As an NFL rookie in 2023, second-round selection Derick Hall played 307 defensive snaps without registering a sack, and he recorded five quarterback hits.
Hall collected his first sack in the Seattle Seahawks’ season-opening game of 2024 by taking down former Auburn teammate Bo Nix in a 26-20 victory over the Denver Broncos on Sept. 8.
In Seattle’s third game on Sunday, Hall made five tackles, recorded two sacks, registered four quarterback hits and forced one fumble as the Seahawks defeated the Miami Dolphins 24-3 in his first NFL start.
“Derick played a tremendous game really,” Seattle Mike Macdonald said. “… I mean this is the type of player that you envision. He’s a physical guy that can set the edge and can drop when necessary. I mean he’s playing at a high level right now, so we’re excited about Derick.”
Hall had a strip sack of Miami quarterback Skylar Thompson on the final play of the first half, but the football went out of bounds.
“I think the big part of it is just knowing what I had to attack going into the offseason,” Hall said about his improvement. “Really honing in on that, being able to develop my pass rush and take it to the next level. Having a year under my belt, knowing what to expect, knowing how things are going to flow, having guys that trust in me like (fellow outside linebackers) Uchenna (Nwosu) and Boye (Mafe). Then, obviously, the scheme that Coach Mike has put in place for us on the defensive side of the ball, I think it allows the entire defense, but particularly the outside backers, to be really, really effective game-in and game-out.”
Hall was among the 15 former Auburn players who got on the field on the third Sunday of the NFL’s 105th season.
Two other former Auburn players were involved in the Miami-Seattle game:
· Seahawks cornerback Nehemiah Pritchett (Jackson) did not record any stats.
· Dolphins wide receiver Anthony Schwartz is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
In the other Sunday games:
New York Giants 21, Cleveland Browns 15
· Giants wide receiver Darius Slayton had a 7-yard reception.
Indianapolis Colts 21, Chicago Bears 16
· Bears defensive tackle Byron Cowart did not record any stats. Indianapolis elevated Cowart from the practice squad to make him eligible to play.
· Colts cornerback Jaylin Simpson is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Braden Smith started at right offensive tackle for the Colts.
· Bears cornerback Ro Torrence (Bessemer City) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Minnesota Vikings 34, Houston Texans 7
· Texans defensive tackle Marcus Harris (Park Crossing) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Texans offensive tackle Kilian Zierer is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Philadelphia Eagles 15, New Orleans Saints 12
· Eagles offensive lineman Jack Driscoll is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Pittsburgh Steelers 20, Los Angeles Chargers 10
· Steelers defensive tackle Montravius Adams did not record any stats.
· Chargers long snapper Josh Harris handled the snaps on seven punts, one field goal and one extra point.
Denver Broncos 26, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 7
· K.J. Britt (Oxford) started at linebacker for the Buccaneers. Britt made six tackles.
· Jamel Dean started at cornerback for the Buccaneers. Dean led Tampa Bay with 13 tackles. Dean set a career high for tackles in a game after equaling his previous high of 10 in last week’s 20-16 victory over the Detroit Lions.
· Bo Nix (Pinson Valley) started at quarterback for the Broncos. Nix completed 25-of-36 passes for 216 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions and ran nine times for 47 yards and one touchdown. Nix scored the first points of the game on a 3-yard run with 11:05 left in the first quarter.
RELATED: BO NIX: ‘IT’S A GREAT FIRST WIN’
· Broncos quarterback Jarrett Stidham dressed but did not play.
· Buccaneers running back D.J. Williams is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Green Bay Packers 30, Tennessee Titans 14
· Titans defensive tackle Marlon Davidson (Greenville) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
· Titans cornerback Roger McCreary (Williamson) made two tackles.
· Malik Willis started at quarterback for the Packers. Willis completed 13-of-19 passes for 202 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions and ran six times for 73 yards and one touchdown. Willis scored the game’s first points on a 5-yard run with 12:25 left in the first quarter and connected with running back Emanuel Wilson on a 30-yard TD pass with 8:25 left in the third quarter. Willis became the fifth player in the NFL’s AFC/NFC era to post a passing-efficiency rating of 120 or higher in each of his first two starts with a team. He joined the Los Angeles Rams’ John Hadl in 1973, Oakland Raiders’ Jim Plunkett in 1980, Atlanta Falcons’ Jeff George in 1994 and Washington Redskins’ Brad Johnson in 1999.
RELATED: MALIK WILLIS: ‘WHAT HE’S BEEN ABLE TO DO, I’VE NEVER SEEN SOMETHING LIKE THIS’
· Packers defensive tackle Colby Wooden was designated as a game-day inactive.
Carolina Panthers 36, Las Vegas Raiders 22
· Derrick Brown is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
· Raiders kicker Daniel Carlson made an extra point and missed a 57-yard field-goal attempt.
· Panthers outside linebacker Eku Leota is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Raiders tight end John Samuel Shenker is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Panthers linebacker Chandler Wooten is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Detroit Lions 20, Arizona Cardinals 13
· Cardinals defensive tackle Angelo Blackson is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Carlton Davis started at cornerback for the Lions. Davis made seven tackles and recorded one tackle for loss.
· Cardinals inside linebacker Owen Pappoe made three tackles on defense and two tackles on special teams.
Baltimore Ravens 28, Dallas Cowboys 25
· Cowboys defensive end Carl Lawson did not record any stats in his season debut. Dallas elevated Lawson from the practice squad to make him eligible to play.
Week 3 started on Thursday night, when the New York Jets defeated the New England Patriots 24-3.
Week 3 concludes on Monday with two games. The Jacksonville Jaguars and Buffalo Bills square off at 6:30 p.m. CDT at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, New York, and the Washington Commanders and the Cincinnati Bengals meet at 7:15 p.m. at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati. ESPN will televise the Jacksonville-Buffalo game, and ABC will televise the Washington-Cincinnati game.
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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.
