Across the Shield: Zeke and Hyde Rumble, Vrabel's First Win, and Michael Thomas Continues Tear

By David Wertheim on September 17, 2018 at 9:05 am
Ezekiel Elliott scores his 2nd touchdown in 2 games this season.
Matthew Emmons- USA TODAY Sports
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Once a Buckeye, always a Buckeye. Across the Shield follows those who once wore Scarlet and Gray on their journeys through the NFL.

The NFL season is rolling right along. The 2018 Cincinnati Bengals, hallowed be their name, are in first place in the AFC North at a 2-0 clip, and that's just fantastic.

Let's see how some former Buckeyes performed in week two.

Ezekiel 17:78

After scoring a touchdown in week one, noted football man Ezekiel Elliott followed that up by hitting paydirt once again in week two.

Elliott rushed for 78 yards on 17 carries (4.6 avg) and had five catches. 

He also exchanged jersey's with Saquon Barkley after the Cowboys defeated the Giants to improve to 1-1 on the young season.

Not To Be Outdone...

Carlos Hyde also scored a touchdown in week one, and like Elliott, scored again in week two. 

Hyde finished with 43 yards on 16 carries (2.7 avg). It has been a rough go of it for Hyde in terms of the YPC stat thus far. Rookie Nick Chubb has been more explosive up to this point, and it would honestly not be a surprise to see the Browns perhaps give Chubb more opportunities with the ball in his hand.

It will be interesting to see how the Browns continue to utilize their backfield weapons.

The Browns lost (surprise!) to the Saints in true Browns fashion. More from this game shortly...

Mike Vrabel Records First Career Win

In his second career game, and playing without his starting quarterback, left tackle, right tackle, and backup right tackle, Vrabel's Titans got it done, defeating the Houston Texans by a final score of 20-17. 

It was an impressive showing from Vrabel's bunch, and they had some excellent out-of-the-box plays throughout the afternoon, including this one. 

The Titans will take on the Jacksonville Jaguars next. 

Miller Signed by Eagles

Although he didn't play this week, as he is simply on the practice squad, former Ohio State quarterback/wide receiver/h-back Braxton Miller was signed by the Eagles.

The expectations are that Miller will either be called up to the active roster or released here in the next few weeks, so stay tuned.

Still Can't Guard Mike

In a matchup pitting two former Buckeyes, Denzel Ward and Michael Thomas, the "veteran" came out on top as @CantGuardMike absolutely shredded the Browns secondary all day. 

Thomas recorded 12 catches for 98 yards and two touchdowns in the Saints' come-from-behind win over the Browns.

Thomas did lose a fumble, but he also set the record for the most catches through two games in NFL history, as he now has 28 grabs 1/8 of the way through the year.

Astonishingly, Thomas is on pace for 224 catches, which would absolutely shatter the record set by Marvin Harrison back in 2002 when he caught 143 balls. Obviously, there's a long way to go, but you can't guard Mike.

Also from this game, Ted Ginn Jr. had four catches for 55 yards, Kurt Coleman recorded four tackles, Vonn Bell had five, and Denzel Ward learned what it's like to be an NFL cornerback.

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