5 stats to know from Jack Sanborns rookie season with Chicago Bears
1. NFL Comparisons for Jack Sanborn
It is not often that a UDFA gets a chance to see the field for as long an Sanborn did. Beyond that, it is hard to be as productive as him when you hit the ground running and are possibly getting your one and only chance.
So, when you realize this a rare feat, it is worth asking how often has this happened. Below is the list of UDFA linebackers to record 50 tackles as a rookie in the past 30 years. The names end up being pretty relevant.
| Tack | Tack | Tack | Tack | Tack | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rk | Player | AV | Comb | Season | Age | Team | Sk | Solo | Ast | Comb ▼ |
TFL | QBHits |
| 1 | Jerrell Freeman | 8 | 145 | 2012 | 26 | IND | 2.0 | 90 | 55 | 145 | 7 | 2 |
| 2 | Paul Worrilow | 5 | 127 | 2013 | 23 | ATL | 2.0 | 79 | 48 | 127 | 4 | 3 |
| 3 | Vontaze Burfict | 8 | 127 | 2012 | 22 | CIN | 1.0 | 73 | 54 | 127 | 7 | 3 |
| 4 | Craig Robertson | 4 | 93 | 2012 | 24 | CLE | 1.0 | 62 | 31 | 93 | 4 | 3 |
| 5 | Joplo Bartu | 5 | 85 | 2013 | 23 | ATL | 3.5 | 47 | 38 | 85 | 8 | 8 |
| 6 | Krys Barnes | 5 | 80 | 2020 | 22 | GNB | 1.0 | 49 | 31 | 80 | 5 | 1 |
| 7 | James Burgess | 4 | 75 | 2017 | 23 | CLE | 4.0 | 49 | 26 | 75 | 12 | 7 |
| 8 | Armegis Spearman | 5 | 73 | 2000 | 22 | CIN | 1.0 | 49 | 24 | 73 | 5 | |
| 9 | Christian Jones | 3 | 70 | 2014 | 23 | CHI | 2.0 | 42 | 28 | 70 | 3 | 3 |
| 10 | Edwin Jackson | 4 | 66 | 2016 | 25 | IND | 2.0 | 47 | 19 | 66 | 1 | 2 |
| 11 | Jashon Sykes | 5 | 64 | 2003 | 24 | DEN | 0.0 | 50 | 14 | 64 | 0 | |
| 12 | Jack Sanborn | 64 | 2022 | 22 | CHI | 2.0 | 50 | 14 | 64 | 5 | 3 | |
| 13 | Nicholas Morrow | 3 | 60 | 2017 | 22 | OAK | 0.0 | 40 | 20 | 60 | 5 | 2 |
| 14 | Rashad Jeanty | 4 | 60 | 2006 | 23 | CIN | 0.0 | 39 | 21 | 60 | 2 | 2 |
| 15 | Calvin Munson | 3 | 60 | 2017 | 23 | NYG | 2.0 | 36 | 24 | 60 | 5 | 2 |
| 16 | Uani Unga | 2 | 59 | 2015 | 28 | NYG | 0.0 | 42 | 17 | 59 | ||
| 17 | Troy Reeder | 4 | 58 | 2019 | 25 | LAR | 0.0 | 36 | 22 | 58 | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | Wesley Woodyard | 2 | 55 | 2008 | 22 | DEN | 0.0 | 47 | 8 | 55 | 5 | 0 |
| 19 | Antonio Pierce | 5 | 53 | 2001 | 23 | WAS | 1.0 | 44 | 9 | 53 | 2 |
Antonio Pierce was a key piece of a Super Bowl team. Nicholas Morrow, Jerrell Freeman, and Christian Jones all have ties to the Chicago Bears and are fair comparisons for how the rest of the career may turn out for Sanborn.
Still, beyond that Welsy Woodyard, Troy Reeder, Krys Barnes, Craig Robertson, Vontaze Burfict, and Paul Worrilow also highlight players who turned that hot splash into multiple years starting in the NFL.
History tells us that if a UDFA can make plays as a rookie, it is probably not a fluke. Okay, he is not likely to be Hall of Fame-bound, but Freeman was one heck of a starter before his time in Chicago, and for a few years as well. The same can be said for plenty of those names.
Next. 5 reasons to trust Alan Williams moving forward. dark
Craig Robertson started 37 games during his four NFL seasons and started 62 games over his career. That is a great career for a UDFA and should be a reasonable expectation when looking at Jack Sanborn.