Syracuse Football: How did former Orange standouts fare in the NFL in week 1?

Not only did Syracuse football get its first win of the season on Saturday, but on Sunday, a bunch of former Syracuse players took the field for their NFL teams. Not including the players who were signed to practice squads, there are a dozen former Orange players on NFL rosters at the start of the 2025 season.

That’s more NFL players than Syracuse has had in a long time, which is why it’s worth catching up on the former Orange players who made the most impact for their teams during week one of the new NFL season.

Andre Szmyt, Browns

It was a rough NFL debut for Szmyt, who waited more than two years after leaving Syracuse to get his chance in the NFL. Szmyt missed a PAT, which ended up being the difference in a 17-16 Cleveland loss. He also missed a 36-yard field goal that would have put the Browns ahead midway through the fourth quarter. Hopefully, the Browns don’t lose hope in Szmyt, and he gets a chance to redeem himself next week.

Zaire Franklin, Colts

Franklin and the Colts dominated the Dolphins, 33-8. He played nearly every snap until the Colts sat their starters late in the game. However, he managed just four tackles in an uneven performance.

LeQuint Allen, Jaguars

Allen got a couple of touches in his NFL debut. He had one run for seven yards and one catch for four yards. It wasn’t much, but he played on 14% of Jacksonville’s snaps, including eight of the team’s 12 third downs, which is likely to be his main role for the time being.

Riley Dixon, Buccaneers

Dixon played an underrated role in Tampa’s 23-20 win over the Falcons. He had four punts, including one that went for 62 yards. Two of his punts landed inside the 20-yard line. The Falcons had a modest 29 total return yards on two punt returns.

Sean Tucker, Buccaneers

Tucker got just one carry for two yards, which wasn’t that encouraging. However, Tampa’s backup Rachaad White only had two carries, so Tucker is close to being on level footing with him. Tampa’s #44 is also being utilized on special teams, returning three kickoffs for a total of 81 yards.

Others

Oronde Gadsden was a healthy scratch on Friday when the Chargers beat the Chiefs in Brazil. Marlowe Wax was active but didn’t make an impact on the game. However, with the injury to Denzel Perryman, Wax could be thrust into meaningful snaps early in the season if Perryman misses time.

Garrett Williams made four tackles for the Cardinals in their 20-13 win over the Saints.

Ifeatu Melifonwu had six tackles for the Dolphins in their 33-8 loss to the Colts. Ashtyn Davis, who is technically the starter ahead of Melifonwu, had just one tackle.

Andre Cisco made five tackles for the Jets, although Cisco and the rest of the secondary were the scapegoats for the Jets losing 34-32, with Aaron Rodgers throwing for four touchdowns.

Matthew Bergeron started at left guard for the Falcons, as has been customary since he entered the league. However, Atlanta managed just 69 rushing yards, although Michael Penix Jr. took just one sack.