Duke Football's NFL Presence Growing, Albeit Slightly

A dozen Duke football alums are on an NFL roster this season.

Last year, 11 former Duke football players were on 53-man rosters ahead of the NFL season. A year later, the count is up to 12.

Sure, that's not much of a gain from one year to the next. And, of course, the number still falls well short of the likes of Alabama, which boasts 56 former players in the NFL, enough to fill one roster by itself with a few left over.

Just the same, the Blue Devil count is trending upward. So that's something, even if it remains less than half the number of Duke basketball products currently on contract in the NBA, a league with a player count that is only about 25 percent of that in the NFL.

RELATED: List of Every Duke Player Currently in the NBA

Here's a look at all 12 Blue Devils in the NFL, including the date and time of their Week 1 games.

Duke football's present-day NFL presence (in order of career games played in the league)

1. New York Jets offensive lineman Laken Tomlinson (112 career games)

• versus the Baltimore Ravens at 1 p.m. ET Sunday

2. Buffalo Bills wide receiver Jamison Crowder (96 career games)

• at the Los Angeles Rams at 8:20 p.m. ET Thursday

3. New York Jets long snapper Thomas Hennessy (81 career games)

• versus the Baltimore Ravens at 1 p.m. ET Sunday

4. Chicago Bears offensive lineman Lucas Patrick (73 career games)

• versus the San Francisco 49ers at 1 p.m. ET Sunday

5. New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones (38 career games)

• at the Tennessee Titans at 4:25 p.m. ET

6. Kansas City Chiefs tight end Noah Gray (16 career games)

• at the Arizona Cardinals at 4:25 p.m. ET

7. Los Angeles Chargers outside linebacker Chris Rumph II (16 career games)

• versus the Las Vegas Raiders at 4:25 p.m. ET Sunday

8. New York Jets cornerback Michael Carter II (15 career games)

• versus the Baltimore Ravens at 1 p.m. ET Sunday

9. Arizona Cardinals outside linebacker Victor Dimukeje (14 career games)

• versus the Kansas City Chiefs at 4:25 p.m. ET Sunday

10. Indianapolis Colts running back Deon Jackson (nine career games)

• at the Houston Texans at 1 p.m. ET Sunday

11. Chicago Bears cornerback Josh Blackwell (rookie)

• versus the San Francisco Giants at 1 p.m. ET Sunday

12. New York Giants offensive lineman Devery Hamilton (rookie)

• at the Tennessee Titans at 4:25 p.m. ET on FOX

Stay tuned to Blue Devil Country for more Duke football content.