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Florida Gators in the NFL: Week 1 Roundup

Anthony Richardson made his NFL debut, two Gators-turned-Chiefs made headlines and another former Florida player shined as a pass rusher.
Cam Parker|
Florida Gators in the NFL: Week 1 Roundup
Florida Gators in the NFL: Week 1 Roundup

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Week 1 of the 2023 NFL season has concluded with 31 former Florida Gators seeing the field in their respective games. 

Here's a look at how some of them faired in their season-openers. 

Anthony Richardson leads Gator rookies 

The Anthony Richardson era is underway in Indianapolis, and although the Colts lost 31-21 to Jacksonville, the rookie quarterback had his moments in his debut. 

Richardson threw for 223 yards and a touchdown while completing nearly 65 percent of his passes. He also added 40 yards and another touchdown on the ground. 

The Colts had opportunities for a win after facing a 24-21 fourth-quarter deficit with the ball, but an interception thrown by Richardson turned the momentum back to the Jaguars' side. 

He would later lead the Colts all the way down the field late in a late comeback attempt, but a knee injury forced him to leave the game. The Colts would eventually turn the ball over on downs. 

However, it doesn't appear to be a serious injury.

"We didn't win, so I didn't do good enough," Richardson said, via Colts.com writer JJ Stankevitz. "But first game, first experience, felt good just being out there with my teammates. The energy was good. We've just got to clean some things up, including myself, but it was fun out there just being back out there playing football."

Kadarius Toney struggles, Jawaan Taylor goes viral in Chiefs' loss

Wide receiver Kadarius Toney and offensive tackle Jawaan Taylor made headlines, but not in a good way during Kansas City's season-opening loss to Detroit. 

Toney struggled to provide Patrick Mahomes a reliable target through the air as the Chiefs were without stud tight end Travis Kelce. He caught only one pass for one yard and posted one rushing attempt which lost a yard. 

However, it was his lack of receptions that gave him national attention. 

Toney dropped three crucial passes, including one that was intercepted and returned for a touchdown. The Chiefs would go on to lose by one point. 

Meanwhile, Toney's former Gator teammate would also make unusual headlines for Kansas City. 

Viewers of Thursday's game noticed that Taylor consistently did not line up along the hip of the center. He also appeared to drop back into pass protection before the ball was snapped multiple times throughout the night. However, he wasn't called for a false start until 2:09 left in the game with the Chiefs facing a 4th-and-20.

Taylor considers the technique to be part of his kick-step. He deployed a similar technique during his four-year stint in Jacksonville, but it did not previously receive attention to this extent.

Jonathan Greenard shines despite loss

Although the Texans would go on to lose 25-9 to the Ravens, Jonathan Greenard, combined with rookie Will Anderson Jr., put constant pressure on Lamar Jackson. 

Greenard, now in his fourth year in the league, had five total tackles, four of which were solo stops, and a game-high two tackles for loss. He also produced Houston's first sack of the season during the game's first drive.

"We can clean up a few X's and O's and things like that," Greenard said, via HoustonTexans.com insider and lead writer Deepi Sidhu. "It's part of growing pains. At the same time, nobody's hanging their head in here. We all understood. We played our asses off. We played hard as hell. So we're just going to keep taking that mentality into the next week and clean up our mistakes and hey, next week is Week 2."

Other Gators in the NFL highlights

Detroit's Alex Anzalone and CJ Gardner-Johnson combined for 11 total tackles and three passes defended in an upset win over Kansas City. Not to mention, they teamed up for a celebration that included a Gator chomp. 

Atlanta's Kyle Pitts may have only had two catches for 44 yards in their win over Carolina, but his 34-yard catch proved crucial as it set up the game-sealing touchdown. He did it while being held by former Gator teammate CJ Henderson.

Meanwhile, Saints' safety Marcus Maye was on the receiving end of one of three interceptions thrown by Titans' quarterback Ryan Tannehill. 

Week 1 stats

  • Marco Wilson (Arizona): Six tackles (five solo), one pass defended
  • DJ Humphries (Arizona): Started at left tackle
  • Kyle Pitts (Atlanta): Two catches, 44 yards 
  • O'Cyrus Torrence (Buffalo): Started at right guard
  • CJ Henderson (Carolina: Three tackles (three solo)
  • Eddy Pineiro (Carolina): 1/1 FG (43 yards), 1/1 XP
  • Gervon Dexter Sr. (Chicago): One tackle
  • Zach Carter (Cincinnati): Two tackles (one solo), one pass breakup
  • Evan McPherson (Cincinnati): 1/2 FG (42 yards). Missed a 51-yard kick.
  • Dante Fowler Jr. (Dallas): Two passes defended, two quarterback hits
  • Alex Anzalone (Detroit): Six tackles (five solo), one pass defended
  • CJ Gardner-Johnson (Detroit): Five tackles (five solo), two passes defended
  • TJ Slaton (Green Bay): One tackle, one pass defended
  • Dameon Pierce (Houston): 11 carries, 38 yards. two catches, nine yards
  • Jonathan Greenard (Houston): Five tackles (four solo), one sack, two tackles for loss
  • Anthony Richardson (Indianapolis): 24/37, 223 yards, one touchdown, one interception. 10 carries, 40 yards, one touchdown
  • Taven Bryan (Indianapolis): Three tackles (two solo)
  • Kadarius Toney (Kansas City): One catch, one yard (three drops). One carry, -1 yard
  • Tommy Townsend (Kansas City): Five punts, 247 yards, 49.4-yard average, three downed inside the 20-yard line
  • Van Jefferson (Los Angeles Rams): Four catches, 24 yards
  • Demarcus Robinson (Los Angeles Rams): No stats
  • Jonathan Bullard (Minnesota): Four tackles (three solo)
  • Brandon Powell (Minnesota): Four punt returns, 18 yards
  • Trent Brown (New England): Starting left tackle
  • Marcus Maye (New Orleans): Six tackles (five solo), one pass defended, one INT
  • Fred Johnson (Philadelphia): Backup left tackle
  • Keanu Neal (Pittsburgh): Five tackles (two solo)
  • Stone Forsythe (Seattle): Backup left tackle
  • Kyle Trask (Tampa Bay): Did not play 

Other Gators in the NFL

  • Jeremiah Moon (Baltimore practice squad)
  • Kaiir Elam (Buffalo inactive)
  • Richard Gouraige (Buffalo practice squad)
  • Justin Shorter (Buffalo injured reserve)
  • David Sharpe (Carolina practice squad)
  • Malik Davis (Dallas practice squad)
  • Brenton Cox Jr. (Green Bay inactive)
  • Ventrell Miller (Jacksonville injured reserve)
  • La'Mical Perine (Kansas City practice squad
  • Amari Burney (Las Vegas inactive)
  • Jarrad Davis (New York Giants injured reserve)
  • Trey Dean (New York Jets practice squad)

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Cam Parker
CAM PARKER

Cam Parker is a reporter covering the Florida Gators, Auburn Tigers and Clemson Tigers with a degree in journalism from the University of Florida. He also covers and broadcasts Alachua County high school sports with The Prep Zone and Mainstreet Daily News. When he isn't writing, he enjoys listening to '70s music such as The Band or Lynyrd Skynyrd, binge-watching shows and playing with his cat, Chester, and dog, Rufus.

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