Since Greg Mattison arrived in Ann Arbor circa 2011, Michigan has pumped out several defenders to the NFL. After his and Don Brown’s tutelage, 16 former Wolverines now contribute for 13 different professional defenses.
Baltimore Ravens second-year defensive end Chris Wormley made some of the most noise out of the Wolverine alumni in Week 3 of the preseason.
Another sack for the Ravens. This time from Chris Wormley! pic.twitter.com/MmIGzbhTPh
— Baltimore Beatdown (@BMoreBeatdown) August 26, 2018
He heavily rotated on the first-team defensive line, and recorded his sack against Dolphin backup quarterback Brock Osweiler with 11 minutes to go in the fourth quarter. It helped preserve a 27-10 victory Saturday night in south Florida.
After five tackles in limited action in 2017, this sack is his first of the 2018 preseason.
Meanwhile, his former teammate Maurice Hurst continues to justify his belly rubs with this comprehensive beatdown of Packer quarterback Brett Hundley.
Party in the backfield. Bring your friends. #GBvsOAK pic.twitter.com/qDk17eDsTx
— Oakland Raiders (@Raiders) August 25, 2018
Sorry, Brett. Jimmy Clausen has also felt the pain of four linemen simultaneously sacking him (5:33).
After a sack a week ago against the Rams, the son of the former Patriots cornerback produced 1.5 sacks in his first three contests.
In addition to these sack mongers, the following Michiganders laid waste to NFL offenses this past week:
- Denver Bronco safety Dymonte Thomas tallied five tackles in a 29-17 triumph over the Washington Redskins. SB Nation’s Mile High Report stated he would make the 53-man roster, especially after fourth-down stops such as these.
- Delano Hill, Thomas’ former colleague at safety, shined once again for the Seattle Seahawks. He also recorded five tackles — third most on the team — in 21-20 loss at Minnesota Friday night. His double-digit tackle performance over the last three weeks is also seeing him close to securing a roster spot.
Michigan and Seattle teammate Frank Clark, the starting defensive end, failed to record a stat as he still works through hamstring issues.
- Ben Gedeon paced all Viking defenders with a six-tackle outing. He is firmly entrenched as the starting middle linebacker in Minnesota.
- A week after clinching a Week 2 win with a strip sack, Jacksonville Jaguar safety Jarrod Wilson took down Matt Ryan in a 17-6 victory over the Atlanta Falcons Saturday. He made three total tackles to go with the sack.
- Other strong performers included the Chargers’ Channing Stribling (five tackles), Bengal nose tackle Ryan Glasgow (two), Browns safety Jabrill Peppers (three tackles, TFL) and Cowboy duo Jourdan Lewis (six) and Taco Charlton (two).
On offense, Lions backup quarterback Jake Rudock is battling former Chiefs starter Matt Cassel for the second-string job in Detroit. After leading a two-minute drill to seize a 33-30 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, he has to have Matt Patricia’s confidence.
With the Lions down 30-26 with 3:10 remaining, Rudock entered the game. He completed nine of 12 passes for 58 yards and the game-winning score.
Over three games, he has amassed 313 yards, connected of 44 of 61 throws for two scores and has been sacked only once.
His Michigan professional peers at quarterback — Tom Brady and Chad Henne — were fine. Brady completed two-thirds of his throws for 102 yards against the Panthers, while Henne led only one drive, going two for five for just 16 yards in a 27-20 loss to the Bears.
The only other offensive outing of note was Devin Funchess, who snared two catches for 38 yards against Brady’s Patriots in a 25-14 victory Friday night in Charlotte.
Lastly, Matt Wile remains a revelation as a dual-duty kicker for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Week one, he punted. Week two, he kicked field goals and extra points. In a 16-6 win over the Tennessee Titans, he booted three punts for 146 yards (48.6 average), including two inside the 20 and a 58-yard bomb.
Next week’s pro recap will focus on players making official rosters, just the practice squads or just getting cut. In the meantime, one more week of preseason before the real games start Sep. 9!