Most of the time, college teammates sadly don’t get to enjoy playing together in the NFL. However, there are plenty of exceptions.
Some college teammates enter the NFL together, while others reunite after several years apart. Either way, these pairs/groups of players often enjoy great chemistry on and off the field, much to their team’s delight.
CBS Sports’ Cody Benjamin ranked the 10 best pairs/groups of college-turned-pro teammates, and the Baltimore Ravens had not one, but two entries on the list.
The first is quarterback Lamar Jackson and new cornerback Jaire Alexander, who previously played together at Louisville. Jackson played a huge part in luring Alexander to Baltimore this offseason after his release from the Green Bay Packers, and they were both elated to play together again.
“Jackson alone could warrant a top spot in this list, given his increased efficiency as a quarterback to go along with unmatched electricity as an off-script big-play machine,” Benjamin wrote. “Now he’s got his old college buddy on the other side of the field, with Alexander inking a one-year deal in Baltimore following a splashy, if injury-riddled, seven-year run with the Packers. Before they were drafted 14 picks apart and became NFL icons, Jackson and Alexander represented the Cardinals from 2015-2017.”
The second is a pair that doesn’t get talked about as much, that being running back Derrick Henry and cornerback Marlon Humphrey. The two played together at Alabama in the mid 2010s, and after Henry signed with the Ravens last offseason, they finally reunited in Baltimore.
“Humphrey is a Ravens lifer, entering Year 9 as a mainstay of Baltimore’s defense, while Henry only joined the fun in 2024, proving he’s still got superhuman legs with a 1,900-yard debut in purple. They previously spent two Alabama seasons together from 2014-2015, just before “King Henry” landed with the Tennessee Titans. The only concern you might have with them is they’re no longer spring chickens.”
These four players are some of the Ravens’ brightest stars, and the fact that they played together in both college and now in the NFL is something special.
