How former Vols fared in NFL Preseason Week One

The NFL preseason slate of games started on Thursday for many teams, and many former Volunteer players saw a good bit of action in those games.

Many former Volunteer football players saw action in the NFL Thursday night, including some of last years draft picks and undrafted free agents. With former Vols players, like Peyton Manning and Jason Witten, retiring in the past few years, it’s good to see other former Vols make a name for themselves in the NFL.

Offense

Quarterbacks

Two former Volunteer quarterbacks saw action on Thursday night. Tyler Bray saw a good bit of action last night for the Chicago Bears, as he went 18/27 for 219 yards while throwing one interception. Josh Dobbs split time with Mason Rudolph and Landry Jones for the Pittsburgh Steelers, but he made the most of it. Dobbs finished 9/13 for 91 yards including one touchdown and one interception, as well as running twice for 19 yards. Dobbs made a beautiful throw on his lone touchdown pass.

https://twitter.com/steelers/status/1027715577291259906

Running Backs

John Kelly showed out in his first game in a Rams uniform. He led all rushers in that game as Kelly ran for 77 yards on 13 rushes, as well as two catches for 14 yards. Kelly even broke out for a long 40-yard rush.

Alvin Kamara didn’t see much action on Thursday for the New Orleans Saints. He only rushed three times for 11 yards and had one catch for seven yards.

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends

A total of five former wide receivers and tight ends saw action Thursday night in Week One of the NFL Preseason. Josh Malone led all pass catchers with 41 yards on three catches for the Cincinnati Bengals. Cordarrelle Patterson got situated with his new team, the New England Patriots, as he finished with two catches for 38 yards. Tight end Alex Ellis caught four passes for a total of 36 yards for the Kansas City Chiefs. Tight end Jason Croom had one catch for 22 yards for the Buffalo Bills, while Justin Hunter had one catch for four yards for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Defense

A good bit of former Vols saw action on Thursday night on the defensive side of the ball. Jordan Williams, New York Giants, and LaTroy Lewis, Houston Texans, led all former Vols in tackles with three each. Colton Jumper, who was picked up as an undrafted free agent by the New Orleans Saints, finished with two tackles. Rashaun Gaulden, the third round draft pick of the Carolina Panthers, finished with one tackle, while Emmanuel Mosley of the San Francisco 49ers and Justin Coleman of the Seattle Seahawks finished with one tackle each. Cameron Sutton showed out last night for the Pittsburgh Steelers. He finished with just one tackle but also had one pass deflection and an interception.

Jalen Reeves-Maybin will play tonight as the Detroit Lions play the Oakland Raiders.

Special Teams

Tennessee knows how to put punters in the NFL. A total of four former Volunteer punters saw action on Thursday night. Michael Palardy of the Carolina Panthers had a total of five punts for 217 yards with a 43.7-yard average. Britton Colquitt of the Cleveland Browns had four punts for 162 yards and a 40.5 average. His brother Dustin of the Kansas City Chiefs had three punts for 128 yards and a 42.7 average. Trevor Daniel, who went to the Houston Texans as an undrafted free agent had two punts on Thursday night for 84 yards and a 42-yard average.

Evan Berry, who was well known for his numerous kick returns touchdowns at Tennessee, had a total of two kickoff returns last night for a total of 53 yards, including a 30-yard kickoff return.