Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/424772
IRISH IN THE PROS BY ANDREW OWENS I t's been a rocky 2014 season for Notre Dame's crop of former players participating in their rookie seasons in the NFL. While Dallas Cowboys right guard Zack Martin has excelled in his rookie season for one of the league's top of- fensive lines and right guard Chris Watt asserts himself on a playoff con- tender in San Diego, 2014 has not rep- resented a similar level of fortune for other past Irish players. Injuries have held the following rook- ies out of action for substantial portions of the season: Houston Texans nose guard Louis Nix, who has yet to make his NFL debut due to recurring knee is- sues; Arizona Cardinals tight end Troy Niklas, who caught only three passes before an ankle ailment prematurely ended his season; and New York Gi- ants defensive back Bennett Jackson, who has spent much of his time on the team's practice squad sidelined with injuries. While each of those players will have to wait until 2015 to play their next NFL game, Detroit Lions rookie wide receiver TJ Jones is hoping to turn 2014 in his fa- vor. He returned to practice Nov. 17 after missing more than half of the season with the lingering shoulder injury suf- fered in last year's Pinstripe Bowl win over Rutgers. Jones, who underwent surgery in June, can practice up to 21 days before the Lions must decide whether to acti- vate him or keep him on the physically unable to perform list for the remain- der of the season. "If I'm going back out on the field, I'm going out like I'm preparing to play," he told reporters. "I'm going to leave that decision up to the staff and how they grade my tape and my per- formance on the field. "I was an angry kid. For a solid six weeks, I was mad at the world. I was ready for the second preseason game with my shoulder and then we found out that there was a nerve problem after the surgery. It's just frustrating." NFL Rookie Roundup Detroit Lions rookie wide receiver TJ Jones returned to practice Nov. 17 after missing most of the season with a shoulder injury. PHOTO COURTESY DETROIT LIONS