Kansas football: Top five former Kansas Jayhawks in the NFL
No. 2: Dorance Armstrong Jr.: (2015-2017) DE, Dallas Cowboys
Armstrong’s spectacular play this season made him a very close call with our actual No. 1, so it can be argued that these two are interchangeable. Nevertheless, Armstrong has emerged as an extremely good pass rusher for the Cowboys.
After being selected 116th overall in the 2018 NFL Draft by Dallas, there were some high hopes for what Armstrong could develop into. After a quiet first few seasons, he has turned it up a notch in 2021 and 2022.
Armstrong is well remembered as a member of the Jayhawks by everyone, even if they do not realize it. He was one of KU’s defensive captains in 2017 who would not shake Baker Mayfield’s hand in the pregame coin toss. We all know what happened next:
https://twitter.com/FootbaIIism/status/1605762301637939201
Even though this wasn’t the best look for Armstrong as an NFL Draft prospect, he was an outstanding player at Kansas nonetheless. In 2016, he recorded 10.0 sacks and 20 tackles for loss as a Jayhawk. The sack total tied him for third all-time in the Jayhawks sack leaders for a single season. He also procured an All-Big 12 Second Team selection in both his sophomore and senior seasons.
Armstrong has continued to play very good football for the Cowboys after leaving KU. He was second on the team in sacks, only trailing superstar edge rusher Micah Parsons. He had only 2.5 sacks in his first three seasons in Dallas, but we now see why Dallas drafted him a few years back. Armstrong will be entering his 6th season as a member of the Cowboys in 2023. Here are his stats for the 2022 regular season:
- 8.5 sacks
- 15 QB Hits
- 9 tackles for loss
- 33 combined tackles
- 1 forced fumble
- 1 fumble recovery