Tag: Bud Dupree

Three former Wildcats survive the NFL’s Wildcard Weekend

Three former Kentucky football players will continue on in the NFL Playoffs.

Five Wildcats came into NFL Wildcard Weekend. Only three survived.

Ray Davis, Chris Rodriguez Jr., and Darian Kinnard all survived Wildcard weekend and will be moving on to the NFL’s divisional playoff round.

None of the three made much of an impact in their respective games. Davis is the only one that recorded a stat, as he logged a single carry for 3 yards.

Rodriguez did not record a carry or reception in the Commanders 23-20 win over the Buccaneers on Sunday night.

Related: Comparing Kentucky’s 2024 and 2025 receivers

Kinnard, a reserve offensive tackle for the Philadelphia Eagles, also did not feature prominently in the team’s 22-10 win over the Green Bay Packers.

Other former Wildcats Bud Dupree (Chargers) and Carrington Valentine (Packers) were eliminated over the weekend. Dupree did not record a stat in the Chargers’ 32-12 loss to the Texans, while Valentine logged 5 total tackles.

Former Kentucky quarterback Devin Leary also will be moving on to the next round with his team, the Baltimore Ravens — although he is a member of their practice squad.

These 3 Chargers players could earn contract incentive bonuses for their play in 2024

These three players are close to earning some extra cash for their play in 2024.

Players on new contracts are given incentives, which allow them to earn more money for reaching specific statistical milestones.

Three Chargers players can cash in due to their performances from 2024 when they close out the regular season against the Raiders: Cornerback Kristian Fulton, running back J.K. Dobbins and edge defender Bud Dupree.

Fulton needs one more interception to earn an additional $125,000. He already has one on the season.

Dobbins needs at least 58 rushing yards to get an extra $150,000. He is at 842 yards, and probably would have already surpassed this mark had he not missed four games due to an injury.

Dupree needs one more sack to get an extra $250,000. The veteran is at six sacks on the season.

Los Angeles plays Las Vegas this Sunday at 1:25 pm PT.

Chargers PFF grades: Best, worst performers in Week 17 win over Patriots

Spotlighting Pro Football Focus’ highest and lowest-graded Chargers players from the win over the Patriots.

In Week 17, the Chargers defeated the Patriots, 40-7.

En route to victory, there were some standout performers and others who did not contribute as much.

That said, here are the best and worst performers from Saturday’s contest, according to Pro Football Focus’ player grades.

Top 5 Offense

QB Justin Herbert — 84.8

OL Bradley Bozeman — 80.6

WR Derius Davis — 78.7

OT Rashawn Slater — 74.4

OL Sam Mustipher — 71.4

Top 5 Defense

S Tony Jefferson — 74.6

DT Otito Ogbonnia — 72.5

S Derwin James — 72.1

CB Kristian Fulton — 70.5

DT Poona Ford — 69.2

Bottom 5 Offense

TE/FB Tucker Fisk — 47.1

FB Scott Matlock — 47.4

WR D.J. Chark — 47.5

OL Jamaree Salyer — 59.5

OL Zion Johnson — 62.6

Bottom 5 Defense

EDGE Bud Dupree — 39.3

CB Ja’Sir Taylor — 47.9

S Elijah Molden — 49.4

LB Troy Dye — 51.9

CB Tarheeb Still — 52.0

Chargers PFF grades: Best, worst performers in Week 16 win over Broncos

Spotlighting Pro Football Focus’ highest and lowest-graded Chargers players from the win over the Broncos.

In Week 16, the Chargers defeated the Broncos, 34-27.

En route to victory, there were some standout performers and others who did not contribute as much.

That said, here are the best and worst performers from Sunday’s contest, according to Pro Football Focus’ player grades.

Top 5 Offense

FB Scott Matlock — 83.8

TE Tucker Fisk — 80.5

QB Justin Herbert — 78.2

WR Joshua Palmer — 74.7

RB Gus Edwards — 73.6

Top 5 Defense

DT Teair Tart — 92.9

DT Poona Ford — 77.0

EDGE Tuli Tuipulotu — 73.4

CB Kristian Fulton — 72.0

LB Daiyan Henley — 71.5

Bottom 5 Offense

OL Bradley Bozeman — 32.1

OL Trey Pipkins — 35.7

OL Zion Johnson — 46.6

WR Quentin Johnston — 53.0

WR DJ Chark — 56.0

Bottom 5 Defense

LB Junior Colson — 29.1

S Kendall Williamson — 37.0

CB Ja’Sir Taylor — 49.5

LB Denzel Perryman — 51.8

CB Tarheeb Still — 52.2

Chargers PFF grades: Best, worst performers in Week 13 win over Falcons

Spotlighting Pro Football Focus’ highest and lowest-graded Chargers players from the win over the Falcons.

