Tag: Cordarelle Patterson

Cordarrelle Patterson mentioned among best returners of all-time

Former Minnesota Vikings return specialist Cordarrelle Patterson was recognized as one of the best returners of all-time.

You wouldn’t know it by watching the NFL over the past few seasons, but kickoff returns used to be one of the most exciting plays in the game. The NFL has implemented new rules starting this season to try and make the return relevant again, and with that we may see a new crop of great return specialists.

In anticipation of the new kickoff return rules, FanDuel recently dropped their top 10 ranking of returners all-time, and former Minnesota Vikings return specialist Cordarrelle Patterson comes in at number 7. While Patterson never caught on as a wide receiver or running back for the Vikings, he was electric on kickoff returns.

During his 11-year NFL career, Patterson amassed nearly 8,000 yards on kick returns, more than half of which came as a Viking. Patterson took nine kickoffs back for a touchdown in his career, five of which came in a Vikings uniform, and he was named to two Pro Bowl teams and three All-Pro teams—two first-team and one second-team—as a Viking for his prowess as a returner.

It wasn’t until his time with the Falcons that Patterson realized his true potential as a running back/wide receiver gadget player, but his kickoff return ability was always there from the start, making Patterson one of the most unique talents to ever put on a Vikings uniform—if also possibly an example of a somewhat wasted talent.

WATCH: Tyrann Mathieu sends the Saints into halftime with crucial interception

WATCH: Tyrann Mathieu sends the Saints into halftime with crucial interception vs. Falcons

The New Orleans Saints and the Atlanta Falcons had offensive issues define the first half. Right before teams took to the locker rooms, Desmond Ridder threw his first interception of the day.

The Falcons were driving down the field, looking to push their lead before the end of the half, before Tyrann Mathieu swooped in and took the ball away. It was Mathieu’s second interception of the season and his fifth in a Saints uniform.

The play ended in scuffle after emotions got raised during the drive. A couple of physical runs from Cordarelle Patterson had the two teams chippy already, then Jonnu Smith and Khlaen Saunders got into it. The two players had offsetting penalties and the Saints were able to knee the half out.

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Kings of third down: Running Backs

The best running backs on third down.

Want to know who is really a third-down back? That guy who has to keep the drive alive as the most reliable weapon for that play? Some of the names will surprise, but this shows every third-down attempt made by a running back that had at least ten attempts during the season. Overall, the players with the most third-down plays were Najee Harris (43), Jonathan Taylor (40), and Ezekiel Elliott (38) but let’s take a look at how they broke down.

Below are the Top-20 in the category considering the 44 running backs with least ten third-down attempts. This is an interesting and relative measurement as to how reliable and successful running backs were for their team as they strived to keep offensive drives alive. Plays resulting in touchdowns on third down were counted as a first down since they were the most successful conclusion to a play.

Third-down rushes

Third Down Runs Carries First Downs
1 James Conner 32 18
2 Jonathan Taylor 31 20
3 Antonio Gibson 28 16
4 Ezekiel Elliott 27 18
5 Javonte Williams 23 13
6 Najee Harris 22 12
7 Rex Burkhead 21 13
8 Sony Michel 21 8
9 D’Andre Swift 21 6
10 Dalvin Cook 19 7
11 Brandon Bolden 19 6
12 Alvin Kamara 19 5
13 AJ Dillon 17 12
14 Jamaal Williams 17 11
15 David Montgomery 17 8
16 Leonard Fournette 16 12
17 Saquon Barkley 15 7
18 Joe Mixon 15 6
19 Darrell Henderson 15 5
20 Devontae Booker 14 8

James Conner was expected to be the No. 2 back in Arizona but was given the most rushing attempts on third down of any back. Jonathan Taylor naturally shines in this category and it’s encouraging to see that Javonte Williams was the preferred rusher on third downs for the Broncos. This also indicates how more complex offenses have become, with running backs averaging fewer than two such plays per game at most.

