Former member of the D-Boyz Walter Thurmond made 5 solo tackles and recovered a second-quarter fumble in Seattle’s 17-10 road victory over Green Bay. Thurmond’s sharp defensive effort helped the Seahawks overcome two interceptions by ex-Wisconsin Badger Russell Wilson. Thurmond was taken by the Pete Carroll and the Hawks in the 4th round of the 2010 draft. He played 14 games in his rookie season and made 33 tackles, but has been nagged by injuries since, only playing two games in 2012. Finally healthy, he’s making a bid to start at corner for the team, which figures to contend with Jim Harbaugh’s San Francisco 49’ers for supremacy in the NFC West. Last year Carroll’s squad finished 11-5, won a wild card playoff game over Washington before losing 30-28 at Atlanta in the Divisional round.
Beyond the thunder dome: Walter Thurmond, shown here in his rookie year, breaking up a pass in the end zone intended for the Saints’ Jimmy Graham (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images North America photo).
Kyle Long has been killing it as a first-year offensive guard for the Chicago Bears. Peter King of Monday Morning Quarterback called him one of the best rookies he’s seen in his annual training camp tour. The website Pro Football Focus gave him a line grade of 5.7 in the Bears’ Week 2 preseason win over San Diego. Coach Marc Trestman told the Chicago Tribune, “I can tell you that from practice … (Long) is not making incremental increases in his play. He’s really ascending a little quicker than that.”
Friday night Long and the Monsters of the Midway traveled to Oakland, running their record to 2-1 with a 34-26 victory. They pounded a soft Raider defense for 164 yards, 5.5 yards a carry, and Bear quarterbacks weren’t sacked once. Jay Cutler and the first team offense surged to a 27-3 lead by halftime with Long turning in another solid performance.
It’s been a great journey for Kyle, who returned to football just three years ago at Saddleback Community College after a stint in professional baseball. He caught on with the Ducks, won a Fiesta Bowl, impressed scouts at the NFL combine and became a number one draft pick. A nice comeback story with several positive chapters yet to be written.
Chip Kelly and the Eagles face a road game against Jacksonville tonight, 4:30 p.m. Pacific with no live TV. This week the coach acquired Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Adrian Robinson in a trade for RB Felix Jones. Robinson, a 6-1, 250-lb. outside linebacker with five underachieving seasons in the league, plays the same position as former Duck Casey Matthews. It’s a bid to add depth to a defense that was among the worst in the league last year.
This week Kelly named Michael Vick as the starter at quarterback over Nick Foles. Former Trojan Matt Barkley is likely to be the choice for the #3 spot, with former Webfoot ball-handling wizard Dennis Dixon a possibility for the Eagles’ practice squad, a job with a weekly minimum salary of $5700. Vick, 33, is a 10-year NFL veteran with over 20,000 passing yards and 123 career td passes. He missed the 2007 and 2008 seasons serving a jail term for running a dog-fighting ring.
Kellen Clemens and the Rams travel to Denver Saturday 5:00 p.m. on CBS, today’s only televised game in the no-fun league. Clemens is looking to bounce back from a horrid performance last week in which he was 2-11 passing with two interceptions.
Sunday there are two televised games:
New Orleans at Houston 4:00 PM FOX (Texans safety Eddie Pleasant)
Minnesota at San Francisco 8:00 PM NBC (49ers Adam Snyder, LaMichael James, Will Tukuafu)
After this weekend one week remains in the NFL exhibition season. Teams have to pare rosters to 53 players on August 31st. All the Week 4 games are scheduled for Thursday August 29th, none on live TV opposite the opening of the College Football season.
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