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Chicago signed Willie Young to a 3-year, $9 million contract back in 2014, and the Bears sure got their money’s worth last season.  The former NC State defensive end only started in 8 of the 15 games that he played in, but that didn’t stop him from recording 10 sacks.  Young was on a trajectory to be a major part of the Bears defense in 2015-16, but then he tore his achilles in week 16 of last year.  Things seemingly continued to work against Young while he was recovering.  Eight days after his injury, the Bears fired General Manager Phil Emery, who signed Young to his contract.  Then head coach John Fox hired Vic Fangio to be the defensive coordinator, and reprogram the Bears defense with a 3-4 scheme, which bumped Young to a role at outside linebacker.

It looks like Young could be on the roster bubble when teams are cut to 53 players in 2 weeks.  He’s coming off of an injury and is entering his 6th NFL season at a new position where he currently sits 5th on the depth chart.

Willie is handling the situation in typical “Willie” form.  He has always been one of my favorite players with a camera or microphone in his face.

“Man, I don’t give a (bleep) about no depth chart,” he said Tuesday on a bench outside Halas Hall. “I’m a seventh-round draft pick. I ain’t supposed to be here right now. Let’s not forget about that. So depth charts have always been irrelevant to me.” (Chicago Tribune)

Not many people can pull off referring to themselves in third person.  Young is a pro at it.

“I see a Willie Young who’s getting back to his form,” Young said. “Absolutely. I never lost my confidence. It’s just a matter of me being able now to run off, push off (my leg), fight pressure off it, sustain blocks and move fluidly. That’s the catch. That’s all I’m waiting on.  The biggest thing I can control is me coming out, balling out and doing what Willie Young been doing. Going fishing. Sacking quarterbacks. Making plays. And whatever happens after that happens after that.” (Chicago Tribune)

Young made a name for himself sacking quarterbacks and making plays at NC State.  He ranks 7th all-time in school history in sacks (20.5) and 2nd in tackles for loss (45.5).  Young also earned 2nd Team All-ACC honors in 2009 for the Wolfpack.

 

Whether Willie Young plays for the Bears, or another NFL team in Week 1, he will continue to be “Willie,” and continue sacking quarterbacks and making plays.

Matthew is Co-Owner of Pack Insider. He writes for all sports, with a focus on football and recruiting, and is in charge of business strategy. He is an NC State alum who majored in business. Matthew is also the lead pastor of The Point Church in Cary, NC.

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Pack in the Pros

T-Wolves Sign Former NC State Forward TJ Warren for Remainder of the Season

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Back during the first week of March, former All-ACC NC State Forward TJ Warren signed a 10-day contract with the Minnesota Timberwolves. After finding success as a scoring option off the bench, the T-Wolves signed him to another 10-day contract.

With only 11 games remaining in the regular season, Minnesota went ahead and signed him for the rest of regular season yesterday.

In the 7 games Warren has played for the T-Wolves, he has averaged 4.1 points per game in 14.0 minutes of play, shooting 47.8% from the field and 38.2% from beyond the arc.

Warren has not played in Minnesota’s past two games, but he has a chance to prove his worth once again tonight in the T-Wolves matchup vs. the Pistons. As things currently stand, Minnesota sits in 3rd place in the Western Conference.

Here’s a look at the former ACC Player of the Year’s stats over 10 seasons.

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Former NC State All-American Nyheim Hines Signs 1-Year Deal With Cleveland

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Former NC State All-American Nyheim Hines has signed a 1-year deal with the Cleveland Browns worth up to $3.5 million.

Maybe Cleveland will use Hines to his full potential. If you’re not using him as a Swiss Army Knife in the passing game, you’re wasting an opportunity.

The former All-ACC Running Back Hines missed all of last season due to a torn ACL he suffered in a boating accident.

This will be Hines’ 7th season in the NFL.

When you look at what former NC State players have done in the NFL, Hines ranks in the Top-10 in Rushing and Receiving.

His 1,015 rushing yards ranks 7th in school history and his 10 rushing touchdowns rank 9th. Hines’ 240 receptions rank 8th and his 1,778 receiving yards rank 10th.

In the return game, he’s one of the best to represent NC State in the NFL as well. His 1,015 punt return yards ranks 2nd in school history and his 817 kickoff return yards rank 6th. Hines’ 2 punts returned for TD’s ranks 3rd, and his 2 kickoffs taken to the house ranks 1st.

 

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Former NC State Quarterback Jacoby Brissett Signs 1-Year Deal with Pats

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Former NC State Quarterback Jacoby Brissett is signing a 1-year deal with the New England Patriots, rejoining the team that drafted him in the 3rd Round back in 2016.

The deal is worth $8 million.

After the Pats traded away Quarterback Mac Jones to the Jaguars yesterday, it’s abundantly clear what they are planning to do with the 3rd pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.

After winning a Super Bowl in his lone season in New England in 2016, Brissett went on to spend 4 seasons in Indy, before spending the next 3 seasons in 3 different cities: Miami, Cleveland and Washington.

Brissett has had a great career as a backup Quarterback through 8 seasons in the NFL, playing in 79 games (starting 48), throwing for 10,574 yards and 51 touchdowns, with 23 interceptions, and a QB Rating of 85.3.

Brissett ranks 5th in NC State history in career passing yards and touchdowns, and 3rd in QB Rating by a former Wolfpack player in the NFL.

Prior to making a dime from New England in 2024, Brissett has made $50.9 million through his first 8 seasons in the league.

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Former NC State Defensive Tackle Justin Jones Signs with Arizona

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Former NC State Defensive Tackle Justin Jones (2014-17) has signed a 3-year deal with the Arizona Cardinals.

The deal is worth a total of $30.1 million, with $19.75 million guaranteed.

Jones spent the past two seasons in Chicago, where he started in every game, recording 101 tackles, 22 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks.

In 2018, Jones was taken in the 3rd round by the Chargers. After playing in 15 games as a reserve as a rookie, Jones started for the Bolts for the next 3 years before signing with the Bears.

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