Across The Shield: Marshon Lattimore Leads Big Buckeye Effort for Saints, Garrett Wilson Makes An Absurd Touchdown Catch and C.J. Stroud Catches His Own First Pass

By Dan Hope on September 12, 2023 at 10:10 am
Marshon Lattimore’s Week 1 interception
Stephen Lew – USA TODAY Sports
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No NFL team has become more synonymous with former Ohio State players in recent years than the New Orleans Saints, so it’s no surprise that many of the top Buckeye performances from Week 1 of the 2023 NFL season came in New Orleans.

No former Ohio State player had a better start to the season than Marshon Lattimore, who led all NFL players in Week 1 with four passes defended, including a ballhawking interception on which he snatched a jump ball away from standout Tennessee Titans receiver DeAndre Hopkins.

Lattimore was targeted six times in the Saints’ 16-15 win and allowed only two catches for 24 yards, both by Hopkins, according to Pro Football Focus. For his dominant performance in coverage against the Titans, Lattimore earns our first Pro Buck of the Week award as Ohio State’s top performer from the opening week of the NFL’s regular season.

Pro Bucks of the Week
Week Player Stats
Week 1 Saints CB Marshon Lattimore 1 INT, 3 PBU, 2 tackles

On the offensive side of the ball, Chris Olave was the star of the season opener for the Saints. The former Ohio State wide receiver started his second NFL season by catching eight passes for 112 yards, the second-highest total of his pro career to date. His day was highlighted by a 45-yard catch-and-run that led to a Saints field goal.

Fellow former Buckeye wideout Michael Thomas looked healthy in his return to action, catching five passes for 61 yards in the Saints’ season opener. Former Buckeye linebacker Pete Werner also had a productive day for the Saints on defense, recording eight total tackles and getting in on a sack.

Wilson makes spectacular touchdown catch

After Aaron Rodgers went down with an injury in the first quarter of his New York Jets debut, it looked as though it could be a quiet night for Garrett Wilson on Monday Night Football. But the former Ohio State receiver made plenty of noise with a catch that was arguably the best by any receiver in Week 1.

With just under five minutes to go in regulation of Monday’s Week 1 finale, Wilson caught a game-tying touchdown pass from Zach Wilson in spectacular fashion, tipping the ball away from Buffalo Bills cornerback Tre’Davious White and deflecting it to himself for a 3-yard score.

Wilson’s spectacular catch drew a bevy of reactions from current and former Ohio State receivers including Marvin Harrison Jr., Brian Hartline, Cris Carter, Ted Ginn Jr., Binjimen Victor and Johnnie Dixon.

Wilson finished the game with five catches for 34 yards, and his touchdown helped send the game to overtime, where the Jets earned a 22-16 win on a walk-off punt return touchdown by rookie wide receiver Xavier Gipson.

Fellow Ohio State product Jeremy Ruckert did not catch any passes in the Jets’ win, but the former Buckeye tight end executed a textbook pancake block to lead Jets running back Breece Hall to an 83-yard run.

Stroud completes his first pass… to Stroud

C.J. Stroud’s first NFL pass attempt, pass completion and reception all came on the same play.

On his very first throw in a regular-season game, Stroud caught the ball himself after it was batted into the air by Baltimore Ravens linebacker Roquan Smith. The catch went for no gain but makes for a good bit of trivia, as Stroud joined Pro Football Hall of Famer Brett Favre as quarterbacks who caught the ball themselves on their first pass attempts of their NFL careers.

For his first NFL game as a whole, Stroud completed 28 of 44 passing attempts for 242 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions. He also ran the ball four times for 20 yards in the Houston Texans’ 25-9 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.

Jones quickly becomes Browns starter

Dawand Jones was expected to spend his NFL rookie season backing up veteran Cleveland Browns right tackle Jack Conklin. However, that changed in a hurry when a defender was blocked into Conklin’s leg in the second quarter of Sunday’s season opener against the Cincinnati Bengals, tearing Conklin’s ACL and MCL in the process.

