Tag: Jordan Reed

Terry McLaurin and Sam Howell make some franchise history in Week 6

McLaurin and Howell each make Washington history in Week 6 vs. Falcons.

Terry McLaurin is in his fifth NFL season with the Washington Commanders. In his first four years, McLaurin had already established himself as one of the better receivers in franchise history, even though he had a way to go to be called one of the best.

In Sunday’s win over the Atlanta Falcons, McLaurin caught six passes for 81 yards and entered the top 10 in Washington’s record books in the process.

Early in the first quarter, McLaurin moved past Pierre Garcon for 10th place in Washington’s rich franchise history in receiving yards, courtesy of Washington’s PR team.

Shortly after that, McLaurin made more history, moving past Jordan Reed for 10th place in career receptions in the burgundy and gold.

It’s safe to say McLaurin will only continue to climb in Washington’s record books.

Quarterback Sam Howell made his seventh career start in Sunday’s game, and he, too, also made Washington history. When he reached 1,602 passing yards, it was the most in franchise history from a quarterback in his first seven career games.

Of course, it’s important to note the game has changed over the years, and Howell has more passing attempts, but it’s still noteworthy.

In addition, Howell also passed for three touchdowns in a game for the first time. For the season, Howell now has nine touchdowns and six interceptions. Outside of that miserable Buffalo start, Howell has two interceptions in Washington’s other five games.

Not a bad start to Howell’s career, but he still has a lot to prove in his hopes of being the team’s franchise quarterback.

Former 49ers TE Jordan Reed retires after 7 seasons

Jordan Reed’s one year with the 49ers will be his final NFL season. He’s set to retire because of concussion-related issues.

Former 49ers tight end Jordan Reed is calling it a career after seven seasons in the NFL. Reed’s retirement was first reported by NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport.

Reed entered the NFL as a third-round pick of the Washington Football Team in 2013 out of Florida. His first season would go on to tell the story of the rest of his career when he played in only nine games. Reed never played 16 games and only played 12 or more games three times in seven years.

It’s a testament to his skill set that he still managed to be productive through a series of injuries. He earned a Pro Bowl nod in 2016 despite playing in just 12 games. That year he hauled in 66 catches for 686 yards and six touchdowns.

Reed wound up missing all of the 2019 season with a concussion, but made a comeback with the 49ers last year. He played in 10 games while dealing with a knee injury he suffered in Week 3. Again he showed off the skill set that left Washington sticking with him throughout a series of injury problems. In 10 games with the 49ers Reed had 26 catches for 231 yards and four touchdowns.

Another season wasn’t in the cards though as he enters his Age 31 season. While a number of injuries slowed Reed down over the course of his career, concussions were his most serious problem. He told USA TODAY’s Mike Jones that the head injuries were too big of risk to his quality of life to continue playing.

Reed finished his career with 355 receptions for 3,602 yards and 28 touchdowns in 75 games.

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Former Washington tight end Jordan Reed retires from the NFL

One day after former Washington Football Team quarterback Alex Smith announced his retirement, one of his ex-teammates, Jordan Reed

One day after former Washington Football Team quarterback Alex Smith announced his retirement, one of his ex-teammates did the same.

Jordan Reed, a third-round draft choice by Washington back in 2013, is retiring from the game after eight years in the NFL, according to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network.

Reed spent the first seven seasons of his NFL career with Washington. One of the most talented tight ends in recent memory, Reed, unfortunately, battled injuries over the course of his career.

Reed’s 2015 season showed his true potential in the NFL. Playing on a team with talented wide receivers Pierre Garcon, DeSean Jackson and Jamison Crowder, Reed was the focal point of that offense. The 2015 team, which was quarterbacked by Kirk Cousins, was one of the best in the NFL that season and won the NFC East.

Reed’s performance was a major reason for Washington’s success.

Reed signed a lucrative five-year extension in May 2016 and would make his first and only Pro Bowl later that year.

In 2017, Reed missed most of that season as he battled a hamstring injury, playing in just six games.

Reed returned in 2018 and caught 54 passes for Washington, but a toe injury in December sidelined him for the final few games.

The scariest part of Reed’s career came in a preseason game against Atlanta in 2019 when Falcons’ safety Keanu Neal lowered his helmet when tackling Reed. It was a brutal hit, giving Reed his seventh documented concussion.

