Washington Huskies In The NFL: Daniel Te’o-Nesheim

Season Grade: B

Oct 25, 2012; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Daniel Te’o-Nesheim sacks Minnesota Vikings quarterback, Christian Ponder.

A successful four-year career at UW that saw Te’o-Nesheim rack up the most sacks in Husky history (30) led to the Eagles selecting him in the third round of the 2010 draft. He sustained a shoulder injury that allowed him to play in only six games his rookie season and he was eventually placed on the practice squad for the 2011 season.

After spending much of the 2011 season on the Eagles’ practice squad, he was signed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers before the final week of the season. He would play in one game for the Bucs and make one tackle in 2011.

Despite getting a bad break in his rookie season, Te’o-Nesheim never stopped working and earned himself a large role on an NFL defense. In 2012, he finally lived up to the hype he had as a third rounder coming out of college. Te’o-Nesheim got the first quality playing time of his career and collected 40 tackles as well as four sacks. His best game came in a week 11 win against San Diego, when he made five tackles and got a sack. He made seven tackles the week before as well.

After making a significant impact in 2012, he is expected to start for Tampa Bay next season, making him the second Husky on the Bucs’ defense, joining linebacker Mason Foster.