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Eric Wilson (linebacker, born 1994)

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Not to be confused with Eric Wilson (linebacker, born 1962).

Eric Wilson
No. 45 – Green Bay Packers
Position:Linebacker
Personal information
Born: (1994-09-26) September 26, 1994 (age 30)
Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Height:6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight:230 lb (104 kg)
Career information
High school:Lee M. Thurston
(Redford, Michigan)
College:Northwestern (2012)
Cincinnati (2013–2016)
Undrafted:2017
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
  • First-team All-AAC (2016)
  • Second-team All-AAC (2015)
Career NFL statistics as of Week 9, 2024
Total tackles:360
Sacks:11
Forced fumbles:3
Fumble recoveries:3
Pass deflections:11
Interceptions:5
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Eric André Wilson (born September 26, 1994) is an American professional football linebacker for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Northwestern and Cincinnati, and signed with the Minnesota Vikings as an undrafted free agent in 2017. He has also played for the Philadelphia Eagles, Houston Texans, and New Orleans Saints.

Early life

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Wilson played high school football at Lee M. Thurston High School in Redford, Michigan. He recorded 64 tackles and four sacks in his senior year.[1] He played safety, linebacker, and wide receiver at Lee M. Thurston.[2] He also earned All-State, All-Conference, All-Metro and Team MVP honors while at Lee M. Thurston. He lettered three years in football, four years in track and one year in basketball and was a long jump State Champion.[1]

College career

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Wilson redshirted for the Northwestern Wildcats of Northwestern University in 2012. He transferred to the University of Cincinnati in 2013, where he played for the Cincinnati Bearcats from 2013 to 2016. He sat out the 2013 season due to NCAA transfer rules.[1] He was named Second-team All-American Athletic Conference (AAC) in 2015 and First-team All-AAC in 2016. He played in 38 games, starting 24, during his college career. He graduated from Cincinnati in December 2016 with a degree in sports management.[3]

Professional career

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Pre-draft

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Wilson was rated the 21st best outside linebacker in the 2017 NFL draft by NFLDraftScout.com. The website also predicted that he would be selected in the seventh round.[4] Lance Zierlein of NFL.com predicted that he would be drafted in the fifth or sixth round.[5]

Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 1+1⁄8 in
(1.86 m) 		230 lb
(104 kg) 		30+1⁄4 in
(0.77 m) 		9+1⁄2 in
(0.24 m)		 4.53 s 1.54 s 2.50 s 4.31 s 6.96 s 39.5 in
(1.00 m)		 10 ft 1 in
(3.07 m)		 25 reps
All values from Cincinnati Pro Day[4]

Minnesota Vikings

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Wilson signed with the Minnesota Vikings as an undrafted free agent on May 1, 2017.[6] Wilson made his first career sack in week 11 of the 2018 season against the Chicago Bears when he sacked quarterback Mitchell Trubisky in a 25–20 loss.

In week 3 of the 2019 season against the Oakland Raiders, Wilson recorded 2 sacks on Derek Carr in the 34–14 win.[7] In week 17 against the Chicago Bears, Wilson recorded a team high 12 tackles and sacked Trubisky once during the 21–19 loss.[8]

On March 16, 2020, the Vikings placed a second-round restricted free agent tender on Wilson. He signed the one-year contract on May 8, 2020.[9] In Week 2 against the Indianapolis Colts, Wilson recorded his first career interception off a pass thrown by Philip Rivers during the 28–11 loss.[10] In Week 5 against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday Night Football, Wilson recorded a sack on Russell Wilson and intercepted a pass thrown by Wilson during the 27–26 loss.[11] In Week 8 against the Green Bay Packers, Wilson recovered a fumble forced by teammate D. J. Wonnum on Aaron Rodgers late in the fourth quarter to secure a 28–22 Vikings' win.[12]

Philadelphia Eagles

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Wilson signed a one-year contract with the Philadelphia Eagles on April 14, 2021.[13][14] He was named the starting middle linebacker alongside T. J. Edwards. He started two of seven games played before being released on November 3, 2021.[15]

Houston Texans

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On November 4, 2021, Wilson was claimed off waivers by the Houston Texans.[16]

New Orleans Saints

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On May 16, 2022, Wilson signed with the New Orleans Saints.[17] He was released on August 30, 2022, and signed to the practice squad the next day.[18][19]

Green Bay Packers

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On October 4, 2022, Wilson was signed by the Packers off of the Saints' practice squad.[20] On October 16, he blocked a punt by Braden Mann during a Week 6 loss to the New York Jets.[21] On March 25, 2023, Wilson re-signed with the Packers.[22] On January 20, Eric recovered a fumble against the San Francisco 49ers, during the second round of the NFL playoffs.[23]

