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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
David Dorey

Tunnel Vision – Injuries, free agents and Sunday stars

 

SUNDAY SALUTES
Quarterbacks Pass-Rush TD
Jalen Hurts 236-37 4
Bo Nix 284-4 4
Kirk Cousins 276-13 4
 Trevor Lawrence 308-10 3
Matthew Stafford 279-(-4) 4
Running Backs Yards TD
James Cook 17-111
3-22
2
De’Von Achane 10-97
6-50
1
Josh Jacobs 25-127
1-(-2)
2
Rhamondre Stevenson 20-48
3-17
2
Joe Mixon 25-102 1
Wide Receivers Yards TD
Ladd McConkey 6-111 2
Cedric Tillman 7-99 2
Calvin Ridley 10-143 0
Marvin Harrison Jr. 6-111 1
CeeDee Lamb 13-146 2
Tight Ends Yards TD
Cade Otton 9-81 2
Kyle Pitts 4-91 2
Travis Kelce 10-90 1
Trey McBride 9-124 0
George Kittle 6-128 1
Placekickers XP FG
Jake Elliott 4 3
Brandon McManus 3 3
Austin Siebert 0 4
Ka’imi Fairbairn 2 3
Dustin Hopkins 2 3
Defense Sack – TO TD
Lions 1-4 1
Broncos 2-2 0
Bills 1-2 0
Texans 5-2 0
Chiefs 5-1 0

Bumps, Bruises and Bowouts

QB Drake Maye – Concussion
QB Jordan Love – Groin
RB Rico Dowdle – Illness
RB Kendre Miller – Hamstring
RB Jordan Mason – Shoulder
WR Sterling Shepard – Hamstring
WR Stefon Diggs – Knee
WR Gabe Davis – Shoulder
WR Brian Thomas Jr. – Chest
WR Christian Kirk – Shoulder
WR Deebo Samuel – Ribs

Chasing Ambulances

QB Drake Maye – Left the win over the Jets during the second quarter and did not return. He was listed as a head injury but is expected to have suffered a concussion.  Jacoby Brissett wasn’t that productive but did not lose the ball. Maye could miss Week 9 at the Titans, and Brissett would again replace him.

QB Jordan Love – Injured his groin in the second quarter and did not return. Love had previously injured his knee this season and he seemed to have re-injured his left knee in the first quarter but continued to play. He came out with a groin injury after getting shoved on a pass attempt. Malik Willis replaced him, but the Packers lost. This injury could not be timed worse – the Packers play the Lions this week.

WR Sterling Shepard – Injured his hamstring after three catches in the loss to the Falcons. He later returned to the game after receiving treatment but the Buccaneers wideouts are still sorting out what they have to work with.

WR Stefon Diggs – The Texans were already without Nico Collins, and then Diggs pulled up lame with a non-contact injury to his knee during the second quarter. That is never good. An MRI will be performed to determine the exact injury and severity, but first glance suggested that he would miss time with the same knee that he’d injured twice before and missed time after those.

WR Brian Thomas Jr. – Injured his chest on his third-quarter touchdown catch and did not return to the game.  It did not initially appear to be severe, but he’ll be further examined to determine the extent of his injury.

WR Christian Kirk – The Jaguars lost both starting wideouts in the loss to the Packers. Christian Kirk had caught two passes for 59 yards and was injured on a deep incompletion in the fourth quarter. He landed hard on his left shoulder and was in a lot of pain. He immediately grabbed his collarbone and then went straight into the locker room. Kirk was rumored to be the subject of a potential trade to the Steelers, but that’s likely no longer a consideration.

RB Jordan Mason – The 49ers tailback was forced from the game with a shoulder injury in the first half and while he was never listed as out, he did not play again while the 49ers just turned to Isaac Guerendo instead. Mason injured his shoulder earlier this year but played through it. The 49ers head onto their bye week, and Christian McCaffrey might actually show up by then. His health is worth tracking since McCaffrey may not return to an immediate full load whenever he returns.

WR Deebo Samuel – He was unable to finish Week 7 because of his pneumonia but was active and turned in four catches for 71 yards in the win over the Cowboys. He left the game late with a rib injury. He heads onto his bye week, so his health will be assessed for Week 10 during their time off.

Free Agents, Flops and Other Notables

QB Jameis Winston – With Deshaun Watson lost for the year, Winston was handed the reins of the Browns and he had the good fortune of playing one of the worst secondaries in the NFL of the Ravens. Winston threw for 334 yards and three touchdowns, even though Watson’s high-game was just 196 yards and two touchdowns.  He’ll go against a Top-10 defense of the Chargers next week, but it will be another home game.

WR Cedric Tillman – The Browns traded Amari Cooper away, and Cedric Tillman stepped up as his replacement. Tillman caught eight passes for 81 yards last week versus the Bengals, and on Sunday, he led the Browns with seven catches for 99 yards and two touchdowns. Elijah Moore (8-85) also had his best game of the season, but again, they faced the No. 32 defense versus fantasy wideouts.