And it also points at how committee backfields spread out their workloads, with surprisingly high ranks for Rex Burkhead, Sony Michel, Brandon Bolden and Jamaal Williams. Of course, third downs are very often passing downs, and these stats only reflect totals without considering games missed due to injury. But these are how often a back ran the ball on third down.

Third-down yards-per-carry

Yards Per Carry YPC Carries
1 Chase Edmonds 12.9 11
2 Kareem Hunt 8.3 11
3 Travis Homer 8.3 8
4 D’Andre Swift 7.3 21
5 Aaron Jones 7.3 8
6 Dalvin Cook 6.8 19
7 Javonte Williams 6.7 23
8 D’Ernest Johnson 6.7 14
9 Ty Johnson 6.6 8
10 Michael Carter 6.3 7
11 Devontae Booker 6.2 14
12 Kenneth Gainwell 6.1 13
13 Leonard Fournette 5.5 16
14 Alvin Kamara 4.6 19
15 David Johnson 4.4 9
16 Ezekiel Elliott 4.3 27
17 Mike Davis 4.0 7
18 James Robinson 3.8 10
19 Brandon Bolden 3.8 19
19 Jonathan Taylor 3.8 31
19 Najee Harris 3.8 22

The yards-per-carry can reflect how many yards there were to go for a first down and the infamous “run the ball on third-and-18” does apply. D’Andre Swift (7.3) and Javonte Williams (6.7) were the best with over 20 carries.  Several “no names” like Travis Homer, Ty Johnson, Mike Davis appear, but they all had low carries to judge.

Third-down rushing success

Made First Down Success % First Downs Carries
1 Aaron Jones 88% 7 8
2 J.D. McKissic 86% 6 7
3 Chase Edmonds 82% 9 11
4 Leonard Fournette 75% 12 16
5 Michael Carter 71% 5 7
6 AJ Dillon 71% 12 17
7 Melvin Gordon 70% 7 10
8 Kenneth Gainwell 69% 9 13
9 Ezekiel Elliott 67% 18 27
10 Christian McCaffrey 67% 4 6
11 Jamaal Williams 65% 11 17
12 Jonathan Taylor 65% 20 31
13 Tony Pollard 63% 5 8
14 Rex Burkhead 62% 13 21
15 James Robinson 60% 6 10
16 Miles Sanders 60% 6 10
17 Darrel Williams 58% 7 12
18 Antonio Gibson 57% 16 28
19 Devontae Booker 57% 8 14
20 Mike Davis 57% 4 7

Aaron Jones (88%) was the best at converting third-down runs, but AJ Dillon (71%) was also effective which indicates the strength of the Green Bay offensive line. The most successful rushers on third down were mostly those with fewer attempts. Ezekiel Elliott had a down year but was still the most successful rusher of those with higher attempts. J.D. McKissic surprises with 86% of his seven rushes gaining a first down. Antonio Gibson (57%) was also Top-20 indicating the Commanders blocking was better than expected this year.

Third-down receptions

This only counted catches, not targets. In fairness, many if not most incompletions to running backs are the quarterback throwing the ball away. So only receptions were considered.

 Receptions Catches First Downs
1 Najee Harris 21 9
2 Brandon Bolden 18 10
3 Austin Ekeler 15 5
4 J.D. McKissic 15 6
5 D’Andre Swift 13 8
6 Ty Johnson 13 8
7 Melvin Gordon 13 4
8 Javonte Williams 13 5
9 Mike Davis 12 4
10 Aaron Jones 12 3
11 Cordarrelle Patterson 12 8
12 David Johnson 12 5
13 Rex Burkhead 12 5
14 Ameer Abdullah 11 7
15 Ezekiel Elliott 11 7
16 Chase Edmonds 11 3
17 Myles Gaskin 10 6
18 Alvin Kamara 10 3
19 David Montgomery 10 5
20 Christian McCaffrey 10 7

This is where the third-down backs should shine. But Najee Harris dominated the category and yet had  far more rushes than the others. Javonte Williams did well as a third-down rusher and split 26 catches with Melvin Gordon, which shows where the passes end up on third down in Denver. Still, only Harris and Bolden averaged more than one per game.

