Tag: NFL history

Falcons recap: Matt Ryan is NFL’s active passing yardage leader

Tom Brady’s retirement leaves Matt Ryan with the most career passing yards of any active NFL quarterback.

Tom Brady, arguably the greatest quarterback in NFL history, retired on Tuesday (officially this time) after a historic 22-year career with the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

In today’s recap, we examine how Brady’s retirement affects Matt Ryan, head coach Arthur Smith attends the Senior Bowl and Cordarrelle Patterson gives another hint he wants to remain in Atlanta.

Von Miller returns to the Super Bowl, where he can make NFL history

Von Miller needs one sack to rank No. 2 on the NFL’s all-time Super Bowl sack list. He needs 2.5 sacks to rank No. 1.

After defeating the San Francisco 49ers 20-17 in the NFC championship game on Sunday, the Los Angeles Rams and outside linebacker Von Miller have advanced to Super Bowl LVI.

The Rams will face the Cincinnati Bengals, who knocked off the Kansas City Chiefs 27-24 in the AFC’s title game on Sunday afternoon.

This will be the third time Miller’s team has reached the Super Bowl, although he sidelined with a knee injury when the Denver Broncos went to the Super Bowl in 2013.

Miller was healthy when Denver returned to the Super Bowl following the 2015 season and he had a huge game in Super Bowl 50, totaling six tackles, 2.5 sacks and two forced fumbles. That performance earned him Super Bowl MVP honors. If Miller has another big game against the Bengals, he could make NFL history.

Miller ranks 19th on the NFL’s all-time playoff sack list with 8.5. Two more sacks would move him into the top 10. More than two sacks would move him into the top five.

Charles Haley holds the official record for the most Super Bowl sacks with 4.5 in five games. Five players are tied for second place with three Super Bowl sacks. Miller could move into second place with one sack and he could jump to No. 1 with 2.5 sacks.

(Unofficially, L. C. Greenwood totaled five sacks in four Super Bowls, but he played before the NFL started counting sacks as a stat. Miller would need three sacks to top Greenwood’s unofficial Super Bowl record.)

Miller is already one of just 10 defensive players in league history to win Super Bowl MVP. With a big game, he could become the first defensive player to ever win more than one Super Bowl MVP award.

Super Bowl LVI will be played at SoFi Stadium (home of the Rams) in Los Angeles on Sunday, Feb. 13 at 4:30 p.m. MT on NBC.

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Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes now has most passing TDs through 10 playoff games

After tossing three scores against the #Bills, #Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes now has the most passing touchdowns in NFL history through 10 career postseason games.

Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes continues to crush NFL pace records, and the postseason is no different.

Mahomes made his tenth career postseason start against the Buffalo Bills in the AFC’s divisional round in what is just his fourth year as a starter. After throwing for three passing touchdowns against the Bills on Sunday, Mahomes now has the 25 career passing touchdowns in his first 10 playoff games. That number is good for the most career passing touchdowns by a QB through their first 10 playoff games in NFL history. He passed a Hall of Famer (Kurt Warner) and a future Hall of Famer (Drew Brees) who were both tied for the top spot through 10 playoff games with 23 touchdowns.

Our friend Jeff Kerr at CBS shared a tweet about this earlier in the week:

Mahomes has also passed former Cowboys QB Troy Aikman, former Cowboys QB Roger Staubach and former Eagles QB Donovan McNabb to throw for the 13th-most postseason passing touchdowns in NFL history. He is now tied with Russell Wilson and Joe Flacco. Here’s a look at the top 16 per Pro Football Reference:

  1. Tom Brady: 85
  2. Joe Montana: 45
  3. Aaron Rodgers: 45 (tie)
  4. Brett Favre: 44
  5. Peyton Manning: 40
  6. Drew Brees: 37
  7. Ben Roethlisberger: 36
  8. Dan Marino: 32
  9. Kurt Warner: 31
  10. Terry Bradshaw: 30
  11. John Elway: 27
  12. Joe Flacco: 25
  13. Russell Wilson: 25 (tie)
  14. Patrick Mahomes: 25 (tie)
  15. Donovan McNabb: 24
  16. Roger Staubach: 24 (tie)

At only 26 years old, Mahomes is doing things in the postseason that we’ve never seen before. It’s taken other players their entire career to even get to the point that Mahomes is at in terms of postseason play. His career is still in its infancy and it rivals that of Hall of Fame players. It’s just another reminder of how blessed Chiefs fans are to be witnessing such a great player at the helm of their franchise.

