NFL Connections answers for October 8, 2026 (#1)
Spoilers below. The four groups of NFL Connections #1 (October 8, 2026), easiest first: College: Michigan; College: N.C. State; No. 1 overall draft picks; Played for five or more teams.
The four groups
College: Michigan Yellow (easiest)
- Amani Toomer · Michigan
- Ty Law · Michigan
- Tom Brady · Michigan
- Charles Woodson · Michigan
College: N.C. State Green
- Philip Rivers · N.C. State
- Russell Wilson · Wisconsin / N.C. State
- DeWayne Washington · N.C. State
- Torry Holt · N.C. State
No. 1 overall draft picks Blue
- Jameis Winston · 2015 round 1, pick 1 (Buccaneers)
- Peyton Manning · 1998 round 1, pick 1 (Colts)
- Carson Palmer · 2003 round 1, pick 1 (Bengals)
- Jared Goff · 2016 round 1, pick 1 (Rams)
Played for five or more teams Purple (trickiest)
- Josh McCown · Cardinals, Lions, Raiders, Panthers, Bears, Buccaneers, Browns, Jets, Eagles, Texans
- Jim McMahon · Bears, Chargers, Eagles, Vikings, Cardinals, Browns, Packers
- James Lofton · Packers, Raiders, Bills, Rams, Eagles
- Tavon Austin · Rams, Cowboys, Packers, 49ers, Jaguars
How the groups are checked
Each group is a fact from the nflverse roster files (CC BY 4.0): the franchises a player was on in at least one season, his listed position, his college and his draft row. Before the puzzle was published, all 64 player-and-group pairs were checked: every player fits his own group and, by the data, none of the other three.