News and notes from Pro Ducks in the NFL: Burch earns a strip-sack, Nikko charges

Pro Duck Jordan Burch makes a big play for the Cardinals

Playing alongside high school teammate Xavier Thomas, former Duck Jordan Burch strip-sacked Raider backup quarterback Aidan O'Connell in the first quarter at the Las Vegas 19, leading to the Cardinals' first touchdown in a 20-10 victory Saturday night.

Two boyhood friends from Florence, South Carolina, Thomas, a rookie linebacker from Clemson, pounced on the fumble.

Burch played his junior and senior years at Oregon after transferring from South Carolina, recording 8.5 sacks in 2024. Arizona drafted him in the third round and signed him to a four-year contract worth $6.5 million with a $1.4 million signing bonus.

"It's like a movie, honestly," Thomas said. "When you sit back and look at in and the way we do get to play together and making plays like that together, it really is a dream come true. Just two kids from a small town like Florence, it means a lot."

Nikko Reed displays tenacious cover skills in bid to stick with Chargers

Nikko Reed sealed Oregon's win in the Big Ten Championship Game with a fourth quarter interception of Drew Allar, positioning his body perfectly and stealing the ball away down the right sideline.

An undrafted free agent from Hayward, California, Reed jumped a route in the Hall of Fame Game and returned it 60 yards to the Detroit Lions 6. In the fourth quarter of Saturday's game at San Francisco, he recovered a muffed punt at the 49er 10.

He's been tenacious in coverage, but Tuesday is cutdown day in the NFL, where teams have to reduce their rosters to the 53-man limit.

After his big pick in Canton, Reed said to the media, "Whatever you do at practice comes to the game. Because you practice how you play."

Charger defensive coordinator Jesse Minter added, "He's definitely got a knack for making those types of plays."

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