On March 23, 2024, Wilson re-signed with the Packers.[24] In Week 3 against the Indianapolis Colts, Wilson recorded a near perfect Pro Football Focus grade of 99.4 as the Packers won 16–10, after recording a forced fumble, a tackle for loss and an interception over 8 defensive snaps.[25] In Week 7 against the Houston Texans, Wilson filled in for Quay Walker when he was ruled out with a concussion, recording a pass deflection, 4 tackles for loss and 2 sacks on Texans quarterback C. J. Stroud as the Packers won 24–22, again recording the highest PFF grade among Packers defensive players.[26]

NFL career statistics

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Regular season

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Year Team GP GS Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
Total Solo Ast Sck SFTY PDef Int Yds Avg Lng TDs FF FR
2017 MIN 16 0 8 5 3 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
2018 MIN 16 4 42 31 11 2.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2019 MIN 16 6 62 36 26 3.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
2020 MIN 16 15 122 62 60 3.0 0 8 3 23 7.7 16 0 1 2
2021 HOU 7 0 3 2 1 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PHI 7 2 43 18 25 0.0 0 1 1 7 7.0 7 0 0 0
2022 GB 13 0 17 9 8 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2023 GB 17 0 31 16 15 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2024 GB 7 4 20 15 5 2.0 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 1 0
Total 115 31 348 194 154 11.0 0 11 5 30 6.0 16 0 3 3
Source: pro-football-reference.com

Postseason

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Year Team GP GS Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
Total Solo Ast Sck SFTY PDef Int Yds Avg Lng TDs FF FR
2017 MIN 2 0 1 0 1 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2019 MIN 2 2 13 9 4 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2023 GB 2 0 6 5 1 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Total 6 2 20 14 6 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Source: pro-football-reference.com

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Eric Wilson". gobearcats.com. Archived from the original on October 17, 2017. Retrieved October 17, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  2. ^ Vaccher, Louie (July 23, 2013). "Looking at Wilsons transfer". northwestern.rivals.com. Archived from the original on October 18, 2017. Retrieved October 17, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  3. ^ "Eric Wilson". vikings.com. Archived from the original on October 17, 2017. Retrieved October 17, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  4. ^ a b "2017 NFL Draft Scout Eric Wilson College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved October 17, 2017.
  5. ^ "Eric Wilson". National Football League. Archived from the original on October 17, 2017. Retrieved October 17, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  6. ^ "Vikings Agree To Terms With 13 Rookie Free Agents". Vikings.com. May 1, 2017. Retrieved October 20, 2017.
  7. ^ "NFL rushing leader Cook leads Vikes romp past Raiders 34–14". ESPN. September 22, 2019. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  8. ^ "Bears edge Vikings 21–19 on Piñeiro FG with 10 seconds left". ESPN. Associated Press. December 29, 2019. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  9. ^ Alper, Josh (May 8, 2020). "Eric Wilson signs Vikings RFA tender". NBCSports.com. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
  10. ^ "Minnesota Vikings at Indianapolis Colts – September 20th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 22, 2020.
  11. ^ "Minnesota Vikings at Seattle Seahawks – October 11th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
  12. ^ "Minnesota Vikings at Green Bay Packers – November 1st, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 3, 2020.
  13. ^ Spadaro, Dave (April 7, 2021). "Jordan Howard, Eric Wilson highlight Nick Sirianni's desire for competition on roster". PhiladelphiaEagles.com. Retrieved April 15, 2021.
  14. ^ "2021 NFL Transactions: Signings – April". National Football League. Retrieved April 14, 2021.
  15. ^ "Eagles waive LB Eric Wilson". PhiladelphiaEagles.com. November 3, 2021.
  16. ^ "Houston Texans Transactions (11-4-2021)". HoustonTexans.com. November 4, 2021.
  17. ^ "New Orleans Saints announce roster moves". NewOrleansSaints.com. May 16, 2022.
  18. ^ "New Orleans Saints make roster reductions to 53". NewOrleansSaints.com. August 30, 2022.
  19. ^ "New Orleans Saints announce practice squad additions". NewOrleansSaints.com. August 31, 2022.
  20. ^ "Packers sign LB Eric Wilson". packers.com. October 4, 2022. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  21. ^ "Eric Wilson surges through Jets' line to block punt". packers.com. October 16, 2022. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  22. ^ "Packers re-sign LB Eric Wilson". packers.com. March 25, 2023. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
  23. ^ Schwab, Frank (January 21, 2024). "Packers LB Eric Wilson has the hustle play of the year on a huge fumble recovery". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved September 7, 2024.
  24. ^ "Packers re-sign LB Eric Wilson". Packers.com. March 23, 2024.
  25. ^ https://x.com/JacobMorley/status/1835692213923135964. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  26. ^ https://x.com/JacobMorley/status/1848376513625825745. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
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