Moritz Böhringer

Moritz Wilhelm Böhringer (born October 16, 1993) is a German professional American football tight end who is a free agent. He was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the sixth round of the 2016 NFL Draft. He was the first European player to be selected in the NFL Draft without playing any college football.

Moritz Böhringer
Free agent
Position:Tight end
Personal information
Born: (1993-10-16) October 16, 1993
Stuttgart, Germany
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:250 lb (113 kg)
Career information
NFL Draft:2016 / Round: 6 / Pick: 180
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
  • GFL Rookie of the Year (2015)
Career NFL statistics
Player stats at NFL.com

Personal life

Böhringer played youth soccer in two local clubs in his hometown of Aalen. He says that he was inspired to play American football after watching a highlight reel of former Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson on YouTube when he was 17.[1] In 2010, the town had the fledgling Aalen Limes Praetorians and even a baseball team, but no opportunity to play American football in a local junior team. Prior to being drafted into the NFL, Böhringer was majoring in mechanical engineering at Hochschule Aalen.[2]

Professional career

Böhringer joined the Crailsheim Titans under-19 junior team in 2011. In 2013 and 2014 he played for the Crailsheim Titans senior squad in Oberliga Baden-Württemberg.

Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns

For the 2015 season, he moved to the nearby two-time German champions, the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns of the German Football League (GFL).[1] Parallel to the national league regular seasons, some of the best European American football clubs, mainly from German-speaking countries plus France, compete for the Eurobowl in the BIG6 European Football League. Böhringer's first big game was the Eurobowl XXIX 21–14 loss at the Braunschweig New Yorker Lions in June 2015. The Unicorns placed first in the GFL South Conference, advancing to the playoffs which ended in another loss (41–31) to the Lions in German Bowl XXXVII.

Böhringer played 16 GFL games and had 59 receptions for 1,232 yards and 13 touchdowns. He also had 14 kickoff returns for 415 yards and two touchdowns.[3]

NFL: National Football League

In early 2016, NFL scouts contacted the engineering student, and he was later invited to the Florida Atlantic Owls football pro day:[4]

Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand size40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard split20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jumpBench press
6 ft 4 1⁄2 in
(1.94 m)		 227 lb
(103 kg)		 3⁄8 in
(0.01 m)		 1⁄2 in
(0.01 m)		4.43 s1.48 s2.59 s4.09 s6.64 s39 in
(0.99 m)		10 ft 11 in
(3.33 m)		17 reps
All values from Pro Day[5]

Afterwards, NFL.com featured him as "NFL Draft Party Crasher".[6]

Minnesota Vikings

Böhringer was selected in the sixth round (180th overall) of the 2016 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings. He signed his contract with the team on May 2, 2016. The same month, the NFL approved the use of the umlaut on his jersey, similar to the use of the cedilla for Pierre Garçon.[7] On September 3, 2016, Böhringer was released by the Vikings as part of final roster cuts and was re-signed to the practice squad the next day.[8][9] After spending the entire season on the practice squad, Böhringer signed a reserve/futures contract with the Vikings on January 2, 2017.[10]

On September 2, 2017, Böhringer was waived by the Vikings.[11]

Cincinnati Bengals

On May 1, 2018, Böhringer was signed by the Cincinnati Bengals as part of the NFL's International Player Pathway program after he chose to transition to tight end.[12] He was waived on September 1, 2018 and was signed to the practice squad the next day.[13][14] He signed a reserve/future contract with the Bengals on December 31, 2018.[15]

On August 31, 2019, Böhringer was waived during final roster cuts and signed to the practice squad the next day.[16][17] He signed a futures contract with the Bengals on December 30, 2019.[18] He was waived on August 3, 2020.[19]

References
  1. "Moritz Boehringer Going from Unicorn to Vikings Gjallarhorn". Archived from the original on May 1, 2016. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
  2. http://www.vikings.com/team/roster/Moritz-B%C3%B6hringer/69a44a2d-6aa5-43b0-8d4d-5550ef3a8886
  3. "German Football League - Schw.Hall Unicorns". stats.gfl.info. Retrieved February 15, 2019.
  4. Vrentas, Jenny (April 13, 2016). "Moritz Boehringer, The Mystery German Draft Prospect - The MMQB with Peter King". The MMQB. Sports Illustrated. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
  5. "Moritz Boehringer - Schwabisch Hall, WR: 2016 NFL Draft Scout Player Profile". draftscout.com. Retrieved February 15, 2019.
  6. "Incredible pro day puts German Moritz Boehringer on NFL radar". NFL.com. Retrieved February 15, 2019.
  7. Hanzus, Dan. "Moritz Böhringer gets approval for umlaut on jersey". NFL.com. Retrieved September 4, 2017.
  8. "Vikings Announce Roster Moves, Set 53-Man Roster". Vikings.com. September 3, 2016.
  9. Belisle, Austin (September 4, 2016). "Moritz Böhringer Among Names Added to Vikings Practice Squad". VikingsTerritory. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
  10. Peters, Craig (January 2, 2017). "Vikings Sign 9 Practice Squad Players to Futures Contracts". Vikings.com.
  11. "Vikings Announce Roster Moves, Set Roster". Vikings.com. September 2, 2017.
  12. Shook, Nick (May 1, 2018). "Moritz Boehringer added to Cincinnati Bengals roster". NFL.com.
  13. "Bengals Establish Roster of 53 Players". Bengals.com. September 1, 2018.
  14. "Andrew Brown, Russell Signed to Practice Squad". Bengals.com. September 2, 2018.
  15. "Bengals Sign Five To Reserve/Future Contracts". Bengals.com. December 31, 2018.
  16. "Bengals Announce 53-Man Roster". Bengals.com. August 31, 2019. Retrieved August 31, 2019.
  17. "Bengals Establish Practice Squad". Bengals.com. September 1, 2019.
  18. "Böhringer And Lodge Signed To Reserve/Future Contracts". Bengals.com. December 30, 2019. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
  19. "Bengals Make Player Moves". Bengals.com. August 3, 2020. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
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