Across The Shield: Jeff Okudah Records His First NFL Interception, K.J. Hill Catches His First NFL Pass and Dwayne Haskins, Chase Young Have Rough Return to Ohio

By Dan Hope on September 28, 2020 at 8:35 am
Jeff Okudah makes his first NFL interception.
Rob Schumacher/The Republic via Imagn Content Services, LLC
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In just his second game as an NFL player, Jeff Okudah recorded his first career interception.

On a play reminiscent to the first of his two interceptions last year at Nebraska, the former Ohio State cornerback dove in front of Arizona Cardinals wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins and played the ball absolutely perfectly to come up with his first NFL takeaway, which he returned 36 yards into Arizona territory.

That interception prompted celebratory reactions from several of Okudah’s former teammates who still play for Ohio State:

The interception wasn’t Okudah’s only highlight of the game. In the first quarter, Okudah recorded his first NFL tackle for loss when he jumped on a screen pass to Hopkins and took the star receiver down with a textbook open-field tackle as soon as Hopkins caught the ball.

As was the case in his NFL debut last week, Okudah also had some rookie moments on Sunday. One came in the second quarter, when elusive Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray made Okudah completely miss en route to a 1-yard touchdown run.

Ultimately, though, the positives certainly outweighed the negatives as Okudah recorded six total tackles with two tackles for loss in addition to his interception, which helped propel the Lions to their first win of the season.

K.J. records first NFL catch

Another rookie from Ohio State also achieved a milestone on Sunday as K.J. Hill caught his first pass as an NFL player.

That catch came with just one minute left to play as the Los Angeles Chargers attempted to mount a game-winning drive against the Carolina Panthers. The seventh-round pick came back to the ball to haul in a throw from fellow rookie Justin Herbert 15 yards downfield.

Hill also saw his first NFL action as a punt returner in Sunday’s game, gaining 10 yards on one of his two punt returns.

The Chargers’ opportunity to get the ball back for one final drive at the end of Sunday’s game was set up by former Ohio State defensive end Joey Bosa, who overpowered Panthers left tackle Trent Scott to get to Carolina quarterback Teddy Bridgewater for a crucial third-down sack that forced the Panthers to punt with just under two minutes to play.

Bosa, who recorded two tackles for loss on Sunday, has now recorded a sack in each of the Chargers’ first three games to start the season.

Despite those efforts, the Chargers ultimately came up short on Sunday, falling 21-16 to the Panthers. Curtis Samuel saw playing time at both receiver and running back for the Panthers – who were without star tailback Christian McCaffrey due to injury – catching four passes for 45 yards and adding four carries for seven yards for the winning team.

Spoiled homecoming for Young, Haskins

Dwayne Haskins and Chase Young’s return to Ohio didn’t go the way either of them would have hoped.

Before Sunday’s game in Cleveland, their first regular-season NFL game in the state where they attended college, Haskins and Young soaked up the opportunity to be back in the Buckeye State. They posed for an “O-H” picture before the game, and because the Browns were allowed to host up to 6,000 fans for Sunday’s game, Young’s mother Carla and several other family members made the trip to Cleveland to watch Chase play an NFL game in person for the first time.

Unfortunately for Young, the celebration came to an end early when he suffered a groin strain in the first half that knocked him out for the rest of the game. Fortunately for Young, the injury is “not considered serious,” though it’s uncertain whether he’ll be able to return for the Washington Football Team’s next game against the Baltimore Ravens, according to The Athletic’s Ben Standig.

Haskins threw two touchdown passes to Dontrelle Inman, including one against the coverage of his former Ohio State teammate Denzel Ward. Following his second touchdown pass to Inman, Haskins celebrated by throwing up another O-H to the crowd.

Those two touchdown passes, however, were overshadowed by four turnovers including three interceptions, the most he has ever thrown in a single game in his career. Those turnovers allowed the Browns to pull away for a 34-20 victory as Washington lost its second straight game.

