The first Sunday of the 2026 NFL season gave a few former Oregon Ducks plenty to smile about, even if their teams didn’t all leave Week 1 with wins. Kenyon Sadiq, Bryce Boettcher and Bucky Irving each showed why their Oregon careers translated so well to the next level.
Sadiq made the kind of debut that turns heads. The former Ducks tight end, now with the New York Jets after going No. 16 overall in the 2026 NFL Draft, caught three passes for 21 yards in his first NFL action. He also added a three-yard rushing touchdown in the Jets’ 23-10 road win over the Tennessee Titans on Sunday.
That opening week was a strong first impression for a player who finished his Oregon career with 80 catches for 892 yards and 11 touchdowns across three seasons. His final year in Eugene was his best, and it earned him Big Ten Tight End of the Year honors before he moved on to a Jets team looking for a return to competitive football.
Boettcher also got his NFL career rolling in encouraging fashion, even though the Indianapolis Colts dropped a 41-23 home decision to the Baltimore Ravens. The rookie linebacker piled up seven total tackles in his debut, giving the Colts a steady defensive performance on a rough afternoon.
At Oregon, Boettcher built his reputation on toughness and leadership, and that showed up again in the NFL. His four-year Ducks run included 269 total tackles, four sacks, four forced fumbles and two interceptions, all while he also spent time as a dual-sport athlete in baseball.
Irving kept his role as a reliable piece of the offense going for Tampa Bay. In the Buccaneers’ 33-27 road loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, he led the team in rushing with 45 yards and a touchdown on eight carries.
Now entering his third NFL season, Irving was a fourth-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft at No. 125 overall. He was a major part of Oregon’s ground game, topping 1,000 rushing yards in both of his seasons in Eugene, and he has carried that same burst into the Buccaneers’ offense as Tampa Bay tries to bounce back after finishing 8-9 and missing the postseason in 2025.
In Other News...
Georgia Tech Just Got Pulled Into A Brutal Week 2 Debate
Week 2 brought an awkward reminder for Oregon that an early-season win can still leave plenty to sort through. The Ducks were among the programs singled out after a flawed performance under Dan Lanning, landing them in the same conversation as several teams whose September rsums already feel more like warning signs than momentum builders. For a group with bigger goals, that kind of scrutiny comes fast when the football is messy and the margin for error is already thin.
The broader debate has also been unforgiving elsewhere, with Georgia Techs 0-2 start, Rutgers rough opening under Greg Schiano, John Mateers uneven showing for Oklahoma and Ohio States loss after leading Texas all feeding the same kind of post-Week 2 reckoning. For Oregon, the concern is less about one bad afternoon than what it suggests about how quickly expectations can harden when a contender does not look as sharp as advertised. [Read more 🡒]
Kenyon Sadiq Just Sent Oregon Fans A Familiar Reminder
Kenyon Sadiq wasted no time giving NFL viewers a reminder of why he was such a coveted prospect coming out of Oregon. In his first drive with the New York Jets against the Tennessee Titans, the rookie tight end not only got involved as a receiver but also finished the series with a rushing touchdown, an early sign that the Jets plan to use him in more than one way.
Sadiq also hauled in a 7-yard pass, showing immediate chemistry with quarterback Geno Smith and hinting at the kind of versatile workload that made him such an interesting college player in the first place. For Oregon fans, it was a familiar sight: a playmaker who can line up, move the chains and create stress for a defense before it has time to settle in. [Read more 🡒]
Oregons Frustrating Loss Left One Decision Fans Still Cant Ignore
Oregons trip to Oklahoma State ended with a 39-31 loss that snapped a 12-game road winning streak and left the Ducks sorting through a frustrating performance on both sides of the ball. Dan Lanning made it clear afterward that he took full responsibility for how the game unfolded, pointing to his own play calling as well as the teams execution in a loss that felt like a missed chance to leave Stillwater with another road win.
Lanning also stood by the late fourth-down decision that drew so much attention in the aftermath, a choice that only sharpened the focus on how the game tilted away from Oregon. While the result lingered, Dakorien Moore and Devon Jackson each found a way to highlight individual positives on social media, a reminder that even in an opening-week setback, there were still moments players wanted to carry forward. [Read more 🡒]