Another NFL season has begun, which means another round of former Tennessee football stars are making their professional debuts.

The Vols had a trio of rookies get their snaps in an NFL last weekend, led by a strong performance from 2024 SEC Offensive Player of the Year Dylan Sampson. The Cleveland Browns rookie running back finished with 93 total yards. Sampson had 12 carries for 29 yards and caught eight passes for 64 yards.

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Libebacker James Pearce Jr. of the Atlanta Falcons and wide receiver Dont’e Thornton Jr. of the Los Angeles Raiders also made their NFL debuts, Thornton logging 45 yards on two receptions.

Other top performances included New Orleans running back Alvin Kamara logging 45 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries, along with two catches for 12 yards. Buffalo Bills wide receiver Josh Palmer made five catches for 61 yards in a win over Baltimore, and Browns wide receiver Cedric Tillman made five catches for 52 yards and a touchdown.

There are 36 former Tennessee players in the NFL for the 2025 season.

For our list, we’ve included four players − Ty Chandler, Eric Gray, Wanya Morris and Henry To’oTo’o − who began their college careers at UT and later transferred to other schools.

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Former Tennessee football players in the NFL

Derek Barnett – DE, Houston Texans

Matthew Butler – DT, Miami Dolphins

Jerome Carvin – OL, Jacksonville Jaguars

Ty Chandler – RB, Minnesota Vikings

Morgan Cox – LS, Tennessee Titans

Joshua Dobbs – QB, New England Patriots

Princeton Fant – TE, Dallas Cowboys

Eric Gray – RB, New York Giants

Kamal Hadden – DB, Green Bay Packs

Hendon Hooker – QB, Carolina Panthers

Jalin Hyatt – WR, New York Giants

Theo Jackson – DB, Minnesota Vikings

Jauan Jennings – WR, San Francisco 49eres

Jakob Johnson – FB, Houston Texans

Velus Jones Jr. – RB, New Orleans Saints

Alvin Kamara – RB, New Orleans Saints

Cade Mays – C, Carolina Panthers

Jaylen McCollough – DB, Los Angeles Rams

Joe Milton III – QB, Dallas Cowboys

Wanya Morris – OL, Kansas City Chiefs

Omarr Norman-Lott – DT, Kansas City Chiefs

Josh Palmer – WR, Buffalo Bills

James Pearce Jr. – OLB, Atlanta Falcons

Dylan Sampson – RB, Cleveland Browns

Elijah Simmons – DT, Arizona Cardinals

Trey Smith – OL, Kansas City Chiefs

Alontae Taylor – CB, New Orleans Saints

Darrell Taylor – OLB, Houston Texans

Dont’e Thornton Jr. – Las Vegas Raiders

Cedric Tillman – WR, Cleveland Browns

Henry To’oTo’o – LB, Houston Texans

Shy Tuttle – DT, Tennessee Titans

Dee Williams – CB, New York Giants

Darnell Wright – OT, Chicago Bears

Jaylen Wright – RB, Miami Dolphins

Byron Young – OLB, Los Angeles Rams

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Here is every former Tennessee football player on NFL 2025 rosters