DaaaaaBears
Super Star
- May 30, 2006
- 51,757
- 29,338
Random thoughts often struck Travis in the waning moments before he was set to play a game. One might take that as a sign of a cluttered mind, but he interpreted it differently, choosing to believe his brain was actually relaxed enough to wander instead of being ready to explode with nervous, kinetic energy. No cold sweats, no tremors, no last-second vomit trips to the bathroom; this was as tranquil as he could possibly be.
And right now, for whatever reason he was thinking back on something he had been told back in June at the Rookie Symposium, a small stat or blurb that really put things in perspective and highlighted just how good you had to be to play in the NFL.
Twenty million kids played youth football at some time in their lives.
1.8 million of them would continue to play in high school.
Only 35,000 of those teenagers would be given the chance to play in college.
And a scant 1,696 human beings -- 53 men on 32 rosters, ages ranging from 21 to as high as forty -- could call themselves NFL players at any given time.
And this Monday night in Seattle, at 5:30 local time on an ESPN broadcast that was scheduled specifically for his debut, Travis felt like the most important one of those 1,696 talented people. The sports world had seemingly halted for this game, and Mike Tirico would be the one calling it.
…
“I’m here with partner Jon Gruden, and CenturyLink Field is as loud as I’ve ever heard it for the opening kickoff as the Seahawks are set to return! Dan Bailey kicks off for the Cowboys while free agent pickup Noel Devine brings it out for Seattle, to the ten, the fifteen… tripped up at the 21 after looking like he could have broke one! And now the lights really start to flash.”
…
The official start to the season was one thing to document, but Travis’ first step onto an NFL field was what everyone was trying to capture. The words of another speaker at the symposium festered themselves into the quarterback’s cranium as he took his spot under center and studied Dallas’ 4-3 defense.
“Your rookie year in the NFL is gonna be tough. There will be a hell of a learning curve, and don’t let anyone tell you differently. The jump from college to pro ball is sort of like graduating from law school and being plopped in the seat of a Supreme Court justice.”
…
“In what is the most anticipated NFL debut since… well, I don’t know, ever, Travis Buchanon of Notre Dame will get his first crack at a Dallas Cowboys team that won the NFC East last season and made it as far as the divisional round of the playoffs. But the first play will be a safe handoff into the gut of Michael Turner, who scrapes together four yards by running to the left side. What do you think Seattle’s game plan will be on offense tonight, Jon? Will they play it conservative with their rookie signal-caller, or will it be baptism by fire for a player that most have thought was NFL ready since his freshman year of college?”
“It’s really up to Buchanon, Mike. It’s been known for a while that the plan was to let him have full control of the offense just like Peyton Manning does in Indy, but Peyton didn’t fully earn that right until his third year in the league. This is unprecedented for a rookie. I dunno what to expect, to be honest, but I do know that I would never have had the stones give the keys to a first-year player like Zachariah Creek is doing.”
…
The first play of the game had allowed his heart rate to settle down, but the first pass of his career spiked it back to a sprint.
The speed of the Dallas defenders -- a concomitant blur of white, silver, and blue -- was unlike anything he’d experienced in his life, and tape couldn’t prepare you for in-game velocity. But a fine mix of his offseason preparedness and natural instincts allowed him to rear back for Holmes while ignoring the oncoming freight train that was All-Pro DeMarcus Ware.
…
“And Buchanon hits Santonio Holmes over the middle for a gain of 14 just before Ware baptized him! One throw, one completion for the rookie. No sweat.”
…
The roar of approval from Seattle’s 12th Man may or may not have influenced his decision to call another pass on first down. The Cowboys’ suspect defense didn’t deter him from attacking them through the air, either.
…
“Buchanon is back to pass again, this time settling underneath for Tate.”
…
“A third straight pass for the Seahawks as Buchanon quickly flips it out to John Carlson for another first down! A nice little stick route there by the tight end to free himself up.”
…
“And Buchanon is dropping back yet again, firing another throw to Holmes near the sideline… who makes a defender whiff and has room to run! Past midfield, the 40, the 30… Brandon Carr finally catches him from behind at the Dallas 25! A huge gain for the former Super Bowl MVP.”
“It feels like so long ago that Holmes was playing at that level, but Buchanon may be the best quarterback he’s ever worked with. They can do some damage, that goes that without saying.”
“You’re not forgetting his first QB was Ben Roethlisberger, are you Jon?”
“Sure not.”
…
The crowd was so excited that they almost booed Turner’s seven-yard run on the next play. They wanted to see Buchanon sling it seventy times that night.
Travis only showed them five on that drive, though.
…
“Buchanon in the shotgun on second and three, a familiar place for him after all those years in Notre Dame’s spread offense. Takes the snap and pats once, twice, lofts one in the corner for Kenny Britt… touchdown Seattle! Dropped it right over the safety and into Britt’s waiting hands!”
“Excellent touch on the end zone fade, Mike. That’s a prime time throw for a newbie.”
…
“Just like college!” Travis shouted to anyone who could hear him over the roar of the capacity crowd of 67,000. “Fuckin’ just like college!”
He got a fist pump off before being bear-hugged off the ground by Zion Brown, who was probably the only human in Washington state strong enough to lift the Golden Boy airborne.
Five-for-five and 68 yards -- Travis couldn’t have asked for more out of his debut’s debut. His confidence level was off the charts and now residing somewhere in the goddamn Ionosphere.
The rookie expected a pat on the back from Creek or at least a nod of approval, but his coach maintained his poker face upon Travis’ triumphant return to the sidelines.
“Watch Rivers,” he said with arms folded across his chest. “Never miss an opportunity to learn.”
“I’ll buy the guy dinner if he answers with a drive as good as that,” Travis said with a playful grin, but the coach’s voice and posture remained robotic.
“The guy’s got five Pro Bowls under his belt. You answer to him.”
…
“Like Seattle, Dallas starts their first possession of the night with a run up the gut. It’s a five-yard gain for star tailback Reggie Blount, the former Heisman Trophy winner from Oklahoma who made his first Pro Bowl in 2013.”
“A lot of people already know this, but I have a hard time wrapping my noodle around the fact that Blount and Buchanon played a year together in high school. Two Heisman winners, two first-round picks… that must’ve been a heck of an offense.”
“Says here they didn’t win the state title that season. The more you know, Jon!”
…
Rivers never had Travis’ arm, and his three-quarters delivery was still a mechanical mess after all these years, but the rookie could definitely learn something from him. Even though most analysts thought Jerry Jones had overpaid last offseason for a 31-year-old quarterback whose career was trending downwards in San Diego, Rivers was back to throwing darts last year and was starting this one off similarly.
…
“Second and goal for the Cowboys on Seattle’s four-yard line, the Seahawks stacking eight men in the box in their 4-3 set. It’s play-action on the fake to Blount, Rivers pulls it back and slings it left… easily hauled in by Jason Witten! It’s a tie game here in Seattle!”
“Man, Witten is somethin’ else, isn’t he Mike? I call him ‘The Express’ ‘cause he just keeps chuggin’ along. Choo choo, baby!”
“Um… yeah. Another touchdown for the likely Hall-of-Famer. Good start for Rivers and crew.”
…
Seattle’s defense was playing like the sieve it was projected to be. Safety Earl Thomas and linebacker Antonio Burnside could only do so much.
No matter, though -- Dallas still had to outscore them if they wanted to win, and Travis looked like the best in the world on that first drive.
…
“Buchanon steps back onto the field after as good of a start as a rookie quarterback has ever had, I imagine. He’s back in the shotgun with four receivers split wide, the scatback Devine making his first appearance in the place of Turner.”
“It’s all downhill from here, Mike. No way he keeps up a career passer rating of 158.3.”
…
The pre-snap read revealed what Travis wanted -- Holmes in single coverage. That was the guy Dallas had originally planned on stopping, but now the safeties were creeping closer to Britt as the first drive showed his six-three size would be more than a problem in man coverage if Travis’ accuracy remained pinpoint.
So it was much to the rookie’s surprise that 32-year-old DeMarcus Ware was Holmes’ designated shadow on the play.
…
“Buchanon looks to the middle for Holmes, but it’s picked off by Ware! What a play by the veteran!”
…
Ware was still the fucking man all over the field -- pass-rushing, run-stopping, dropping into coverage -- but Travis had telegraphed him the easiest interception of his illustrious career. The linebacker was brought down immediately after by Carlson, but it felt like all of the air had now left the fans’ lungs after Rivers’ answering drive and the misread by Travis.
“Just like college, bitch!” one of the Cowboys goaded before they left the field. Apparently it wasn’t just his teammates who had heard him.
Travis gritted his teeth and unbuckled his chinstrap in one swift, frustrated motion. Creek’s arms remained folded on the sidelines just as they were before.
Just like college. Right.
Dallas got a field goal out of that turnover, but no one else scored the rest of the half. It was a nondescript two quarters that only felt spellbinding because of the Golden Boy’s debut and the Cowboys’ name brand.
Seattle’s offense had stalled; Turner wasn’t doing shit on first downs and Travis was playing tentative. Creek called him on it before exiting the locker room for the third quarter.
“Don’t tell me you lost you balls after one half. The guy we drafted was out there on the first drive, then he disappeared because a Hall-of-Famer read his eyes. Big fucking deal, Travis. Take your lumps and try him again if the play is there.”
He didn’t get a chance to make good on his coach’s advice immediately, as Rivers threw his second touchdown of the game on Dallas’ first possession coming out of the locker room. Dez Bryant made sure to toe the line of unsportmanslike conduct with an endzone celebration while earning the ire of CenturyLink Field.
Holmes found him on the sidelines while Devine brought the kickoff out to the 26. “You gonna keep ignoring me, rookie? We had somethin’ going before you got cold feet.”
Holmes hadn’t caught a pass since the first quarter, and that was Travis’ fault. He had barely looked the former Buckeye’s way since the pick.
“Just get open, ten.”
…
“Second and eight for the Seahawks after another Turner run goes nowhere. Buchanon under center, Holmes and Carlson to his right while Britt and Tate line up left.”
“Buchanon needs to get going for Seattle. Down 10 against the NFC East champs with a patchwork defense, he’s gotta be the guy who drags the team across the finish line. Haven’t seen much of that since the first quarter.”
“It’s play-action to Turner, but Dallas doesn’t bite. Buchanon faces a five-man rush and stands tall in the pocket, shuffling his feet and shifting the protection… and he’s going deep for Holmes! Look at the arm!”
…
Travis didn’t know that Anthony Spencer had gotten around Brown and was about to flatten him like asphalt, so he didn’t rush the bomb to Holmes or compromise his mechanics. His “reward” at first was a 260-pound weight on his back, but the true prize came a few seconds later.
…
“And Holmes reels it in near the goal line! Touchdown Seattle!”
“Strongest arm in the league, man. I think that one changed zip codes.”
…
Seeing a ball travel seventy yards in the air was a new one for the fans, but anyone who had played with Travis over the years knew he had another gear or two.
His tackles Brown and DJ Fluker peeled him off the turf. “Half a second later and that’s a sack,” the veteran mumbled. “I owe you one, rook.”
“I already threw a pick. Consider us even.”
The score was now 17-14, but it didn’t stay that way for long. Blount had been slow to get going for much of the game until he busted a 40-yard run from midfield, and he finished off the drive by ramming in the touchdown from five feet away a few plays later. Seattle’s defensive line had performed terribly so far; Reggie made ‘em look like Kentucky high schoolers.
Ware sacked Travis on third down of a drive that looked promising, but the Seahawks finally answered back with ten minutes to go.
…
“Third and short for Seattle on Dallas’ 32. They’ll take a field goal here if they have to and cut the lead to seven, but I don’t know how much faith you can put in this defense and ask them to make a stop.”
“Put the ball in Buchanon’s hands and let him win it or lose it for you. Nothing about what Seattle has done since drafting him has led me to believe they’re coddling the kid, so I expect Creek will let him keep throwing.”
“Buchanon does just that, firing a quick pass out to Tate on a slant… and his man falls down in front of him! Orlando Scandrick tripped over his own cleats and allows Tate to scamper free for an easy score!”
…
Travis paused before celebrating, stunned at the unforced error by a professional player.
Just like Pop Warner?
…
It looked the Cowboys’ offense would bleed the clock dry on their next possession, driving seventy yards down the field in a brilliant series of third-down conversions that whittled eight precious minutes off the game, but the Seahawks were given another gift.
…
“Another conversion here will probably end it. Ball’s on the Seattle nine, no timeouts left for the Creek to use. Rivers sticks it in the gut of Blount and it’s a run to the right, I think he’s got- wait, ball’s on the ground! Burnside poked it out and falls on the football! Seahawks ball!”
…
Reggie Blount only fumbled twice in all of 2013, but the turnover gave his high school teammate a chance to pull off a rousing upset and stun the country and…
But wait, this was all expected of him. He was the favorite, he was the hero. A guy who went by “Golden Boy” could never be the underdog.
So even in his first game of his first season, a year where no one reasonable was expecting him and his motley crew to go all the way, Travis was still feeling the pressure.
…
“Buchanon gets it to Britt for a gain of 12! It moves the chains but the clock keeps ticking.”
…
Dallas couldn’t stop him from netting yardage, but they could keep them getting too much of it. Their secondary was allowing everything underneath as long as they kept them from field goal range, so the clock dwindled down.
When a third down came up with 15 seconds remaining, Travis finally took a shot.
…
“Buchanon sees he has Holmes up the seam, he takes a shot deep… off his hands! Holmes just dropped a pass that was right on the money!”
“Wasn’t perfect, Mike. That one was a good foot behind his target and Buchanon knows it.”
…
12 inches may as well have been 12 feet to Travis. The average fan would blame that all on Holmes, but he’d expected a perfect pass from the perfect prospect; contorting his body mid-air with the game on the line and a safety closing in could produce harrowing results. The receiver’s reward was a glance off the fingertips and a blow to the back from the diving defender.
The Hail Mary on fourth down was predictably fruitless.
…
“Buchanon airs it out on a prayer, just hoping Britt or someone else has got the vertical to do the unthinkable. And it is… batted away by the Cowboys! That’s ball game! 24-21 is your score on a great Monday Night opener!”
…
Travis immediately felt a swift, prickling sensation coursing through his body as he locked his fingers in his facemask, jaw clenched as he remembered what it all meant. It was something that he hadn’t experienced for several years now…
Losing.
And right now, for whatever reason he was thinking back on something he had been told back in June at the Rookie Symposium, a small stat or blurb that really put things in perspective and highlighted just how good you had to be to play in the NFL.
Twenty million kids played youth football at some time in their lives.
1.8 million of them would continue to play in high school.
Only 35,000 of those teenagers would be given the chance to play in college.
And a scant 1,696 human beings -- 53 men on 32 rosters, ages ranging from 21 to as high as forty -- could call themselves NFL players at any given time.
And this Monday night in Seattle, at 5:30 local time on an ESPN broadcast that was scheduled specifically for his debut, Travis felt like the most important one of those 1,696 talented people. The sports world had seemingly halted for this game, and Mike Tirico would be the one calling it.
…
“I’m here with partner Jon Gruden, and CenturyLink Field is as loud as I’ve ever heard it for the opening kickoff as the Seahawks are set to return! Dan Bailey kicks off for the Cowboys while free agent pickup Noel Devine brings it out for Seattle, to the ten, the fifteen… tripped up at the 21 after looking like he could have broke one! And now the lights really start to flash.”
…
The official start to the season was one thing to document, but Travis’ first step onto an NFL field was what everyone was trying to capture. The words of another speaker at the symposium festered themselves into the quarterback’s cranium as he took his spot under center and studied Dallas’ 4-3 defense.
“Your rookie year in the NFL is gonna be tough. There will be a hell of a learning curve, and don’t let anyone tell you differently. The jump from college to pro ball is sort of like graduating from law school and being plopped in the seat of a Supreme Court justice.”
…
“In what is the most anticipated NFL debut since… well, I don’t know, ever, Travis Buchanon of Notre Dame will get his first crack at a Dallas Cowboys team that won the NFC East last season and made it as far as the divisional round of the playoffs. But the first play will be a safe handoff into the gut of Michael Turner, who scrapes together four yards by running to the left side. What do you think Seattle’s game plan will be on offense tonight, Jon? Will they play it conservative with their rookie signal-caller, or will it be baptism by fire for a player that most have thought was NFL ready since his freshman year of college?”
“It’s really up to Buchanon, Mike. It’s been known for a while that the plan was to let him have full control of the offense just like Peyton Manning does in Indy, but Peyton didn’t fully earn that right until his third year in the league. This is unprecedented for a rookie. I dunno what to expect, to be honest, but I do know that I would never have had the stones give the keys to a first-year player like Zachariah Creek is doing.”
…
The first play of the game had allowed his heart rate to settle down, but the first pass of his career spiked it back to a sprint.
The speed of the Dallas defenders -- a concomitant blur of white, silver, and blue -- was unlike anything he’d experienced in his life, and tape couldn’t prepare you for in-game velocity. But a fine mix of his offseason preparedness and natural instincts allowed him to rear back for Holmes while ignoring the oncoming freight train that was All-Pro DeMarcus Ware.
…
“And Buchanon hits Santonio Holmes over the middle for a gain of 14 just before Ware baptized him! One throw, one completion for the rookie. No sweat.”
…
The roar of approval from Seattle’s 12th Man may or may not have influenced his decision to call another pass on first down. The Cowboys’ suspect defense didn’t deter him from attacking them through the air, either.
…
“Buchanon is back to pass again, this time settling underneath for Tate.”
…
“A third straight pass for the Seahawks as Buchanon quickly flips it out to John Carlson for another first down! A nice little stick route there by the tight end to free himself up.”
…
“And Buchanon is dropping back yet again, firing another throw to Holmes near the sideline… who makes a defender whiff and has room to run! Past midfield, the 40, the 30… Brandon Carr finally catches him from behind at the Dallas 25! A huge gain for the former Super Bowl MVP.”
“It feels like so long ago that Holmes was playing at that level, but Buchanon may be the best quarterback he’s ever worked with. They can do some damage, that goes that without saying.”
“You’re not forgetting his first QB was Ben Roethlisberger, are you Jon?”
“Sure not.”
…
The crowd was so excited that they almost booed Turner’s seven-yard run on the next play. They wanted to see Buchanon sling it seventy times that night.
Travis only showed them five on that drive, though.
…
“Buchanon in the shotgun on second and three, a familiar place for him after all those years in Notre Dame’s spread offense. Takes the snap and pats once, twice, lofts one in the corner for Kenny Britt… touchdown Seattle! Dropped it right over the safety and into Britt’s waiting hands!”
“Excellent touch on the end zone fade, Mike. That’s a prime time throw for a newbie.”
…
“Just like college!” Travis shouted to anyone who could hear him over the roar of the capacity crowd of 67,000. “Fuckin’ just like college!”
He got a fist pump off before being bear-hugged off the ground by Zion Brown, who was probably the only human in Washington state strong enough to lift the Golden Boy airborne.
Five-for-five and 68 yards -- Travis couldn’t have asked for more out of his debut’s debut. His confidence level was off the charts and now residing somewhere in the goddamn Ionosphere.
The rookie expected a pat on the back from Creek or at least a nod of approval, but his coach maintained his poker face upon Travis’ triumphant return to the sidelines.
“Watch Rivers,” he said with arms folded across his chest. “Never miss an opportunity to learn.”
“I’ll buy the guy dinner if he answers with a drive as good as that,” Travis said with a playful grin, but the coach’s voice and posture remained robotic.
“The guy’s got five Pro Bowls under his belt. You answer to him.”
…
“Like Seattle, Dallas starts their first possession of the night with a run up the gut. It’s a five-yard gain for star tailback Reggie Blount, the former Heisman Trophy winner from Oklahoma who made his first Pro Bowl in 2013.”
“A lot of people already know this, but I have a hard time wrapping my noodle around the fact that Blount and Buchanon played a year together in high school. Two Heisman winners, two first-round picks… that must’ve been a heck of an offense.”
“Says here they didn’t win the state title that season. The more you know, Jon!”
…
Rivers never had Travis’ arm, and his three-quarters delivery was still a mechanical mess after all these years, but the rookie could definitely learn something from him. Even though most analysts thought Jerry Jones had overpaid last offseason for a 31-year-old quarterback whose career was trending downwards in San Diego, Rivers was back to throwing darts last year and was starting this one off similarly.
…
“Second and goal for the Cowboys on Seattle’s four-yard line, the Seahawks stacking eight men in the box in their 4-3 set. It’s play-action on the fake to Blount, Rivers pulls it back and slings it left… easily hauled in by Jason Witten! It’s a tie game here in Seattle!”
“Man, Witten is somethin’ else, isn’t he Mike? I call him ‘The Express’ ‘cause he just keeps chuggin’ along. Choo choo, baby!”
“Um… yeah. Another touchdown for the likely Hall-of-Famer. Good start for Rivers and crew.”
…
Seattle’s defense was playing like the sieve it was projected to be. Safety Earl Thomas and linebacker Antonio Burnside could only do so much.
No matter, though -- Dallas still had to outscore them if they wanted to win, and Travis looked like the best in the world on that first drive.
…
“Buchanon steps back onto the field after as good of a start as a rookie quarterback has ever had, I imagine. He’s back in the shotgun with four receivers split wide, the scatback Devine making his first appearance in the place of Turner.”
“It’s all downhill from here, Mike. No way he keeps up a career passer rating of 158.3.”
…
The pre-snap read revealed what Travis wanted -- Holmes in single coverage. That was the guy Dallas had originally planned on stopping, but now the safeties were creeping closer to Britt as the first drive showed his six-three size would be more than a problem in man coverage if Travis’ accuracy remained pinpoint.
So it was much to the rookie’s surprise that 32-year-old DeMarcus Ware was Holmes’ designated shadow on the play.
…
“Buchanon looks to the middle for Holmes, but it’s picked off by Ware! What a play by the veteran!”
…
Ware was still the fucking man all over the field -- pass-rushing, run-stopping, dropping into coverage -- but Travis had telegraphed him the easiest interception of his illustrious career. The linebacker was brought down immediately after by Carlson, but it felt like all of the air had now left the fans’ lungs after Rivers’ answering drive and the misread by Travis.
“Just like college, bitch!” one of the Cowboys goaded before they left the field. Apparently it wasn’t just his teammates who had heard him.
Travis gritted his teeth and unbuckled his chinstrap in one swift, frustrated motion. Creek’s arms remained folded on the sidelines just as they were before.
Just like college. Right.
Dallas got a field goal out of that turnover, but no one else scored the rest of the half. It was a nondescript two quarters that only felt spellbinding because of the Golden Boy’s debut and the Cowboys’ name brand.
Seattle’s offense had stalled; Turner wasn’t doing shit on first downs and Travis was playing tentative. Creek called him on it before exiting the locker room for the third quarter.
“Don’t tell me you lost you balls after one half. The guy we drafted was out there on the first drive, then he disappeared because a Hall-of-Famer read his eyes. Big fucking deal, Travis. Take your lumps and try him again if the play is there.”
He didn’t get a chance to make good on his coach’s advice immediately, as Rivers threw his second touchdown of the game on Dallas’ first possession coming out of the locker room. Dez Bryant made sure to toe the line of unsportmanslike conduct with an endzone celebration while earning the ire of CenturyLink Field.
Holmes found him on the sidelines while Devine brought the kickoff out to the 26. “You gonna keep ignoring me, rookie? We had somethin’ going before you got cold feet.”
Holmes hadn’t caught a pass since the first quarter, and that was Travis’ fault. He had barely looked the former Buckeye’s way since the pick.
“Just get open, ten.”
…
“Second and eight for the Seahawks after another Turner run goes nowhere. Buchanon under center, Holmes and Carlson to his right while Britt and Tate line up left.”
“Buchanon needs to get going for Seattle. Down 10 against the NFC East champs with a patchwork defense, he’s gotta be the guy who drags the team across the finish line. Haven’t seen much of that since the first quarter.”
“It’s play-action to Turner, but Dallas doesn’t bite. Buchanon faces a five-man rush and stands tall in the pocket, shuffling his feet and shifting the protection… and he’s going deep for Holmes! Look at the arm!”
…
Travis didn’t know that Anthony Spencer had gotten around Brown and was about to flatten him like asphalt, so he didn’t rush the bomb to Holmes or compromise his mechanics. His “reward” at first was a 260-pound weight on his back, but the true prize came a few seconds later.