That injury thrust Jones into the lineup at right tackle, and the fourth-round pick from Ohio State handled the responsibility well, allowing zero pressures on 20 pass-blocking snaps, per PFF. Many of those snaps came against fellow former Buckeye Sam Hubbard, and Jones said after the game that he felt well-prepared to block Hubbard because Hubbard uses many of the same pass-rushing moves that Ohio State defensive ends still practice today.

Jones is now in line to make his first career start in Week 2, when he’ll face the tough test of going head-to-head with one of the best pass-rushers in the NFL, Pittsburgh Steelers outside linebacker T.J. Watt.

Big Thanos wasn’t the only rookie from Ohio State to see immediate playing time in Cleveland in Week 1, as undrafted rookie safety Ronnie Hickman also played 10 defensive snaps for the Browns, who defeated the Bengals 24-3 for their sixth straight home win against their in-state rivals.

Jones also wasn’t the only rookie right tackle from Ohio State to have a strong showing in his first NFL regular-season game. While the Arizona Cardinals lost 20-16 to the Washington Commanders in their season opener, Paris Johnson Jr. drew positive reviews for his performance as the No. 6 overall pick also allowed zero quarterback pressures on 34 pass-blocking snaps, per PFF.

Johnson paid tribute to another first-round pick from Ohio State by arriving at Washington’s stadium wearing a T-shirt of late former Ohio State and NFL quarterback Dwayne Haskins.

Fields throws touchdown, pick-six

With Aaron Rodgers’ departure from Green Bay, Justin Fields and the Chicago Bears entered Week 1 with the expectation of ending their eight-game losing streak against their own version of “the team up north.” Instead, the Bears suffered their ninth straight loss to their bitter rivals as the Packers defeated them 38-20.

Fields had an up-and-down performance in the Bears’ loss. In the first game of his third NFL season, Fields completed 24 of 37 passing attempts for 216 yards, highlighted by a 20-yard touchdown pass to Darnell Mooney late in the third quarter.

On the Bears’ next possession, however, Fields threw a back-breaking interception when he stared down his intended target and fired a throw into double coverage, which Packers linebacker Quay Walker picked off and returned 37 yards for a game-sealing pick-six.

While Fields’ final statistics weren’t terrible – he also ran the ball nine times for 59 yards – he averaged a career-low 4.1 air yards per attempt according to ESPN. After the loss, Fields apologized for his performance and vowed to be better as the Bears look to bounce back in Week 2 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

“This one hurts. I'm not going to lie to you. It definitely sucks,” said Fields, who is a Bears team captain for the second year in a row. “So, I want to say sorry to teammates, all the fans that were rooting for us. We'll bounce back.”

Dobbins, Heyward injured

The 2023 season came to an early end for former Ohio State running back J.K. Dobbins on Sunday when he suffered a torn Achilles in the Ravens’ win over the Texans. It’s the second time in three years that Dobbins has suffered a season-ending injury, as he was sidelined for the entire 2021 season after tearing his ACL in a preseason game.

Another AFC North standout from Ohio State also suffered a significant injury in Week 1 as Steelers defensive tackle Cameron Heyward left their loss to the San Francisco 49ers with a groin injury. According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo, Heyward is expected to be placed on injured reserve – which means he’ll miss at least the Steelers’ next four games – and may need to undergo surgery to repair the injury.

Quick Hits

  • Nick Bosa recorded two tackles with a quarterback hit in the 49ers’ season opener, in which he played only 35 snaps after just one week of preseason practice. Bosa held out for the entirety of the preseason before receiving a five-year, $170 million contract extension last Wednesday that made him the NFL’s highest-paid defensive player.
  • Bosa’s friend and former Ohio State teammate Joe Burrow became the NFL’s highest-paid player at any position just one day after Bosa received his extension, inking a five-year, $275 million contract extension with the Bengals. Burrow, who did not hold out but was sidelined for the preseason with a calf injury, had an uncharacteristically poor performance in the Bengals’ season opener, throwing for a career-low 82 yards in their loss to the Browns.
  • Jaxon Smith-Njigba played for the Seattle Seahawks in Week 1 just three weeks after fracturing his wrist, but caught only three passes for 13 yards in his NFL debut.

