Brett Hundley

Brett Alan Hundley Jr. (born June 15, 1993) is an American former professional football quarterback. He played college football for the UCLA Bruins, where he was the school's career leader in both total offense and touchdown passes. He was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the fifth round of the 2015 NFL draft, and started nine games for them in 2017, following a collarbone injury to Aaron Rodgers.

Early life

Hundley attended Chandler High School in Chandler, Arizona, where he played high school football for the Wolves football team. As a junior, he completed 107 of 170 passes for 1,517 yards with 16 touchdown passes and two interceptions. As a senior, he completed 139 of 225 passes for 2,348 yards with 20 touchdowns and two interceptions. Hundley's overall record as a starter in high school was 16–8. He was ranked as the second best dual-threat quarterback recruit in his class by Rivals.com.

College career

Redshirt freshman season

After redshirting in 2011, Hundley was named the UCLA starting quarterback for the 2012 season. In his first college game, against Rice, Hundley's first play was a 72-yard run for a touchdown that led to a 49–24 victory. In his second start against the No. 16 Nebraska Cornhuskers, Hundley had 305 passing yards and four touchdown passes as UCLA upset the Cornhuskers 36–30 in their home opener. Hundley also helped UCLA defeat the USC Trojans 38–28 for the first time since 2006, passing for 234 yards including 1 touchdown. In addition, Hundley ran for 2 touchdowns. The Bruins advanced to the Pac-12 Football Championship Game against Stanford, but were defeated 27–24. UCLA finished the season with a record of 9–5, and were ranked No. 17 by the Associated Press. Hundley set a school single season record with 3,740 yards passing.

Sophomore season

In 2013, Hundley led the Bruins to a 10-win season. The team beat USC, by a score of 35–14, marking consecutive wins over their crosstown rivals for the first time in over a decade. UCLA won the Sun Bowl, 42–12, over Virginia Tech with Hundley being named the game's co-most valuable player with teammate Jordan Zumwalt. Hundley ran for 161 yards and two touchdowns on just 10 carries while also throwing for 226 yards and another two scores. For the year, his 748 yards rushing were the school's third-most rushing yards in a season by a quarterback. Two NFL teams told Adam Schefter of ESPN that Hundley was potentially the top quarterback of the 2014 NFL draft if he left school early. However, Hundley elected to return for his junior year at UCLA. Leading up to the draft, some scouts questioned Hundley's passing accuracy and decision making.

Junior season

Wary of the criticism of his passing skills, Hundley attempted to impress the pro scouts by running the ball less to begin the 2014 season. The team began the season undefeated at 4–0 until the No. 8 Bruins were upset 30–28 by the Utah Utes. In the game, Hundley was sacked a career-high 10 times, renewing concerns over his pocket awareness. Through 32 career games, he was sacked 107 times, the highest among active Football Bowl Subdivision quarterbacks. Hundley eventually ran more, including 24 carries for a season-high 131 yards in a 17–7 win over Arizona. Later in the season, he also became UCLA's all-time leader in touchdown passes, surpassing Cade McNown's record of 68; McNown's record came in four years as a starter (1995–1998), while Hundley broke the record in just his third season. Hundley also became the school's career leader in total offense, breaking McNown's previous mark of 11,285. He was named to the All-Pac-12 second team. He finished his career with 9,966 passing yards, second in school history behind McNown. He had also rushed for 1,747 career yards, behind only John Sciarra (1,813) among quarterbacks in UCLA history.

After the season, Hundley entered the 2015 NFL draft and was chosen much later than expected, in the fifth round with the 147th overall pick by the Green Bay Packers.

College statistics

Professional career

Green Bay Packers

Hundley was selected by the Packers in the fifth round (147th overall pick) of the 2015 NFL draft. On May 7, 2015, the Packers officially signed Hundley to a four-year deal. He became the third-string quarterback on the depth chart, behind Aaron Rodgers and Scott Tolzien. Hundley's success in the preseason and his off-the-field maturity eventually led to him being named the Packers' second-string quarterback after Tolzien's departure to the Indianapolis Colts in March 2016.

