Nicholas Lalonde Bellore (born May 12, 1989) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

and special teamer for the

Washington Commanders The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) East division ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the Central Michigan Chippewas and signed with the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

in 2011. Bellore has also played for the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

, and

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

, making two

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players. The format has changed ...

s in his career for his special teams play.

Early life

Bellore was born on May 12, 1989, in

St. Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (often abbreviated St. Paul) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 311,527, making it Minnesota's second-most populous city a ...

, and attended Whitefish Bay High School, graduating in 2007. He chose to attend

Central Michigan University Central Michigan University (CMU) is a Public university, public research university in Mount Pleasant, Michigan, United States. It was established in 1892 as a private normal school and became a state institution in 1895. CMU is one of the eigh ...

College career

Bellore started at linebacker for the Central Michigan Chippewas his freshman year and through his senior season. Bellore holds the second highest consecutive start streak at CMU with 51 games. He was an All-

Mid American Conference The Mid-American Conference (MAC) is a collegiate athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region that stretches from Western New York to Illinois. Its members compete in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Divi ...

First-team selection on defense in 2008, 2009 and 2010. The Chippewas appeared in three bowl games during Bellore's career, winning one (the

2010 GMAC Bowl The 2010 GMAC Bowl, the eleventh edition of the college football bowl game, was played at Ladd–Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Alabama, on January 6, 2010, as one of the final games of the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The game was telec ...

), only the second bowl win in CMU history. He was also selected as CMU's Defensive Player of the Year in 2008 and 2009.

Professional career

New York Jets

After going undrafted in the 2011 NFL Draft, Bellore drew interest as an undrafted free agent from over half of the teams in the NFL. He signed with the

on July 26, 2011, and was kept on the roster to start the

2011 NFL season The 2011 NFL season was the 92nd regular season of the National Football League (NFL) and the 46th of the Super Bowl era. It began on Thursday, September 8, 2011, with the Super Bowl XLV champion Green Bay Packers defeating the Super Bowl XLI ...

. He recorded 19 tackles in the 2011 season mainly on

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their position. Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

. On October 14, 2012, Bellore caught his first career pass on a fake punt by Tim Tebow. He gained 23 yards on the play. Jets coaches looked into converting him to play fullback in training camp of 2012, but the experiment was short lived and he returned to linebacker. On January 6, 2015, Bellore was named to the 2014 Pro Football Focus

All-Pro All-Pro is an honor bestowed upon professional American football players that designates the best player at each position during a given season. All-Pro players are typically selected by press organizations, who select an "All-Pro team," a list t ...

Special Teams.

San Francisco 49ers

Bellore signed a two-year contract with the

on April 3, 2015. In 2016, Bellore appeared in 14 games where he started a career-high 10 games and registered 82 tackles, four passes defensed and the first sack,

interception In Ball game, ball-playing Competitive sport, competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for ...

and fumble recovery of his career. He was placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in ...

on December 19, 2016, with an elbow injury.

Detroit Lions

On April 3, 2017, Bellore signed with the

. He was released on September 9, 2017, but was re-signed two days later. Bellore would also start to play on offense as a fullback. He scored his first career

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

on a one-yard reception against the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its home g ...

on December 3, 2017. On March 14, 2018, Bellore re-signed with the Lions. Bellore exclusively played on offense and special teams and did not log any snaps on defense. He had one rushing attempt, the first of his career, for zero yards and four receptions for 15 yards. Bellore also recorded 9 special teams tackles.

Seattle Seahawks

On May 9, 2019, Bellore signed with the

. He finished the 2019 season with two receptions for 23 yards, including a three-yard touchdown reception in a Week 16 loss against the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The ...

. Bellore was released during final roster cuts on September 5, 2020, but re-signed with the team two days later. During the 2020 NFL season, Bellore recorded 15 tackles and a fumble recovery along with one rushing attempt for five yards and one reception for nine yards. Bellore earned his first career Pro Bowl selection and was selected to the

as a special teamer. On March 18, 2021, Bellore signed a two-year deal worth $4.4 million, including $1.2 million guaranteed, to remain in Seattle. Bellore finished the season with 14 tackles and a fumble recovery on special teams and one reception for nine yards and one rushing attempt for five yards on offense. During the 2022 season, Bellore played snaps on defense for the first time since the 2017 season. Bellore played fullback on offense, linebacker on defense, and was a key part of the Seahawks' special teams units. He recorded 15 tackles and one rushing attempt for three yards. On February 22, 2023, Bellore signed a two-year contract extension with the Seahawks. He recorded 14 tackles during the 2023 season. Bellore was selected to the second Pro Bowl of his career as an alternate for the 2024 Pro Bowl as a special teamer. He replaced

player Jalen Reeves-Maybin, who opted out. Bellore was released by the Seahawks on March 11, 2024.

Washington Commanders

Bellore signed with the

practice squad In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scou ...

of the

on September 2, 2024. He was signed to the active roster on September 14. In 16 appearances for Washington, Bellore logged 21 total tackles. On March 18, 2025, Bellore re-signed with the Commanders on a two-year contract.

References

External links

Washington Commanders profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bellore, Nick 1989 births 21st-century American sportsmen American football fullbacks American football linebackers Central Michigan Chippewas football players Detroit Lions players Living people National Conference Pro Bowl players New York Jets players Players of American football from Milwaukee County, Wisconsin Players of American football from Saint Paul, Minnesota San Francisco 49ers players Seattle Seahawks players Washington Commanders players Whitefish Bay High School alumni