Defensive back, Texas, 2022–25
Michael Taaffe
- Number
- No. 16
- Height
- 6′0″
- Weight
- 189 lb
- Class (2025)
- Senior
- Hometown
- Austin, TX
- Born
- Feb 18, 2003
Wikipedia readers: about 3,762 a month over the past year
Michael Taaffe played defensive back at Texas (2022–25). He won the 2025 Wuerffel Trophy. The Miami Dolphins took Taaffe in round 5, No. 158 overall in the 2026 NFL Draft.
At a glance
Career highs
10tackles, career hightwice; last at Kentucky, 2025Honors
Team titles: Big 12 champions, 2023
Defense
Season lines from CollegeFootballData, regular season and bowls. A dash: the source has no number for that season (often an FCS season), and career totals count only the numbers on file.
On the roster
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.
Game by game
2025 Texas 10 games, 70 tackles, 1 sack, 2 INT
| Date | Opponent | Result | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | Int | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 30 | at Ohio State | L 7–14 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 6 | vs. San José State | W 38–7 | 8 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 13 | vs. UTEP | W 27–10 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 20 | vs. Sam Houston | W 55–0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 4 | at Florida | L 21–29 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Oct 11 | vs. Oklahoma | W 23–6 | 9 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 18 | at Kentucky | W 16–13 | 10 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 15 | at Georgia | L 10–35 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 22 | vs. Arkansas | W 52–37 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Nov 28 | vs. Texas A&M | W 27–17 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
2024 Texas 16 games, 78 tackles, 2 sacks, 2 INT
| Date | Opponent | Result | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | Int | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 31 | vs. Colorado State | W 52–0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Sep 7 | at Michigan | W 31–12 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 14 | vs. UTSA | W 56–7 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 21 | vs. UL Monroe | W 51–3 | 5 | 2 | 1.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 28 | vs. Mississippi State | W 35–13 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Oct 12 | vs.Oklahoma | W 34–3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 19 | vs.Georgia | L 15–30 | 9 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Oct 26 | at Vanderbilt | W 27–24 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Nov 9 | vs.Florida | W 49–17 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Nov 16 | atArkansas | W 20–10 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 23 | vs.Kentucky | W 31–14 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 30 | atTexas A&M | W 17–7 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Dec 7 | vs.Georgia | L 19–22 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Dec 21 ✦ | vs. Clemson | W 38–24 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Jan 1 ✦ | vs. Arizona State | W 39–31 | 10 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Jan 10 ✦ | vs.Ohio State | L 14–28 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2023 Texas 12 games, 45 tackles, 3 INT
| Date | Opponent | Result | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | Int | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 16 | vs. Wyoming | W 31–10 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 23 | at Baylor | W 38–6 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 30 | vs. Kansas | W 40–14 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 7 | vs.Oklahoma | L 30–34 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 21 | at Houston | W 31–24 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Oct 28 | vs. BYU | W 35–6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Nov 4 | vs. Kansas State | W 33–30 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Nov 11 | at TCU | W 29–26 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 18 | at Iowa State | W 26–16 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 24 | vs. Texas Tech | W 57–7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dec 2 | vs. Oklahoma State | W 49–21 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jan 1 ✦ | vs. Washington | L 31–37 | 5 | 3 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
2022 Texas 8 games, 24 tackles
| Date | Opponent | Result | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | Int | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 3 | vs.UL Monroe | W 52–10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 17 | vs.UTSA | W 41–20 | 3 | 1 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 8 | vs.Oklahoma | W 49–0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 15 | vs.Iowa State | W 24–21 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oct 22 | atOklahoma State | L 34–41 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Nov 5 | atKansas State | W 34–27 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 19 | atKansas | W 55–14 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nov 25 | vs.Baylor | W 38–27 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Box scores from CollegeFootballData, 2004 on. ✦ postseason; ★ a career high on file.
Before the draft
Played in the 2026 Senior Bowl (American team, won 17–9).
| Drill | Combine 2026 | Combine or pro day 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Height | 5′11⅞″ | |
| Weight | 190 lb | |
| Arm length | 29¼″ | |
| Hand size | 9⅜″ | |
| Wingspan | 72¾″ | |
| 40-yard dash | 4.50 s | |
| 10-yard split | 1.58 s | |
| Vertical jump | 34½″W | |
| Broad jump | 10′2″W | |
| 3-cone drill | 6.80 sW | |
| 20-yard shuttle | 4.15 sW |
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). Rosters and honors: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).
In the NFL
1 season, 5 games with a stat; latest team: Miami Dolphins.
| Season | Team | G | Tkl | Sacks | Int |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (so far) | Miami Dolphins | 5 | 30 | 0 | 1 |
Regular seasons, from nflverse (CC BY 4.0). G counts games in which the player recorded a stat.
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