Tag: player of the game

Colts’ player of the game vs. Browns: WR Josh Downs

Here’s why Josh Downs is our player of the game from the Week 7 loss.

On Sunday, the Indianapolis Colts (3-4) hosted the Cleveland Browns (4-2) for an AFC matchup that had all the makings of a slugfest. As everyone drew it up, the Colts lost to the Browns, 39-38, in a wild, high-scoring, “nothing makes sense” affair.

It was another rough outing for quarterback Gardner Minshew in the turnover department. Minshew now has eight turnovers through two games. Opponents have turned those eight turnovers into 34 points.

Despite the sloppy play, wide receiver Josh Downs continues to impress. After a stellar showing in Week 5 that amounted to six receptions and 97 yards, Downs showed precisely why the Colts drafted him.

He earns this week’s Player of the Game honors after posting five receptions on six targets for 125 yards and a touchdown. That touchdown came on the first drive in which he got behind broken coverage a scored from 59 yards out.

Downs has been doing these things back to training camp this summer. His ability to separate helps him tremendously, considering his physical size. And to the joy of the Colts, defenses continue to underestimate his abilities.

Invoking shades of a former smaller receiver (T.Y. Hilton), Downs is fun to watch.

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Cowboys’ Dak Prescott impacts game on ground, through air in Week 6 win

The Dallas quarterback used his legs for the first time in what felt like forever, threatening the defense and buying time in the win. | From @TimLettiero

Dallas was backed up against the wall, cornered by narratives, coming into their Week 6, Monday Night Football matchup with the Los Angeles Chargers. They had a lot to prove after the prior week’s embarrassment, specifically in the execution department. While the defense held strong throughout and stepped up when it mattered most, Dallas’ offense was the focal point of the contest.

Already under a microscope as they took on their former offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, fans and analysts opined about the regression shown by the Cowboys’ offense. So while the defense showed the shortcomings of Moore’s offense against a top-tier defense, the team would be judged by how the offense performed. Quarterback Dak Prescott carried Dallas to a victory. From the jump he was dealing through the air but also on the ground.

While there is still much to question about the play calling under HC Mike McCarthy, what is definitive is how much he got out of his QB on Monday.

The Chargers took the lead on their opening possession, but it didn’t take long for the Cowboys to respond. On 4th-and-1 in the red zone, Prescott kept the read option, taking it to the house for an 18-yard score.

It was his first rushing touchdown in the regular season since Week 8 last season, and was the first of several plays where Prescott showed mobility in the pocket. He was assaulted by the Chargers’ pass rush all game, and had numerous escapes to either minimize a loss, gain yardage or buy time to find open receivers.

With the game tied and the offense deep in their own territory in the fourth quarter, Prescott spun out of pressure, scrambled right, and found RB Tony Pollard for a first down that turned into a big gain after a broken tackle.

Later, this clutch third-down conversion set Dallas up in the red zone with a chance to take the lead. Prescott dropped back and floated a perfect ball into the end zone that WR Brandin Cooks came down with for his first score on the year.

Presott finished the game with a 109.3 passer rating, completing 21 of 30 passes for 272 yards. He was a perfect 11-for-11 when throwing to CeeDee Lamb and Brandin Cooks, overcoming his lack of connection with Michael Gallup (10 targets, only three catches).

VOTE: Falcons Week 6 Player of the Game

VOTE for the Falcons Week 6 Player of the Game following Sunday’s 24-16 loss to the Commanders

The Atlanta Falcons (3-3) simply couldn’t keep up with the Washington Commanders (3-3) during Sunday’s 24-16 loss.

Falcons quarterback Desmond Ridder threw three interceptions, the running game was bottled up and the defense couldn’t slow the Commanders offense. Nonetheless, there were still some performances worth noting.

The defense came away with five sacks, including No. 100 for Calais Campbell. Fans voted and wide receiver Drake London was selected as the team’s Week 6 Player of the Game (see poll results below).

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10 takeaways from Week 6 loss

Fans bury Arthur Smith

WATCH: Smith frustrated with QB

Falcons vs. Commanders: Gallery

Calais Campbell gets sack No. 100

Colts’ player of the game vs. Jaguars: WR Michael Pittman Jr.

Here’s why Michael Pittman Jr. is our player of the game from the loss to the Jaguars.

On Sunday, the Indianapolis Colts traveled to Duval County to take on their division rival, the Jacksonville Jaguars. Unfortunately, they came up short, losing 37-20 and dropping to a 3-3 record.

