Offensive linemen and special teams players are often overlooked by fans, but they can be the leading cause for success or failure in a given season. Minnesota Vikings center Garrett Bradbury and Kansas City Chiefs offensive guard Joe Thuney are among the NC State alumni that have made huge waves and look to continue to do so this season for their respective teams.
Garrett Bradbury, center, Minnesota Vikings
The first round pick of the Minnesota Vikings in 2019, Bradbury has played 32 games as he enters his third season in the NFL. The highest drafted center in Vikings history, he made an immediate impact on the Vikings offensive line as the first Viking to start 16 games at center as a rookie. Bradbury was also a part of an offensive line that gave up only 28 sacks in 2019, tied for fifth fewest in the NFL.
In 2020, he was a part of an offensive force that possessed a 3,000-yard passer, 1,000-yard rusher and a 1,000-yard receiver in the same season. Bradbury will look to bring the Vikings back into playoff contention as he anchors the offensive line as the starting center to protect quarterback Kirk Cousins in the pocket and open rushing lanes for running back Dalvin Cook.
Joe Thuney, offensive guard, Kansas City Chiefs
Thuney is a two-time Super Bowl champion and the first player in NFL history to start in the Super Bowl in each of his first three seasons in the NFL. He enters his sixth NFL season having started in every game in his previous five seasons, an impressive feat. Thuney has already been named to AP’s All-Pro second team in 2019, as well as being a part of the All-Rookie team in 2016 and the All-Decade Team for the New England Patriots in the 2010s at guard.
These honors are well-deserved, since he has only allowed three sacks in the last 48 games. That stellar stat is why he signed a lucrative five-year, $80 million contract to play for the Kansas City Chiefs after he played under the franchise tag with the New England Patriots the season prior. This year, Thuney will look to help protect one-time NFL MVP quarterback Patrick Mahomes as they compete to win another Super Bowl.
J.R. Sweezy, guard, New Orleans Saints
Sweezy is entering his ninth year in the league, spending his last two seasons with the Kyler Murray-led Arizona Cardinals, where he started 26 of the 29 games he played in. Sweezy only missed time last season when he was placed on the injured reserve with an elbow injury that kept him out from Week 6 to Week 9. Last season, Sweezy was on the field for 644 of the team’s offensive snaps and contributed on special teams as well.
Sweezy landed in New Orleans on a one-year deal in the offseason, where he will bring his veteran leadership and extensive experience playing multiple positions onto a team that has seen a changing of the guard at quarterback with Drew Brees recently retiring. Though he is a Super Bowl-winning guard with lots of big game experience, it is unknown at this time whether he will be the top name on the depth chart, but he will provide an impact to this roster either way.
Will Richardson Jr., tackle, Jacksonville Jaguars
Will Richardson Jr. heads into his fourth season in the NFL, all with the Jacksonville Jaguars and the team’s first under head coach Urban Myer. During a 2020 campaign in which the Jaguars struggled all year, Richardson saw action on both offense and special teams, contributing to undrafted rookie running back James Robinson’s year, where he had the most scrimmage yards and the second-most rushing yards by an undrafted rookie.
Richardson Jr. played in all 16 games for the first time in his career last year, which is a huge bonus since he was put on the injured reserve in his rookie year. So far in his short career, Richardson has played in 31 games, seeing action at both guard and tackle. He will now look to play a key role in the emergence of quarterback Trevor Lawrence and a young team looking to make the postseason.
Joe Sculthorpe, offensive lineman, Atlanta Falcons
Joe Sculthorpe went undrafted in the 2021 NFL Draft, but quickly found a home when he signed with the Atlanta Falcons. Sculthorpe is far from a lock to make the team’s 53-man opening day roster, but his ability to hold down multiple positions makes him a potential practice squad candidate, if nothing else. During his time at NC State, Sculthorpe was a second-team All-ACC choice by Pro Football Focus as a junior, starting in all 11 games that season. In 2020 he started every game, finishing his college career with 36 starts in 49 appearances.
A.J. Cole, punter, Las Vegas Raiders
Cole enters his third season in the NFL as a part of the Las Vegas Raiders, where he stayed injury free and played in all 32 games over the past two seasons. He has been pretty solid for the Raiders, punting the ball 111 times with an average of 45.2 punt yards per kick. 53 of those punts went inside the 20-yard line, which is a little over 47% of Cole’s total punts. So far in his career, Cole has not allowed a punt return for a touchdown, but he has allowed an average of about 10 yards per return.
Though his numbers were significantly down from 2019, he’ll try to make a significant impact on special teams as the Raiders look to make noise in the NFL entering the 2021 season.
