. [2]
After graduating from high school, Wendell attended Fresno State University, where he started in 9 games as a true freshman in 2004 and earned WAC Co-Freshman of the Year. He started all 13 games of his sophomore season and all 12 games of his junior season (the first 8 at guard and the last 4 at center), earning All-WAC honors. As a senior he started at center.
Wendell was signed by the Patriots as an undrafted free agent on May 1, 2008. He was waived by the team on August 26, 2008, and signed to the Patriots' practice squad on September 24, 2008. He spent the remainder of the season on the practice squad and was re-signed to a future contract following the season.
The Patriots waived Wendell on September 22, 2009. He was re-signed to the team's practice squad two days later. In mid-season, the Patriots raised Wendell's salary in mid-season from the practice-squad minimum (about $150,000) to that of a first-year active-roster player ($310,000). [3] Wendell was promoted to the active roster on December 31, 2009.
Wendell played in 15 games for the Patriots in the 2010 season. He started the final two games of the season in place of an injured Dan Connolly. [2]
During training camp before the 2012 season, Wendell was part of a competition for the starting center job in New England. He beat out longtime Patriot Dan Koppen for the job. [4] In 2012, counting special teams, he played a total of 1,379 snaps, the most of any NFL player. [5] As a result, he earned a bonus of $179,907 from the Patriots in March 2013 as a result of the NFL's "performance-based pay" system, which rewards players who have high playing time and low salaries (his 2012 base salary was $750,000). [6]
On March 28, 2014, Wendell signed a two-year deal worth up to $3.25 million. [7] During the week five 2014 Sunday Night Football game against the Bengals, Wendell was moved to guard, where he enjoyed immediate success on a Patriots team experimenting with their offensive line. The offensive line only allowed one sack the entire game. Wendell started the rest of the year at right guard, and was a part of the offensive line that won Super Bowl XLIX over the Seattle Seahawks. [2]
Prior to the 2015 season, Wendell was voted a captain by his teammates for the first time in his career. He missed the first five games of the 2015 season with an illness and played a reserve role the next two games before being placed on injured reserve on November 7, 2015, ending his time with the Patriots. [8]
On November 29, 2016, Wendell was signed by the Carolina Panthers after injuries to starting centers Ryan Kalil and Gino Gradkowski. [9]
In 2019 Wendell was hired as a coaching assistant by the Buffalo Bills and he was elevated to Assistant Offensive line coach for the 2020 season. [2]
On February 11, 2023 it was announced the Los Angeles Rams hired Wendell as their offensive line coach. [10]
Wendell and his wife Meredith have a daughter named Callie. [2]
Geoffrey Thomas Hangartner is a former American football guard for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Panthers in the fifth round of the 2005 NFL Draft. He played college football at Texas A&M. He played both the center and guard positions. Hangartner also played for the Buffalo Bills.
William LaQuayne Yates is an American football coach and former offensive guard who is the assistant offensive line coach for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Texas A&M and was signed by the Miami Dolphins as an undrafted free agent in 2003.
Bruce Raymond Gradkowski is a former American football quarterback and current offensive coordinator for the St. Louis BattleHawks of the United Football League (UFL). He played college football at Toledo. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the sixth round of the 2006 NFL Draft. Gradkowski was also a member of the St. Louis Rams, Cleveland Browns, Oakland Raiders, Cincinnati Bengals, and Pittsburgh Steelers. His younger brother, Gino, is a former NFL center.
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Ian Silberman is a former American football guard. A 2009 USA Today High School All-American out of Fleming Island High School, Silberman had enrolled at Florida, where he appeared in 20 games with seven starts, before transferring to Boston College after his graduation. Silberman was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the sixth round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He has also been a member of the New England Patriots, Indianapolis Colts, Cleveland Browns, Oakland Raiders, Carolina Panthers, and New York Guardians.
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