Deven Eastern Keeps Gophers' Eight-Year NFL Draft Streak Alive

Eastern officially heard his name called on Day 3 of the NFL Draft on Saturday.

Nov 1, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers defensive lineman Deven Eastern (91) celebrates against the Michigan State Spartans during the second half at Huntington Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images | Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

Former Gophers standout defensive lineman Deven Eastern was selected with the 242nd overall pick in the 7th round of the NFL Draft by the Seattle Seahawks on Saturday. It extends Minnesota's streak of having a player selected in the NFL Draft to eight years in a row.

DRAFTED: Gophers DT Deven Eastern has been selected with the 242nd overall pick in the 7th round of the 2026 NFL Draft by the Seattle Seahawks.

He's the first interior DL drafted from Minnesota since Ra'Shede Hageman in 2014. https://t.co/wDk729n4lf pic.twitter.com/KgapeQrgrk

— Tony Liebert (@TonyLiebert) April 25, 2026

Hailing from Shakopee, Minnesota, Eastern was a highly-touted four-star high school prospect in the class of 2021. The 247Sports Composite rated him as the 358th-best player in the country. He chose to stay home and play for the Gophers over top offers from Missouri and Nebraska.

In the modern world of transfer portal and NIL, Eastern was a throwback player. After redshirting his first year with the program, he showed improvements every season in his five-year career. He played 60 defensive snaps in 2022, and then it increased to 427, 470 and 499 in the three following seasons.

Eastern played in 45 career games with the Gophers, and he recorded 97 total tackles, 12 tackles for loss, 42 QB pressures and 4.5 sacks. He's the first interior defensive lineman drafted from Minnesota since Ra'Shede Hageman in 2014, when he was a second-round pick by the Atlanta Falcons.

The Gophers' streak of having a player selected in the first two rounds of the NFL Draft six years in a row officially come to an end, but Eastern gives them an NFL Draft pick eight years in a row. The last time Minnesota didn't produce an NFL Draft pick was 2018 following P.J. Fleck's first season as the program's head coach.

Eastern will now join a former Gophers teammate in Seattle with the defending Super Bowl Champions. Tight end Nick Kallerup was Eastern's teammate for four seasons.

The Seahawks have a loaded defense, and they have a tremendous track record of developing talent under general manager John Schneider. It appears to be a solid landing spot for Eastern's development, as he looks to joing a growing list of NFL veterans, who played college football at Minnesota.