Rookie Watch: Will Hurns' historic performance prove to be a fluke?

Jacksonville Jaguars' Allen Hurns puts up a historic performance in Week 1 of the 2014 NFL season.

Author:
Doug Farrar
Publish date:
Sep 10, 2014

Jacksonville Jaguars receiver Allen Hurns first hit my radar when Tony Khan, the team's senior vice president, football technology & analytics, told me in late August that the team was very impressed with the undrafted Miami alum, and we should expect to see more of him. Hurns had a great preseason, leading the league with 232 receiving yards and finishing third with 14 catches.

Undrafted wideout Allen Hurns breaks out as Jags' upset attempt falls short

His big-play ability carried over to the Jaguars' season-opener against the Eagles, when Hurns caught four passes for 110 yards and two touchdowns. The scores came on Jacksonville's first two possessions, making Hurns the second player in NFL history to score touchdowns on his first two receptions (Detroit's Charles Rogers did it in 2003, proving that things can go downhill after a hot start very quickly).

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Pressed into service because Cecil Shorts III was injured, Hurns first beat Eagles cornerback Cary Williams straight up on a deep post for a 34-yard touchdown with 9:06 left in the first quarter, and then bumped through Philly's zone defense for a 21-yard score to end Jacksonville's next drive.

As an outside receiver, he showed excellent acceleration off the snap, good route awareness and a definite ability to sink into defensive openings. He has an advantage in this offense because it's similar to the one he was in throughout his college years, and the familiarity showed up right away. It's quite possible that even when Shorts returns, Hurns' Week 1 performance will be no fluke -- instead, he could be a major part of this offense into the foreseeable future.

Other rookies who showed up in their first regular-season games:

Jeremiah Attaochu, OLB / Jason Verrett, CB, San Diego Chargers

"Not shocking at all, to be honest with you," Chargers head coach Mike McCoy told me Wednesday when I asked him about the efforts of Attaochu and Verrett, San Diego's first two draft picks in 2014. "They had an outstanding offseason program and have put an unbelievable amount of time into preparing themselves and getting ready for the opportunity. That's exactly what they did in the game the other night."

In San Diego's 18-17 loss to the Cardinals, Attaochu logged three tackles, a sack, a forced fumble and a blocked punt.

"That was fun coming off the edge and using my speed and athleticism," he said after. "And to get the turnover, more than the sack."

Verrett needed time to recover from injuries after he was drafted, but he had no trouble in his first real NFL game. Against Arizona's multi-faceted passing attack, the rookie from TCU was targeted seven times, allowing just three receptions for 25 yards, and two yards after the catch. Per Pro Football Focus, his quarterback rating allowed was just 52.7. It appears that San Diego improved its defense a great deal with its first two picks.

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Kelvin Benjamin, WR, Carolina Panthers

Coming out of Florida State, Benjamin looked like a raw receiver who could be dominant in the red zone, but might struggle with more advanced route concepts. But in the Panthers' 20-14 season-opening win over the Buccaneers -- and with starting quarterback Cam Newton sidelined to boot -- Benjamin was physically imposing when facing press coverage, ran subtle routes very well and simply overwhelmed opposing defenders with his ability to high-point the ball. Benjamin finished the day with six catches for 92 yards and a touchdown. He has a very bright future in a Panthers receiver corps that is looking to bounce back from several offseason departures.

Chris McCain, LB, Miami Dolphins

The Dolphins had linebackers going down all over the place before and during their upset win over the Patriots, and it was McCain -- who was dismissed from Cal last September for conduct detrimental to the team and undrafted in May -- surprised everyone with an outstanding performance in which he blocked a punt and had a third-down sack of Tom Brady. It was a fairly huge return to prominence for McCain, and an emotional one at that.

"It's just a blessing," he said. "I just feel real good about being here. ... I'm just excited and looking forward to the next 15 games."

Week 1 of the 2014 NFL Season

Antonio Brown

While returning a punt against Cleveland, Antonio Brown tried to hurdle Spencer Lanning and ended up drawing an unnecessary roughness penalty when his foot hit the punter in the face.

