NFL O-Lineman Alex Redmond
“I’m a peanut butter and jelly, chicken fingers kind of kid”
This week’s Moonlighter is a West Coast product that has taken to the midwest. Alex Redmond grew up in Southern California and attended UCLA. Redmond spent the last 5 seasons in Cincinnati and spent the 2018 season as the starting right guard for the Bengals. His experiences as a wrestler and physical toughness have helped him overcome injuries and keep himself in the game. Between UCLA and Cinncinati, Redmond has had to grind each day to take full advantage of each opportunity he has been given.
Alex Redmond grew up in Southern California and attended Los Alamitos High School where he was a standout football player and 3-time letterman in wrestling. He credits his experiences wrestling and competing in jiu-jitsu for some of the combat skills that have helped him reach in the NFL. Learning to use his hips and body in different ways compliments the traditional offensive line skills of raw power and footwork. After reaching the state wrestling championship for the Griffins of Los Alamitos, Redmond attended UCLA and contributed right away. Redmond started 13 games during his freshman year as a Bruin, tying a school record. He was named first-team Freshman All-American. In his 3 seasons in baby blue and gold, the Bruins had 28 victories and twice finished in the top 25. The team also went to three bowl games during his time in LA. Redmond and his teammates won the 2013 Sun Bowl and 2014 Alamo Bowl. After three seasons at UCLA, Redmond declared for the 2016 NFL draft.
“I popped my dislocated finger back into place wrong”
The Bengals signed Redmond as an undrafted free agent following the draft and was moved to the practice squad during his rookie season. It was during the 2018 season though that Redmond really made a name for himself. He had a reputation as one of the most aggressive guards in the AFC. He started 15 games for the Bengals and was known for his run blocking skills. In all, Redmond was with the Bengals four seasons, made 17 starts, and played in 23 games. In that time he has endured hamstring and labrum injuries in addition to the myriad of injuries that an NFL offensive lineman has to deal with on a day-to-day basis.
As a Bengal, Redmond had a reputation as a tough guy football player. Former head coach Marvin Lewis even yelled “This isn’t the WWF” to the hard-nosed lineman who was still pushing and shoving after the whistle. Redmond prides himself on being able to bring that toughness and extra juice to the game when facing someone like Aaron Donald. As a regular starting during that 2018 season, Redmond and the Bengal o-line paved the way for Joe Mixon to run for over 1,100 yards which was good enough to lead the AFC. Redmond’s goal is to out physical his opponent on every play and take his dad’s advice to “be the hammer” instead of the nail.
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Jon Wisnieski’s name may be hard to spell, but it is even harder to forget for Des Moines metro Hawkeye fans. He was a star from Dowling Catholic High School and a highly touted recruit heading east to Iowa City. Jon played alongside some of the top names coming out of Tight End U during his five years in black and gold. Injuries sidetracked his college career but haven’t slowed him down since. Just in time for Cy-Hawk week, Jon Wiznieski gives the inside look at his time for both Dowling and the Hawkeyes and life beyond football.