This NFL puzzle ran on Aug 19, 2026. The task was to connect Jerry Porter to Marcus Trufant with a chain of real players. The objective: “Your chain must include a Texas alum.” Par was 3 links.
Jerry Porter (WR) played in the NFL from 2000 to 2008. Career stops: the Las Vegas Raiders (2000 to 2007) and the Jacksonville Jaguars (2008). College: West Virginia. As the Start of the chain, a household name like this gives you a lot of teammates to branch from, which makes it a friendly place to begin.
Marcus Trufant (CB) played in the NFL from 2003 to 2012. A one-team career, spent with the Seattle Seahawks (2003 to 2012). College: Washington State. As the Finish of the chain, a household name like this gives you a lot of teammates to branch from, which makes it a friendly place to begin.
Jerry Porter and Marcus Trufant do not share a team or a college, so there is no direct link. You need at least one connector in between, and the objective decides which ones are allowed to count.
This was a college objective. The chain has to pass through a player from the named school at some point, not necessarily as a link to the Start or Finish. Of the 17,973 players in the pool, 232 satisfy it. The best known are Vince Young (QB, 2006 to 2011), Priest Holmes (RB, 1997 to 2007), Ricky Williams (RB, 1999 to 2011), Quentin Jammer (CB, 2002 to 2013), Earl Thomas (FS, 2010 to 2019), and Derrick Johnson (OLB, 2005 to 2018).
17 of those players share a team or college with Jerry Porter, and 17 share one with Marcus Trufant. Both ends are about equally connected, so either direction works.
One shortest chain found by searching the full player pool, preferring the best known names at every step:
Many other chains work. Scoring rewards lower-profile connectors, so the best-known route is rarely the highest scoring one.
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