UCLA will have a heavy presence when the 2026 NFL season opens, with 19 former Bruins on Week 1 opening rosters and 31 ex-UCLA players tied to 21 NFL franchises overall across active rosters, injured reserve, the PUP list and practice squads.
The first Bruin expected to get on the field is Darius Muasau, now with the New England Patriots. The third-year linebacker, who spent his first two seasons with the New York Giants, is set to suit up Wednesday in Seattle when the Patriots meet the Seahawks in a Super Bowl LX rematch.
Kickoff is scheduled for 5:20 p.m. PT on NBC.
A few days later, another cluster of Bruins will be in the spotlight when the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams play the first international game of the 2026 campaign in East Melbourne, Australia, on Thursday, Sept. 10 at 5:35 p.m. PT.
Jake Brendel enters his 10th season and will line up for San Francisco, while Osa Odighizuwa is beginning his first season with the 49ers after five years in Dallas. Quentin Lake will also be on the field for the Rams as he starts his fifth NFL season, fresh off a three-year extension with Los Angeles.
Sunday’s games will bring the rest of the Bruins into action, including UCLA’s two longest-tenured NFL players. Kenny Clark and Ka’imi Fairbairn are both entering their 11th seasons.
Clark is in his second year with the Dallas Cowboys after a blockbuster 2025 trade from Green Bay, while Fairbairn recently signed a contract extension with Houston that made him the highest-paid kicker in the league. Fairbairn is coming off a 2025 season in which he tied the NFL record for field goals made with 44.
Carson Schwesinger is another Bruin drawing plenty of attention after a huge rookie year with the Cleveland Browns. He was named the 2025 AP Defensive Rookie of the Year after posting 156 tackles and 11 TFLs, the most by an NFL rookie in the last 30 years. Before that, he was a First Team All-American for UCLA in 2024 after leading the Big Ten in tackles with 136.
Two members of UCLA’s 2025 team are also trying to carve out NFL roles this season. Garrett DiGiorgio signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars as an undrafted free agent and will start the year on injured reserve, while defensive tackle Gary Smith III is beginning the season on the Las Vegas Raiders’ practice squad.
Here’s the full list of Bruins in the NFL to start the 2026 season:
Alec Anderson, T, Buffalo Bills, active, 5
Jake Bobo, WR, Seattle Seahawks, injured reserve, 4
Jake Brendel, OL, San Francisco 49ers, active, 10
Brittain Brown, RB, Chicago Bears, injured reserve, 4
Zach Charbonnet, RB, Seattle Seahawks, PUP, 4
Kenny Clark, DL, Dallas Cowboys, active, 11
Matt Dickerson, DT, Jacksonville Jaguars, active, 6
Garrett DiGiorgio, OL, Jacksonville Jaguars, injured reserve, R
Greg Dulcich, TE, Miami Dolphins, active, 5
Ka'imi Fairbairn, K, Houston Texans, active, 11
Jon Gaines II, OL, Arizona Cardinals, active, 4
Darnay Holmes, CB, Atlanta Falcons, practice squad, 7
Alex Johnson, CB, Los Angeles Rams, injured reserve
Carl Jones Jr., LB, Baltimore Ravens, practice squad, 3
Ale Kaho, LB, Washington Commanders, practice squad, 2
Quentin Lake, DB, Los Angeles Rams, active, 5
Laiatu Latu, DE, Indianapolis Colts, active, 3
Atonio Mafi, G, Las Vegas Raiders, active, 4
Moliki Matavao, TE, New Orleans Saints, injured reserve, 2
Kain Medrano, LB, Washington Commanders, PUP, 2
Kolton Miller, T, Las Vegas Raiders, active, 9
Darius Muasau, LB, New England Patriots, active, 3
Osa Odighizuwa, DT, San Francisco 49ers, active, 6
Otito Ogbonnia, DL, Dallas Cowboys, active, 5
Oluwafemi Oladejo, EDGE, Tennessee Titans, active, 2
Sean Rhyan, G, Green Bay Packers, active, 5
Carson Schwesinger, LB, Cleveland Browns, active, 2
Gary Smith III, DT, Las Vegas Raiders, practice squad
Carson Steele, FB, Philadelphia Eagles, practice squad, 3
Colson Yankoff, TE, Washington Commanders, active, 3
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