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Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase make NFL history, again

These guys never quit.

Stop me if you have heard this before but Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase made history as they led the Cincinnati Bengals to another victory. The former LSU Tigers duo helped win the 2019 College Football Playoff national championship and two years later have a shot at another trophy.

The Bengals went into Nashville, Tennessee, hoping to take down the No. 1 seeded Titans on Saturday afternoon. They got their opportunity after Eli Apple picked off Ryan Tannehill late in the fourth quarter. One pass from Burrow to Chase and the Bengals were in business once again.

They lined up their rookie kicker for a shot to send Cincinnati to the AFC title game against the winner of Kansas City and Buffalo.

With that 52-yard conversion, Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals move on. During this game, both former LSU Tigers made NFL history. Burrow became the first No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft to lead his team to a conference championship in his first two seasons according to Cole Cubelic.

While Burrow made history for reaching the title game, Chase made history for his second-straight 100-yard performance in the postseason. After posting a nine reception, 116 yard game against the Las Vegas Raiders, he did it again. While facing the Titans, Chase posted a five reception game that went for 109 yards.

On Sunday the team will find out if they are heading to Buffalo or Kansas City for the title game. Either way, Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase are poised to lead them into the Super Bowl.

Broncos RBs Melvin Gordon, Javonte Williams chasing NFL history

Broncos RBs Melvin Gordon and Javonte Williams could become just the eighth duo in NFL history to each rush for 1,000 yards in the same season.

Denver Broncos running backs Melvin Gordon and Javonte Williams carried the team’s offense in a 38-10 win over the Detroit Lions in Week 14.

Gordon and Williams combined for 194 yards from scrimmage and scored four total touchdowns on Sunday, bringing back memories of Denver’s old-style football of the 1960s.

Gordon and Williams became the first Broncos RB duo to each score twice in a single game since Gene Mingo and Al Frazier in 1962. Fred Bukaty and Donnie Stone also accomplished that feat in 1961, and Gordon and Williams became the third duo on Sunday.

It was an impressive showing from the talented running backs, but credit also goes to their teammates.

“Our two running backs have been doing that all year, but I think a good bit of credit needs to go to the o-line and the tight ends,” coach Vic Fangio said after the game. “You know, anytime you hand it off 39 times and the other team knows you’re handing it off that many times, and you are able to grind out the yards — credit to the guys doing the blocking.

“But our two [running] backs are really, really good, and I love them both and glad we have them both. You know, no one is going to carry it 39 times by themselves.”

Gordon now has 882 yards from scrimmage and nine touchdowns this season while Williams has 1,022 yards from scrimmage and six touchdowns.

Gordon is on pace to finish the year with 954 rushing yards and Williams is on pace to end his rookie season with 971 rushing yards. If they can improve their respective paces and each finish the year with 1,000 rushing yards, they would become just the eighth duo to accomplish that feat in NFL history.

To do that, they’ll need their teammates to continue blocking like they did against Detroit.

“We gave credit in the team locker room to the offensive linemen — as we should — but I just want to give just a brief moment to thank the tight ends and the wide receivers,” Gordon said after the game. “Those guys fight their butt off to make plays. We’re fighting as a unit right now. I love to see it, and hopefully they hear this because I didn’t get to say it in there.

“I’m thankful for those guys as well because those guys help create the lanes and the receivers help really make the explosive runs — if you didn’t know. The line absolutely did their thing today and hopefully we can continue to finish this thing out the right way.”

It’s clear that Denver’s plan of attack on offense is a run-heavy approach, and Gordon and Williams have been up to the task.

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Looking at the top 10 seasons by a rookie TE in NFL history

As Pitts looks to climb the ranks of NFL history, let’s take a look at the top 10 single-season yardage leaders among rookie tight ends.

After the Falcons lost their first two games of the season, many around the league began to question the team’s decision to use the No. 4 overall pick on Kyle Pitts, the highest a tight end has ever been selected in the history of the NFL draft. That skepticism is quickly disappearing after Pitts exploded for 17 catches, 282 yards and a touchdown over the past two weeks combined.

The Falcons’ Week 7 win over the Dolphins couldn’t have happened without the rookie’s career-high 163-yard performance. He caught two key passes on the team’s game-winning drive and looks like he’s ready to be Atlanta’s No. 1 option even with Calvin Ridley on the field.

Through six games, Pitts has 31 catches, 471 receiving yards and one touchdown. At this pace, the former Florida Gators standout will finish the year with 88 catches for 1,335 yards — which would be the most ever by a rookie tight end by quite a bit.

