Alex Mack
refer to caption
Mack with the Atlanta Falcons in 2016
No. 55, 51, 50
Position:Center
Personal information
Born: (1985-11-19) November 19, 1985 (age 38)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:311 lb (141 kg)
Career information
High school:San Marcos (Santa Barbara, California)
College:California (2004–2008)
NFL Draft:2009 / Round: 1 / Pick: 21
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Games played:196
Games started:196
Fumble recoveries:4
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Javon Alexander Mack[1] (born November 19, 1985)[2] is an American former professional football player who was a center in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the California Golden Bears and was selected by the Cleveland Browns in the first round with the 21st overall selection of the 2009 NFL Draft. He also played for the Atlanta Falcons and the San Francisco 49ers.

Early years

Mack was born in Los Angeles, California. He attended San Marcos High School in Santa Barbara, where he was named the Channel League's Co-Most Valuable Player on defense and earned a first-team all-league selection.[3] He was also selected to the All-CIF team. In addition to football, Mack wrestled for four years with the Royals, losing only two matches his senior year and reaching the state final. He was a CIF champion as a junior and a senior. In the classroom, he compiled a 4.2 GPA and an 1180 SAT score.

Considered a two-star recruit by Rivals.com, Mack chose California over Northwestern and Stanford.[4]

College career

Mack at the 2008 Emerald Bowl

Mack played for the California Golden Bears football team while attending the University of California, Berkeley.[5] He made 39 consecutive starts for the Golden Bears registering 256 key blocks/knockdowns, 32 touchdown-resulting blocks and 29 down field blocks. Mack compiled a 3.61 undergraduate GPA at the University of California, Berkeley as a legal studies major. He graduated in 2008 and played the 2008 season as a graduate student in education.[6] He won the Draddy Trophy, also dubbed the "academic Heisman", for his academic success in 2008, becoming the first Cal player and the second consecutive center to earn the trophy, following Dallas Griffin of Texas.[7] He also won the Morris Trophy in 2007 and 2008, making him the third offensive lineman and the first since Washington's Lincoln Kennedy in 1991 and 1992 to win the award twice.[8] Mack also represented Cal at the 2009 Senior Bowl.

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 3+7⁄8 in
(1.93 m) 		311 lb
(141 kg) 		33 in
(0.84 m) 		10+3⁄4 in
(0.27 m)		 5.17 s 1.75 s 2.96 s 4.75 s 7.31 s 28.5 in
(0.72 m)		 8 ft 10 in
(2.69 m)		 20 reps
All values from NFL Combine/Pro Day[9][10]

2009 NFL Draft

Projected as a first-to-second rounder by Sports Illustrated, Mack was the highest ranked center available in the 2009 NFL Draft.[11] He was drafted in the first round by the Cleveland Browns with the 21st overall selection.[12] He was the first Golden Bears offensive lineman selected in the first round since Tarik Glenn in 1997.[13]

Cleveland Browns

Mack signed a five-year contract with the Browns on July 25. During the 2009 NFL season, Mack started on the Browns offensive line every game.[14] After a shaky start, the Browns line, anchored by Joe Thomas, paved the way to three consecutive 100+ yard games by Jerome Harrison and one game in which Harrison ran for 286 yards, which stands at third all-time in one game. At the end of the regular season, Mack was selected as center on the All-Rookie team.[15] He started all 16 games, committed only 1 penalty and allowed just 1 sack.

Mack with the Browns in 2010

During the 2010 NFL season, Mack again started every game for the Browns.[16] He was named to the 2011 Pro Bowl roster as a second alternate to replace Nick Mangold.[17] During week 5 of the 2011 NFL season, Mack played through appendicitis during a loss to the Tennessee Titans. Mack had an appendectomy during Cleveland's bye week and came back and started against the Oakland Raiders the week after the bye week.

On December 27, 2013, Alex Mack was voted to his first Pro Bowl Selection, after having been added in 2011 to replace an injured player.

On April 9, 2014, it was announced that the Jacksonville Jaguars had offered Mack a five-year contract, worth reportedly $42 million.[18] The Browns had a maximum of five days to match Jacksonville's offer, which they did on April 11.[19][20] Mack had been previously assigned the transition tag, nullifying his free agency unless a team signed Mack to an offer sheet. During Week 6 against the Pittsburgh Steelers on October 12, 2014, Mack was carted off the field due to a leg injury. X-rays tested positive that his leg had a broken fibula, forcing Mack out for the rest of the 2014 campaign. Prior to Mack's injury, he had never missed a single snap in his professional career. On March 2, 2016, Mack voided his contract with the Cleveland Browns thus making him a free agent.[21]

Atlanta Falcons

Mack and his teammates in a game against the Washington Redskins

On March 9, 2016, Mack signed a five-year, $45 million contract with the Atlanta Falcons, including $28.5 million in guaranteed money.[22][23]