Third-down yards-per-catch

Yards Per Catch YPC Catches
1 James Conner 17.8 5
2 Darrel Williams 13.5 8
3 Joe Mixon 13.5 6
4 Jonathan Taylor 12.8 9
5 Cordarrelle Patterson 12.2 12
6 Michael Carter 12.0 3
7 Brandon Bolden 10.6 18
8 J.D. McKissic 10.5 15
9 Travis Homer 10.0 9
10 Ty Johnson 9.7 13
11 Devontae Booker 9.6 9
12 Ameer Abdullah 9.5 11
13 D’Andre Swift 9.3 13
14 Austin Ekeler 9.3 15
15 David Montgomery 8.4 10
16 Dalvin Cook 8.4 5
17 Miles Sanders 8.4 5
18 Javonte Williams 8.2 13
19 Ezekiel Elliott 7.9 11
20 Tony Pollard 7.7 7
21 Christian McCaffrey 7.7 10

James Conner shows his worth to the Cardinals in many metrics, and while he only had five catches on third down, he made the most of them. He averaged over ten yards per catch in five different matchups. Jonathan Taylor did well despite being the focus of most opposing defenses regardless of down or distance. The Patriot backfield was very well represented in all of the metrics since their passing scheme was so short in most weeks, and that’s likely to recede for 2022 as Mac Jones throws more downfield.

Third-down reception success

Made First Down success % First Downs Catches
1 James Conner 100% 5 5
2 Antonio Gibson 100% 3 3
3 Devonta Freeman 75% 3 4
4 Christian McCaffrey 70% 7 10
5 Joe Mixon 67% 4 6
6 Cordarrelle Patterson 67% 8 12
7 Ezekiel Elliott 64% 7 11
8 Ameer Abdullah 64% 7 11
9 Ty Johnson 62% 8 13
10 D’Andre Swift 62% 8 13
11 Myles Gaskin 60% 6 10
12 Dalvin Cook 60% 3 5
13 Kenneth Gainwell 57% 4 7
14 Brandon Bolden 56% 10 18
15 Devontae Booker 56% 5 9
16 Travis Homer 56% 5 9
17 Darrel Williams 50% 4 8
18 David Montgomery 50% 5 10
19 Leonard Fournette 50% 3 6
20 Kareem Hunt 50% 3 6
20 Saquon Barkley 50% 1 2

Half of the NFL teams had a running back with over 50% success when catching a third-down pass. James Conner and Antonio Gibson had minimal catches but gained a first on each. Gibson was expected to play a far larger role as a receiver in 2021 than he did, but this says they under-used him to be sure. None of the Top-20 had more than ten first downs as a receiver, but this metric says as much about the offensive scheme as it does the player. Plenty of the names here had only minor fantasy value at best.

Third-down overall

This is the “Big Daddy Ranking” for how successful running backs were combining rushes and receptions on third down.

