Another week of NFL action is in the books, and it was a successful one for a few Spartans. Kenneth Walker III got a primetime slot and accounted for over 100 all-purpose yards in a Thursday Night Football win, and Jalen Nailor caught a touchdown in Ireland against Connor Heyward’s Steelers.
Nailor and the Vikings fell short against the Steelers in the Dublin game on Sunday morning, but not before he scored his first touchdown of the season despite having just one catch for two yards on four targets. It was his lowest production of the season, catch and yardage-wise.
Heyward, on the other hand, played plenty and had just one carry for two yards. He was quiet, but the Steelers didn’t need him to do much seeing as they finished with over 300 total yards and 24 points.
After facing off in the earliest NFL game on Sunday morning, the former Michigan State stars met on the field and did a jersey swap.
Connor Heyward and Jalen Nailor exchange jerseys postgame💚
— Michigan State Content (@msucontent) September 29, 2025
“MSU to the NFL!” pic.twitter.com/P9lWRVkRGC
Both players wrote on the jerseys about how proud they were of each other, and Heyward wrote “MSU to the NFL!” on his jersey for Nailor. Pretty cool moment.
Nailor has had a more productive season to this point than Heyward, catching eight passes for 98 yards and a touchdown. Heyward, on the other hand, is in games to block and just help out both the run and pass games. He’s listed as a tight end, but he’s more of a utility player (probably the role that Ben VanSumeren was going to have with the Eagles before his injury).
It’s great to see Spartans reconnecting in the NFL and experiencing success at the highest level.