Iowa football in the NFL: Week 5 recap

Week 5 of the NFL season is officially in the rearview mirror, and what a week of football it was. There were crazy overtime finishes, mind-boggling coaching decisions, and a few plays that will make the end-of-season highlight reels. As usual, there were a few former Iowa football stars right in th

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Week 5 of the NFL season is officially in the rearview mirror, and what a week of football it was.

There were crazy overtime finishes, mind-boggling coaching decisions, and a few plays that will make the end-of-season highlight reels. As usual, there were a few former Iowa football stars right in the mix of everything.

These former Hawkeyes contributed in all three phases on Sunday. They found the end zone, made plays in the backfield, and flipped the field with their leg.

Here's how some former Hawks performed in Week 5 of the NFL season:

Sam LaPorta, Detroit Lions

There goes Sam pic.twitter.com/jWOW1mJVFT
— Detroit Lions (@Lions) October 11, 2026

LaPorta put together another strong performance in the Lions' 45-21 win over the Cardinals. The 25-year-old had five receptions for 88 yards and a touchdown. He's on pace

for over 1,000 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns this season, which would be his best campaign since his rookie year. LaPorta is a huge part of the Lions' offensive success.

Cooper DeJean, Philadelphia Eagles

DeJean was everywhere in the Eagles' 19-17 loss to the Jaguars in London. He finished the game with 10 total tackles and two tackles for loss. The Philadelphia defense made enough plays to win this game, but a special teams blunder let it slip away. It's been an up-and-down start to the 2026 season for DeJean, but he's starting to look like himself in recent weeks.

Tory Taylor, Chicago Bears

There weren't many bright spots for the Bears in their 31-7 loss to the Packers. Punter Tory Taylor was one of the few. He finished the day with four punts for 212 yards, averaging 53 yards per boot. He had a long punt of 56 yards and pinned another one inside the 20. Taylor is averaging 51.2 yards per punt this season, the fifth-best mark in all of football.

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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Iowa football in the NFL: Week 5 recap