Former Blue Devil quarterback Thaddeus Lewis saw limited playing time in the St. Louis Rams' preseason opener Saturday against the Minnesota Vikings.
But he made the most of his four minutes and 38 seconds on the gridiron.
Lewis took the field at the 6:38 mark in the fourth quarter and completed 5-of-6 passes for 46 yards. He led the Rams from their own 39 yard-line to the Vikings' 22, connecting on his first three attempts for six, 13 and 11-yard completions.
The drive stalled when the Rams faced a fourth-and-10 situation with 2:07 remaining. Lewis hit rookie tight end Fendi Onobun for eight yards up the middle, but the pass wasn't enough to move the chains. The Rams ended up losing 28-7.
Thad's stat line doesn't jump out of the box score, and he was playing against second and third-string defenders in the closing stages of the game. Nonetheless, Lewis boasted an 83.3 completion percentage and a 98.6 QB rating. He also outperformed the other quarterbacks fighting for the remaining spots on the depth chart behind rookie Sam Bradford, the No. 1 overall pick in this year's draft.
Veteran A.J. Feeley could only muster 19 yards through the air on 3-of-6 passing. Second-year player Keith Null didn't fare much better, completing 4-of-8 passes for 30 yards.
Assuming the Rams choose the experienced Feeley as Bradford's backup, Lewis would have to beat out Null for the No. 3 spot. Null may have started four games for St. Louis last season, but he only completed 61.3% of his passes and threw nine interceptions along with three touchdowns.
Check back with The Blue Zone for more updates on Thad's preseason performances as he attempts to make an NFL roster.
In other preseason news: Former Blue Devil linebacker Vincent Rey picked up three tackles in the Cincinnati Bengals' 33-24 win over the Denver Broncos Sunday. He was tied for the team lead when factoring in his tackle on special teams.
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