In the 2016 season, Mack and the Falcons reached Super Bowl LI , where they faced the New England Patriots. Mack was the starting center in the game for the Falcons. In the Super Bowl, the Falcons fell in a 34–28 overtime defeat.[24]

On December 19, 2017, Mack was named to his fifth Pro Bowl.[25] On December 18, 2018, Mack was named to his sixth Pro Bowl.[26]

Mack missed Week 16 of the 2020 NFL season due to a concussion, ending a streak of 90 consecutive regular season starts.[27] He was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the team on December 31, 2020,[28] and activated on January 13, 2021.[29]

San Francisco 49ers

On March 18, 2021, Mack signed a three-year contract with the San Francisco 49ers.[30]

On June 3, 2022, Mack retired after 13 seasons in the NFL.[31]

References

  1. ^ "ESPN Profile". ESPN.com.
  2. ^ "Reference at www.californiabirthindex.org".
  3. ^ Plaschke, Bill (February 3, 2017). "Not forgotten: For every Super Bowl star, there's an equally talented player who didn't make it". Los Angeles Times. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  4. ^ "Alex Mack Profile". Rivals.com. Archived from the original on May 10, 2020. Retrieved April 22, 2014.
  5. ^ "Alex Mack College Stats". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  6. ^ "Player Bio: Alex Mack - the University of California Official Athletic Site". Archived from the original on December 26, 2010. Retrieved April 27, 2009. Cal profile
  7. ^ "Mack wins Draddy as top scholar-athlete".
  8. ^ "California's Mack and Oregon's Reed win 29th annual Morris Trophy". CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on April 29, 2009. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
  9. ^ "Alex Mack Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved February 28, 2022.
  10. ^ "Alex Mack, California, C, 2009 NFL Draft Scout, NCAA College Football". draftscout.com. Retrieved February 28, 2022.
  11. ^ "Alex Mack - 2009 Draft Tracker". Archived from the original on April 26, 2009.
  12. ^ "2009 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 12, 2023.
  13. ^ "California Drafted Players/Alumni". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  14. ^ "2009 Cleveland Browns Starters, Roster, & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  15. ^ "Former Golden Bears DeSean Jackson and Alex Mack Honored by Pro Football Weekly/PFWA". CBS Interactive. January 20, 2010. Archived from the original on March 7, 2012. Retrieved January 20, 2010.
  16. ^ "2010 Cleveland Browns Starters, Roster, & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  17. ^ "Mack added to Pro Bowl roster". Cleveland Brownsl. January 4, 2011. Archived from the original on February 13, 2011. Retrieved January 4, 2011.
  18. ^ Schefter, Adam. "Browns transition-tagged center Alex Mack signed his five-year, $42M offer sheet that includes $26M guaranteed with the Jaguars". Twitter. Retrieved April 11, 2014.
  19. ^ "Cleveland Browns Roster". ESPN. Retrieved April 9, 2014.
  20. ^ Shefter, Adam (April 9, 2014). "Alex Mack to sign Jags' offer sheet". ESPN. Retrieved April 9, 2014.
  21. ^ "Browns' Mack opts out but may return to team". ESPN.com. March 2, 2016. Retrieved March 10, 2016.
  22. ^ "Alex Mack officially signs with Atlanta Falcons on five-year deal". The Falcoholic. March 9, 2016. Retrieved March 10, 2016.
  23. ^ Spotrac.com. "Alex Mack". Spotrac.com. Retrieved March 10, 2016.
  24. ^ "Super Bowl LI - New England Patriots vs. Atlanta Falcons - February 5th, 2017". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  25. ^ "NFL announces 2018 Pro Bowl rosters". NFL.com. December 19, 2017. Retrieved December 26, 2017.
  26. ^ "NFL reveals rosters for 2019 Pro Bowl in Orlando". NFL.com. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
  27. ^ Curtis, Jake. "Cal in NFL: Aaron Rodgers Closes Gap in MVP Race With Patrick Mahomes". Sports Illustrated Cal Bears News. Archived from the original on December 28, 2020. Retrieved December 28, 2020.
  28. ^ McFadden, Will (December 31, 2020). "Falcons place Alex Mack on reserve/COVID-19 list". AtlantaFalcons.com. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
  29. ^ "Falcons' Alex Mack: Activated from COVID list". CBSSports.com. January 13, 2021. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
  30. ^ Wagoner, Nick (March 18, 2021). "San Francisco 49ers sign Pro Bowl center Alex Mack to 3-year deal". ESPN.com.
  31. ^ "Alex Mack Announces Retirement". 49ers.com. June 3, 2022. Archived from the original on June 8, 2022. Retrieved June 4, 2022.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Alex Mack.
Morris Trophy winners
William V. Campbell Trophy winners
2009 NFL Draft first-round selections
Cleveland Browns first-round draft picks
Cleveland Browns 2009 NFL Draft selections
NFL's 2010s All-Decade Team
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