Full stats for every Buckeye who played in Week 1 of the NFL season, as compiled by Eleven Warriors researcher Matt Gutridge, can be found below. The table includes only players who finished their collegiate careers at Ohio State.

Buckeyes Around the NFL
PLAYER POSITION TEAM WEEK 1 STATS
ELI APPLE CB DOLPHINS 3 tackles
JEROME BAKER LB DOLPHINS 6 tackles
VONN BELL S PANTHERS 3 tackles
JOEY BOSA DE CHARGERS 1 tackle
NICK BOSA DE 49ERS 2 tackles, 1 QB hit
NOAH BROWN WR TEXANS 3 catches, 20 yards
BARON BROWNING OLB BRONCOS Physically unable to perform
PARRIS CAMPBELL WR GIANTS 1 catch, 2 yards
JONATHON COOPER OLB BRONCOS 3 tackles
TAYLOR DECKER OT LIONS Started at LT
J.K. DOBBINS RB RAVENS 8 carries, 22 yards, 1 TD
EZEKIEL ELLIOTT RB PATRIOTS 7 carries, 29 yards; 5 catches, 14 yards
LUKE FARRELL TE JAGUARS Played at TE
JUSTIN FIELDS QB BEARS 24/37 passing, 216 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT; 9 carries, 59 yards
JORDAN FULLER S RAMS 8 tackles
DaVON HAMILTON DT JAGUARS Injured reserve (back)
JOHNATHAN HANKINS DT COWBOYS 2 tackles
MALIK HARRISON LB RAVENS 2 tackles
ZACH HARRISON DL FALCONS 3 tackles
CAMERON HEYWARD DT STEELERS 1 QB hit
RONNIE HICKMAN S BROWNS Played at S
MALIK HOOKER S COWBOYS 5 tackles
SAM HUBBARD DE BENGALS 8 tackles
JONAH JACKSON OG LIONS Started at LG
PARIS JOHNSON JR. OL CARDINALS Started at RT
CAMERON JOHNSTON P TEXANS Injured reserve (calf)
DAWAND JONES OT BROWNS Played at RT
DRE’MONT JONES DE SEAHAWKS 2 tackles
MARSHON LATTIMORE CB SAINTS 2 tackles, 1 INT, 4 PD
TYQUAN LEWIS DE COLTS Played at DE
COREY LINSLEY C CHARGERS Started at C
LIAM McCULLOUGH LS FALCONS Played at LS
TERRY McLAURIN WR COMMANDERS 2 receptions, 31 yards
THAYER MUNFORD OT RAIDERS Started at OT
JOSH MYERS C PACKERS Started at C
JEFF OKUDAH CB FALCONS Inactive
CHRIS OLAVE WR SAINTS 8 catches, 112 yards
NICHOLAS PETIT-FRERE OT TITANS Suspended
JEREMY RUCKERT TE JETS Played at TE
CURTIS SAMUEL WR COMMANDERS 5 catches, 54 yards; 1 carry, 6 yards
TYREKE SMITH LB SEAHAWKS Inactive
JAXON SMITH-NJIGBA WR SEAHAWKS 3 catches, 13 yards
C.J. STROUD QB TEXANS 28/44 passing, 242 yards; 4 carries, 20 yards
MICHAEL THOMAS WR SAINTS 5 catches, 61 yards
SHAUN WADE CB PATRIOTS Inactive
DENZEL WARD CB BROWNS 4 tackles, 1 PD
PETE WERNER LB SAINTS 8 tackles, 0.5 sack (4 yards), 1 QB hit
GARRETT WILSON WR JETS 5 catches, 34 yards, 1 TD
LUKE WYPLER C BROWNS Inactive
CHASE YOUNG DE COMMANDERS Inactive
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