Bryce Paup

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Bryce Paup
Northern Iowa Panthers
Position:Defensive line coach
Personal information
Born: (1968-02-29) February 29, 1968 (age 56)
Jefferson, Iowa, U.S.
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:250 lb (113 kg)
Career information
High school:Scranton (Scranton, Iowa)
College:Northern Iowa
NFL draft:1990 / Round: 6 / Pick: 159
Career history
As a player:
As a coach:
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Tackles:545
Sacks:75.0
Forced fumbles:15
Fumble recoveries:6
Interceptions:6
Player stats at NFL.com

Bryce Eric Paup (born February 29, 1968) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker for eleven seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the Green Bay Packers, Buffalo Bills, Jacksonville Jaguars and the Minnesota Vikings.

Early life[edit]

Paup grew up on a farm in Scranton, Iowa, where he played football at Scranton High School.

He played collegiately at the University of Northern Iowa, and was selected by the Packers in the sixth round of the 1990 NFL Draft.[1]

Professional career[edit]

In the first game of the 1991 season, Paup was involved in a tackle that sidelined Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Randall Cunningham, ending Cunningham's season. The tackle was below the waist and right at Cunningham's knee which ruined Cunningham's 1991 season. His aggressive physical style led Packers fans to refer to his tackle as “Paup Smear”.

In 1995, his first season with the Buffalo Bills, Paup was named NFL Defensive Player of the Year by the Associated Press. Paup led the NFL with 17.5 sacks, the fourth-highest single-season total of the 1990s.[2] Paup has been considered one of the top 50 players in Bills history.[3] NFL Total Access listed him as one of the Top 10 free agents of all time.[4]

Paup was a four-time Pro Bowl selection.

NFL career statistics[edit]

Legend
NFL Defensive Player of the Year
Led the league
Bold Career high

Regular season[edit]

Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
GP GS Cmb Solo Ast Sck Int Yds TD FF FR
1990 GB 5 0 1 0.0 0 0 0 0 0
1991 GB 12 1 28 7.5 0 0 0 3 0
1992 GB 16 10 43 6.5 0 0 0 1 2
1993 GB 15 14 74 11.0 1 8 0 2 0
1994 GB 16 16 79 47 32 7.5 3 47 1 2 2
1995 BUF 16 16 89 70 19 17.5 2 0 0 3 1
1996 BUF 12 11 48 38 10 6.0 0 0 0 2 0
1997 BUF 16 16 78 58 20 9.5 0 0 0 2 1
1998 JAX 16 16 68 55 13 6.5 0 0 0 0 0
1999 JAX 15 14 30 24 6 1.0 0 0 0 0 0
2000 MIN 10 0 7 6 1 2.0 0 0 0 0 0
Career 148 113 545 298 101 75.0 6 55 1 15 6

Coaching career[edit]

On March 19, 2007, Paup was introduced as the head football coach at Green Bay Southwest High School.[5] He compiled a 22-14 regular season record in his first four seasons, and in 2009 secured the second playoff victory in school history. He is also on the Packers' Board of Directors. Prior to accepting the job, he was an assistant volunteer football coach for the De Pere High School Redbirds of De Pere, Wisconsin for three years, working primarily with the linemen and linebackers.

On March 5, 2013, Paup resigned from Green Bay Southwest and began his first season as the defensive line coach at the University of Northern Iowa.[6]

January 14, 2017, Paup was named University of Minnesota's defensive line coach. After one season with the Gophers, Paup left the Minnesota coaching staff, reportedly to pursue a coaching opportunity in the NFL.[7]

In August 2018, he returned to the University of Northern Iowa defensive line coach.[8]

Personal life[edit]

Paup lives in Cedar Falls, IA, with his wife Denise. They have six children: Alex, Nathan, Rachel, Hailey, and twins Paige and Lauren.[9]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "1990 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 26, 2023.
  2. ^ "Player Season Finder Query Results - Pro-Football-Reference.com". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
  3. ^ Jun, Kurupt (June 11, 2009). "Top 50 All-Time Bills, No. 42: LB Bryce Paup". Buffalo Rumblings. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  4. ^ "Video: Top 10 free agents all-time". NFL Total Access.
  5. ^ "High school sports in Northeastern Wisconsin: Bryce Paup named coach of the week by former employer | greenbaypressgazette.com | Green Bay Press-Gazette". www.greenbaypressgazette.com. Archived from the original on July 31, 2012. Retrieved January 26, 2022.
  6. ^ "Bryce Paup reportedly coming back to UNI to coach". wcfcourier.com. March 5, 2013. Retrieved March 28, 2015.
  7. ^ "West in, Paup reportedly out as Gophers football coaching changes continue". Star Tribune. February 7, 2018. Retrieved March 31, 2018.
  8. ^ "UNI football: Relationships, expertise driving force in Bryce Paup's return to Panthers". The Des Moines Register.
  9. ^ "Bryce Paup Bio". unipanthers.com. May 7, 2013. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved March 26, 2015.