Haskins didn’t throw any interceptions in Washington’s first two games of the season, but his struggles on Sunday led to renewed questions about whether he is truly the answer at quarterback in D.C. Washington coach Ron Rivera said after the game, though, that he is standing firmly by Haskins as the Football Team’s starting signal-caller.

“As long as he continues to do things that show you that he can make things happen, I'm going to support the young man,” Rivera said. “I'm not going to pull the plug on him because something like this happens. In my opinion, he's barely through a rookie year right now, in terms of being out there, learning and growing.”

Terry McLaurin led Washington in receiving for a third straight game to start the season, catching four passes for 83 yards and also gaining three yards on a running play. 

Ward recorded two tackles and a pass deflection that was nearly another interception against Haskins, but like Young, Ward left the game early with a groin injury. Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said after Sunday’s game, though, that he doesn’t think Ward – who was already battling that groin injury going into Sunday – will be “any worse for the wear.”

Fuller injures shoulder

Jordan Fuller’s NFL career got off to an excellent start, as the sixth-round pick started each of the Los Angeles Rams’ first two games of the season and recorded 17 total tackles to help lead his team to a 2-0 start. On Sunday, however, the former Ohio State safety suffered a shoulder injury that knocked him out of the Rams’ game against the Buffalo Bills, in which they came back from a 28-3 deficit but ultimately lost 35-32.

As of Sunday night, it was unclear what the prognosis was for Fuller’s injury and how much time he might miss.

Fellow rookie defensive back Damon Arnette – who, like last year at Ohio State, is playing with a cast on his right hand – was also knocked out of action for part of the Las Vegas Raiders’ loss to the New England Patriots on Sunday after aggravating his thumb injury, but he eventually returned to the field.

Jenkins makes mark on Sunday night

Malcolm Jenkins was all over the field for the New Orleans Saints’ defense on Sunday Night Football, recording nine total tackles, including a three-yard tackle for loss against Green Bay Packers running back Jamaal Williams on a run near the goal line. 

Later in the game, Jenkins teamed up with fellow former Ohio State defensive back Marshon Lattimore for a key 4th-and-1 stop against Packers running back Aaron Jones. After Jenkins met Jones in the hole to stop his forward progress at the line of scrimmage, Lattimore came in from behind him to wrap up Jones and take him down for no gain, giving the Saints the ball back with the score tied in the fourth quarter.

Those efforts weren’t enough for the Saints on Sunday night, though, as they suffered a 37-30 loss to fall to 1-2 on the season. Former Ohio State wide receiver Michael Thomas missed his second consecutive game for the Saints due to a high ankle sprain, but former Ohio State center Corey Linsley returned to the lineup for the Packers despite spraining his thumb last week.

Hubbard records first sack of season

Sam Hubbard recorded his first sack of the season on Sunday, and it came in a big moment for the Cincinnati Bengals, as he worked his way to Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz and took Wentz down for a 6-yard loss on 3rd-and-goal that forced the Eagles to settle for a field goal.

Hubbard recorded two total tackles for loss and two quarterback hits with four total tackles in Sunday’s game, which ended up being the first tie of the NFL season – 23-23 – after neither team scored during the 10-minute overtime, dropping both of their records for the year to 0-2-1.

Elliott’s fourth touchdown of the year

The lone Buckeye to score a non-passing touchdown during the third Sunday of the NFL season was the most frequent visitor to the end zone among NFL Buckeyes, Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott, who scored his fourth touchdown of the year on a 1-yard run in the first quarter against the Seattle Seahawks.

Outside of that touchdown, however, Zeke was mostly bottled up by the Seahawks on Sunday, as he gained just 34 yards on 14 carries and 24 yards on six catches in the Cowboys’ 38-31 loss.

