Dwayne Haskins, Cardale Jones, Vonn Bell and Devin Smith Among Former Ohio State Players with Standout Plays in Week 2 of NFL Preseason

By Dan Hope on August 18, 2019 at 7:42 pm
Dwayne Haskins, Sam Hubbard, Terry McLaurin, Billy Price and Michael Jordan after Thursday night's Redskins-Bengals game.
Geoff Burke – USA TODAY Sports
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Several former Ohio State players have made their way onto the highlight reel with big plays in Week 2 of the NFL preseason.

No former Buckeye has been in the spotlight more this preseason than former Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins, as he competes with Case Keenum and Colt McCoy for the starting job in Washington, and he made his first real statement of his ability this preseason when he connected with Redskins wide receiver Robert Davis on a deep ball for a 55-yard touchdown.

In a game that featured a total of five Buckeyes who are in either their first or second years in the NFL – Terry McLaurin also plays for the Redskins, while Sam Hubbard, Billy Price and Michael Jordan also play for the Cincinnati Bengals, as you can see in the photo above – Haskins played about two quarters and completed seven of 14 passing attempts for 114 yards. He also had one run for six yards. After throwing two interceptions in his preseason debut against the Cleveland Browns, Haskins did not throw any interceptions against the Bengals, but lost one fumble on a strip sack.

While Haskins is trying to win a starting job, several other former Buckeyes are just trying to earn spots on regular-season rosters, including former Ohio State wide receiver Devin Smith and former Ohio State quarterback Cardale Jones, who both might have strengthened their cases to make their respective teams with their performances this weekend.

After catching three passes for 54 yards in the Cowboys' preseason opener, Smith caught another three passes for 24 yards against the Los Angeles Rams on Saturday night, including this impressive touchdown grab:

Jones, meanwhile, had a strong showing against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday afternoon, completing 10 of 14 passing attempts for 111 yards, including a 24-yard touchdown pass on a deep ball to Andre Patton.

The Saints' trio of former Ohio State defensive backs were out of the game by the time Jones made that throw, but earlier in the game, Vonn Bell made a highlight-reel play when he covered some serious ground to swat down a deep pass – and help bail out fellow Ohio State product Eli Apple in the process – near the sideline.

After that game, Jones met up with the Saints' other former Ohio State defensive back, Marshon Lattimore, to swap jerseys. Those two also played together at Cleveland's Glenville High School before playing for the Buckeyes.

A few more Buckeyes are still set to take the field before the end of preseason week two, including J.T. Barrett in his Seattle Seahawks debut against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday night (8 p.m., FOX) and Dre'Mont Jones in his third preseason game for the Denver Broncos against the San Francisco 49ers (who will be without Nick Bosa as he recovers from an ankle sprain) on Monday night (8 p.m., ESPN).

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