With Trace McSorley back in the NFL, here are 3 former Nittany Lions who deserve another chance in the league

On Wednesday, the Washington Commanders decided that they needed another quarterback on the roster for the rest of training camp and potentially into the season. So, Washington signed Trace McSorley to reunite him with his former head coach Kliff Kingsbury ahead of its second preseason game on Saturday against the Miami Dolphins. 

Washington has Marcus Mariota, Jeff Driskel, and Sam Hartman behind the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, Jayden Daniels, but with Hartman suffering a right shoulder injury that will likely keep him out of this weekend’s preseason game, the Commanders needed McSorley. McSorley has played in nine career NFL regular season games and completed 48 of his 93 passing attempts for 502 yards and one touchdown with five interceptions. 

This could be McSorley’s final shot in the league and it will be an uphill battle to be one of the final 53 once Washington is forced to cut down its roster. McSorley will always be a Penn State legend, but his NFL career has never panned out after entering the league as a sixth-round pick of the Baltimore Ravens in 2019. If he’s getting another opportunity to make it in the NFL, these three former Nittany Lions should get one last chance too. 

KJ Hamler’s NFL career has been ravaged by injuries. Across three seasons in Denver, he played just 23 games and has suffered a torn ACL and torn pectoral muscle along with recurring hamstring issues and mental health concerns. Now, Hamler is getting his last chance in the league, a part of Buffalo’s 90-man roster for training camp, but only received two targets in preseason Week 1 against Chicago, catching one for nine yards. 

Hamler will have a tough time making the roster in Buffalo, and more than another chance, Penn State fans would love a do-over on his NFL career. Hamler was one of the most dynamic players in college football, racking up 947 scrimmage yards and eight touchdowns in 2019. 

As a 6-foot-2 205-pound safety, Marcus Allen was a disruptive force for the Nittany Lions from 2014-17, most memorably blocking Ohio State’s field goal attempt in 2016, and we all know the significance of that play. 

Allen eventually made the transition to linebacker in the NFL after being draft in the 5th round by the Steelers in 2018, and from 2020-22 he played 45 games and racked up 55 tackles, primarily featuring on special teams or as a sub-package linebacker. Allen didn’t play in 2023 after he was cut by Pittsburgh and is still a free agent. 

The 2024 NFL draft process was Johnny Dixon’s first shot at the NFL, and it didn’t go as planned. After leaving Penn State, Dixon suffered a hip injury during the Senior Bowl and went undrafted. He is still a free agent as he recovers from the serious setback. 

However, once Dixon gets healthy, he deserves a shot to make an NFL roster. He was Penn State’s best cornerback last season, much better than Kalen King as King tumbled down draft boards and eventually settled in the seventh round.