On October 15, 2017, during the first quarter of the Week 6 game against the Minnesota Vikings, Rodgers suffered a broken collarbone on a hit made by Anthony Barr. Hundley then entered the game, completing 18-of-33 passes for 157 yards, one touchdown, and three interceptions, as the Packers lost by a score of 23–10. After the game, head coach Mike McCarthy stated that Hundley would take over as the starter due to Rodgers's broken collarbone. In his first career start against the New Orleans Saints, Hundley recorded 12 completions on 25 attempts for just 87 yards, no touchdowns, an interception, and ended with a passer rating under 40 for the second consecutive week. In that game, he contributed a 14-yard rushing touchdown. After a Week 8 bye, Hundley had 245 passing yards and a rushing touchdown in a Week 9 loss to the Detroit Lions. He continued this improvement into Week 10, with 18-of-25 completions, passing for 212 yards, no interceptions, and his first career 100+ passer rating in a win over the Chicago Bears. Hundley had 200+ passing yards for his third consecutive outing in Week 11, but committed three interceptions with no touchdowns, during the team's shutout loss to the Baltimore Ravens. In a Week 12 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, Hundley improved with three touchdowns, finishing the day with a 134 passer rating for his efforts. During Week 13 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Hundley was held to only 84 passing yards and an interception. He rushed for 66 yards, with the Packers rushing for 199 yards overall, and won 26–20 in overtime. He followed that up with 265 passing yards and three touchdowns in Week 14 against the Cleveland Browns in a 27–21 overtime win. After the Packers were eliminated from postseason contention, Hundley struggled, completing 17-of-40 passes for 130 passing yards and two interceptions, in their 16–0 loss to the Vikings. In the season finale against the Lions, he threw for 172 passing yards, with one touchdown and two interceptions, in their 35–11 loss. He also had his first career reception on a 10-yard pass from wide receiver Randall Cobb on a trick play. Hundley finished the season with 1,836 passing yards, nine touchdowns, 12 interceptions, 270 rushing yards, and two rushing touchdowns.

Seattle Seahawks

On August 29, 2018, Hundley was traded to the Seattle Seahawks for a sixth round pick in the 2019 NFL draft (which was used on running back Dexter Williams.) Hundley became an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2018 season.

Arizona Cardinals

On March 14, 2019, Hundley signed a one-year contract with the Arizona Cardinals, worth $1.88 million. He served as backup to rookie quarterback Kyler Murray, whom the Cardinals drafted first overall in the 2019 NFL draft. On December 22, Hundley came in to relieve Murray after he suffered a hamstring injury. Hundley finished the game with 4-of-9 passes for 49 yards, and scrambled for 35 yards, as the Cardinals went on to win their Week 16 matchup against the Seattle Seahawks 27–13.

On March 27, 2020, Hundley re-signed with the Cardinals on a one-year deal.

Indianapolis Colts

On July 31, 2021, Hundley signed with the Indianapolis Colts. He was released on August 31 and re-signed to the practice squad the next day. On September 25, Hundley was elevated to the active roster, but returned to the practice squad two days later. On October 2, Hundley was once again elevated to the active roster and returned to the practice squad two days later. On October 10, Hundley was signed to the active roster. He was released on November 1, and re-signed to the practice squad. His contract expired when the team's season ended on January 9, 2022.

Baltimore Ravens (first stint)

On May 26, 2022, Hundley signed with the Ravens. He was released on August 16.

New Orleans Saints

On November 2, 2022, the New Orleans Saints signed Hundley to their practice squad. He was released on November 8.

Baltimore Ravens (second stint)

On December 5, 2022, Hundley signed with the Ravens' practice squad. Hundley was elevated to the active roster on January 7, 2023, for the game against the Cincinnati Bengals. His practice squad contract with the team expired after the season ended on January 15.

Vegas Vipers

Hundley signed with the Vegas Vipers of the XFL on January 30, 2023. The following December, the Vipers folded when the XFL and United States Football League merged to create the United Football League (UFL), and Hundley went untaken in the subsequent dispersal draft. Hundley was reportedly the XFL's highest-paid player during his time with the Vipers.

Professional statistics

NFL

Regular season

Postseason

XFL

Personal life

Hundley is an Evangelical Christian. Hundley's father, Brett Sr., was a running back at the University of Arizona, and his uncle played quarterback at Wichita State University. He is also a member of Kappa Alpha Psi. His sister, Paris, deals with epilepsy. Since 2011, Hundley has been involved with many charitable epilepsy organizations and fundraisers.

References

External links

UCLA Bruins bio

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hundley, Brett
1993 births
Living people
21st-century American sportsmen
21st-century African-American sportsmen
Players of American football from Chandler, Arizona
American football quarterbacks
UCLA Bruins football players
Green Bay Packers players
Seattle Seahawks players
Arizona Cardinals players
Indianapolis Colts players
Baltimore Ravens players
New Orleans Saints players
Chandler High School (Arizona) alumni
Vegas Vipers players