Defensive lineman Bruce Irvin made his debut with the Detroit Lions against the New Orleans Saints this past weekend, logging a sack as well as a big hit that knocked Saints quarterback Derek Carr out of the game in a 33-28 victory.
Afterward, Irvin—who spent some time playing with Carr in a stint with the Oakland Raiders—was not surprised at the outcome and took a little shot at Carr in the process.
“I played with him in Oakland, so I know when you get around him, he gets rattled,” Irvin said of Carr, via Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. “He’s a hell of a player, but we knew if we got around him, we could rattle him a little bit.”
One of Irvin’s hits on Carr knocked the signal-caller out of the game, as he suffered a concussion on the play. Irvin added that he was not trying to injure Carr and expects to get fined for the hit.
“I thought he had the ball,” Irvin said. “The game is different now. They said I had to roll off to the side. I don’t know how I’m gonna do that, but just something I guess I’ve got to focus on more.”
It was Irvin’s first action of the season, so the veteran is still getting accustomed to playing meaningful football again.
“I’m still getting my feet up under me,” Irvin said. “Getting my steps right, getting my angles, my approach right. Give me about two or three weeks and I’m gonna be flying even more.”
Irvin has spent time with the Seattle Seahawks, Raiders, Atlanta Falcons and Chicago Bears. He is most known for his first stint in Seattle, where he helped lead the Seahawks to a Super Bowl championship during the 2013-14 campaign.
The 36-year-old’s best season came back in 2016 with the Raiders, where he led the NFL with six forced fumbles to go along with 57 tackles and seven sacks.
The Lions improved to 9-3 with their win over the Saints and own a comfortable three-game lead over the Minnesota Vikings and Green Bay Packers for first place in the NFC North.
Detroit will take on the Chicago Bears next Sunday.
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