In a little more than a month, the NFL will return after a summer largely dominated by the other (and in my opinion, better) football. The New England Patriots will head down to CenturyLi — sorry, it’s called Lumen Field now, to take on the defending champion Seattle Seahawks, in a rematch of this past February’s showpiece event more remembered for an excellent Bad Bunny halftime show than the rather dross, Seahawks-dominated football game itself.
The Seahawks’ connections to Michigan via head coach
Mike Macdonald, tight end A.J. Barner and running back Zach Charbonnet have been well-documented, but that got me thinking: who else across the NFL has the best of the Leaders and Best?
And going off that, if we were going to build a lineup of the best Wolverines across the NFL, what would it look like? And would it put out a better Super Bowl display than the Patriots did? And with that, I present to you my take on the active all-Michigan NFL team.
Quarterback: J.J. McCarthy, Minnesota Vikings
Not exactly spoiled for options here, with the man you might better know by his number being the only active Wolverine playing quarterback in the NFL. There’s no sugarcoating that McCarthy’s first two years in Minnesota did not go to plan: there were times where he looked like the worst starter in the entire league, and then there’s the seven games he missed due to three separate injuries. But there were also moments — most notably Sunday Night Football against the Bears — where he looked like he does genuinely have a future in the NFL as a starter. I think durability is a very real concern, and I won’t overlook the amount of games he looked flat-out lost in, but I think two years is too soon to write off a quarterback with his physical tools and mentality.
Running backs: Blake Corum, Los Angeles Rams; Donovan Edwards, Miami Dolphins
I don’t know if Charbonnet necessarily counts as a Michigan product for the purpose of this exercise, so I’ll leave him out — though without him, we definitely have a smaller pool to pick from. Corum is the clear starter, having taken a massive step forward in 2025 to form an electric tandem in Los Angeles with Kyren Williams in one of the league’s most explosive offense. And given Sean McVay’s knack for cycling through starting running backs, I wouldn’t be shocked to see him get some RB1 snaps in a year or two.
The choice for the other slot in the backfield was between Edwards and 2024 bright spot Kalel Mullings. Neither have carved out a home in the league yet, but Edwards is listed higher on the Dolphins’ depth chart than Mullings is on the Tennessee Titans’, so he’s the choice.
Wide receiver: Nico Collins, Houston Texans; Roman Wilson, Pittsburgh Steelers; Ronnie Bell, New Orleans Saints
The Houston Texans found a way to unlock Nico Collins in a way the Wolverines arguably never did. When healthy, he’s one of the league’s best receivers, C.J. Stroud’s favorite target and one of the key contributors to their DeMeco Ryans-inspired resurgence.
I’m still a believer in Wilson at the NFL level. I think his acceleration and ability to separate compensates for his diminutive-by-NFL-standards frame, and think he can very well be a very capable WR2 in Pittsburgh, though it’s predicated on the quality of quarterback play he’ll be receiving from noted Detroit sports villain Aaron Rodgers.
The other three receivers in the league really haven’t played much football, but Bell gets the nod over the Dolphins’ Donovan McCulley and Ravens’ Cornelius Johnson for having actually played in a handful of NFL games.
Tight end: Colston Loveland, Chicago Bears; A.J. Barner, Seattle Seahawks
If the offering of Michigan alums in some other position groups resembles those of Ann Arbor’s State Street Chipotle at closing time in their sparsity, then the Wolverines’ selection of tight ends are closer to that of a good day at South Quad dining hall — a bounty of options, and the good ones are pretty damn good.
Loveland’s selection at No. 10 by the Chicago Bears in 2025 was puzzling at the time, but he repaid their faith in him pretty quickly, putting together an impressive rookie season in which he was perhaps unlucky not to receive more votes for Offensive Rookie of the Year. Meanwhile, Barner showed flashes as a rookie in 2024, but truly broke out for the Seahawks in 2025, flourishing as a red zone threat and excellent blocker. Loveland and Barner both look like they’ll be franchise tight ends and perennial Pro Bowlers for two orgs set up for years of playoff contention — and simply off that, I’m not sure if there’s a better offensive position group of active Wolverines.
