This NFL puzzle ran on Sep 11, 2026. The task was to connect Myles Garrett to C.J. Stroud with a chain of real players. The objective: “Your chain must include a Florida State alum.” Par was 3 links. A search of the full player pool found a shortest chain of 2 links.
Myles Garrett (DL) played in the NFL from 2017 to 2026. Career stops: the Cleveland Browns (2017 to 2025) and the Los Angeles Rams (2026). College: Texas A&M. Honors in the dataset: Defensive Player of the Year. 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.
C.J. Stroud (QB) played in the NFL from 2023 to 2026. A one-team career, spent with the Houston Texans (2023 to 2026). College: Ohio State. Honors in the dataset: Offensive Rookie of the Year. 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.
Myles Garrett and C.J. Stroud 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, 285 satisfy it. The best known are Randy Moss (WR, 1998 to 2012), Derrick Brooks (LB, 1995 to 2008), Deion Sanders (DB, 1990 to 2005), Warrick Dunn (RB, 1997 to 2008), Anquan Boldin (WR, 2003 to 2016), and Peter Boulware (LB, 1997 to 2005).
37 of those players share a team or college with Myles Garrett, and 11 share one with C.J. Stroud. The Finish is the tighter side, so it often pays to work backward from C.J. Stroud.
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.
Want more? Browse the full NFL puzzle archive, read the strategy guides, or see how scoring works on How to Play.