Auburn Made: Week 1 NFL rundown

by Greg Ostendorf
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The NFL season kicked off this past weekend with 23 former Auburn players on active rosters. Three of those players had a sack in Week 1 while second-year running back Tank Bigsby enjoyed a career day.

That and more in this week’s Auburn Made NFL rundown. 

BEST OF WEEK 1

Tank Bigsby, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars
In what was the first game of his second NFL season, Bigsby rushed for a career-high 73 yards on just 12 carries, averaging 6.1 yards per carry. The former third-round pick ripped off gains of 26 and 17 yards, and 51 of his 71 yards came after contact Sunday, per PFF. Bigsby had the fifth-best rushing grade in the NFL in Week 1, and his overall PFF grade (81.9) was second-highest on the team. 

Derick Hall, LB, Seattle Seahawks
Like Bigsby (above), Hall enjoyed a strong start to his sophomore season on Sunday. The pass-rush specialist recorded his first NFL sack, taking down former teammate and Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix, and finished with three total hits on Nix and four QB pressures for the game as the Seahawks beat the Broncos 26-20. 

Jonathan Jones, CB, New England Patriots 
Entering his ninth NFL season, Jones showed Sunday that he hasn’t missed a beat. He finished with three tackles, one pass break-up, and his PFF grade of 86.1 was second-highest on the team. Jones also made one of the plays of the game, making a critical stop on fourth down to force a turnover on downs (see below). As a team, the Patriots held the Cincinnati Bengals to 10 points in 16-10 win to start the season. 

Eku Leota, LB, Carolina Panthers
It was a bittersweet day for Auburn’s alum on the Panthers. Derrick Brown had three tackles before suffering a meniscus injury that will force him to miss the rest of the season, but Leota had a breakout performance with four tackles, three tackles for loss and his first career sack. The second-year player, an undrafted free agent pickup last offseason, earned a spot on PFF’s Team of the Week for Week 1. 

Other Tigers in the NFL
Montravius Adams, DT, Pittsburgh Steelers
K.J. Britt, LB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Derrick Brown, DE, Carolina Panthers
Daniel Carlson, K, Las Vegas Raiders
Byron Cowart, DL, Chicago Bears*
Carlton Davis, CB, Detroit Lions
Jamel Dean, CB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Josh Harris, LS, Los Angeles Chargers
Noah Igbinoghene, CB, Washington Commanders
Roger McCreary, CB, Tennessee Titans  
Bo Nix, QB, Denver Broncos*
Owen Pappoe, LB, Arizona Cardinals
Nehemiah Pritchett, CB, Seattle Seahawks
Jamien Sherwood, LB, New York Jets 
Darius Slayton, WR, New York Giants
Braden Smith, OT, Indianapolis Colts
Jarrett Stidham, QB, Denver Broncs
Daniel Thomas, S, Jacksonville Jaguars 
Colby Wooden, DL, Green Bay Packers

DNP (Reserve/Injured)
Marlon Davidson, DT, Tennessee Titans (IR)
Anthony Schwartz, WR, Miami Dolphins (IR)

Practice Squad
Angelo Blackson, DL, Arizona Cardinals
Jack Driscoll, OL, Philadelphia Eagles
Marcus Harris, DT, Houston Texans
Shedrick Jackson, WR, Cincinnati Bengals
Carl Lawson, DE, Dallas Cowboys
Tashawn Manning, OG, Cincinnati Bengals*
Justin Rogers, DT, Cincinnati Bengals
John Samuel Shenker, TE, Las Vegas Raiders
Jaylin Simpson, CB, Indianapolis Colts
Chandler Wooten, LB, Carolina Panthers
Kilian Zierer, OT, Houston Texans

*Graduated from Auburn