Dobbins, Harrison set for Monday night spotlight

Two of Ohio State’s NFL rookies will make their Monday Night Football debuts tonight when the Baltimore Ravens host the Kansas City Chiefs in a matchup of two of the league’s elite teams. J.K. Dobbins and Malik Harrison will play their first primetime game as professional players on Monday as their Ravens look to improve to 3-0 in Baltimore against the also-undefeated Chiefs, who don’t have any former Buckeyes on their rosters. Kickoff is scheduled for 8:15 p.m. at M&T Bank Stadium and the game will be televised on ESPN.

Buckeyes Around the NFL
Player Pos Team Week 3 Stats Season Stats
NICK BOSA DE 49ERS OUT FOR SEASON (TORN ACL) 6 TACKLES, 1 FORCED FUMBLE, 1 QB HIT
TED GINN JR. WR BEARS 1 CATCH, 29 YARDS 1 CATCH, 29 YARDS
VONN BELL S BENGALS 8 TACKLES 24 TACKLES
SAM HUBBARD DE BENGALS 4 TACKLES, 2 TFL, 1 SACK, 2 QB HITS 16 TACKLES, 3 TFL, 1 SACK, 2 QB HITS
MICHAEL JORDAN OG BENGALS STARTED AT LEFT GUARD 3 STARTS
BILLY PRICE OL BENGALS SUBSTITUTED IN AT RIGHT GUARD 3 GAME APPEARANCES
DRE'MONT JONES DT BRONCOS INJURED RESERVE (KNEE) 4 TACKLES, 2 QB HITS
NICK VANNETT TE BRONCOS INACTIVE (HEALTHY SCRATCH) 1 CATCH, -6 YARDS
DENZEL WARD CB BROWNS 2 TACKLES, 1 PASS DEFLECTION 8 TACKLES, 4 PASS DEFLECTIONS
JOEY BOSA DE CHARGERS 2 TACKLES, 2 TFL, 1 SACK 11 TACKLES, 5 TFL, 3 SACKS, 6 QB HITS
K.J. HILL WR CHARGERS 1 CATCH, 15 YARDS; 2 PUNT RETURNS, 10 YARDS 1 CATCH, 15 YARDS; 2 PUNT RETURNS, 10 YARDS
PARRIS CAMPBELL WR COLTS INJURED RESERVE (KNEE) 6 CATCHES, 71 YARDS, 1 TD; 2 CARRIES, 16 YARDS
MALIK HOOKER S COLTS OUT FOR SEASON (TORN ACHILLES) 7 TACKLES
TYQUAN LEWIS DT COLTS 0 TACKLES 2 TACKLES, 1 SACK
NOAH BROWN WR COWBOYS 1 CATCH, 9 YARDS 3 CATCHES, 37 YARDS
EZEKIEL ELLIOTT RB COWBOYS 14 CARRIES, 34 YARDS, 1 TD; 6 CATCHES, 24 YARDS 58 CARRIES, 219 YARDS, 3 TD; 15 CATCHES, 88 YARDS, 1 TD
JEROME BAKER LB DOLPHINS 8 TACKLES, 1 TFL, 1 PASS DEFLECTION 30 TACKLES, 2 TFL, 1 SACK, 1 FORCED FUMBLE, 1 PASS DEFLECTION
CAMERON JOHNSTON P EAGLES 6 PUNTS, 47.3 YARDS PER PUNT, 3 PUNTS INSIDE 20 13 PUNTS, 51.8 YARDS PER PUNT, 7 PUNTS INSIDE 20
KENDALL SHEFFIELD CB FALCONS INACTIVE (FOOT INJURY) HAS NOT PLAYED
NATE EBNER S GIANTS 0 TACKLES 1 TACKLE
DAVON HAMILTON DT JAGUARS 2 TACKLES 7 TACKLES
