Ohio State has taken over the top spot when it comes to producing players on NFL rosters.
The Buckeyes led all colleges with 56 players on active NFL rosters for Kickoff Weekend of the 2026 season, edging Alabama, which ranked second with 55.
The achievement snapped an impressive streak for the Crimson Tide. Alabama had either led or tied for the lead in players on NFL season-opening rosters for nine consecutive seasons from 2017 through 2025.
Georgia ranked third with 52 NFL players, followed by LSU with 44 and Notre Dame with 40.
Overall, players from 204 different colleges were represented on active NFL Kickoff Weekend rosters.
Ohio State, Alabama and Georgia Lead NFL Pipeline
Behind the top five, Michigan and Texas each placed 39 players on NFL rosters, followed by Penn State with 37.
Florida and Oregon each had 36, while Clemson, Iowa and Oklahoma each contributed 32 players.
Miami had 29, while Mississippi, South Carolina, USC and Texas A&M each had 27.
The numbers demonstrate just how heavily NFL rosters continue to draw from many of college football’s most prominent programs.
Ohio State was particularly well represented at linebacker, with 10 players at the position — the most from any school.
Alabama led all schools with 10 defensive tackles and nine defensive backs, while Georgia topped the defensive end category with four.
Notre Dame produced an NFL-high seven tight ends, while LSU and Mississippi each had eight wide receivers.
First-Round Picks Dominate NFL Starting Quarterbacks
The Week 1 quarterback breakdown provides another revealing look at how NFL teams have built their rosters.
Of the 32 starting quarterbacks, 23 were former first-round draft selections.
That group included Josh Allen, Joe Burrow, Jayden Daniels, Sam Darnold, Jaxson Dart, Jared Goff, Justin Herbert, Lamar Jackson, Trevor Lawrence, Patrick Mahomes, Drake Maye, Baker Mayfield, Bo Nix, Aaron Rodgers, Matthew Stafford, C.J. Stroud, Cam Ward, Caleb Williams and Bryce Young, among others.
Nine of the Week 1 starting quarterbacks were former No. 1 overall draft picks: Burrow, Goff, Lawrence, Mayfield, Kyler Murray, Stafford, Ward, Williams and Young.
Three starting quarterbacks were second-round selections — Jalen Hurts, Tyler Shough and Geno Smith.
Six were drafted in the third round or later or entered the NFL as undrafted players: Jacoby Brissett, Kirk Cousins, Dak Prescott, Brock Purdy, Cooper Rush and Malik Willis.
Only three of the Week 1 starters were first- or second-year players: Dart with the New York Giants, Shough with New Orleans and Ward with Tennessee.
NFL Rosters Come in All Shapes and Sizes
The physical makeup of NFL rosters also produced some interesting numbers.
Across Kickoff Weekend rosters, 297 players weighed less than 200 pounds, while 255 stood under six feet tall. At the other end of the spectrum, 390 players weighed more than 300 pounds.
Philadelphia had an NFL-high 14 players weighing less than 200 pounds.
San Francisco led the league with 13 players standing under six feet, while Green Bay had an NFL-high 16 players weighing more than 300 pounds.
The average player across NFL Week 1 rosters stood approximately 6-foot-2 and weighed 246.06 pounds. The average NFL player was 26.43 years old and had 4.47 years of experience.
Which NFL Teams Were Youngest and Oldest?
Miami entered the season with the NFL’s youngest roster according to the league’s data, averaging 25.09 years old.
The Dolphins also had 15 rookies and first-year players, the highest total in the AFC.
At the opposite end, San Francisco had an average age of 27.49, the highest in the NFC, and an NFL-high 14 players age 30 or older.
Pittsburgh had the AFC’s highest average age at 27.09.
Carolina featured the tallest average roster at 6.25 feet, while Cincinnati had the heaviest average roster at 252.31 pounds.
Despite the different approaches to constructing rosters, the 2026 Kickoff Weekend numbers again illustrate the enormous range of backgrounds, experience levels and physical dimensions represented across the NFL.
And when it comes to the college football pipeline, at least entering the 2026 season, Ohio State sits at the top with 56 Buckeyes on active NFL rosters.
Source: NFL
Photo: Wikipedia Commons
