Michael Burton in the NFL
In the NFL. Photo: U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Eric Johnson, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Fullback, Rutgers, 2010–⁠14

Michael Burton

Lettered 2011–⁠14 (school media guide)

Number
No. 46
Height
6′0″
Hometown
Long Valley, NJ
Born
Feb 1, 1992, in Long Valley, New Jersey

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Michael Burton played fullback at Rutgers (2010–⁠14). The Detroit Lions took Burton in round 5, No. 168 overall in the 2015 NFL Draft.

At a glance

Best season
61
Rushing yards, 2013 (Rutgers, 6–⁠7)
Drafted
No. 168
Round 5, 2015 NFL Draft (Detroit Lions)

Team titles: Big East champions, 2012

Rushing

Rushing yards, season by season, with his team’s record
SeasonTeamCarYdsAvgTDLong
2011Rutgers10444.4024
2012Rutgers294.508
2013Rutgers9616.8038
2014Rutgers122.002
Career221165.3038

Receiving

SeasonTeamRecYdsAvgTDLong
2011Rutgers10686.8113
2012Rutgers33411.3015
2013Rutgers191497.8224
2014Rutgers1515010.0034
Career474018.5334

Season lines from CollegeFootballData, regular season and bowls.

On the roster

SeasonTeamNo.PosHt
2010Rutgers46FB
2011Rutgers46FB
2012Rutgers46FB
2013Rutgers46FB
2014Rutgers46FB6′0″

As each season’s roster listed the player (CollegeFootballData). Classes before the latest listing are counted back from it; “Yr 1” is the year on file where that count can’t place a season he played (a redshirt, transfer or 2020 year); height and weight as last listed.

Per play

SeasonTeamPlaysEPA/playPctileMedianTotalUsage
2013Rutgers270.38––10.14%
2014Rutgers170.47––8.0–

Expected points added: how much the player’s plays moved the team’s expected score, per play and in total. Plays: total EPA divided by EPA per play, the plays the source credits to him (for a receiver roughly his catches and runs, not every target; for a passer, not every attempt), so it can differ from attempts plus carries. Percentile: against the position’s regulars that season across all divisions on file (quarterbacks with 150+ plays, backs 60+, receivers and tight ends 30+), with how many there were (n) and their median; a dash means too few plays to rank. A season in progress uses the full-season bar scaled by games played, never below 75 plays for quarterbacks, 30 for backs and 20 for receivers. The cohort grows or shrinks with the source’s coverage each season (2025 lists far more players), so compare percentiles rather than raw EPA across years. FCS seasons are marked. Usage: the share of the team’s plays the player was part of (shown from 20 plays). From CollegeFootballData, 2013 on.

Game by game

2014 Rutgers 11 games, 15 catches, 150 yards
DateOpponentResultCarRush ydsRush TDRecRec ydsRec TD
Aug 28atWashington StateW 41–⁠38–––2360
Sep 6vs.HowardW 38–⁠25–––1220
Sep 13vs.Penn StateL 10–⁠13–––150
Sep 27vs.TulaneW 31–⁠6–––1−30
Oct 4vs.MichiganW 26–⁠24–––1160
Oct 18atOhio StateL 17–⁠56–––2220
Oct 25atNebraskaL 24–⁠42–––180
Nov 15vs.IndianaW 45–⁠23–––2130
Nov 22atMichigan StateL 3–⁠45–––2190
Nov 29atMarylandW 41–⁠38–––120
Dec 26 ✦vs.North CarolinaW 40–⁠211201100
2013 Rutgers 11 games, 19 catches, 149 yards, 2 TD
DateOpponentResultCarRush ydsRush TDRecRec ydsRec TD
Aug 29atFresno StateL 51–⁠52–––2140
Sep 7vs.Norfolk StateW 38–⁠02302220
Sep 14vs.Eastern MichiganW 28–⁠10–––140
Oct 5atSMUW 55–⁠52–––2250
Oct 10atLouisvilleL 10–⁠24–––1240
Oct 26vs.HoustonL 14–⁠4952402160
Nov 2vs.TempleW 23–⁠201−40141
Nov 16vs.CincinnatiL 17–⁠52–––4210
Nov 21atUCFL 17–⁠411380–––
Nov 30atUConnL 17–⁠28–––110
Dec 7vs.South FloridaW 31–⁠6–––3181
2012 Rutgers 4 games, 9 rushing yards
DateOpponentResultCarRush ydsRush TDRecRec ydsRec TD
Sep 1atTulaneW 24–⁠12–––170
Sep 8vs.HowardW 26–⁠0290–––
Sep 13atSouth FloridaW 23–⁠13–––1150
Sep 22atArkansasW 35–⁠26–––1120
2011 Rutgers 7 games, 10 catches, 68 yards, 1 TD
DateOpponentResultCarRush ydsRush TDRecRec ydsRec TD
Oct 1atSyracuseW 19–⁠16–––170
Oct 29vs.West VirginiaL 31–⁠4131301110
Nov 5vs.South FloridaW 20–⁠17–––140
Nov 12vs.ArmyW 27–⁠121202161
Nov 19vs.CincinnatiW 20–⁠31−402130
Nov 26atUConnL 22–⁠402301120
Dec 30 ✦vs.Iowa StateW 27–⁠133300250

Box scores from CollegeFootballData, 2004 on. ✦ postseason; ★ a career high on file.

Before the draft

DrillCombine 2015Combine or pro day 2015
Height5′11¼″
Weight242 lb
Arm length29¼″
Hand size9½″
Wingspan71¾″W
40-yard dash4.74 s
10-yard split1.65 s
Vertical jump33″
Broad jump9′7″
Bench press25 reps
3-cone drill7.20 s
20-yard shuttle4.34 s

Combine or pro day: the source doesn’t say which. Unmarked: Combine and pro day results compiled by array-carpenter (nfl-draft-data); W: Pre-draft measurables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).

In the NFL

11 seasons, 78 games with a stat; latest team: Cleveland Browns.

SeasonTeamGCarYdsTDRecRec yds
2015Detroit Lions10420639
2016Detroit Lions100000
2017Chicago Bears949028
2018Chicago Bears200016
2019Washington Redskins300000
2020New Orleans Saints67180428
2021Kansas City Chiefs108261331
2022Kansas City Chiefs12570211
2023Denver Broncos1179038
2024Denver Broncos127811065
2026 (so far)Cleveland Browns200000
NFL career784279231196

Regular seasons, from nflverse (CC BY 4.0), matched to him by his draft pick and college (Player ids: DynastyProcess (GPL-3.0)). G counts games in which the player recorded a stat.

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