ANDREW NORWELL OG JAGUARS STARTED AT LEFT GUARD 3 STARTS
TAYLOR DECKER OT LIONS STARTED AT LEFT TACKLE 3 STARTS
JONAH JACKSON OG LIONS STARTED AT LEFT GUARD 3 STARTS
JEFF OKUDAH CB LIONS 6 TACKLES, 2 TFL, 1 INT 13 TACKLES, 2 TFL, 1 INT
COREY LINSLEY C PACKERS STARTED AT CENTER 3 STARTS
ELI APPLE CB PANTHERS INJURED RESERVE (ANKLE/FOOT) HAS NOT PLAYED
CURTIS SAMUEL WR PANTHERS 4 CATCHES, 45 YARDS; 4 CARRIES, 7 YARDS 11 CATCHES, 96 YARDS; 9 CARRIES, 42 YARDS
JOHN SIMON DE PATRIOTS 2 TACKLES 14 TACKLES, 1 TFL, 2 QB HITS
DAMON ARNETTE CB RAIDERS 2 TACKLES 14 TACKLES, 1 PASS DEFLECTION
JOHNATHAN HANKINS DT RAIDERS 3 TACKLES 6 TACKLES
RAEKWON MCMILLAN LB RAIDERS 4 TACKLES 5 TACKLES
JORDAN FULLER S RAMS 0 TACKLES 17 TACKLES
JAKE MCQUAIDE LS RAMS LONG SNAPPER LONG SNAPPER
J.K. DOBBINS RB RAVENS vs. CHIEFS, 8:15 p.m. Monday 9 CARRIES, 70 YARDS, 2 TD; 1 CATCH, 13 YARDS
MALIK HARRISON LB RAVENS vs. CHIEFS, 8:15 p.m. Monday 5 TACKLES, 1 PASS DEFLECTION
MALCOLM JENKINS S SAINTS 9 TACKLES, 1 TFL, 1 QB HIT 22 TACKLES, 2 TFL, 1 SACK, 2 PASS DEFLECTIONS, 2 QB HITS
MARSHON LATTIMORE CB SAINTS 6 TACKLES 15 TACKLES, 1 TFL, 1 PASS DEFLECTION
MICHAEL THOMAS WR SAINTS INACTIVE (ANKLE INJURY) 3 CATCHES, 17 YARDS
CARLOS HYDE RB SEAHAWKS 4 CARRIES, 12 YARDS; 1 CATCH, 11 YARDS 16 CARRIES, 57 YARDS, 1 TD; 3 CATCHES, 26 YARDS
JAMARCO JONES OL SEAHAWKS SUBSTITUTED IN AT LEFT GUARD 2 GAME APPEARANCES
CAM HEYWARD DE STEELERS 3 TACKLES 8 TACKLES, 0.5 SACK, 1 INT, 4 QB HITS
GAREON CONLEY CB TEXANS INJURED RESERVE (ANKLE) HAS NOT PLAYED
BRADLEY ROBY CB TEXANS 2 TACKLES, 1 PASS DEFLECTION 10 TACKLES, 1 TFL, 1 PASS DEFLECTION
PAT ELFLEIN OG VIKINGS INJURED RESERVE (THUMB) 1 START
JALYN HOLMES DE VIKINGS 2 TACKLES, 1 QB HIT 9 TACKLES, 2 TFL, 1 PASS DEFLECTION, 1 QB HIT
MARCUS BAUGH TE WASHINGTON 0 CATCHES 1 CATCH, 2 YARDS
DWAYNE HASKINS QB WASHINGTON 21-37 PASSING, 224 YARDS, 2 TD, 3 INT; 2 CARRIES, 2 YARDS, 2 FUMBLES (1 LOST) 57-101 PASSING, 625 YARDS, 4 TD, 3 INT; 10 CARRIES, 27 YARDS
TERRY MCLAURIN WR WASHINGTON 8 CATCHES, 83 YARDS; 1 CARRY, 3 YARDS 20 CATCHES, 269 YARDS, 1 TD; 1 CARRY, 3 YARDS
CHASE YOUNG DE WASHINGTON 0 TACKLES 8 TACKLES, 3.5 TFL, 2.5 SACKS, 1 FORCED FUMBLE
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