He would not play in 2019 and was still in the NFL’s concussion protocol in February 2020. He was released shortly thereafter.

Reed would sign with the San Francisco 49ers in August of last year, rejoining his former offensive coordinator, Kyle Shanahan. Reed played in 10 games for the 49ers and finished with 26 receptions for 231 yards and four touchdowns.

Thankfully, Reed got to go out on his own terms after returning to the game in 2020.

Reed finished his career with 355 receptions for 3,602 yards and 28 touchdowns.

Veteran TE options that could still make sense for the Cardinals

The Cardinals still need some depth in a few areas – one of those areas of need is at tight end.

The Arizona Cardinals still need some depth in a few areas, and have cleared out the cap space to be able to do so. One of those areas of need is at tight end.

They might wait until after the NFL draft so that it won’t count against any compensatory picks, and most of the tight ends on the market are there for a reason, so it’s unlikely they would sign any to a long-term deal.

They ideally would need someone with a bit more receiving prowess than Maxx Williams, who is a phenomenal run blocker but has not produced many catches in his tenure with the team.

Here are some options out there still for the Cardinals to try.


Offseason options for the Cardinals at TE

There are many ways the Cardinals can “not panic” to fill their need at tight end.

The Arizona Cardinals still have a few glaring holes on the roster, though general Steve Keim has said they will not panic in terms of filling out the roster. One of those notable holes is at tight end. All they have on their roster is Maxx Williams, who dealt with an ankle injury all year, Darrell Daniels and Ian Bunting. Bunting has never played an NFL game.

There are many ways they can “not panic” to fill their need at tight end, even after re-signing Darrell Daniels to a one-year contract.

Here are a few routes they could take:


WATCH: Jordan Reed puts 49ers on board with TD catch

The 49ers got on the board vs. the Cowboys with a Jordan Reed TD catch from Nick Mullens.

The 49ers badly needed a long scoring drive after a pair of early giveaways in Dallas. They got one with a 13-play, 75-yard drive where everything was clicking for Nick Mullens and Raheem Mostert. It was Mullens who capped the drive though with a five-yard touchdown pass to Jordan Reed. The TD was Reed’s fourth of the year and cut the Dallas lead from 14-0 to 14-7.

Sounds like the Bills won’t see George Kittle, Jimmy Garoppolo vs. 49ers

Buffalo Bills will not face San Francisco 49ers’ Jimmy Garoppolo, George Kittle in Week 13.

The Buffalo Bills face the San Francisco 49ers in Arizona on Monday Night Football next. Despite being under the bright lights, it doesn’t sound like the visiting will be seeing some of the “home” team’s best players, though.

49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said this week that it’s unlikely that quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and star tight end George Kittle will suit up this week. Shanahan laid a timetable of a few games from now in terms of when it’s possible that the pair could return to the lineup.

“Yeah, I’m holding out hope for Jimmy for the last couple of weeks, same with Kittle,” the coach said per Niners Wire. “I think they’re in a similar boat with that and that’s not guaranteed. It’s how they react over here the next couple of weeks, but they’re just starting to get into where they can get on the field and not with us, but on their own and do some stuff. That’s hopefully going to be the last couple of weeks, whether it’s two games or one game or none.”

Garoppolo has been dealing with a severely sprained ankle he suffered in the 49ers second game of the season. While he attempted to play through the injury, he suffered another high ankle sprain in a Week 7.

The initial timeline on a return for Garoppolo was four-to-six weeks per Shanahan. Kittle’s was reported as an eight-week recovery time. The upcoming Bills-49ers meeting would’ve been a likely quick recovery for both, which appears to be off the table.

Without Kittle, former Washington tight end Jordan Reed has seen more playing time in the Niners lineup. Backup QB Nick Mullens will continue his starting stretch against the Bills.

It is worth noting though, the 49ers are still 5-6 without these two, along with several other players they’ve lost due to injury. Buffalo (8-3) still has a task to take care of, even without them.

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Fantasy football gamble of the week: Week 12

Can fantasy footballers count on this veteran tight end to get into the end zone in the face of a strong defensive matchup?

Every week, at least one player becomes my fascination of whether he’s worthy of a fantasy football start or bench. The decision can be a mental wrestling match, but for the purpose of brevity, only one player can be chosen as the fantasy football gamble of the week.

