Josh Myers begins his sixth season in the NFL on Sunday, Sept. 13, when the New York Jets play the Tennessee Titans in Nashville.
The Miamisburg High School graduate Myers started all 17 games at center in 2025 in his first season with the Jets, who finished 3-14. He hopes the return of Geno Smith to the Jets helps them improve.
"I feel so good about it," Myers told reporters in New York on Aug. 31. "I have a ton of respect for Geno, and I'm really excited to see him get out there and work. Then just a ton of the moves that we made too in the offseason, I feel good about that and who we drafted. I feel like our staff here really knows how to put together a team, and I feel like they've done a great job."
Myers graduated from Miamisburg early so he could enroll at Ohio State in January 2017. He spent four years with the Buckeyes, earning second-team All-American honors in 2020 when he was an Ohio State captain.
The Green Bay Packers drafted Myers in the third round in 2020. He started 56 games in four seasons with the Packers.
Myers signed a one-year, $3.5 million contract with the Jets as a free agent in March 2025. He then signed a two-year extension worth $11 million in December.
Myers will play his second season under head coach Aaron Glenn, a former Jets cornerback who was the defensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions from 2021-24.
Glenn will try to lead the Jets to their first winning season for the Jets since 2015.
"I think from an X and O standpoint, he's great," Myers said, "but then beyond that, I think he's one of the better leaders I've ever been around. It's it's no secret we've had some tough times here, but I've just really respected the way he's handled everything and what he's had to say in those moments. I just think he's a great coach."
Myers is one of several players with local connections on NFL rosters as the 2026 season begins this week. Here's a quick glance at those players and several others who could end up in the league this season.
Adam Trautman : The former Dayton Flyers tight end has appeared in 94 games in six NFL seasons. He's entering his fourth season with the Denver Broncos . Last season, he started 12 games and finished with 20 receptions for 195 yards.
Trautman, 29, was a third-round pick in 2020. He signed a three-year, $17 million extension with the Broncos in March.
Joe Thuney : The veteran guard, a 2011 Alter High School graduate, enters his 11th season in the NFL and his second season with the Chicago Bears . He has made the All-Pro first team the last three seasons. He was named the NFL's Protector of the Year in February.
Thuney, 33, was a third-round pick out of North Carolina State in 2016. He played his first five seasons with the New England Patriots and then spent four seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs .
The Bears finished 11-6 in the regular season in Thuney's first season. It was their best season since 2018.
''There were a lot of cool moments last year, but I don't think anybody in this building is satisfied,'' Thuney told the Chicago Sun-Times in August. ''That's what's so cool: There's still a very, very strong burning hunger and desire to push more and keep going, keep improving. There's a lot still left to do.''
Kaleb Johnson : The 2022 Hamilton High School graduate was traded from the Pittsburgh Steelers to the Green Bay Packers on Aug. 30.
The Steelers drafted Johnson, who rushed for 2,779 yards in three seasons at Iowa, in the third round in 2025. He rushed 28 times for 69 yards in 10 games as a rookie.
With the Packers, Johnson is expected to be a third-string running back behind MarShawn Lloyd and Chris Brooks .
We liked him a lot," General Manager Brian Gutekunst said in a story on the Packers website. "His first year in Pittsburgh probably didn't go the way he wanted it to. Didn't have the kind of impact that he wanted, but certainly a really talented guy. I think he's going to fit into our culture really well, and so I'm excited to get him here."
Erick All Jr.: A third-string tight end for the Cincinnati Bengals , All graduated from Fairfield High School in 2019. He spent four seasons at Michigan and finished his career at Iowa in 2023.
The Bengals drafted All in the fourth round in 2024. He caught 20 passes for 158 yards in 10 appearances in 2024 but suffered a season-ending ACL tear in November 2024. That caused him to miss the entire 2025 season. He suffered the same injury in his final season at Iowa.
All, 25, returned to action for the Bengals in the preseason.
Drew Ogletree : The 2016 Northridge graduate enters his fourth season as a tight end with the Indianapolis Colts . He has 22 receptions for 283 yards in 44 appearances. He re-signed with the Colts in March, inking a one-year, $2.25 million deal.
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Ogletree, 28, played college football at Findlay and Youngstown State. The Colts drafted him in the sixth round in 2022. He missed his first season with the Colts after tearing his ACL in training camp.
Ogletree is listed as a third-string tight end on the Colts roster.
Jackson Kuwatch: A 2021 Lakota West graduate, Kuwatch made the Carolina Panthers roster as a rookie linebacker. He was a seventh-round pick in April after playing the last three seasons with the Miami RedHawks.
Kuwatch recorded 109 tackles in 14 games last season and made the All-Mid-American Conference third team. He began his college career as a walk-on at Ohio State.
Kuwatch, 23, is listed as a backup linebacker with the Panthers, who host the Bears at 1 p.m. Sunday.
"I haven't thought about (the season opener) that much," Kuwatch said in a story on the Panthers' website, "but I'm sure it'll be pretty awesome. It's certainly a cool environment here, and so I look forward to seeing the crowd that comes for the season opener and a game like that."
Michael Hoecht : A 2016 Oakwood High School graduate, Hoecht enters his sixth season in the NFL and second season with the Buffalo Bills .
Hoecht served a six-game suspension at the start of the 2025 season for violating the league's performance-enhancing drugs policy. He then played in two games before suffering a season-ending torn Achilles on Nov. 2.
Hoecht returned to game action in August in the Bills' final preseason game.
"I think he passed one of those final tests of playing in that Pittsburgh game," Bills General Manager Brandon Beane told reporters. "We'll see how he gets through this week and next week. But I'm hopeful.
Hoecht, 28, played four seasons at Brown University. He started his NFL career with the Los Angeles Rams in 2021, making the team as an undrafted free agent.
Aamil Wagner: The 2022 Wayne graduate, an offensive tackle, signed as an undrafted free agent with the Tennessee Titans in March but was cut on Aug. 30 as the Titans trimmed their roster to 53 players.
Wagner spent the last four seasons at Notre Dame. He started all 16 games in 2024 as a redshirt sophomore and all 12 games in 2025 when he served as a team captain.
Gavin Gerhardt: The Minnesota Vikings waived Gerhardt, a 2020 Xenia High School graduate, on Aug. 30, signed him to the practice squad but then released him again. They drafted him in the seventh round in April.
Gerhardt found a new team on Tuesday, Sept. 8, joining the practice squad of the Houston Texans .
Gerhardt was a three-time captain for Cincinnati. He earned an All-Big 12 honorable mention in 2025.
Taylor Decker : The veteran offensive lineman from Vandalia Butler High School and Ohio State remains unsigned after requesting his release in March after 10 seasons with the Detroit Lions.
Decker, 33, was a first-round pick in 2016.
"Things change, 145 games started, 3 playoff appearances, 2 division titles, a decade carrying the shield," Decker wrote on Instagram. "I fully intended to do it once again, but my time as a Lion is coming to an end. In the weeks since notifying the team of my return there have been numerous discussions. Many of which were a surprise to me, and we could not find common ground. Therefore I decided to request my release.
"I am opting for a clean and amicable close to what has been such a beautiful 10 years going to war as a Lion.
"It has been the absolute privilege of my life to be your LT for the past 10 years. And I am forever grateful for the opportunity the Ford family and Lions organization afforded me."
