Jack Strand, a 2022 Bloomer High School graduate and undrafted rookie Atlanta Falcons quarterback, made his first appearance in an NFL regular-season game on Sunday, Sept. 20.
Strand entered the game against the Carolina Panthers late in the third quarter. The decision to put Strand into the game was met by cheers from the crowd at Atlanta. The rookie quarterback endeared himself to the Falcons’ fan base during a strong training camp and preseason.
The 6-foot-5, 240-pound quarterback completed eight passes on 15 attempts for 59 yards with no touchdowns and an interception. Strand also carried the ball twice for 16 yards.
In and interview after the game, Jack said, “It was a special moment. One that I’ve been preparing for for a long time. I knew that, going up into the game, I had to be ready to go in if my number was called, and it just happened to be. But it’s definitely a special moment; one that I’ll look back on.”
When asked what he though of his son’s first NFL regular season appearance, Jack’s father, Jim Strand, said, “I thought he did a good job. I thought he showed good pocket presence and had good awareness of what was going on down field.”
Jim also said that Jack is “always trying to learn more and improve his game.”
Showing his desire to learn and improve, Jack said in the post game interview, “Definitely some things I’d like to clean up from it, things that we all like to clean up from it, but things that we’ll get better from moving forward.”
The Atlanta Falcons travel to Green Bay on Thursday, Sept. 24. The game starts at 7:15 p.m.