The best fantasy football gamble for Week 12

Tracking my predictions: 4-6-1
Win: Player produces ≥ 80% of projected fantasy points
Loss: Player produces >80% of projected fantasy points
Tie: Player is ejected or leaves with an injury

The Week 11 writeup was Washington Football Team TE Logan Thomas vs. Cincinnati Bengals, and it didn’t go anywhere close to as planned. The Bengals provided a fantastic matchup, and Thomas was targeted five times in the game. Him finishing with only six yards is tough to reconcile, yet Thomas was a sound decision that I fully stand by. As the painful knife twist would go, he found the end zone in Week 12 vs. Dallas on Thanksgiving Day.

This week, in hopes of snapping my worst prognostic slide of the season, I go back to the tight end well once more …

San Francisco TE Jordan Reed at Los Angeles Rams

San Francisco returns from its bye week to face a divisional foe in a matchup that pits backup quarterback Nick Mullens on the road vs. the No. 3 passing defense in the league. Many gamers may simply see the Rams as the opponent and run. The defense eliminated Rob Gronkowski last week, and other usually playable options haven’t fared well this year (Mike Gesicki, Jimmy Graham, Zach Ertz). It’s also easier to get away from Reed with no teams on bye, although four clubs have played so far, which could make it a wash depending upon when lineups are required to be set in your league.

A closer look at Los Angeles points to a rather decent opportunity for Reed to rack up work in PPR formats, and there’s even a remote chance of a touchdown, which is the true gamble of this recommendation. Reed hauled in five of six targets for 62 yards in Week 10 at New Orleans. In his two games without George Kittle and not contending with an injury of his own, Reed has produced no less than 50 yards and five grabs this year. He had seven catches in the other game fitting the criteria.

Six tight ends in 10 outings have at least four snags vs. the Rams this season. While that’s rather respectable given how well this unit has played vs. the pass, there hasn’t been much yardage to speak of — only Ertz (42), Evan Engram (35), Cole Kmet (45), and Kittle (109) have managed more than 34 yards. Kittle’s performance was by far the best effort of anyone this season, going for 7-109-1 in Week 6. Hopefully the 49ers learned more from that showing than the Rams did….

The Niners are hopeful to have WR Deebo Samuel (hamstring) as well as running backs Raheem Mostert (ankle) and Tevin Coleman (knee) back in the mix this week, which helps keep the defense from keying in on any one area. Wideout Brandon Aiyuk is expected to be activated from the COVID-19 list after being deemed a close contact. He has developed into one of the most dangerous rookies in football and commands attention.

Typically defenses that are as stout as this one vs. the wide receiver position sees quarterbacks going inside to the position and having success. That hasn’t quite been the case, as described above. Expect Kyle Shanahan to get extra creative here with a tough matchup and a diminished cast of personnel at his disposal. As long as the running game can keep Los Angeles honest, Reed has a chance to be quite productive.

My projection: 5 receptions, 46 yards, 1 TD (15.6 PPR points)

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Tunnel Vision of Week 10

Tunnel Vision – a look back at Sunday for fantasy free agents, injuries and notable performances.

SUNDAY SALUTES
Quarterbacks Pass
Rush		 TD
 Kyler Murray  245-61 3
 Tom Brady 341-2 4
 Josh Allen 284-38 3
 Ben Roethlisberger 333-1 4
 Aaron Rodgers 325-4 3
Running Backs Rush
Catch		 TD
Alvin Kamara 8-15
7-83		 3
Josh Jacobs 21-112
4-24		 2
Nyheim Hines 12-70
5-45		 2
Ronald Jones 23-192
1-6		 1
D’Andre Swift 16-81
5-68		 1
Wide Receivers Yards TD
Cole Beasley 111-109 1
DeAndre Hopkins 7-127 1
Stefon Diggs 10-93 1
Marquez Valdes-Scantling 4-149 1
Tee Higgins 7-115 1
Tight Ends Yards TD
Rob Gronkowski 2-51 1
Hunter Henry 4-30 1
Cameron Brate 3-31 1
Jordan Reed 5-62 0
Logan Thomas 4-66 0
Placekickers XP FG
Ryan Succop 4 4
Zane Gonzalez 2 4
Daniel Carlson 4 3
Chris Boswell 3 3
Matt Prater 3 3
Defense Sck-TO TD
Raiders 2-5 0
Steelers 4-2 0
Rams 6-3 0
Jaguars 1-2 1
Saints 2-3 0

Bumps, Bruises and Bowouts

QB Teddy Bridgewater – Knee
QB Matt Stafford – Thumb
QB Drew Brees – Ribs
RB Chris Thompson – Back
RB Tyler Ervin – Ribs
RB Jalen Richard – Chest
WR Tre’Quan Smith – Concussion
WR John Brown – Ankle
WR Danny Amendola – Hip
TE Nick Boyle – Leg
PK Kai Forbath – Ankle

Chasing Ambulances

The running backs made it out of Week 10 relatively unscathed.