Player Success % Total Thirds Total Firsts Catches First Downs Carries First Downs
1 Christian McCaffrey 69% 16 11 10 7 6 4
2 Leonard Fournette 68% 22 15 6 3 16 12
3 AJ Dillon 67% 18 12 1 0 17 12
4 Ezekiel Elliott 66% 38 25 11 7 27 18
5 Kenneth Gainwell 65% 20 13 7 4 13 9
6 James Conner 62% 37 23 5 5 32 18
7 Antonio Gibson 61% 31 19 3 3 28 16
8 Jamaal Williams 60% 20 12 3 1 17 11
9 Michael Carter 60% 10 6 3 1 7 5
10 Jonathan Taylor 58% 40 23 9 3 31 20
11 Cordarrelle Patterson 57% 21 12 12 8 9 4
12 Ty Johnson 57% 21 12 13 8 8 4
13 Devontae Booker 57% 23 13 9 5 14 8
14 Darrel Williams 55% 20 11 8 4 12 7
15 Rex Burkhead 55% 33 18 12 5 21 13
16 J.D. McKissic 55% 22 12 15 6 7 6
17 Chase Edmonds 55% 22 12 11 3 11 9
18 Tony Pollard 53% 15 8 7 3 8 5
19 Kareem Hunt 53% 17 9 6 3 11 6
20 Javonte Williams 50% 36 18 13 5 23 13
21 Myles Gaskin 50% 24 12 10 6 14 6
22 Aaron Jones 50% 20 10 12 3 8 7
23 Ameer Abdullah 50% 16 8 11 7 5 1
24 Najee Harris 49% 43 21 21 9 22 12
25 David Montgomery 48% 27 13 10 5 17 8
26 Melvin Gordon 48% 23 11 13 4 10 7
27 Joe Mixon 48% 21 10 6 4 15 6
28 Saquon Barkley 47% 17 8 2 1 15 7
29 Travis Homer 47% 17 8 9 5 8 3
30 Miles Sanders 47% 15 7 5 1 10 6
31 James Robinson 47% 15 7 5 1 10 6
32 Chuba Hubbard 45% 20 9 6 1 14 8
33 Brandon Bolden 43% 37 16 18 10 19 6
34 Mike Davis 42% 19 8 12 4 7 4
35 Dalvin Cook 42% 24 10 5 3 19 7
36 D’Andre Swift 41% 34 14 13 8 21 6
37 Josh Jacobs 38% 16 6 4 0 12 6
38 Sony Michel 36% 22 8 1 0 21 8
39 D’Ernest Johnson 36% 22 8 8 3 14 5
40 Devonta Freeman 33% 15 5 4 3 11 2
41 Darrell Henderson 29% 17 5 2 0 15 5
42 Austin Ekeler 29% 24 7 15 5 9 2
43 David Johnson 29% 21 6 12 5 9 1
44 Alvin Kamara 28% 29 8 10 3 19 5

These were the 44 running backs with at least ten attempts on third down. Some running backs didn’t reach ten due to injury. Some reached ten while filling in for better running backs who missed time injured. But this is what third-down looked like for running backs in the NFL in 2021.

The Good – Christian McCaffrey is such a force when he is healthy. Ezekiel Elliott seemed less effective this year, but not on third down. Jonathan Taylor was the top running back for 2021 and showed up with 58% success on third down. Most of the top backs did well in this overall measurement that yields encouragement for this season for AJ Dillon, Antonio Gibson, Michael Carter, and Leonard Fournette where ever he ends up.  Kenneth Gainwell and Jamaal Williams were surprisingly effective in their respective roles in committee backfields. The expectation was that the top fantasy backs would be at the top, but the Top-20 was chock-full of lesser players with marginal fantasy value. It speaks to the continued division of duties in backfields, along with the effects of injuries and COVID-19.

The Bad – Alvin Kamara – are you okay? The Saints entered the year with one of the best offensive lines, but he was only successful on 28% of his third-down attempts. Austin Ekeler had a fine year for fantasy but just wasn’t that good on third down on a team that featured a very capable passing game to concern the opposing defense. Each running back had a unique situation and their success is still dependent on the entire offense doing their job. Dalvin Cook (42%), Josh Jacobs (38%) and D’Andre Swift (41%) were all highly rated backs entering 2021 and just didn’t fare as well on third down as most other starting running backs.

The Interesting – It may be overly optimistic to make any hard and fast conclusions about these running backs, but it is one more piece of information to throw in to each players’ bucket of characteristics. Here are a few of the questions that this spawns for me – you might find others as well.

James Conner – He’s only 26 and a free agent. He outperformed Chase Edmonds in every measurement, and even more so here. He was in a “pass first” offense but was effective rushing and receiving on third down. The Edmonds experiment is over, what will the Cards do?