In Week 13, the Chargers defeated the Falcons, 17-13.

En route to victory, there were some standout performers and others who did not contribute as much.

That said, here are the best and worst performers from Sunday’s contest, according to Pro Football Focus’ player grades.

Top 5 Offense

OT Rashawn Slater — 88.4

QB Justin Herbert — 72.8

WR Ladd McConkey — 72.2

OT Trey Pipkins — 69.4

OL Bradley Bozeman — 68.5

Top 5 Defense

CB Tarheeb Still — 94.0

S Derwin James — 90.9

LB Daiyan Henley — 83.1

S Tony Jefferson — 83.0

EDGE Khalil Mack — 79.5

Bottom 5 Offense

OL Zion Johnson — 56.7

FB Tucker Fisk — 54.2

WR Jalen Reagor — 53.7

WR Derius Davis — 52.5

TE Will Dissly — 49.2

Bottom 5 Defense

DL Teair Tart — 55.2

EDGE Bud Dupree — 52.1

CB Kristian Fulton — 49.5

CB Ja’Sir Taylor — 48.1

DT Otito Ogbonnia — 28.8

Chargers PFF grades: Best, worst performers in Week 11 win over Bengals

Spotlighting Pro Football Focus’ highest and lowest-graded Chargers players from the win over the Bengals.

In Week 11, the Chargers defeated the Bengals, 34-27.

En route to victory, there were some standout performers and others who did not contribute as much.

That said, here are the best and worst performers from Sunday’s contest, according to Pro Football Focus’ player grades.

Top 5 Offense

WR Ladd McConkey — 85.7

OT Joe Alt — 84.1

OL Trey Pipkins — 81.3

OT Rashawn Slater — 79.1

OL Zion Johnson — 77.4

Top 5 Defense

S Alohi Gilman — 83.3

LB Denzel Perryman — 75.1

CB Cam Hart — 74.3

S Derwin James — 72.8

DT Poona Ford — 69.2

Bottom 5 Offense

WR Joshua Palmer — 64.0

RB Gus Edwards — 63.5

WR Quentin Johnston — 61.3

FB Scott Matlock — 53.9

WR Jalen Reagor — 52.2

Bottom 5 Defense

LB Daiyan Henley — 55.5

EDGE Bud Dupree — 54.2

S Elijah Molden — 50.2

DT Otito Ogbonnia — 47.5

CB Ja’Sir Taylor — 38.9

Game Balls: 5 standouts from Chargers’ win over Titans

It was another dominant team effort from the Chargers in Week 10, which included seven sacks from the defense.

Folks, the Los Angeles Chargers are hot. The team has now won three straight and four of their last five after their victory over the Titans in Week 10.

Jim Harbaugh has been persistent about the fact that it’s been a total team effort, and that couldn’t be more true. Here are five players who were key to the team’s 27-17 victory over the lowly Titans this past Sunday.

WR Derius Davis

Davis provided an impact all over the field on Sunday. After the Titans cut to 13-10 early in the third quarter, Davis had a 56-yard kick return into Titans territory. It set the offense up with prime field position, and they were able to capitalize with a touchdown to take a 10-point lead. Davis added a 16-yard catch and seven-yard run to a busy, effective day for him.

OG Zion Johnson

The Chargers have improved their offensive line play in 2024, and Johnson has been a big reason for that. The offense finished with 145 rushing yards, and quarterback Justin Herbert wasn’t sacked once. In a season that has provided many bright spots, Johnson’s progression has been crucial to the offensive line’s success.

RB Gus Edwards

For awhile, it seemed that Edwards had lost his backup job to Kimani Vidal. He missed over a month due to injury and was largely ineffective when he was active this season. Vidal wasn’t effective in the team’s last few games, which led to him being a healthy inactive against the Titans. On Sunday, Edwards was the team’s most efficient ball carrier. He finished with 55 rushing yards on ten carries, over two yards per carry better than starter J.K. Dobbins.

