By Pat Harty

IOWA CITY, Iowa – A case could be made for Jack Campbell, Tristan Wirfs, Cooper DeJean, Tyler Linderbaum and George Kittle, if he could just stay healthy, being considered the best player at their position in the NFL.

Of course, this is highly subjective, and I’m willing to admit a little Hawkeye bias.

But to suggest that these five former Iowa football players are at, or near the top, of their respective position in the NFL is far from hyperbole.

Campbell was just named the recipient of the 2025 Pro Butkus Award, which is given annually to who is considered the best linebacker in the NFL. The Cedar Falls native won the same award in college for the Hawkeyes, achieving a rare double.

Wirfs has been a model of consistency at left tackle, and a tower of strength, since joining the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2020. The Mount Vernon native was just voted to his fourth straight Pro Bowl.

DeJean was rated as the No. 1 slot cornerback for the 2025 season, allowing a league-best 57.7 passer rating and zero touchdowns. He was also ranked the fourth best cornerback overall by PFF after the 2025 season.

Linderbaum is just the third offensive lineman in Baltimore Ravens history to earn at least three Pro Bowl honors, joining Hall of Famer Jonathan Ogden (11) and Ring of Honor Member and former Hawkeye Marshal Yanda (eight). Linderbaum, who is from Solon, is also the first Ravens offensive lineman to make three straight Pro Bowls since Yanda made six straight.

And Kittle, again when healthy, is as effective as any tight end in the NFL. He excels as a run blocker and at stretching the field with his speed and explosiveness.

Unfortunately, he just hasn’t been able to stay healthy, and is currently in the early stages of recovering from a torn right Achilles, which occurred in the Wild Card game on Jan. 11.

With everything that Kirk Ferentz has accomplished in 27 seasons as the Iowa head coach; his NFL pipeline might be second on the list behind only his Big Ten-record 213 wins.

Iowa has been developing and producing NFL players under Ferentz throughout his time as head coach. His first NFL draft class in 2000 only had two players – tight end Austin Wheatley and defensive back Matt Bowen – but they both would go on to make an NFL roster as rookies.

Bowen also played for eight seasons in the NFL with four different teams and made 30 starts.

The four players in the photo that accompanies this article from left to right are Jack Campbell, tight end Sam LaPorta, safety Kaevon Merriweather and cornerback Riley Moss; all four were team captains at Iowa and are now playing in the NFL.

LaPorta, who plays for the Detroit Lions, had his 2025 season cut short by an injury.

But when healthy, he’s much like George Kittle; sound as a blocker and highly productive as a receiver.

LaPorta has 186 receptions for 2,140 yards and 20 touchdowns while playing in 40 games over the past three seasons.

Moss, who starts at cornerback for the Denver Broncos, emerged as a top-tier defender in 2025, tying for first in the NFL with 19 passes defended.

The list of former Hawkeyes who are making a significant impact in NFL has arguably never looked better.

The fact that so many of them, including Campbell, Wirfs, Linderbaum, DeJean and Moss, grew up in Iowa is more reason for Hawkeye fans to be proud of this pipeline.

None of the players mentioned in this article were heralded recruits coming out of high school, though in Wirfs’ case, he committed to Iowa so early that it probably kept him from getting more scholarship offers. Wirfs was a four-star recruit coming out of high school, but he still was lightly recruited nationally.

Iowa is known for being a developmental program under Kirk Ferentz, and there is no better proof of that reputation than the NFL pipeline in which many of the players were lightly recruited in high school.

Iowa’s next wave of potential NFL drafts picks includes center Logan Jones, who was named the recipient of the 2025 Rimington Trophy, which goes to the nation’s top collegiate center.

Jones is also from Iowa (Council Bluffs) and was recruited as a defensive lineman before switching to center in 2022. Linderbaum made the same switch from defensive line to center as a Hawkeye, and that decision would change the course of his life.