WR Calvin Ridley – The first week without DeAndre Hopkins saw the Titans face the No. 29 defense versus fantasy wideouts and that showed up with Ridley gathering 15 targets to catch 10 for 143 yards. That was more yardage than his last five games combined. His previous high on receptions was just four. The Titans play the Patriots this week, and while their defense is at least marginally better than the Lions, Ridley has instantly become the primary target on every pass play. No other receiver managed more than three catches or 39 yards.

WR John Metchie – Stefon Diggs was injured near the end of the third quarter and his backup Metchie entered the game and caught three of his four targets for 29 yards.  Diggs plays the important slot role, and his injury seems likely to make him miss time. If he does, Metchie will join Tank Dell and Xavier Hutchinson as the starting wideouts for their trip to play at the Jets this week. Hutchinson replaced Nico Collins but only caught one pass for 19 yards.

WR Parker Washington – The Jaguars had injuries to Brian Thomas Jr. (chest), Christian Kirk (shoulder), and Gabe Davis (shoulder) all left the loss to the Packers with injuries. That is all of the starting wideouts. Washington (3-46) replaces Kirk as the backup slot receiver. Depending on what happens with the three injured starters this week, Washington may end up as the primary wideout at the Eagles.

QB Tua Tagovailoa – He’s back but went against the No. 29 defense versus quarterbacks and only managed 234 passing yards and one score. He brought Tyreek Hill back to life (6-72), but no other receivers gained more than 45 yards. Probably rust.

TE Kyle Pitts – Maybe it was National Tight End Week, but Pitts turned in a career-best performance when he caught four passes for 91 yards and his first two-touchdown game.

Buccaneer wideouts – Mike Evans and Chris Godwin were gone, and yet Baker Mayfield still passed for 330 yards and three touchdowns in the close loss to the Falcons. There was no standout replacement for the two star receivers. Rakim Jarrett (3-58), Sterling Shepard (3-18), Jalen McMillan (4-35), Trey Palmer (2-29), and Ryan Miller (3-19) were all involved. And that was every active wideout that the Bucs had on their roster. And still, not one of them with any real fantasy value. Mayfield tried them all.

WR Ladd McConkey – He’ll be a hot property on the waiver wire after logging six passes for 111 yards and two touchdowns in the win over the Saints. Realize he only averaged 44 yards per game coming into this week, but he also just bought some confidence from Justin Herbert.

QB Bryce Young – Yes, the Panthers lost 28-14 to the Broncos, but Young threw for 224 yards and two scores. That may not sound like much, but his first four starts contained no passing scores and never more than 161 passing yards. That was also more than what Andy Dalton did in any game other than his first start.

WR Jakobi Meyers – He was questionable coming into the game but he caught a team-high six passes for 52 yards and a touchdown. In the post-Adams world, Meyers stepped up as the new primary wideout.

RB D’Andre Swift – He had scored in the last three games entering Week 8. Swift made it four straight and ran for a season-best 129 yards on 18 carries in the loss to the Commanders. For the last month, Swift has handled at least 21 touches in every game and is one of the busiest running backs in the league. Swift a workhorse? Go figure.

National Tight End Day – Not only did the day set the NFL record for tight end touchdowns (16) and tight end catches (177), but the “holiday” was invented by George Kittle, who was also the top tight end on the day with six catches for 128 yards and a score.

RB Isaac Guerendo – The rookie stepped in for the injured Jordan Mason and rolled up 85 yards on 14 carries (6.1 YPC) with a touchdown against the visiting Cowboys and even added three receptions for 17 yards. He looked great and picked up chunks of yardage. The 49ers go on their bye, and Christian McCaffrey may be back in Week 10. But Guerendo did himself a favor by creating confidence whenever they need to turn to him again.

Huddle player of the week

Credit: Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images

WR CeeDee Lamb –  The Cowboys dropped below .500 with their loss to the 49ers, but at least Lamb finished with 17 targets for 13 receptions, 146 yards and both Dallas touchdowns. His scores came  in the final eight minutes of the contest and nearly made a game of it. He got paid this year, he disappointed to start the season but he should have been thrown every pass on Sunday night.

Salute!

Drama 101 – Somebody has to laugh, somebody has to  cry

Comedy Yards TDs Tragedy Yards TDs
QB Bo Nix 284-4 4 QB Jordan Love 196 0
RB Bucky Irving 9-44
7-40
0 RB Ken Walker 9-12
4-33
0
RB Jaleel McLaughlin 8-47
1-9
1 RB Nick Chubb 16-52 0
WR Ladd McConkey 6-111 2 WR Michael Pittman 1-16 0
WR Cedric Tillman 7-99 2 WR D.J. Moore 2-27 0
WR Calvin Ridley 10-143 0 WR Drake London 4-34 0
TE Adam Trautman 4-85 1 TE Cole Kmet 1-16 0
PK Jake Elliott 4  XP   3 FG PK Cairo Santos  1  XP
Huddle Fantasy Points = 182 Huddle Fantasy Points = 39

Now get back to work…

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