Nettech News: Why is there a notable increase of Utah ties in the NFL this offseason?

New York Jets quarterback Zach Wilson throws a pass during an NFL football practice. — New York Jets quarterback Zach Wilson throws a pass during an NFL football practice, Wednesday, June 2, 2021, in Florham Park, N.J. Wilson is one of 10 Utah high school rookies in the NFL right now. | Kathy Willens, Associated Press

Each summer over the past eight years, the Deseret News has created a master list of Utah ties in the NFL during the offseason. This year, there are 89 Utah ties on an NFL roster just a few weeks before teams head to training camps near the end of July.

How does the number of Utah ties on NFL rosters in 2021 stack up to past seasons?

The 89 Utah ties currently in the NFL is significantly higher than the past three seasons — there were 74 last season, 76 in 2019 and 79 in 2018.

The 2017 offseason set the standard in recent years, when there were 90 local players on NFL rosters around this time, paced by a strong contingent of 35 rookies. Earlier this offseason, there were 90 Utah ties on NFL rosters, before former South Sevier High’s Alani Pututau was released by Atlanta.

In 2016, there were 75 Utah ties on rosters during the summer, with 70 in 2015 and 66 in 2014.

This year’s crop of 89 local players includes 16 rookies, with eight draft picks and eight undrafted free agents.

Here’s a breakdown of those 89 players (note: they can count towards multiple categories):

29 who played at the University of Utah (down from 30 last year)
26 who played at BYU (up from 12 last year)
14 who played at Utah State (down from 15 last year)
4 who played at Weber State (equal to 4 last year)
4 who played at Snow College (equal to 4 last year)
1 who played at Southern Utah (down from 2 last year)
42 who played football at Utah high schools (up from 30 last year)

So, why is there such an increase of Utah ties this year?

Three main reasons contribute to the sizable jump of Utah ties in the NFL:

BYU went from 12 players in the NFL in the 2020 offseason to 26 this year. There are 13 Cougars who will be rookies in 2021 — if they make it to an opening day roster — headlined by quarterback Zach Wilson, the No. 2 overall selection by the New York Jets in the 2021 NFL draft.
The number of Utah high school players in the NFL saw an increase of 40% from last year to this year. In addition to Wilson, who went to Corner Canyon High, former Desert Hills High’s offensive tackle Penei Sewell was a first-round draft pick — he went No. 7 overall to the Detroit Lions — and there were seven total Utah high schoolers taken in this year’s draft. There are a total of 10 Utah high school rookies overall.
The University of Utah, yet again, leads the way among state representatives, and the number of Utes only went down one even though longtime quarterback Alex Smith retired and no Utah rookies were drafted — thanks in large part to COVID-19 impacting the past year. Even so, the Utes have had 21 players drafted in the past five years and 18 of them are still in the league.

Here’s a look at each Utah tie in the NFL, listed by team in alphabetical order: