When Sio Moore had to be taken off the field in a stretcher in a preseason game against Green Bay there were concerns that his promising pro career was over almost before it even got started.

Well, Moore announced that he was healthy and ready to go with a sensational effort in a season-opening 19-14 loss to the New York Jets as Moore not only had a career-high 13 tackles but also a sack and two forced fumbles. Tyvon Branch had a sack in the same game, Robert McClain an interception in the end zone against future Hall of Famer Drew Brees and Shamar Stephen recorded his first career tackle to top the first UConn alumni report of the NFL season.

Will Beatty, Giants: Started at left tackle in 35-14 loss to Lions.
Tyvon Branch, Raiders: Had seven tackles and a sack in 19-14 loss to Jets
Donald Brown, Chargers: Had two carries for minus 2 yards in 18-17 loss to Arizona
Darius Butler, Colts: Had four tackles in 31-24 loss to Broncos
Marcus Easley, Bills: Had two tackles in 23-20 overtime win over Bears
Dwayne Gratz, Jaguars: Had four tackles in 34-17 loss to Eagles
Ryan Griffin, Texans: Had six-yard catch in 17-6 win over Washington
Danny Lansanah, Buccaneers: Had one tackle in 20-14 loss to Panthers
Robert McClain, Falcons: Had five tackles and interception in 37-34 overtime win over Saints
Sio Moore, Raiders; Had 13 tackles and a sack in 19-14 loss to Jets
Dan Orlovsky, Lions: Did not play in 35-14 win over Giants
Kendall Reyes, Chargers: Had one tackle in 18-17 loss to Arizona
Anthony Sherman, Chiefs: Had a four-yard run in 26-10 loss to Titans
Shamar Stephen, Vikings: Had one tackle in 34-6 win over Rams
Jordan Todman: Ran three times for six yards, had a five-yard catch and 36 yards on two kickoff returns in 34-17 loss to Eagles.
Blidi Wreh-Wilson, Titans: Had three tackles in 26-10 win over Chiefs

Former UConn quarterback Dan Orlovsky passed for a game-high 153 yards (completing 8 of 12 passes) in last night's preseason game against Oakland as the former Shelton High star continues his bid to be the top backup to Matthew Stafford with the Detroit Lions.

It marked the highest yardage total Orlovsky has thrown for since the 2011 regular-season finale as he threw for 264 yards for the Indianapolis Colts in a 19-13 loss to Jacksonville.

On Friday night Orlovsky came into the game in the second quarter after Stafford threw a pair of touchdown passes. He missed his first two throws but only threw two more incomplete passes the rest of the way. He had back to back completions of 23 and 34 yards on his second drive which ended with a field goal. On the next possession he completed passes of 36 and 15 yards to engineer a touchdown scoring drive to give the Lions a 23-10 lead.

Oakland rallied for the 27-26 with former UConn stars Sio Moore and Tyvon Branch finished with four and three tackles respectively for the Raiders. Branch would leave the game with an ankle injury.

In other action on Friday night former UConn star Kendall Reyes forced a fumble in the San Diego Chargers' 41-14 loss to Seattle. In the same game Donald Brown ran four times for 16 yards, caught two passes for 13 yards and had a 26-yard kickoff return for the Chargers. Also, Blidi Wreh-Wilson, who is fighting for a starting spot in Tennessee, got the start at cornerback and had a tackle for a loss late in the second quarter in a 31-24 loss to New Orleans.

Former UConn wide receiver Marcus Easley continues his strong play during the preseason as he had three catches for a team-high 46 yards in the Buffalo Bills' 20-16 win over Minnesota on Friday night. Easley now has 10 catches in Buffalo's first two preseason games.

Tyvon Branch finished with four tackles in Oakland's 28-20 loss to New Orleans while Dan Orlovsky was 3 for 3 passing for 52 yards in Tampa Bay's 25-21 loss to New England.

Darius Butler is the first of the three former UConn players to have a chance of seeing action in the NFL playoffs when the Indianapolis Colts play at Baltimore tomorrow at 1 p.m.

Butler, a cornerback, was originally drafted by the New England Patriots in 2009. After playing two seasons with the Patriots, he spent last year with the Carolina Panthers before being let go on Aug. 31. Butler was signed by Indianapolis on Sep. 25 and played 11 games for the Colts. Butler has 31 tackles and four interceptions for the Colts. Indianapolis also has two former Huskies on injured reserve. Running back Donald Brown ran for 417 yards in 10 games while linebacker Scott Lutrus was put on the IR in the preseason. Former UConn stars Kashif Moore and Greg Lloyd also spent time on Indianapolis' practice squad this season.

The other two UConn products on playoff teams will have to wait a week to get onto the field.

Donald Thomas, an offensive guard who played in all 16 games and started seven games, is another player who benefited from a change of scenery. Thomas started 13 games during the 2009 and 2010 seasons with the Miami Dolphins. He is in his second season with the Patriots and played a key role in allowing the Patriots to overcome a string of injuries on the offensive line. The Patriots are the second seed in the AFC and will host the highest remaining seed which emerges from this weekend's action on Jan. 13.

Cornerback Robert McClain of the Atlanta Falcons has been one of the biggest surprises of the NFL season. Like Thomas and Butler, he was given an opportunity to play due to injuries to established players.

McClain, who played 16 games for the Carolina Panthers in 2010, was an under the radar offseason signing by the Falcons and he has 61 tackles and an interception this season for Atlanta.

The Falcons are the top seed in the NFC and will host the lowest remaining NFC seed on Jan. 13 at 1 p.m.

Here is a breakdown on how the other UConn products fared this season (not including players on practice squads):

OT Will Beatty, New York Giants: Played 16 games and had 15 starts for Giants
S Tyvon Branch, Oakland: Had 94 tackles and an interception while starting 14 games
WR Marcus Easley: Did not have a reception in three games although he did return two kickoffs for 75 yards
QB Dan Orlovsky, Tampa Bay: Was 4 of 7 for 41 yards in 41-0 loss to New Orleans in only appearance
DT Kendall Reyes, San Diego: Had 28 tackles in 16 games and 3.5 of his 5.5 sacks came in win over New York Jets.
FB Anthony Sherman, Arizona: Played 13 games with four starts. Had no carries but had five receptions for 39 yards
RB Jordan Todman, Jacksonville: Had three rushes for eight yards and one catch for no yards in only game against New York Jets

A rundown of Tuesday's media luncheon.

• Lindsey Witten and Cody Endres both have a stomach virus, and won't be practicing today. Endres woke up at 4 a.m. vomiting, while Witten and long snapper Glenn Kolebrenner were throwing up in the trainer's room this morning. Brandon Dillon and Kendall Reyes had the same bug prior to the North Carolina game, but both were able to play. It's not swine flu, or anything major. Edsall says he expects both to be fine within 24 hours.

• If Witten continues at his current pace, he'll have 42 sacks by the end of the regular season. "He's been very good," UConn cornerback Robert McClain said. "He's coming off the ball with strength and speed. It's crazy the things he's doing out there. And that's a big part of us getting interceptions in the defensive backfield. Without pressure on the quarterback, they can't make bad decisions."

• Scott Lutrus remains questionable with post-stinger syndrome. He says he's not in pain, but the medical staff is more concerned with him being re-injured. "I have full range of motion now, it's just a matter of can I take the hits," Lutrus said. He'll participate in all non-contact drills this week, and it could be another game-time decision. (By the way, I don't know if post-stinger syndrome is an actual medical term, I just made it up...if it isn't, maybe they can name it after Scott. Lutrus Syndrome, anyone?)

• The heat inside the Shenkman Center will be set on "Texas level" this week. It's expected to be mild in Waco on Saturday, but mild in Waco is still 82 degrees. "The game will be in the heat of the day (4 p.m. Texas time)," Edsall said. "I'm sure that's on purpose."

• A mild controversy at the press conference with Edsall was eventually cleared up before the afternoon was finished. A reporter told Edsall that Cody Endres, in his postgame interview, "hinted he wasn't prepared to go in there" against North Carolina. It caught Edsall off-guard and really seemed to agitate him that his starting quarterback for this week would say anything like that. At one point, Edsall, slowly stewing over the perceived comment from his QB, seemed ready to bench Endres for freshman Michael Box right there during the press conference. "If Mike Box plays well in practice today, maybe we'll just have to go with Mike Box," Edsall said. "I don't know. We'll see what happens." Apparently, Edsall got Endres in his office a little later to discuss the comment. Edsall eventually brought Endres, still sick, in to see the remaining media members and clear things up. "I don't remember saying anything to this effect at all," Endres said. Chalk it up to misinterpretation.

• Obviously, Edsall would like to keep Box's redshirt season in tact, but with Frazer out for at least two games, he said Box is next in line should Endres get hurt.

• Edsall was asked if he ever calls any offensive plays. He said in 11 years, he hasn't called a single play. "That's why you hire coordinators," he said. Edsall said he may change a play if he wants, but he usually waits until a series is over before doing so. It's never vetoed before it gets to the huddle. Plays are called by Joe Moorehead, and Rob Ambrose before him, and Norries Wilson before him. (I'm leaving someone else out, but that's before my time on the beat).

• The funny thing about the no huddle...if you're not making plays, what's the point? Edsall knows his team needs to execute on offense for the new scheme to be effective, or else it's just rushing the defense back onto the field in a hurry. That was the case against UNC, where the Huskies had four 3-and-outs in the second half. "We have to sustain drives," Edsall said.

• Freshman receiver Nick Williams will be simulating Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin in practice this week. No word on whether Williams has been fitted for a jet pack. Griffin is an All-American hurdler with a cannon arm. He's not the same as former West Virginia QB Pat White because Baylor likes to throw more with Griffin, Edsall said. But McClain said there's no question Griffin "is a lot faster than Pat White." Anyone who watched White torch the Huskies over the last four seasons knows that's scary speed.

• Anthony Sherman is a fullback, but turned into one of UConn's top offensive weapons last season with 26 receptions for 270 yards. Through two games, Sherman has no carries and no receptions. I asked Sherman (wearing a cool Worcester State baseball T-shirt) if he's been frustrated with the lack of touches. "I think the plays are coming," Sherman said. "It's not frustrating, especially with Andre and Jordan's success running the ball. ... Right now, the passing game has been mediocre. I think that's a good word. It's something we can improve upon greatly."

• It sure seems like this is the summer the 1980s died. At least for me. Michael Jackson, John Hughes, now Patrick Swayze? Integral parts of the decade I grew up in. I wasn't a Jackson fan, per se. But from 1984-89, I'd arrive home from school, plop down on the couch and watch MTV for three hours. Mike was everywhere. And even if you didn't purchase his albums, you still watched his music videos. John Hughes' movies defined the decade. Fifty years from now, if my grand kids ever ask what it was like to be in high school in the 1980s, I'll tell them to watch 16 Candles. Or the Breakfast Club. Or Ferris Bueller's Day Off. That was it. Swayze had an amazing run of re-watchable movies from 1983-1991. They ran in a constant loop on cable, continuing to this day...I bet Roadhouse is on right now. Sad. Someone keep an eye on Huey Lewis, please.

• Monster game for Tyvon Branch last night. The ex-UConn corner, now a strong safety for the Raiders, was everywhere in the opener against San Diego. Quite impressive. I also thought Darius Butler looked good for the Patriots against the Bills. Had to like the postgame, too, when EPSN's microphones picked up Tom Brady telling him, "Good game, Darius" before Brady tried -- unsuccessfully -- to blow off Suzy Kolber. That was quite a scene. He gave her a couple of cold shoulders, then said, "I'm going in," when Suzy asked a question. "No. I'm going in," he said again, now trying to trot away. Suzy, like a pilot fish honed in on a great white shark, wouldn't give up. Brady then pretended he couldn't hear her questions before finally giving in and giving a brief response. He should have just sprinted away, though Brady probably isn't fast enough to shake Suzy Kolber. At least he didn't ask to kiss her.

Don't forget the live chats. Next one is Thursday at 2.