Antonio Brown

Joe Flacco

With eight seconds left in the first half against Cincinnati, Joe Flacco and the Ravens lined up at the 15-yard line for a shot at the end zone. But Flacco instead ran toward the sideline, failed to get out of bounds, and tripped as he attempted this pass. The clock expired.

A.J. Green

Wide receiver A.J. Green of the Bengals keeps his eye on the ball, before scoring a touchdown on this play.

Chris McCain

Ryan Allen of the New England Patriots has his first-quarter punt blocked by Chris McCain of the Miami Dolphins.

Tony Romo

Tony Romo of the Dallas Cowboys found himself on the ground a bunch in a loss to the San Francisco 49ers.

Vernon Davis

Vernon Davis pulls in one of his two touchdown receptions against Dallas

Antoine Bethea

Antoine Bethea breaks up a pass intended for Jason Witten.

Dallas Cowboys

The view before kickoff between the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers in Arlington.

Robert McClain

Robert McClain of the Atlanta Falcons intercepts a touchdown pass intended for Brandin Cooks of the New Orleans Saints.

Julio Jones

Julio Jones of the Falcons loses control of the ball before he can cross the goal line.

Marques Colston

Marques Colston lost this fumble in overtime, leading to a game-winning scoring drive by the Falcons.

Fred Jackson

Fred Jackson dives for the endzone against the Bears but came up short.

Matt Forte

Matt Forte had 17 carries for 82 yards in Chicago's overtime loss to Buffalo.

Alshon Jeffery

Alshon Jeffery didn't score against the Bills but did pull in five passes for 71 yards.

Brandon Marshall

Brandon Marshall hangs on to an 11-yard pass from Jay Cutler for a third-quarter touchdown.

Jay Cutler

Jay Cutler threw for 349 yards and two touchdowns but was also intercepted twice in an overtime loss to Buffalo.

Dan Carpenter

Dan Carpenter kicked three field goals in Buffalo's upset win at Chicago, including a game-winning 27-yarder in overtime.

Chicago Bears pregame

The Bears take the field for their season opener.

Brandon Marshall

Brandon Marshall questions an incomplete pass call at the end of the third quarter. The call was challenged and overturned for a complete pass.

New York Jets pregame

A tribute to the late Joan Rivers is seen on the video board at MetLife Stadium during the third quarter of a game between the New York Jets and the Oakland Raiders.

Chris Ivory

A 71-yard touchdown run by Chris Ivory provided the deciding points for the Jets in their victory over visiting Oakland.

Nick Folk

Nick Folk of the New York Jets kicks a field goal against the Oakland Raiders.

Rod Streater

Rod Streater gave the Raiders a brief 7-3 lead with this 12-yard score on a pass from rookie Derek Carr.

Derek Carr

Derek Carr completed 20 of 32 passes for 151 yards and two touchdowns in a losing effort against the Jets.

James Jones

In his first game as a Raider, James Jones made three grabs for 36 yards and scored once.

Robert Griffin III

Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III is sacked by Houston Texans linebacker Brooks Reed (58) and linebacker Mike Mohamed .

Andrew Luck

Andrew Luck managed to get this ball across the goal line for a touchdown before he went out of bounds.

Hakeem Nicks

Wide receiver Hakeem Nicks of the Indianapolis Colts leaps over and is tackled by strong safety T.J. Ward of the Denver Broncos.

Montee Ball

Montee Ball accentuates his scoring run with a dive into the endzone.

Jared Cook

Jared Cook of the St. Louis Rams makes a catch against Robert Blanton of the Minnesota Vikings. The Vikings beat the Rams 34-6.

Travis Kelce

Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs reaches out for the ball in the endzone as Blidi Wreh-Wilson of the Tennessee Titans defends during the second half.

Tyler Eifert

Tight end Tyler Eifert of the Cincinnati Bengals suffered an elbow injury early in the game against Baltimore and didn't return to the game.

Tyler Eifert

Team officials tend to Tyler Eifert.

Derrick Johnson of the Kansas City Chiefs reacts as he is taken off the field during the first half of the game against the Tennessee Titans. He injured his Achilles and could be out for the remainder of the season.