FCS fans know there is talent at this level, but outsiders look at an FCS product heading into NFL camp — undrafted — and figure "this guy won't be here long". Well, the only thing an FCS player can do is go out and make plays, and the guys below did that in Week One and in the Hall of Fame game. Check out their performances:
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Obviously, players like Dallas Goedert, Davontae Harris, Bilal Nichols, Chase Edmonds, Darius Leonard, P.J. Hall and Tremon Smith were FCS products and had nice opening weeks — but they were drafted. To kick off the list, here are the top five Week One performances by an undrafted FCS rookie:
| POS | FCS SCHOOL | PLAYER | NFL TEAM | GAME PERFORMANCE | WEEK? |
| QB | EASTERN KENTUCKY | Tim Boyle | GREEN BAY | 116.7 rating – 130 yds pass, 2 TDs | 1 |
| RB | JACKSONVILLE STATE | Roc Thomas | MINNESOTA | 102 yds receive, 2 TDs; 29 yds rush | 1 |
| LB | NORTH DAKOTA STATE | Chris Board | BALTIMORE | 7 tackles | HOF |
| QB | PRINCETON | Chad Kanoff | ARIZONA | 143.8 rating – 66 yds passing, 1 TD | 1 |
| TE | SAN DIEGO | Ross Dwelley | SAN FRANCISCO | 3 catches, 44 yards | 1 |
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Here's the rest of the FCS rookies, and what they did in NFL Preseason – Week One:
| POS | FCS SCHOOL | PLAYER | NFL TEAM | GAME PERFORMANCE | WEEK? |
| RB | ALCORN STATE | De'Lance Turner | BALTIMORE | 17 yds rushing | 1 |
| RB | ALCORN STATE | De'Lance Turner | BALTIMORE | 14 yds rushing, 8 yds rcv | HOF |
| DT | BUCKNELL | Abdullah Anderson | CHICAGO | 2 tackles. 0.5 sack | HOF |
| DB | CENT. ARKANSAS | George Odum | INDIANAPOLIS | 3 tackles | 1 |
| DB | CENT. ARKANSAS | Tremon Smith | KANSAS CITY | 3 tackles; 29.5 KR avg | 1 |
| DE | COLGATE | Pat Afriyie | L.A. CHARGERS | 2 tackles | 1 |
| DT | DELAWARE | Bilal Nichols | CHICAGO | 2 tackles | 1 |
| DT | DELAWARE | Bilal Nichols | CHICAGO | 4 tackles, 1 sack | HOF |
| RB | FORDHAM | Chase Edmonds | ARIZONA | 11 yds rushing, 1 TD | 1 |
| DB | GRAMBLING | Montrel Meander | CLEVELAND | 1 tackle | 1 |
| DB | ILLINOIS STATE | Davontae Harris | CINCINNATI | 6 tackles, 1 FF | 1 |
| DB | JACKSONVILLE STATE | Siran Neal | BUFFALO | 2 tackles | 1 |
| DB | JAMES MADISON | Raven Greene | GREEN BAY | 2 tackles | 1 |
| DB | MURRAY STATE | D'Montre Wade | KANSAS CITY | 1 tackle, 1 PD | 1 |
| LB | NORTH DAKOTA STATE | Chris Board | BALTIMORE | 5 tackles | 1 |
| WR | PENN | Justin Watson | TAMPA BAY | 3 catches, 30 yards | 1 |
| DB | PORTLAND STATE | Donovan Olumba | DALLAS | 2 tackles, 1 PD | 1 |
| WR | PRAIRIE VIEW A&M | Khadarel Hodge | L.A. RAMS | 2 catches, 14 yards, 1 TD | 1 |
| QB | RICHMOND | Kyle Lauletta | NY GIANTS | 79.9 rating – 48 yds passing | 1 |
| LB | S.C. STATE | Darius Leonard | INDIANAPOLIS | 4 tackles | 1 |
| DT | SAM HOUSTON STATE | P.J. Hall | OAKLAND | 1 tackles, 1 sack, 1 PD | 1 |
| P | SAMFORD | Austin Barnard | TENNESSEE | 36.5 avg, 2 inside 20 | 1 |
| LB | SEMO | Kendall Donnerson | GREEN BAY | 1 tackle, 1 FF | 1 |
| DB | SEMO | Mike Ford | DETROIT | 2 tackles | 1 |
| WR | SOUTH DAKOTA STATE | Jake Wieneke | MINNESOTA | 1 catch, 16 yards | 1 |
| TE | SOUTH DAKOTA STATE | Dallas Goedert | PHILADELPHIA | 4 catches, 66 yards, 1 TD | 1 |
| DB | SOUTHERN U. | Danny Johnson | WASHINGTON | 4 tackles | 1 |
| DE | STEPHEN F. AUSTIN | John Franklin-Myers | L.A. RAMS | no stats | 1 |
| DB | STONY BROOK | Tyrice Beverette | CINCINNATI | 2 tackles | 1 |
| WR | TENNESSEE TECH | Dontez Byrd | ATLANTA | 2 catches, 35 yards | 1 |
| DB | TENNESSEE-MARTIN | Joseph Este | TENNESSEE | 1 tackle | 1 |
| WR | TEXAS SOUTHERN | Darvin Kidsy | WASHINGTON | 1 catch, 5 yards | 1 |
| TE | WEBER STATE | Andrew Vollert | ARIZONA | 3 catches, 19 yards | 1 |
| DB | WEBER STATE | Taron Johnson | BUFFALO | 1 tackle | 1 |
| RB | WESTERN CAROLINA | Detrez Newsome | L.A. CHARGERS | 34 yds receiving; 1 rushing TD | 1 |
| DB | WESTERN CAROLINA | Keion Crossen | NEW ENGLAND | 1 tackle, 1 PD | 1 |
| LB | WESTERN ILLINOIS | Brett Taylor | MINNESOTA | 1 tackle | 1 |
| LB | YALE | Foye Oluokun | ATLANTA | 3 tackles | 1 |
| LB | YALE | Matt Oplinger | ARIZONA | 1 tackle | 1 |
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BEST FCS PLAYER BY NUMBER: We count down, No. 99 through No. 1[divider]
FCS PRESEASON TOP 25: The poll
FCS PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA: The teams