It was a rough outing for Indianapolis. Quarterback Gardner Minshew had four turnovers, and the team, as a whole, struggled to keep up with Jacksonville.

However, there was a bright spot within the loss.

Michael Pittman Jr. came to play and earned this week’s Player of the Game honors.

Pittman was a trusty target when his number was called. The receiver finished Sunday’s matchup with nine receptions and 109 yards. He builds on the 11 catches and 97 receiving yards (plus a touchdown) outing against Jacksonville on September 10.

It’s the first time Pittman has reached the 100-yard receiving mark since he did it nearly a year ago in a 34-27 win over the Jaguars at Lucas Oil Stadium on Oct. 16, 2022.

The Colts will need his production as the season rolls on. They are without starting quarterback Anthony Richardson and have the Cleveland Browns next.

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Cowboys CB DaRon Bland proving lightning can strike twice

The second-year pro proves he’s more than ready to fill the shoes for the All-Pro he’s replacing. | From @TimLettiero

Cowboys fans got to sit back and enjoy the good version of Dallas this week as they strolled to a win against the New England Patriots. From start to finish, it was an assertive victory with very few negatives in the 38-3 victory. The offense moved the football downfield at will against one of the league’s better, defenses. Once again though, it was the Cowboy’s defense, turning in another dominant display.

Dallas allowed a field goal on their first drive and seemed to take it personally. Midway through the second quarter, a defensive score extended the lead to 18-3 and soonafter the star of the show went to work. As New England attempted to make something happen before the half, QB Mac Jones looked left and threw a too-late hitch in the direction of second-year star DaRon Bland.

The Cowboys made sure to get Bland, who spent 2022 playing slot duties, a ton of work on the outside during the offseason. It’s paying immediate dividends in 2023.

Now up 28-3 going into the half, Dallas was in the driver’s seat to put the game to bed. Once more, “anything but” Bland did what needed to be done.

With All-Pro Trevon Diggs out for the season with a torn ACL, Dallas was in desperate need of someone to step up in the secondary. Bland has done more than his part since entering the league and is now entering superstar territory and the aforementioned Diggs has something to say about that.

It took Diggs half a season in his rookie year to acclimate himself to the league. Once he did, he went on a historic run with 14 interceptions across 21 games. Bland seems to be on a similar trajectory. Diggs started from Day 1 but didn’t have an interception until his eighth contest.

Bland had an interception as a part-time player, with just 63 snaps across his first seven games. He’s added seven interceptions in the 14 contests since, for a total of eight in his young career. The sky seems to be the limit for the youngseter and for the Cowboys, who continue to corner the market at the position.

Colts’ player of the game vs. Rams: QB Anthony Richardson

The rookie QB earns our player of the game honors.

The Indianapolis Colts looked lifeless for the majority of regulation until rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson provided exactly the spark they needed even if they ultimately fell short in overtime against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday.

Though Richardson’s completion percentage on the day (44%) looks unappealing, the rookie was working without his starting left tackle and center. Those issues were constant as the Colts had no answer for Aaron Donald.

Richardson only had 47 passing yards during the first half, and the Colts were down 23-0 halfway through the third quarter. Nothing was working, but Richardson composed himself and led a massive comeback, scoring 23 unanswered points to tie the game before the end of regulation.

The Colts offense didn’t get a chance to get the ball in overtime so Richardson’s stat line is all from regulation. He completed 11-of-25 passes for 200 yards, two touchdowns and a 98.8 passer rating while adding 10 carries for 57 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown.

There certainly were some growing pains present in this game, but Richardson led a massive comeback that shows just how resilient this group is under new head coach Shane Steichen.

Also deserving of recognition in this game was edge rusher Dayo Odeyingbo, who led the defense with 1.5 sacks, four quarterback hits, one tackle for loss, one pass defensed and one forced fumble.

Richardson and the Colts will be back home in Week 5 for their third division game of the season, hosting the Tennessee Titans (2-2) at Lucas Oil Stadium.

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Bills’ phenomenal defense vs. Commanders set a new team record

A new team record for the #Bills (via @TejasVemparala):

The Buffalo Bills defense dominated on Sunday versus the Washington Commanders, with the Bills’ pass rushers combining to sack Commanders’ quarterback Sam Howell nine times.

The pass rush helped force five turnovers in the 37-3 win. Howell was constantly under pressure when throwing and the Bills’ pass rushers had a field day against a weak offensive line.

Turns out, the pass rushers set a record in Buffalo team history. Sunday was the first time that the Bills defense had four defenders with one or more sack ever:

Bills Wire Week 3 Player of the Game linebacker Terrel Bernard led the pass-rushing pressure along with defensive end Leonard Floyd. They had two sacks each.