…
“And Holmes reels it in near the goal line! Touchdown Seattle!”
“Strongest arm in the league, man. I think that one changed zip codes.”
…
Seeing a ball travel seventy yards in the air was a new one for the fans, but anyone who had played with Travis over the years knew he had another gear or two.
His tackles Brown and DJ Fluker peeled him off the turf. “Half a second later and that’s a sack,” the veteran mumbled. “I owe you one, rook.”
“I already threw a pick. Consider us even.”
The score was now 17-14, but it didn’t stay that way for long. Blount had been slow to get going for much of the game until he busted a 40-yard run from midfield, and he finished off the drive by ramming in the touchdown from five feet away a few plays later. Seattle’s defensive line had performed terribly so far; Reggie made ‘em look like Kentucky high schoolers.
Ware sacked Travis on third down of a drive that looked promising, but the Seahawks finally answered back with ten minutes to go.
…
“Third and short for Seattle on Dallas’ 32. They’ll take a field goal here if they have to and cut the lead to seven, but I don’t know how much faith you can put in this defense and ask them to make a stop.”
“Put the ball in Buchanon’s hands and let him win it or lose it for you. Nothing about what Seattle has done since drafting him has led me to believe they’re coddling the kid, so I expect Creek will let him keep throwing.”
“Buchanon does just that, firing a quick pass out to Tate on a slant… and his man falls down in front of him! Orlando Scandrick tripped over his own cleats and allows Tate to scamper free for an easy score!”
…
Travis paused before celebrating, stunned at the unforced error by a professional player.
Just like Pop Warner?
…
It looked the Cowboys’ offense would bleed the clock dry on their next possession, driving seventy yards down the field in a brilliant series of third-down conversions that whittled eight precious minutes off the game, but the Seahawks were given another gift.
…
“Another conversion here will probably end it. Ball’s on the Seattle nine, no timeouts left for the Creek to use. Rivers sticks it in the gut of Blount and it’s a run to the right, I think he’s got- wait, ball’s on the ground! Burnside poked it out and falls on the football! Seahawks ball!”
…
Reggie Blount only fumbled twice in all of 2013, but the turnover gave his high school teammate a chance to pull off a rousing upset and stun the country and…
But wait, this was all expected of him. He was the favorite, he was the hero. A guy who went by “Golden Boy” could never be the underdog.
So even in his first game of his first season, a year where no one reasonable was expecting him and his motley crew to go all the way, Travis was still feeling the pressure.
…
“Buchanon gets it to Britt for a gain of 12! It moves the chains but the clock keeps ticking.”
…
Dallas couldn’t stop him from netting yardage, but they could keep them getting too much of it. Their secondary was allowing everything underneath as long as they kept them from field goal range, so the clock dwindled down.
When a third down came up with 15 seconds remaining, Travis finally took a shot.
…
“Buchanon sees he has Holmes up the seam, he takes a shot deep… off his hands! Holmes just dropped a pass that was right on the money!”
“Wasn’t perfect, Mike. That one was a good foot behind his target and Buchanon knows it.”
…
12 inches may as well have been 12 feet to Travis. The average fan would blame that all on Holmes, but he’d expected a perfect pass from the perfect prospect; contorting his body mid-air with the game on the line and a safety closing in could produce harrowing results. The receiver’s reward was a glance off the fingertips and a blow to the back from the diving defender.
The Hail Mary on fourth down was predictably fruitless.
…
“Buchanon airs it out on a prayer, just hoping Britt or someone else has got the vertical to do the unthinkable. And it is… batted away by the Cowboys! That’s ball game! 24-21 is your score on a great Monday Night opener!”
…
Travis immediately felt a swift, prickling sensation coursing through his body as he locked his fingers in his facemask, jaw clenched as he remembered what it all meant. It was something that he hadn’t experienced for several years now…
Losing.
![[face_rose]](https://cdn.statically.io/img/www.ignboards.com/styles/ign/ign/smilies/classic/rose.gif "Rose [face_rose]")
had a good run
![[face_cool]](https://cdn.statically.io/img/www.ignboards.com/styles/ign/ign/smilies/classic/cool.gif "Cool [face_cool]")
