Mason Rieger looks ahead to NFL Draft after lone season at Wisconsin
Wisconsin linebacker Mason Reiger reflects on his journey, discusses his NFL Combine experience, and what comes next in the draft process.
Mason Reiger didn’t arrive at the NFL Scouting Combine trying to reinvent himself. He arrived in Indianapolis intent on reinforcing what he already believes to be true — that the path he took, the setbacks he endured, and the way he responded have shaped him into a legitimate NFL hopeful.
For Reiger, this week is a job interview without the shoulder pads. The testing numbers matter, sure, but so does the part you can’t time — how you carry yourself through the grind, how you talk about football, and whether teams see a player whose best ball might still be ahead of him.
“I really enjoyed my time in Wisconsin,” Reiger said. “Loved Madison, loved the people, the coaches, everyone that I came into contact with. And going through the process of learning a new place as someone who had been in college for a while, the adversity, the newness of a place that I hadn’t been to. It’s similar to this — go in and really embrace it. That’s what I did with my time at Wisconsin, and that’s what I’m doing here.”
Reiger’s path hasn’t been linear.
A native of Hoffman Estates (ILL.), the 6-foot-5, 248-pound edge rusher began his college football career as a walk-on at Louisville before carving out a significant role over three seasons with the Cardinals. Then came the detour — a lost 2024 season due to injury, followed by another leg procedure after transferring. When Wisconsin brought him in as a graduate transfer, the move came with more questions than guarantees.
Luke Fickell and his staff made a calculated bet, trusting the tape, the traits, and — more importantly — the person they believed Reiger was.
That bet paid off for everyone involved.
In his lone season with the Badgers, Reiger appeared in all 12 games, played 514 snaps for defensive coordinator Mike Tressel, and became a disruptive presence off the edge for a defense that needed it. He finished with 33 tackles (18 solo), six tackles for loss, five sacks, 45 pressures, and a pass deflection. Pro Football Focus graded Reiger at 82.4 overall, including a 78.0 mark against the run and an 83.0 pass-rush grade.
However, those numbers only tell part of the story. Reiger’s impact showed up in how often Wisconsin was able to pressure quarterbacks, how the front fit together, and how the room stabilized around him.
At the East-West Shrine Bowl, that impact became harder to ignore. Reiger reportedly dominated practice week, then backed it up with three sacks in the game itself, earning Defensive MVP honors. The performance forced evaluators around the league to revisit their preconceived notions.
“That was a big week for me,” Reiger said of his East-West Shrine Bowl experience. “It was a great opportunity that I was blessed with, and I just took advantage of the whole week, from practices to the game. Building on that momentum and hopefully continuing to boost my draft stock.”
Momentum carried into Indianapolis.
Reiger posted a 40-inch vertical — one of the best marks among edge rushers — paired with a 10-foot-5 broad jump that ranked fourth at his position, along with an official 4.78-second 40-yard dash and a 1.61-second 10-yard split.
The testing numbers matched what showed up on film, reinforcing the athletic profile teams were already circling. His performance translated to an unofficial 9.53 Relative Athletic Score out of 10.00, placing him among the top defensive ends tested since 1987.
Still, Reiger is quick to steer the conversation back to versatility.
“I just emphasize my versatility as a player,” Reiger said. “I’ve played in a lot of different schemes throughout my career, and I emphasize that to let them know I can contribute in more than one way. Wherever they need me to play, I’d be more than happy to get myself on the field that way.”
That versatility shows up not just in how Reiger can be deployed as a chess piece on defense, but in how he’s learned to navigate the highs and lows that come with the position and the profession. That adaptability was forged through adversity, including a difficult 2025 season at Wisconsin that ended with a 4–8 record. It was a situation Reiger wasn’t accustomed to — and it was one that tested his leadership and resolve.
“It was tough as a sixth-year guy,” Reiger said of his final season at Wisconsin. “But every week you get a new opponent, and with the schedule we had — you learn to flush what happened and move on.”
Wisconsin’s breakthrough came late in the season, highlighted by wins over AP Top 25 opponents Washington and Illinois — a reflection of a locker room that stayed together through the season’s lowest points.
“It was a rewarding feeling,” Reiger said. “A testament to our team staying together through a tough season. The leaders kept morale up, and then it was just knowing that any given week, anything can happen. We got two ranked wins late, and I give our team a lot of credit for how we finished.”
Beyond the tape and the testing numbers, Reiger knows that NFL teams are evaluating something else.
“I would say my character,” Reiger said when asked what he hopes teams see. “I hope that jumps off the table — the kind of person I am, what I believe in, my lifestyle. Knowing I can be the best possible person each day, and just bringing that to whatever program takes a chance on me.”
That matters in a college football landscape where NIL, agents, and the transfer portal have complicated traditional ideas of loyalty.
“My character is definitely not to be questioned,” Reiger said. “I started as a walk-on. My loyalty has been tested. The move to Wisconsin was positive for my development. Five minutes in a room with me, you can get a read on what I stand for.”
Physically, the comeback is complete. Reiger said there was no secret formula behind staying healthy in 2025 — just consistency. “Nothing different. Just great trainers, staying on rehab and maintenance, prioritizing health.” He added that the medical evaluations in Indy went smoothly, another step in putting the injury questions fully behind him.
“Yeah, scans went great,” Reiger shared. “Super blessed.”
Now comes the waiting game, a reality Reiger understands but doesn’t try to manage. Public draft projections currently place him in the Day 3 range, the kind of territory where patience matters as much as preparation.
“It would mean everything to me,” Reiger said of potentially reaching the NFL. “Football’s been so much of my life since I was five years old. I’ve had a lot of stuff throughout my career that’s tried to steer me away, but I just have a calling to football. I feel that that’s what I’m destined to do.”
That belief is shared, at least in part, by NFL evaluators studying his film.
In his evaluation on NFL.com, Lance Zierlein describes Reiger as a “tall, linear edge rusher with a slender frame,” noting that he “doesn’t look like a pro pre-snap, but he certainly plays like one after the snap.” Zierlein also highlights Reiger’s ability to create pressure, writing that he’s “unusually talented to work off contact for quick wins at the point of attack,” with “hands and feet to hit well-timed inside rush moves” and a knack for finding pressures with an “inside spin at pocket depth.”
At the same time, Zierlein notes that Reiger “lacks the size/anchor to consistently set the edge” and can be “controlled when tackles latch on,” adding that he needs “more mass and refinement” and a more developed inside counter to improve his overall sack production. Still, Zierlein sees a path forward, projecting that Reiger “could become a good rotational odd-front edge in time” as his game continues to develop in the NFL.
For Reiger, the NFL Scouting Combine isn’t about erasing the past. It’s about showing that the walk-on beginnings, the injuries, and the productive final season at Wisconsin have all led him exactly where he’s supposed to be.
And now, he’s ready for whatever comes next.
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