5 NFL Players From Snoop Dogg Football League

Dogg's youth football league graduate Ronnie Hillman was the first player to play in the NFL from the SYFL.

Born in 1991, Hilman was one of the children in the inner-city area that got the opportunity to participate in football and make a better living for themselves, and boy he did.

He was ranked as a "three-star prospect" coming out of his senior year in high school. He joined San Diego State University and amassed 3,243 rushing yards in his two seasons and 36 TD.

After finishing college and hiring a manager to enter the 2012 NFL Draft, the RB was drafted in Round 3 with an overall pick 67 by the Denver Broncos.

He represented the Broncos till 2015 and had 1845 rushing yards and 12 TD. He peaked in 2015 when he played 16 games and averaged 4.2 yards after contact and 7 TD.

His performances and contributions helped the team win Super Bowl 50 in 2015.

In 2016, he joined the Vikings and played five games, and in the same year, he was signed by then San Diego Chargers and played three games.

He was signed by the Cowboys in 2017 but eventually released after preseason. He ended his career with 1,976 rushing yards and 12 TD.

In August 2022, he was sadly diagnosed with a rare form of Kidney Cancer (Renal Medullary Carcinoma) and passed away in December 2022.

De'Anthony Thomas (age 30) has also made it to the NFL after getting an opportunity in the SYFL.

He studied at the Crenshaw High School, rushed for 1,299 yards and 18 TD, and helped the high school team win the city championship for the second straight time.

Five-star recruit and the #1 rated defensive back chose the University of Oregon for his college career and had a fantastic first season as a freshman in 2011 as a wide receiver and running back.

He received the CFPA Kickoff Returner Trophy for his 400 yards in rushing, returns, and receiving and had 18 TD leading all freshmen.

He managed 155 rushing yards in two carries and broke the Rose Bowl record with a 91-yard TD, and went on to win the Rose Bowl in 2012.

He amassed 1,757 all-purpose yards with 18 TD resulting in a feature on the cover of Sports Illustrated.

In 2013, he was on the watchlist for the Heisman Trophy and the Doak Walker Award, and in 2014, he let go of his senior year and decided to enter the 2014 NFL Draft.

Thomas was drafted in Round 4 and an overall pick of 124 by the Kansas City Chiefs with a timing of 4.5 seconds for a 40-yard dash in his NFL Combine.

He had 113 rushing yards and 156 yards with 23 catches. He had 405 punt return yards and being the primary kick returner, he managed 428 yards in 14 kicks at the end of the 2014-15 season.

After returning from illness in 2016, he lost his place to Tyreek Hill but still managed 338 yards for his 15 return kicks.

He was mainly involved in the offensive duties and had 143 yards with 14 receptions and two TD in 2017.

Playing only 5 games in 2018, he became an injury victim and suited up for only six games in the 2019 season as he was placed on the reserves following his suspension regarding substance abuse.

After being released by the Chiefs, the Ravens signed him and featured in eight games returning 10 kicks for 166 yards and 93 yards for 13 punts.

CFL BC Lions signed Thomas in 2022 and after failing to attend the rookie training camp in May, he may not be part of the active roster.

Another alumnus from the SYFL, John Ross was born in 1995 and attended Jordan High School.

Started his career as a WR and CB in school, he was ranked as a "four-star recruit" by ESPN and joined the University of Washington in 2013.

As a true freshman, he played 13 and recorded 16 receptions for 208 yards and 1 TD as a receiver. He again played the same amount of games in 2014 and had 17 receptions for 371 yards and four TD as a receiver.

As a CB in the same calendar year, he managed 12 tackles and 938 return yards, and 2 TD with an interception.

He finished his college career in 2016 with 109 receptions for 1,701 yards and 22 TD in 39 games. He missed the complete 2015 season due to a torn ACL.

As he was predicted to be a Round 1 pick by experts as he was ranked amongst the best WR by analysts, he had a timing of 4.22 seconds in the 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine and broke Chris Johnson's record.

He was drafted in Round 1 as predicted and an overall pick of 9 in 2017 by the Cincinnati Bengals offering him a $17.1 million contract and $10.6 million as a signing bonus.

He played for the Bengals till the 2020 season and joined the Giants for the 2021 season and had 62 receptions for 957 yards and 11 TD in a total of 37 games.

He is now an offseason and/or practice squad member for the Chiefs in 2023.

JuJu Smith-Schuster is also a Super Bowl winner with Kansas City Chiefs in 2022-23 season and a product of SYFL.

The 26-year-old is a wide receiver who started playing football at eight and changed his name from John to JuJu in 2012. He attended the Long Beach Polytechnic High School and played as WR and safety for the school team.

The WR was ranked as a "five-star recruit" and had decided to join Oregon but later changed to joining the University of Southern California.

In his three seasons from 2014-2016, he made 213 receptions for a staggering 3,092 yards with 25 TD in just 40 games as a wide receiver.

He made an additional 34 rushing yards and 185 yards as a kick returner.

Juju appeared for the NFL Combine and recorded a timing of 4.54 seconds in the 40-yard dash and was the Round 2 pick with an overall pick of 62 by the Pittsburgh Steelers.

From 2017-2021, he represented the Steelers, played 63 games, and recorded 323 receptions for 3,855 yards and 29 TD.

He was signed by the Kansas City Chiefs in 2022 for a year and played 16 games with 78 receptions for 933 yards and 3 TD.

His postseason contributions with both teams total six games with 31 receptions for 277 yards and 2 TD and a championship ring with the Chiefs.

With the introduction of Snoop Dogg's SYFL, Daiyan Henley is the latest player to have made it to the NFL.

The 23-year-old who attended the University of Nevada, Reno played where he started as a WR and had 127 catches for 232 yards and 3 TD in two seasons and later moved to defense.

In 2021, he made a total of 106 tackles (three for loss) and an additional four interceptions.

He transferred to the Washington State Cougars in his final year (2022), and later in 2023, he was drafted in Round 3 and an overall pick of 85 by the Los Angeles Chargers.