Leonard Fournette – He’s only 27 and a free agent.  He was already the most productive back on the market and second only to Christian McCaffrey on third down. The Bucs are undergoing a change in 2022 anyway, but Fournette’s outlook seems bright regardless of where he ends up.

Kenneth Gainwell and Miles Sanders – The success of Gainwell (65%) over Miles Sanders (47%) was maybe the biggest surprise. What will Year 2 under HC Nick Sirianni look like?

Jamaal Williams and D’Andre Swift – The first season for HC Dan Campbell was hoped to unleash Swift more, but both he and Williams missed three games. And the backfield overall was split. Williams was effective on third down (60%) but Swift (41%) lagged on his 34 attempts as opposed to the 20 for Williams. Can Swift justify being more than just a busy third-down back? He didn’t last year.

Michael Carter – He squeaked in with only ten third-down attempts but was successful on 60% while a rookie on a very bad offense. And behind one of the worst lines in the NFL. Hard to expect much with the Jets in a perpetual cycle of rebuilding, but has he earned a bigger role this year as the most effective rusher and Tevin Coleman likely gone? Then again, Ty Johnson (57%) was nearly as effective and had double the third-down attempts.

Third down is a critical part of all offensive drives and running backs tend to be the most relied on for most NFL offenses. But this is evaluating only one or two plays per game for the listed backs. It is an interesting measurement, but certainly not the only one or even the most important. But the importance of third-down success is hard to overvalue.

Falcons stun Saints on Younghoe Koo FG as time runs out

Younghoe Koo and the Atlanta Falcons stun the New Orleans Saints

The Atlanta Falcons are mind-boggling.

The team that specializes in frantic finishes blew an 18-point lead in the fourth quarter Sunday against the New Orleans Saints only to get a Younghoe Koo field goal as time expired for a 27-25 victory.

The field goal climaxed a 5-play, 64-yard drive that took place after New Orleans had taken a 25-24 lead with 1:01 left.

The key play on the drive went for 64 yards as Matt Ryan found Corrdarrell Patterson.

 M.Ryan pass deep right to C.Patterson pushed ob at NO 11 for 64 yards (M.Williams) [K.Alexander]. Pass 28, YAC 36 The Replay Official reviewed the runner was inbounds ruling, and the play was Upheld. The ruling on the field stands.

 

Cordarrelle Patterson is becoming a problem for opposing defenses

Cordarelle Patterson is emerging as a versatile threat in the Atlanta offense, and his pair of first-half touchdowns against Washington are prime examples of what he offers.

The Atlanta Falcons and the Washington Football Team are locked in a back-and-forth affair down in Atlanta, and the offensive star for the Falcons in the early going has been the versatile Cordarrelle Patterson.

Patterson has been a focal part of Arthur Smith’s offense this season, seeing usage as both a wide receiver and a running back. His two touchdowns in the first half against Washington provide examples of how explosive he can be from both spots on the field.

Patterson’s first touchdown came on a deep post route, where the offensive weapon managed to get behind the entire Washington secondary with ease:

The play design shows a little eye candy to Washington, with Calvin Ridley working from right-to-left on jet motion, and Matt Ryan faking a handoff to his receiver before Ridley leaks to the right flat. But the core components of this play are the deep post from Patterson and an over route from the receiver on the other side of the field. That post/over combination is a staple in many NFL offenses, so you might think Washington would be ready for it, but Patterson’s speed gets him behind the defense for the score.

His second touchdown came later in the first half, with Patterson aligned as a running back and running a quick out-breaking route to the left side. His quarterback got the ball to him quickly, and from there it was all play strength and athleticism from Patterson:

Atlanta catches Washington in man coverage here, and with Patterson crossing the formation that tasks the safety on the opposite side of the field with covering him from depth. Patterson takes advantage of the leverage on his route and the angle the safety has to take to break the first tackle, and barrels into the end zone for the score.