Offensive line: Myles Hinton, Philadelphia Eagles; Jon Runyan, New York Giants; Olu Oluwatimi, Seattle Seahawks; Mike Onwenu, New England Patriots; Ryan Hayes, Carolina Panthers
Long since passed are the days of Steve Hutchinson and Jake Long, with Michigan’s list of offensive linemen in the NFL looking rather pedestrian in comparison to the program’s lofty standards.
At the bookends, Hinton and Hayes have a grand total of one NFL game between them. Runyan is among the more experienced Wolverines in the NFL, consistently starting for the Packers and currently the Giants over the last half decade (though as a Giants fan, I can attest that playing offensive line for us in recent memory has rarely been a point of honor or pride), while Oluwatimi fills out the long list of Wolverines in Seattle, having started games decently often over the last three years. Onwenu is by far the pick of the bunch, playing the most snaps of any lineman in the league in 2025 across both the regular season and playoffs and serving as the cornerstone of the AFC champion Patriots’ offensive line.
Defensive line: Josh Uche, Miami Dolphins; Kenneth Grant, Miami Dolphins; Mason Graham, Cleveland Browns; Aidan Hutchinson, Detroit Lions
The defensive line is Michigan’s bread and butter, and the NFL selections reflect that. I don’t need to tell you much about Hutchinson, so I won’t; he’s going to win Defensive Player of the Year someday. Uche has bounced around the league the last few years and is still chasing the high of his 11.5-sack season in 2022, but he’s a serviceable starter.
On the interior is Michigan’s national championship-winning inside line tandem. Graham has enjoyed a much better start to life in the NFL than Grant has, instantly establishing himself as a vital disruptor who played a non-insignificant role in helping Myles Garrett break the NFL’s 25-year-old single-season sack record. Grant struggled early on before finding his groove, but both should be primed to take big steps forward in 2026.
Linebackers: Rashan Gary, Dallas Cowboys; Junior Colson, Los Angeles Chargers; Braiden McGregor, Jets
Gary has sometimes struggled to live up to the lofty expectations that accompanied his 12th overall selection by the Packers in 2019, but he’s established himself as an above-average NFL pass rusher who puts up respectable yearly sack totals and has a Pro Bowl nod in 2024 under his belt. This year, he’ll be one of the pieces in the Cowboys’ latest attempt at a defensive rebuild.
Colson saw some action his rookie year in 2024, before shoulder surgery sidelined him for all of 2025. Slim pickings at right outside linebacker, but McGregor established himself as a bit-part contributor in 2025, so he fills outside this group.
Safeties: Dax Hill, Cincinnati Bengals; Josh Metellus, Minnesota Vikings
Hill is currently listed as a cornerback on the Bengals’ depth chart, but for the purpose of this story, we’re gonna move him back to the position he played his first two years in the NFL. Though rarely wowing in the oft-maligned Bengals defense, he’s managed to hold down a starting spot for four years. Opposite him is Metellus, who has served as a Swiss Army Knife for one of the league’s most suffocating defenses.
Cornerbacks: Will Johnson, Arizona Cardinals; Mike Sainristil, Washington Commanders
Filling out our defense are two of the most beloved Wolverines in recent memory. Johnson was projected as a top-10 pick until pre-draft injury concerns sank him to the second round. But he played to his talent ceiling and established himself as a cornerstone of the Cardinals’ defense despite missing five games. Sainristil, the beating heart of the 2023 national championship defense, dropped to the second round due to size concerns. He’s occasionally struggled in coverage, but has carved out a role as a ballhawking corner capable of forcing the ball out of opponents’ hands.
Kicker: Jake Moody, Washington Commanders
It’s been difficult to watch Moody struggle in the NFL for Michigan fans. He went from a safe three points with the Wolverines to an outright liability with the San Francisco 49ers, being cut midseason before finding a new home in Chicago and now moving on to Washington. He’s got competition for this spot in the form of New York Giant (represent!) Dominic Zvada, but despite Moody’s struggles, his experience gets him the nod here.
Punter: None (technically)
There isn’t an active punter in the league who graduated through Michigan, so I’ll leave this one blank, though Florida transfer and Buffalo Bills draft pick Tommy Doman could count.
Drop a comment and let me know how many games you think this hypothetical team would win!