LB Daiyan Henley

Henley was all over the field on Sunday. He had his ups and downs in 2024 but was solid against the Titans. Henley finished the day with 10 total tackles and his first sack of the season. The Chargers’ defense continues to be much improved this season, and the linebacker play has been a big reason for that.

EDGE Bud Dupree

The Chargers’ backup edge rushers have stepped up in a huge way recently. This week, Dupree broke out with two sacks and a forced fumble. The defense finished the day with seven sacks, which included two more from Tuli Tuipolotu. The defensive front continues to wreak havoc, and Dupree was the most significant contributor.

Chargers PFF grades: Best, worst performers in Week 10 win over Titans

Spotlighting Pro Football Focus’ highest and lowest-graded Chargers players from the win over the Titans.

In Week 10, the Chargers defeated the Titans, 27-17.

En route to victory, there were some standout performers and others who did not contribute as much.

That said, here are the best and worst performers from Sunday’s contest, according to Pro Football Focus’ player grades.

Top 5 Offense

QB Justin Herbert — 91.6

FB Tucker Fisk — 73.8

OL Zion Johnson — 72.8

TE Will Dissly — 72.6

OT Joe Alt — 72.0

Top 5 Defense

EDGE Tuli Tuipulotu — 71.2

EDGE Bud Dupree — 69.1

CB Cam Hart — 67.4

DT Poona Ford — 67.3

DT Morgan Fox — 67.1

Bottom 5 Offense

WR Quentin Johnston — 55.7

RB J.K. Dobbins — 52.8

WR Jalen Reagor — 50.9

OL Foster Sarell — 50.0

FB Scott Matlock — 49.6

Bottom 5 Defense

S Alohi Gilman — 57.3

LB Denzel Perryman — 52.7

EDGE Joey Bosa — 51.1

DT Otito Ogbonnia — 45.0

DT Teair Tart — 34.2

Broncos QB Bo Nix had another ‘Houdini play’ in Week 6

Bo Nix has eyes in the back of his head!

Bo Nix did it again.

In the third quarter of Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers, the Denver Broncos‘ rookie quarterback looked like he was about to be sacked by Bud Dupree, who had beaten left tackle Garett Bolles to reach Nix.

Nix then ducked and escaped Dupree’s grasp, regained his footing and looked downfield for open receivers. With everyone covered, Nix decided to run and he picked up 21 yards on the ground before safely stepping out of bounds.

It was another Harry Houdini play from Nix, who finished the game as Denver’s leading rusher with 61 yards on the ground.

This is ridiculous by Bo Nix to turn a sure sack into a 21-yard gain
byu/zbeg inDenverBroncos

If that play looks familiar, it’s because Nix had a very similar escaped sack against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 3 that the quarterback turned into a 22-yard gain. That play went viral:

Nix helped the Broncos battle back against the Chargers on Sunday, but their fourth-quarter efforts weren’t enough to overcome a 23-point deficit. Following a 23-16 loss, Nix and Denver will now turn attention toward a Thursday Night Football showdown with the New Orleans Saints in Week 7.

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Chargers defender named ‘hidden gem’

Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox named every team’s hidden gem at the quarter mark of the season.

The Chargers have a few players who have made their presence felt up to this point of the season.

All the while, some have played well, yet they’ve still gone under the radar.

One is edge defender Bud Dupree, who Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox recognized as Los Angeles’ biggest hidden gem.

While Khalil Mack and Joey Bosa remain the stars of L.A.’s pass rush when healthy—Bosa missed Week 4 with a hip injury—Dupree has flashed as a rotational sack artist. He recorded a pair of quarterback takedowns in Week 4, has logged three quarterback pressures and has made two tackles for loss. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see Dupree get more opportunities moving forward after playing just 56 percent of the defensive snaps over the first month.

Dupree had a big game right before the bye week, as he notched two sacks against the Chiefs. The veteran has taken advantage of his extensive playing time while Joey Bosa has been sidelined with a hip injury.

Through four games, Dupree has eight quarterback pressures, five run stops and four hurries.

If Bosa continues to be hindered by his injury, it will only lead to more playing time for the 31-year-old Dupree.