Ducks defensive line brings business attitude into 2026 spring season
The vast majority of the Oregon Duck defensive line could have left for the NFL after the 2025 season, leaving a huge hole to fill for this upcoming season.
But instead, they all left prestige and a large amount of money on the table in order to come back and play for the Ducks for another season. And given the fact that the Ducks will be breaking in a new defensive coordinator Chris Hampton , those defensive linemen had plenty of reasons to leave besides the cash the NFL would have promised them.
It says a lot for the Duck program and Hampton that they all stayed.
“I think those guys aren't satisfied at all. You know, they all came back for a reason," Oregon's new defensive coordinator Chris Hampton said in an exclusive interview with the Bleav in Oregon Podcast . "I think each and every guy in their room that returned, that was here last season, is hungry and hungry to improve and to grow. And, you know, hungry for this team to reach the maximum capability that we can reach.
"And then, you know, obviously, hunger for themselves to get better as individual players. So that's what I've seen from that group. It hasn't been a whole lot of rah rah. It's just been a lot of work that I can appreciate from watching those guys go day to day.”
Instead of having to build the line almost from scratch, the Ducks will have one of the best defensive lines in the country, led by the likes of A'Mauri Washington and Bear Alexander .
Both players had career seasons for the Ducks, and there's no reason to expect a downslide for either player. Washington had 33 tackles, 4.5 for loss, and 1.5 sacks to go with eight defended passes.
As for Alexander, the Ducks managed to get the production out of him that Georgia and USC couldn't, for whatever reason. Their loss is definitely Oregon's gain. The big nose tackle had 50 tackles, 6.5 for loss, a sack and two fumble recoveries.
And let's not forget Matayo Uiagalelei , the hybrid, but he plays more along the defensive front than he does at linebacker. In 2025, Uiagalelei had 34 tackles, 9.5 for loss and six sacks. He was a projected first-rounder, but now he'll be one of the best defensive players in the Big Ten.
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This article originally appeared on Ducks Wire: Ducks defensive line brings business attitude into this spring season