As Pitts looks to climb the ranks over the remainder of the year, let’s take a look at the top 10 single-season yardage totals for rookie tight ends in NFL history.

Matt Ryan eclipses Drew Brees in passing yards through 14 seasons

The Falcons have little going for them at the moment, but on Sunday, Matt Ryan surpassed Drew Brees for most passing yards through 14 seasons.

The Atlanta Falcons have very little going for them at the moment, but on Sunday, quarterback Matt Ryan became the most prolific passer in NFL history through 14 seasons in terms of passing yards. Ryan surpassed Drew Brees for the most passing yards through a quarterback’s first 14 seasons during the first half of Atlanta’s Week 2 matchup against Tampa Bay.

The previous record held by Brees was 56,033 passing yards.

Ryan hasn’t had a great start to the 2021 season, but after a poor first quarter against the Buccaneers on Sunday, he was more effective in the second. He’s thrown for 151 yards as the Falcons trail, 21-10, on the verge at halftime.

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Updated research crowns Lions DE Bubba Baker as the single-season sack king

Lions great Bubba Baker verifiably holds the (unofficial) record with 23 sacks in 1978

The NFL has not kept sacks as an official statistic for its entire 75-year existence. The league only started officially tracking the sack in 1982, which leaves out a ton of accomplished pass rushers in the modern (1960-present) era of professional football.

New research from Pro Football Researchers Association, published via Pro Football Reference, meticulously updates the sack records going back to 1960. It’s still not officially recognized by the NFL, but crediting sacks off game tape is pretty standard practice, and the PFRA has pored over the game film dating back to 1960 and updated the records.

And those records indicate that Lions defensive end Al “Bubba” Baker is the single-season sack master. Baker bagged 23 sacks in 1978, his rookie season. That figure eclipses the NFL’s official record set by Michael Strahan in 2001, when the Giants standout hit 22.5 sacks.

Baker was a featured performer in the famed “Silver Rush” defense, and he was the most prolific rusher in the NFL from 1978-1980. During those three seasons, Baker unofficially — but verifiably — notched seasons of 23, 16 and 17.5 sacks. He led the NFL in both 1978 and 1980, again unofficially but verifiably.

In five seasons with the Lions, Baker recorded 74 sacks. Alas, his final year in Detroit was 1982, the first year the league kept sacks as an officially recognized statistic.

Jarvis Landry set apart in NFL history through his first seven seasons

Jarvis Landry is set apart in NFL history through his first seven seasons doing something no other player has ever done.

When the Cleveland Browns acquired Jarvis Landry in a trade with the Miami Dolphins, Landry was playing on the franchise tag that he signed with the Dolphins after four seasons. Shortly after, Browns general manager John Dorsey signed Landry to a five-year contract worth over $75 million.

The $47 million guaranteed was quite surprising at the time.

Going into 2021, Landry has two years left on his deal. He has already made just over $47 million with just over $13 million in cash due to him this year and another $15 million due next season.

During his three seasons in Cleveland, Landry has caught 236 passes for just under 3,000 yards and 13 touchdown receptions. Landry has also rushed for two touchdowns and thrown for a touchdown.

In the playoffs last year, Landry caught 12 passes for 112 yards and two touchdowns.

Landry producing is nothing new for the LSU product as he is the only player in NFL history to be as consistent as he has been in his first seven seasons:

 

While Landry will never be a top receiving threat, his ability to stay healthy, play while dinged up, and produce consistent numbers is impressive. That no other player has done what he has done is not arguable. While he is likely overpaid, his production is unmatched.

In year two under Kevin Stefanski, with his buddy Odell Beckham Jr. returning and Anthony Schwartz added in the third round of the NFL draft, Landry will hope to push his number to eight straight seasons to start a career.

Chargers QB Justin Herbert looking to reach major milestone vs. Raiders

Justin Herbert can continue to write his name in the history book on Thursday night.

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert is on his way to being crowned Offensive Rookie of the Year. But he’s also looking to make history in the final three games of the season.

Herbert, who’s already written his name in the history books multiple times this season, can do it once again tonight against the Raiders.

Herbert is three touchdowns away from breaking Browns QB Baker Mayfield’s record for most touchdowns throw in a single rookie season (27).

Last weekend against the Falcons, Herbert inched closer after tossing a pair. In his previous start against the Raiders, he had 326 yards and two touchdowns.

Facing a depleted secondary, there’s a good chance that the first-round pick can accomplish this feat tonight.