QB Teddy Bridgewater – Had an MRI on his knee after the game and the results won’t be known until Monday. Early speculation was that the injury wasn’t serious. P.J. Walker finished the game for his first NFL action. Walker had been a star in the XFL, but Bridgewater seems likely to play against the visiting Lions this week.

QB Matt Stafford – Injured the thumb on his throwing hand in the first half but continued to play against Washington for one of his better performances. He had his thumb taped but later said it was harder to grip the ball. He’ll get an X-ray to see if there is any damage.

QB Drew Brees – Was crushed when DT Kentavius Street landed on top of him, Brees remained for that series to finish the first half but then could not play in the second half. There will be more information later in the week, but Brees said he did not believe it would be a long-term issue, but he added, “it’s just a matter of how long it’s going to be. And honestly, I really don’t know. It’s not something quite to this extent that I’ve experienced.” Jameis Winston came in to replace him but it is not certain if he or Taysom Hill would take over if needed. And likely – both would as they did in the win over the 49ers.

Free Agents, Flops and Other Notables

Buccaneers backfield – Ronald Jones set the new franchise record with a 98-yard touchdown run in the win over the Panthers. He gained 192 yards on 23 carries and added a one-yard catch. Leonard Fournette only ran for 19 yards on eight carries and caught two for 11 yards. In Week 9, Fournette totaled 71 yards to 46 for Jones. This “hot hand” approach isn’t making starting lineups any easier.

RB Nick Chubb – His first action since Week 4 totaled 126 yards and a score on 19 carries. And yet, Kareem Hunt also ran 19 times for 104 yards and added three catches for 28 yards. That’s how this backfield operates ideally. Chubb should make plenty of noise with a softer schedule ahead and yet Hunt is not going anywhere.

QB Alex Smith – His first start since Kyle Allen was lost for the year, and Smith passed for 390 yards and no scores – but no turnovers. He’s kept Terry McLaurin (7-95) busy and that all that fantasy football wanted.

RB D’Andre Swift – Took the start this week and ran for 81 yards on 16 carries, plus caught all five targets for 68 yards and a 15-yard touchdown. Adrian Peterson only ran four times and caught one pass. 21 touches to five for Peterson says the Lions are getting more comfortable letting Swift handle a heavier load.

WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling – He only caught two passes for 53 yards in Week 9 but both were touchdowns. Against the visiting Jaguars,  MVS ended with four receptions for 149 yards and one touchdown. And yet, he totaled only one catch for 19 yards over the two games prior, so still hard to buy into his turning a corner. Plus Allen Lazard is likely back next week.

RB Miles Sanders – First game since Week 6 and ran for 85 yards on 15 rushes (5.7 YPC) and caught a couple of passes for ten more yads. He looked just as dangerous but the rest of the offense, again, limits him.

TE Jordan Reed – George Kittle is on injured reserve and while Reed was held to only one short catch by the Packers in Week 9, he caught five-of-six targets for 62 yards in the loss to the Saints. The 49ers go onto their bye but when they return, they’ll face the Rams and Bills with plenty of reasons to throw the ball.

RB Nyheim Hines – Ran for 70 yards on 12 carries with one touchdown, and caught five passes for 45 yards and a second score last Thursday. All that does is degrade Jonathan Taylor even more and keeps Jordan Wilkins as just another touch-leech part of the backfield.

RB Devontae Booker – Ran  16 times for 81 yards and two touchdowns on the Broncos. That was mostly about the Raiders handing the Broncos a beatdown and Booker just ran out the clock and scored both times in the end of the fourth quarter. But it is notable that he’s taken over the No. 2 role for the Raiders backfield and ran for 68 yards and a touchdown on just eight carries last week at the Chargers.

