Texas Quarterback well represented in Seattle:
It was during the first creeping hours of dawn in San Antonio that my phone chirped with a notification. It was sometime in January before TCU was set to showdown with Oregon in the Alamo Bowl. The newsflash read, “TCU quarterback Trevone Boykin suspend for last game of college career.”
Everyone in the newsroom gave TCU zero chance. Boykin had an accomplished college career—throwing for 10,727 yards and 86 touchdowns, finishing fourth in Heisman voting in 2014—before he clobbered a police officer at a downtown bar in San Antonio two days before the Alamobowl. Subsequently, Boykins saw his draft stock get KO’d for his lack of character and went undrafted before being scooped up by Seattle.
Against Kansas City, Boykin embarked on a last-minute drive to give the Seahawks a 17-16 victory. Boykin finished with 16-of- 26 passes for 188 yards, including a 3-of-3 passes at the end of regulation, firing a 37-yard “Hail Mary” as time expired. Boykin replaced starter Russell Wilson after he botched a pass in the redzone that was intercepted. Behind Seattle’s revamped offensive line, it’s unlikely Wilson will miss any games this season; in fact, he’s never missed a Seahawks game in his career. However, Boykin is making a strong case for back-up.
Texans Defense still a question mark:
The Texans defense was like watching someone suffering from bipolar disorder on-field; for the first half, they were a mess, scrambling for ultimately missed tackles and blitzing nearly every snap against mediocre QB Blaine Gabbert, who, despite going 4-of- 10 for 63 yards, lead the Niners to 302 yards of total offense for a 13-7 halftime lead. You could see Bill O’Brien checking his watch on the sidelines, counting down the seconds until the game ended and Happy Hour started. In the second half, the Houston D swallowed some lithium and started making some plays. Comprised of primarily second and third string fill-ins, the second half squad limited San Francisco to 107 total yards of offense. Most disconcerting? Nearly all defensive starters saw snaps in the first half. But take it all with a grain of salt; the Texan’s all-world defensive end J.J. Watt did not see the field.
Dallas to be no. 1 in the NFC East:
If you look through the teams in the division, you’ll realize how plausible this is. Giants will have a struggle with identity after dumping long-time coach Tom Coughlin. Philly is all over the place lately, shuffling through quarterbacks like a picky single disliking suitors on Tinder. Plus, draft pick — and Eagles apparent offensive savior — Carson Wentz suffered a hairline fracture and is out for the remainder of the preseason, possibly longer.
The Redskins are still somehow named the Redskins and had one of the easiest schedules last season. Most of their accomplishments came against truly pitiful teams, and the road to the Wild Card is much more difficult this year. The Dallas D looks pretty lousy, their defensive line will find it difficult without pass rush leader Demarcus Lawrence suspended four games. Randy Gregory is also suspended.
The entirety of Dallas’ expectations are on the offense to perform. Can Romo do anything with his collarbone injury? After years of incorporating a flawed veteran back-up quarterback scheme behind the ailing veteran, Jerry Jones looks like he’ll be able to save a couple bucks for the time being on Dak Prescott. The former Mississippi State senior completed 10-of-12 passes for 139 yards and two touchdowns, utilizing his experience battering SEC defenses. Beneath an impressive offensive line, Prescott looked calm in the pocket, garnering a 154.5 QBR. Backup quarterbacks were 1-11 when Romo suffered the collarbone fracture last season, so it may be wise for Dallas to load up on young guns Prescott and Jameill Showers.