After last week’s win over the New York Giants, Smith heaped praise on his offensive weapon. “He’s making an impact, and it’s fun to work with guys like that. Allows you to be creative. He can handle it. We named him our player of the game on offense,” Smith said. “He’s made a huge impact. He was a game captain this past week. Just really enjoyed getting to work with CP and to see where it goes from here.”

His athleticism and versatility are giving opponent defenses fits, and giving Smith a matchup nightmare to use in the passing game. With what we are seeing from this Falcons offense, you can expect this usage to continue.

Bears players are out here recruiting Russell Wilson on Twitter after possible trade reports

Good try, guys.

The Russell Wilson saga with the Seattle Seahawks took a wild turn on Thursday, but here’s the tl;dr: it sounds like the quarterback isn’t happy with the franchise. However — per ESPN’s Adam Schefter — he’d like to play for the Hawks … but if a trade happened, he would prefer the Dallas Cowboys, New Orleans Saints, Las Vegas Raiders … and the Chicago Bears.

Bears fans’ ears perked up. Russell Wilson! To replace Mitchell Trubisky! AAAAAAAAAA!

The same went for current Bears players Tarik Cohen and Cordarelle Patterson, who started tweeting pretty blatant stuff about Wilson. That should tell you how they probably feel about their current quarterback situation (Cohen also called out to Deshaun Watson):

https://twitter.com/TarikCohen/status/1365012526250004481

Good try, guys.

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Chicago Bears’ Cordarrelle Patterson with rare NFL career trifecta

What rare milestone did Cordarrelle Patterson accomplish?

Cordarelle Patterson is one of the bright spots in a season that has gone dark for the Chicago Bears after a 5-1 start.

The Bears are 5-7 after their loss Sunday to the Detroit Lions.

However, Patterson did complete a rare trifecta for NFL players.

When he scored on a 5-yard run in the second quarter of the 34-30 loss, Patterson became the first NFL player since 1950 with at least 8 rushing TDs, 8 receiving TDs, and 8 kickoff returns.

That’s exceptional and far more than versatile.

 

Cordarrelle Patterson recruiting Lions CB Darius Slay to Chicago

Bears KR Cordarrelle Patterson continued his recruiting spree Wednesday night with Lions CB Darius Slay.

Cordarrelle Patterson may want to consider becoming a recruiter when his  NFL career is over.

The All-Pro kick returner has spent the week reaching out to fellow players across the league, seeing if they want to come to the Chicago Bears.

The pitches began with free agent quarterbacks such as Teddy Bridgewater and Tom Brady, both of whom agreed to deals with the Carolina Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, respectively.

Now, Patterson has shifted his focus to the defensive side of the ball by reaching out to Detroit Lions cornerback Darius Slay. The three-time Pro Bowl corner has been adamant about his desire to exit Detroit and reiterated those demands Wednesday night when the Lions signed former Atlanta Falcons cornerback Desmond Trufant.

When Patterson saw Slay’s reaction, he decided to reach out to the 29 year-old to see how he was doing.

The Bears do have a need in the secondary following the release of veteran cornerback Prince Amukamara in February, but acquiring Slay feels like a pipe dream at this point.

According to the Detroit Free Press, the Lions are seeking a day-two draft pick (second or third rounder) for Slay, who has one year left on his contract and is coming off a season where he played 14 games, intercepting two passes and recovering a fumble.

General manager Ryan Pace does have a pair of second-round draft picks at his disposal and isn’t shy about trading away draft capital to acquire NFL talent, as demonstrated by the team’s acquisition of QB Nick Foles for a fourth-round pick on Wednesday.

But would Pace make another bold move to add a Pro-Bowl caliber player to the back end of the defense to play opposite of cornerback Kyle Fuller? Slay would be a welcome addition, but with a new contract looming, and the Bears draft capital now dwindling, a deal doesn’t seem to be on the horizon.

Patterson, who claims he is just checking in on his friends, will continue to shoot his shot to see how other players feel about playing in the “Windy City.” But despite Slay and the Lions both looking for a split, his destination likely won’t be Chicago.

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