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Jordan Akins, Tre'Quan Smith and Shaquem Griffin all performed well in their NFL debuts on Thursday, and two other veteran NFL Knights made headlines in the first week of the NFL preseason. Here's a quick recap:
Jordan Akins Catches 2 TDs for Texans
Two catches. Two touchdowns.
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) August 10, 2018
Rookie TE Jordan Akins shined in the preseason opener.
» https://t.co/FAP0dGJSWk pic.twitter.com/yjwoZpE1iR
TE Jordan Akins had probably the best night of any UCF alum in his preseason debut, scoring both of his team's touchdowns on his only two receptions from Brandon Weeden in the Texans' 17-10 win at Kansas City.
The first one came in the first quarter, a 6-yarder to put Houston up 7-0:
Welcome to the NFL, Jordan Akins! pic.twitter.com/paSsCMqBmA
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) August 10, 2018
Then he did it again in the second, this time from 14 yards out:
One Akins TD is nice.
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) August 10, 2018
Two Akins TDs are better. pic.twitter.com/gErzyfv7ru
Here's Jordan after the game:
Hear from rookie TE Jordan Akins after his two-touchdown performance in the preseason opener. pic.twitter.com/uWeeVuHonj
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) August 10, 2018
Tre'Quan Smith Shines for Saints
WR Tre'Quan Smith finally made his game debut after lighting up Saints' practice the last week or so. He led his team with 4 catches for 48 yards against the Jaguars, including this 14-yarder from Tom Savage:
We see you, @TreQuanSmithUCF! #BuiltByUCF pic.twitter.com/GaeAei7qJJ
— UCF Football (@UCF_Football) August 9, 2018
And a bit later:
.@TreQuanSmithUCF out here FEASTING for the @Saints in his NFL debut
— UCF Football (@UCF_Football) August 10, 2018
This grab #BuiltByUCF pic.twitter.com/XUL1gcaX6K
Shaquem Griffin Lights Up the Seattle Night
In his much-anticipated NFL debut late Thursday night, Shaquen Griffin took the field together with his brother for the first time since they both were at UCF:
.@Shaquemgriffin and @ShaquillG on the field for the first time as NFL players. ❤️ #BuiltByUCF pic.twitter.com/UfsFJ284xf
— UCFSportsInfo (@UCFSportsInfo) August 10, 2018
And then he proceeded to lay waste to the Indianapolis Colts' offense:
EVERY @Shaquemgriffin tackle from his preseason debut! #SEAvsIND pic.twitter.com/tYn9T6paGM
— NFL (@NFL) August 10, 2018
He made tackles on his first four defensive plays en route to an active night indeed, leading the team in tackles:
In his Seahawks debut, @Shaquemgriffin made his presence felt. pic.twitter.com/575yWlvDAs
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) August 10, 2018
Shaquem's brother Shaquill was pretty happy afterwards:
"It feels so good to be back." - @ShaquillG pic.twitter.com/tWNUEdSzj3
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) August 10, 2018
Yes, it's Week 1 of the NFL Preseason. But it's still fun to watch.
In Other News...
Playing opposite Tre'Quan Smith, Blake Bortles had a serviceable evening for the Jags, going 6/9 for 53 yards and running in a TD on his opening drive:
The ⛵️ will do it himself!
— UCF Football (@UCF_Football) August 9, 2018
Bortles went 6/9 for 53 yds and that TD on the ground to start 2018 for the @Jaguars #BuiltByUCF pic.twitter.com/t8DQVS5hEC
And after a rough debut last week in the Hall of Fame Game, Breshad Perriman redeemed himself with three catches for 71 yards, including this outstanding 32-yard TD grab from Robert Griffin III in the fourth quarter:
THE CATCH...THE FOOTWORK!
— UCF Football (@UCF_Football) August 10, 2018
@B_Perriman11 #BuiltByUCF pic.twitter.com/oifooZAHhS
Breshad's difficulties since being drafted by Baltimore have been well-documented, but hopefully his performance last night, and over the last week, will get him back on track.
Mike Hughes, the highest-drafted UCF player in 2018, will make his debut for the Vikings Saturday night at 9:05 p.m. ET in Denver.