Defensive tackle Ed Oliver and defensive tackle DaQuan Jones also joined Bernard and Floyd in the multi-sack stat column with 1.5 sacks each, respectively.

The nine-sack performance is a big departure from last week’s win against the Las Vegas Raiders where Raiders QB Jimmy Garoppolo was not sacked at all.

The Bills defense has never had four players with multiple sacks, but have had nine sacks against an opponent before.

On Jan, 9, 2022, the Bills registered nine against the New York Jets, with Mario Addison, Jordan Poyer, and Ed Oliver registering multiple sacks. The dominating performance by the defense is incredibly impressive.

The Bills defensive line will need a repeat performance this Sunday when they play the undefeated division rival Miami Dolphins against an electric offense that scored 70 points last weekend. We hope to see multiple sacks against Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.

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Bills’ Terrel Bernard stat draws comparison to HOFer Brian Urlacher

#Bills’ Terrel Bernard stat draws comparison to HOFer Brian Urlacher (via @TejasVemparala):

The Buffalo Bills defense was phenomenal in their game against the Washington Commanders on Sunday.

The BillsWire Player Of The Game was everywhere on defense, generating turnovers and putting pressure on Commanders quarterback Sam Howell.

The third-round pick from Baylor in 2022 notched seven tackles, two sacks, a fumble recovery, and an interception in Week 3 as the Bills suffocated the Commanders.

Washington turned the ball over five times as the Bills in total picked off four passes along with Bernard’s fumble recovery.

The linebacker’s career day received plaudits by many.

Turns out, though, that Bernard’s day was in elite company.

Bernard is the first player since Hall Of Famer Brian Urlacher to record two-plus sacks, catch an interception, and recover a fumble in a single game:

If Bernard has a career like Urlacher’s, the Bills defense will be elite for years to come.

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Bills Wire Week 3 Player of the Game: Terrel Bernard

Bills Wire Week 3 Player of the Game: Terrel Bernard (via @TejasVemparala):

The Buffalo Bills’ third game of the 2023 NFL season extended the Bills’ win streak with a blowout win against the Washington Commanders.

Buffalo won 37-3 in a game which they were the superior team on every side of the ball: offense, defense, and special teams.

Many players on offense and defense were in the running for this week’s player of the game, and all of them would certainly be there on merit. We are awarding the Player of the Game Award in Week 3 to linebacker Terrel Bernard, who had seven tackles, two sacks, a fumble recovery, and an interception:

The Bills defense, overall, was phenomenal, pressuring Washington quarterback Sam Howell on 27 of 39 dropbacks to generate four interceptions and 9 sacks. According to NFL Next Gen Stats, that is the second-highest pressure rate in a game since 2014.

Bernard was a presence across both quarterback pressure and backfield coverage. He is quickly becoming another name on the Bills defense for teams around the NFL to fear. Week 2 Player of the Game Josh Allen celebrated with Bernard, probably happier that they are teammates instead of opponents.

Buffalo return home to play against the division-leading Miami Dolphins next week on Sunday at 1 p.m.

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Cowboys WR Michael Gallup returns to form in a disappointing loss

From @timlettiero: Michael Gallup, our Player of the Game, turns back time and proves his worth against the Arizona Cardinals on a rough day in the desert.

The Cowboys traveled to Glendale in their Week 3 bout with the 0-2 Arizona Cardinals but seemingly left their abilities in Dallas. Struggling to get anything going on either side of the ball, the Josh Dobbs-led Cardinals had their way for four quarters. They dominated Dallas on the ground offensively and stifled multiple red zone trips defensively, giving Dallas no room to breathe.

Simply put, there is little positive to take away from this game. Thankfully, everyone came out of it healthy, but no one stepped up when they desperately needed someone to. What we did see, however, was multiple names answer questions about their future, wide receiver Michael Gallup specifically.

Gallup has gotten next to no shine this season after a rough 2022 campaign but made his presence known Sunday.

Early on, Gallup took a rotine catch and quickly turned away from his man for a nice 19-yard, first-down gain on second and long.

Fast-forward to the middle of the third, and vintage Michael Gallup returns for the first time in a long time for a beautiful pitch and catch.

 

To cap his solid day, he moved the chains with a clutch grab on a nasty slant to keep the offense moving in the fourth.

 

Gallup didn’t light up the stat sheet with his performance, but for a player that has struggled to return to the form everyone knows he can reach, this was a fantastic day at the office for him.

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