Cards in the NFL: 2022 Regular Season Roundup
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - A wild week 18 is now officially in the books, and the National Football League's 2022 regular season has now officially reached its end.
While several former Louisville football players dealt with injuries all season long, 12 former Cardinals were still able to see the field in a regular season game this year. Three of them even cracked the NFL Playoffs and have a shot at a Super Bowl title.
Here is how former Cardinals fared during the 2022 NFL season. Players who did not play in a regular season game and stayed on the practice squad or on reserve rosters all year long are not included here:
Jaire Alexander
Position: Cornerback
Team: Green Bay Packers
Years at UofL: 2015-17
Season Stats (16 games, 16 starts): 56 tackles (43 solo), 4.0 tackles for loss, five interceptions, 14 pass defenses.
Summary: Alexander had a bounce-back season after missing most of the 2021 season with a shoulder injury. He was able to set a career-high in interceptions and tackles for loss, and earned his second career Pro Bowl nod (2020) in the process. He was the only former Louisville player to be invited to this year's Pro Bowl.
Tutu Atwell
Position: Wide Receiver
Team: Los Angeles Rams
Years at UofL: 2018-20
Season Stats (13 games, four starts): 18 receptions on 35 targets for 298 yards and one touchdown.
Summary: Atwell was finally able to crack Los Angeles' wide receiver rotation in year two. He caught his first pass in week five against Dallas, scored his first touchdown in week 11 at New Orleans, then earned his first start during week 13 vs. Seattle.
Reggie Bonnafon
Position: Running Back
Team: Washington Commanders
Years at UofL: 2014-17
Season Stats (One game, no starts): Three rushes for eight yards.
Summary: Bonnafon spent training camp with the Commanders, but didn't make the final 53-man cut. However, they signed him to the practice squad ahead of their regular season finale against Dallas, and eventually elevated to the active roster for the game.
Teddy Bridgewater
Position: Quarterback
Team: Miami Dolphins
Years at UofL: 2011-13
Season Stats (Five games, two starts): 49-79 passing (62.0 percent) for 683 yards, four touchdowns and four interceptions; three rushes for 27 yards.
Summary: Bridgewater served as the primary backup to Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa for the season. Like Tagovailoa, Bridgewater himself suffered a myriad of injuries in 2022, such as an elbow injury and concussion in week five against the Jets, a chronic knee injury through mid-November to early/mid-December, and a dislocated pinky sustained in week 17 at the Patriots.
Geron Christian Sr.
Position: Offensive Tackle
Team: Kansas City Chiefs/Miami Dolphins
Years at UofL: 2015-17
Season Stats (10 games, no starts): 11 offensive snaps, 55 special teams snaps.
Summary: Christian served almost exclusively a special teams role with the Chiefs, only cracking the offensive line rotation in week one at Arizona and in week seven at San Francisco. After being inactive for week 12-17, he was waived by Kansas City and picked up by Miami ahead of their regular season finale, but was also inactive for that game.
Dez Fitzpatrick
Position: Wide Receiver
Team: Tennessee Titans
Years at UofL: 2016-20
Season Stats (One game, no starts): No starts
Summary: Fitzpatrick spent almost the entire 2022 season on the Tennessee's practice squad. The one time he wasn't was when he was elevated to the Titans' active roster for their week five matchup at the Commanders, playing just five total snaps.
Jonathan Greenard
Position: Outside Linebacker
Team: Houston Texans
Years at UofL: 2015-17
Season Stats (Eight games, four starts): 16 tackles (nine solo), 6.0 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, four QB hits, one recovered fumble and one pass defense.
Summary: Greenard came off of a career-year where he led the Texans in sacks, but got bit hard by the injury but in 2022. He spent most of this season on injured reserve due to a calf injury, playing in only the first four and last four games of the season, while starting the former.
Lamar Jackson
Position: Quarterback
Team: Baltimore Ravens
Years at UofL: 2015-17
Season Stats (12 games, 12 starts): 203-326 passing (62.3 percent) for 2,242 yards, 17 touchdowns and seven interceptions; 112 rushes for 764 yards, three touchdowns and five lost fumbles.
Summary: Jackson got off to a blazing hot start, but did cool off a touch after week three thanks in part to a depleted Baltimore wide receiver corps. He missed the final five weeks of the regular season after suffering a PCL sprain in his knee during the Ravens' week 13 matchup vs. Denver, and his status for the playoffs is in question.
John Miller
Position: Offensive Guard
Team: Jacksonville Jaguars
Years at UofL: 2011-14
Season Stats (Three games, no starts): No offensive snaps, nine special teams snaps.
Summary: Miller was a free agent for the first five weeks of the season, but was picked up by the Jaguars ahead of week six. He played just three special teams snaps in weeks six, seven and eight, was inactive in weeks nine and 10, then was waived after Jacksonville's week 11 bye.
DeVante Parker
Position: Wide Receiver
Team: New England Patriots
Years at UofL: 2011-14
Season Stats (13 games, 11 starts): 31 receptions on 47 targets for 539 yards and three touchdowns.
Summary: Parker had an inconsistent inaugural campaign with the Patriots, but he wound up being one of their most productive pass catchers. He finished second on the team in both total receiving yards and receiving touchdowns behind JaKobi Meyers' 804 yards and six touchdowns, and led New England in yards per reception at 17.4.
Sheldon Rankins
Position: Defensive Tackle
Team: New York Jets
Years at UofL: 2012-15
Season Stats (15 games, 15 starts): 43 tackles (25 solo), four tackles for loss, 3.0 sacks, seven QB hits, one forced fumble.
Summary: Rankins was a full-time starter for the first time since his third year in the league when he was with New Orleans, but took a small step back in terms of his overall production. He wound up finishing tied for fifth on the Jets in sacks and tied for sixth on the team in tackles for loss.
Russ Yeast
Position: Safety
Team: Los Angeles Rams
Years at UofL: 2017-20
Season Stats (15 games, one start): 20 tackles (16 solo), one tackle for loss.
Summary: Yeast was a consistent special teams player as a rookie in 2022, but began to crack the Rams' secondary rotation in late November. He even started in their regular season finale at Seattle, but was hospitalized with a pulmonary contusion.
(Photo of Jaire Alexander: Sam Navarro - USA TODAY Sports)
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