10 greatest Notre Dame football NFL careers in school history

It’s certainly no easy task to rank the top 10 NFL careers of any college football program with a great history, but it’s a uniquely difficult challenge when that school has produced 14 NFL Hall of Famers. That’s the case with Notre Dame and its storied history.

The Fighting Irish are no longer the most dominant power in college football, but for many years that was the case. That means plenty of talent excelled at the next level, even outside of the list of 13 Hall of Fame players. There are two greats who do not have a bust in Canton but did claim a spot on this list.

That’s particularly made possible by the fact that one of Notre Dame’s 14 Hall of Famers got in as a contributor, and six of the 13 Hall of Fame players finished their careers before the Super Bowl era. Two of those legends have made this list, but the excluded Hall of Famers are Edward DeBartolo Jr. (contributor), Curly Lambeau, John McNally, Wayne Millner, George Trafton, and Bryant Young (the only one of the Super Bowl era left off).

Now, let’s get into the top 10 NFL careers by former Notre Dame football players.

Notre Dame: 1984-87

NFL: 1988-2004

Teams: Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Accomplishments: Hall of Fame, 9x Pro Bowl, 1990’s All-Decade team

When Lou Holtz took over at Notre Dame midway through Brown’s career, he unlocked him as not only a wide receiver but a running back. In his junior and senior years, he had over 30 catches and 30 carries in each. When the 1987 Heisman Trophy winner got to the NFL, the rushing production went away as a rookie sixth-overall pick for the Raiders. He was the best kick-returner in football.

In Year 2, he only played one game. It took until Year 6 of his career to have a 1,000-yard receiving season. After that, he put together nine straight 1,000-yard seasons and made the Pro Bowl seven times during that stretch.

Brown finished his career with 14,934 receiving yards, the seventh most all-time.

Notre Dame: 1959-62

NFL: 1962-74, 1976

Teams: Boston Patriots, Miami Dolphins

Accomplishments: Hall of Fame, 2x Super Bowl Champ, 8x Pro Bowl, 5x All-Pro

At Notre Dame, Nick Buoniconti was an offensive lineman and linebacker, but he didn’t appear to have much of a pro career ahead of him at 5-foot-11 220 pounds. Even his coaching staff at Notre Dame advised NFL and AFL scouts that he was too small to play in the league.

The undersized linebacker played bigger than his size for 14 seasons between the Patriots and Dolphins. Before the 1969 season, Buoniconti was traded from the Patriots to the Dolphins where he received less personal accolades than his five Pro-Bowl seasons with Boston, but did win two Super Bowls.

He was named Miami’s team MVP in 1969, 1970, and 1973.

Notre Dame: 2010-14

NFL: 2014-current

Teams: Dallas Cowboys

Accomplishments: 8x Pro Bowl, 6x All-Pro, 2010s All-Decade team

Zack Martin has not made the Hall of Fame, but he’s almost certainly headed to Canton after his career ends. He’s been arguably the most dominant interior offensive lineman of his era with eight Pro-Bowl seasons, six first-team All-Pro seasons, and two second-team All-Pro years.

As a guard, Martin wasn’t just a first-round pick of the Cowboys, No. 16 overall in 2014, but he finished second in Offensive Rookie of the Year voting to Odell Beckham Jr. That’s an award that is essentially impossible to win for an offensive lineman, let alone an interior offensive lineman.

Martin dealt with injuries in 2020, but in every season in which he’s played more than 10 games, he’s made an All-Pro team and 2023 will likely be no different.

Notre Dame: 1946-47

NFL: 1948-55

Teams: Chicago Bears

Accomplishments: Hall of Fame, 4x Pro Bowl, 4x All-Pro

George Connor transferred from Holy Cross to Notre Dame and was an All-American offensive lineman at both schools. In 1946 he won the Outland Trophy as the best offensive lineman in the country and was a part of Notre Dame’s undefeated national championship team in 1947.

