David Tyree and two other greatest Syracuse hidden NFL Draft gems since 2000
By Sam Fariss
Round 7, Pick 228. P. player. Riley Dixon. . 2016 NFL Draft. Riley Dixon. . Riley Dixon. 45
While punters are hardly ever taken in the first few rounds, having to wait until the end of the 2016 NFL Draft was grueling for former Orange star punter Riley Dixon.
Dixon was selected 228th overall during the seventh round but went on to a truly incredible career in the league. He played in eight seasons, which included 131 games and 591 total punts.
Averaging nearly 46 yards a punt, Dixon racked up a career total of 27,090 yards. Out of his nearly 600 punts, 6.26 percent were touchbacks (37) and 33.5 percent ended up within the 20-yard line (198).
Returners only earned back 1,878 yards when they dared to try to bring back one of Dixon’s booming punts, averaging just 7.8 yards per attempt.
The greatest part of Dixon’s stat book? On five pass attempts, the former Syracuse player earned three completions for a total of 34 yards through the air as well as carrying the ball for 14 yards on the ground.