RB Salvon Ahmed – The undrafted rookie was released by the 49ers last August and signed to the Dolphins. He had his first NFL action in Week 9 when he rushed for 38 yards on seven carries. With Myles Gaskin on injured reserve and Matt Breida a game-time decision that became inactive, the Fins also made Jordan Howard a healthy scratch so that Ahmed and newly acquired DeAndre Washington could share the backfield. Ahmed got the start and never looked back. He ran for 85 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries versus the Chargers compared to only two runs for two yards by Washington. That was the best rushing performance by any Miami runner this year. The Chargers only rank No. 21 against running backs, but Ahmed looked sharp with his 4.4/40-speed. He’ll be a hot commodity on the waiver wire this week.

RB Cam Akers – HC Sean McVay said that the rookie would see more use in the second half of the season and he was right. Akers started the matchup with the Seahawks and led the backfield with ten rushes for 38 yards. But he never was targeted and Malcolm Brown turned his six runs into 33 yards and two touchdowns since he came in for goal-line carries. And Darrell Henderson also scored once on his seven carries for 28 yards. Akers did start and did receive the most carries. Just not the ones that mattered.

RB Kalen Ballage – His first action with the Chargers was in Week 9 when he ran for 69 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries with two catches for 15 yards. Versus the Dolphins on Sunday, Ballage ran for 698 yards on 18 carries with 34 more yards on five receptions. There’s still no word when Austin Ekeler returns but Ballage is laying claim to the starting role until Ekeler does return.

RB Alex Collins – The Seahawks were without Carlos Hyde and Chris Carson again, so Collins was given a bigger workload than the two carries for five yards from Week 5 when he was called up from the practice squad. He led the backfield with 11 carries for 43 yards and a touchdown plus one catch for four yards. DeeJay Dallas only ran twice for eight yards in the loss to the Rams. Carson is expected to return this week, so Collins is only of any interest when everyone else is out.

NFL tight ends – Each year, tight ends see their roles decrease as the season progresses and Week 10 holds that trend in place. The position only caught six touchdowns this week and none gained more than 65 yards. Having Travis Kelce on bye didn’t help, but the position disappoints even more each week.

Field-goal-mania – Entering into Monday night, NFL placekickers combined to match an NFL record with 11 field goals of at least 50 yards in one week. Through Week 10, there have been 71 50-yard field goals which is also an NFL record. Tyler Bass of the Bills kicked three field goals – 54, 55, and 58-yard kicks. And Jason Meyers of the Seahawks nailed a 61-yarder.

Ronald Jones – Ran 98 yards for a touchdown in the win at the Panthers and ties with Ahman Green (2003) for third-longest in NFL history. Only Tony Dorsett (1982) and Derrick Henry (2018) have covered the full 99 yards.

Huddle player of the week

Alvin Kamara  –  The Saints came out a bit flat and ended up losing Drew Brees to a rib injury and only passing for a total of 139 yards and one score adding in Jameis Winston for the second half. But Kamara came through. He only gained 15 yards on eight carries but ran in two touchdowns. He was also the leading receiver with seven catches for 83 yards and a third touchdown. No other receiver managed more than 27 yards.

Salute!

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

Comedy Yards TDs Tragedy Yards TDs
QB Ben Roethlisberger 333 4 QB Drew Brees 76 1
RB Devontae Booker 16-81
1-2		 2 RB James Conner 13-36
2-12		 0
RB Malcolm Brown 6-33
2-18		 2 RB Mike Davis 7-32
4-12		 0
WR Tee Higgins 7-115 1 WR A.J. Brown 1-21 0
WR Michael Pittman 7-101 0 WR Michael Thomas 2-27 0
WR Brandon Aiyuk 7-75 1 WR DK Metcalf 2-28 0
TE Cameron Brate 3-31 1 TE Jared Cook 0 0
PK Ryan Succop   4 XP   4 FG PK Ka’imi Fairbairn 1  XP
Huddle Fantasy Points = 169 Huddle Fantasy Points = 35

Now get back to work…

Watch: Jordan Reed with the dazzling one-hand grab

Jordan Reed with a great grab of a pass … with one hand

When Jordan Reed is healthy, he is one of the better tight ends in the league. However, being cleared to play has always been a problem for the tight end.

He was in the lineup for the San Francisco 49ers’ on Sunday against the New Orleans Saints and displayed why he is held in such high regard.

Check out the amazing catch — with one hand, no less — he makes in the first half.

The man has the gift of grab.