In the NFL, Connor started as an offensive lineman, but out of necessity began to play linebacker as well. He excelled on both sides of the ball and was named All-Pro at three different positions, offensive tackle, linebacker, and defensive tackle. He was once named All-Pro on offense and defense in the same season.

His illustrious career was cut short by a knee injury.

Notre Dame: 1968-70

NFL: 1974-85

Teams: Washington Football Team

Accomplishments: 1983 NFL MVP, Super Bowl XVII Champion, 2x Pro Bowl, 1x All-Pro, 1983 Offensive Player of the Year, 1982 Walter Payton Man of the Year

Joe Theismann may not be a Hall of Fame quarterback, but he is a Super Bowl-winning quarterback and an NFL MVP.

After finishing second in Heisman voting in 1970, Theismann was drafted in the fourth round of the NFL draft by the Dolphins, but he never played for the team. Instead, he went to the CFL to play for the Toronto Argonauts.

After starring in the CFL, Washington traded a first-round pick for Theismann’s rights and brought him over to the NFL. He didn’t flourish in the NFL until 1978 at 29 years old, but in his 30s he was one of the league’s best quarterbacks. In his MVP season, he threw for 3,714 yards and 29 touchdowns with just 11 interceptions.

His career was ended in 1985 when his leg was broken on a sack by Lawrence Taylor.

Notre Dame: 1971-73

NFL: 1974-84

Teams: Oakland Raiders, Houston Texans, Minnesota Vikings

Accomplishments: Hall of Fame, 2x Super Bowl Champion, 5x Pro Bowl, 4x All-Pro, 1970s All-Decade team

At Notre Dame, Casper spent two seasons as an offensive lineman in 1971 and 1972, then played wide receiver in 1973, catching 19 passes for 317 yards and four touchdowns, so he was a natural fit at tight end in the NFL.

Casper was taken in the second round of the 1974 NFL Draft by the Oakland Raiders. In his first two years, he was mostly a special-teamer, but in 1976 he turned into a dominant force. He caught 53 passes for 691 yards and 10 touchdowns in his first year as a starter.

“The Ghost” had great numbers, but was biggest in the biggest moments, including the “Ghost to the Post” his double OT 42-yard touchdown catch in the 1977 AFC Playoffs. Then, the next season, Casper helped the Raiders beat the Chargers by diving on a fumble in the end zone, a play known as “The Holy Roller.”

Notre Dame: 1990-92

NFL: 1993-2005

Teams: Los Angeles Rams, Pittsburgh Steelers

Accomplishments: Hall of Fame, Super Bowl XL Champion, 6x Pro Bowl, 2x All-Pro, 1993 Offensive Rookie of the Year, 2001 Walter Payton Man of the Year

Jerome Bettis is best known for the fairy-tale ending to his NFL career, but the start of his career was maybe just as memorable. Bettis was the 10th overall pick to the Rams and ran for 1,429 yards and seven touchdowns to win Rookie of the Year.

After his three seasons playing for the Rams, Bettis got traded to the Steelers and was arguably the face of the franchise until he retired after the 2005 season. Bettis had eight 1,000-yard rushing seasons in Pittsburgh, but late in his career he became a goal-line back and finished his career with 91 rushing touchdowns.

Bettis ended his career winning by Super Bowl XL in his hometown of Detroit.

Notre Dame: 1954-56

NFL: 1957-62, 1964-66

Teams: Green Bay Packers

Accomplishments: Hall of Fame, 4x NFL Champion, 1961 NFL MVP, 2x Pro Bowl, 2x All-Pro

Paul Hornung won the 1956 Heisman Trophy as Notre Dame’s quarterback. Then, he was drafted first overall by the Packers in 1957 and transitioned to fullback for his first two seasons in the NFL.

Hornung didn’t just play fullback and running back in his NFL career, but he was also Green Bay’s placekicker. Hornung led the NFL in scoring in 1959, 1960, and 1961 with 32 total touchdowns across that stretch, 113 extra points, and 37 field goals.

Hornung won the MVP in 1961, but his best year was 1960 when he amassed a career-high 928 scrimmage yards and 15 total touchdowns.