Inside The Huskies

Ex-Husky Gordon Gets Second NFL Season Off To Crunching Start

The former UW cornerback made all the highlight reels on Saturday night.
Dan Raley|
Ex-Husky Gordon Gets Second NFL Season Off To Crunching Start
Ex-Husky Gordon Gets Second NFL Season Off To Crunching Start

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Washington Huskies

Kyler Gordon answers to Spider-man these days, so nicknamed by his Chicago Bears coach, but for the opening play of Saturday night's exhibition game, he better resembled the Incredible Hulk.

The former University of Washington cornerback physically destroyed Tennessee wide receiver Chris Moore with a play that made all the highlight reels.

Just 15 seconds into the outing, Moore somehow got wide open over the middle and hauled in a 30-yard pass from Titans quarterback Malik Willis.

He took a couple of steps and never saw the ex-Husky defender coming.

Gordon, a first-team, All-Pac-12 pick in 2021, arrived from the receiver's left and blind side, lowered his helmet and unleashed a massive hit. 

There were no survivors, at least from a football standpoint. Moore crumpled to the ground, the ball came out and the Bears recovered as the home crowd roared its approval.

For Gordon, it was one of two big hits he unloaded in the Bears' 23-17 victory over the Titans, which came against fellow UW secondary starter Elijah Molden. 

Chicago's 6-foot, 190-pound cornerback, a one-time second-round draft pick, is off to a great start in his second NFL season after starting 14 games as a rookie and getting picked on a lot. Bears coach Matt Eberflus calls him Spider-man. Other liken him to a well-adjusted veteran now. 

“Really in that zen mode," Gordon told reporters afterward. "Like, I just can’t be bothered. I’m only focused on — it’s like an ultra focus. I know what to expect. I’m confident in what I am about to do. My eyes are in the right spot. There’s just nothing bothering me. I don’t feel hectic at all. Everything is just smooth and calm.”

Unless you're on the receiving end of a Gordon preseason hit.

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Dan Raley
DAN RALEY

Dan Raley has worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, as well as for MSN.com and Boeing, the latter as a global aerospace writer. His sportswriting career spans four decades and he's covered University of Washington football and basketball during much of that time. In a working capacity, he's been to the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, the MLB playoffs, the Masters, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and countless Final Fours and bowl games.

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