The NFL preseason for 2018 has officially began, and there was plenty of action from former Hawkeye players around the league.
The NFL preseason is where rookies begin their debuts in the pros. With all the action happening on Thursday night, we witnessed new rookies straight out of Iowa in Akrum Wadley, Josh Jackson, etc.
Akrum Wadley was an undrafted free agent, who signed a contract with the Tennessee Titans. Nearly a half-dozen of NFL teams were interested in the star from Iowa, and it all came down to his decision to join the Titans. Wadley’s NFL debut was great as he rushed for 27 yards on 9 carries with 11 reception yards, including an incredible kickoff return to set up perfect field position for the Titan offense. Unfortunately, Wadley didn’t come up with any touchdowns as his team fell short 31-17 to Green Bay, which is ironic considering Josh Jackson is on that Packer defense.
Former Hawkeye cornerback Josh Jackson had a very promising performance in the Packers’ game against the Titans on Thursday. With a groin injury occurring to rookie Jaire Alexander, meant that Josh Jackson would end up in the starting position on the outside corner. Josh Jackson was one of the top performers in this game, shutting down the passing game and providing excellent coverage downfield which makes his debut very satisfying for not only Packer fans, but Hawkeye fans as well.
We also got a dose of the good ole C.J. Beathard and George Kittle duo for the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday. Sadly, these two didn’t connect for a pass like us Iowa fans are used to seeing in Kinnick. However, it doesn’t get better as George Kittle headed to the locker room with a shoulder injury. Thankfully, we learned today that his shoulder injury isn’t anything serious, as reported by NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco. Expect Kittle to be back on the field this season soon. Beathard on the other hand had a solid game, despite an interception. He threw for 181 yards on 10/20 completion rate, including a huge bomb to receiver Dante Pettis.
The Denver Broncos will play on Aug 10th against the Minnesota Vikings, where we will hope to see Josey Jewell (the REAL Butkus Award winner) on the field against the Vikings’ offense.
From these preseason debuts, we have learned quite a bit from only the first game. Yes, I know this is only preseason and it technically doesn’t count, but this is still the NFL, the best players in the world. Hopefully we see these Hawkeyes get playing time this upcoming season and we will all be rooting for these guys no matter what team they’re on. Go Hawks.