NFL – 2016 WEEK 3 – STATS THAT STICK OUT
Jameis Winston, QB (Buccaneers)
LA 37 at TB 32
Despite a loss at home, the Bucs have a lot to be proud of after their Week 3 performance including that of their second-year QB Winston. Facing one of the top pass defenses so far this season, Winston managed to throw for 405 yards which was a career high for him and became the fifth-highest single game total in Tampa Bay franchise history. He also threw for 3 TDs and set career highs in completions (36) and attempts (58). Together, with his totals in these areas from Weeks 1 & 2, Winston is on pace to set the Buccaneers single-season records by a wide margin. If the O-Line continues to keep him upright, he just may make history. The only area that may be concerning for Winston is interceptions. So far, he has thrown 6, which ties for 2nd highest in the NFL.
Devonta Freeman, RB (Falcons)
ATL 45 at NO 32
On Monday night football, Atlanta absolutely crushed the running game with Freeman doing most of the hard work. He ran for 152 yards and his 10.9 average yards more than doubled any other RBs production for the week. Unfortunately for Freeman, backup RB Tevin Coleman was a major benefactor of his achievements. As some online fantasy owners justly pointed out, Coleman “stole” the show (and Freeman’s TDs) when he literally walked in the end zone for 3 TDs to Freeman’s 0. Meanwhile, Coleman only rushed for 42 yards and averaged 3.5 yards. Still, it was all about teamwork and together, Week 3’s totals help Atlanta to vault up to 5th place in the NFL category of rushing yards (408).
Marvin Jones, WR (Lions)
DET 27 at GB 34
Jones was the star WR of Week 3 when he had 6 catches for 205 yards (a career high), averaged an incredible 34.2 yards, and scored 2 TDs. This performance comes on the heels of Week 2 when he caught 8 passes for 118 yards helping him to have back-to-back 100-yard receiving games the first time in his career. These totals are not surprising since Lions QB Matt Stafford has been slicing up the air in style this season with passing yards and accuracy. In Week 3 alone, Stafford threw for 385 yards with a passer rating of 112.3. Looks like the Lions will be ok after losing WR Calvin Johnson to retirement in the off season.
Dustin Hopkins, Kicker (Redskins)
WSH 29 at NYG 27
The most productive player during the very competitive Redskins Week 3 game vs the Giants was Washington’s place kicker Dustin Hopkins. The 25-year-old was a perfect 5 for 5 with field goal attempts and 2 for 2 on extra points which helped Washington win on the road and avoid going 0-3. Hopkins is also perfect on the year which validates the Redskins decision to fire veteran kicker Kai Forbath right after the season opener for his lack of consistency. Hopkins will be a key component going forward if the Redskins offense continues to struggle in the red zone.
Everson Griffen, DE (Vikings)
MIN 22 at CAR 10
The Minnesota defense has been on fire this season and are statistically looking like one of the best in the league. They already have 3 different players who have at least 3 sacks through the first 3 games. One of those players is Griffen who is swiftly claiming a reputation as one of the best defensive ends in the league. In Week 3, he had 3 sacks, hit QB Cam Newton 4 times, had 3 tackles and 1 assist. He, along with the other Vikings defense, disrupted the Panthers QB so much, he threw 3 interceptions and was sacked 8 times total. Amazingly, Griffen performed at this extremely high level while being sick (he was allegedly vomiting on the sidelines) and even temporarily exited the game due to illness. Have to give extra kudos to a guy who has the stamina and tenacity to do the job at an elite level even while feeling ill.
Pittsburgh Steelers
PIT 3 at PHL 34
Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin began his weekly press conference by aptly saying “We got our butts kicked” when referring to the pummeling his team took Week 3 by the Eagles. Surprisingly, the Steelers were dominated in every way from the defense which could not hold back rookie QB Wentz & either his pass or rush offense, to the offense which also could not stop the Eagles defense from sacking QB Ben Roethlisberger 4 times, forcing 2 interceptions, and holding RB Williams to just 21 yards on 8 carries. Ultimately, it amounted to the Steelers lowest offensive production since 2013. Some of the debacle can be blamed on injuries to 4 Pittsburgh starters. But that was an embarrassing loss for a team many experts predicted would win the Super Bowl this year against a team many saw in the preseason as “rebuilding” with a rookie QB. Perhaps more credit here should indeed go to the Eagles who played with both confidence and aggression. Philly cornerback Nolan Carroll admitted after the game that the team had “an extra chip on our shoulder coming in” and that “It’s hard going all week just hearing about how they were going to come in here and basically play smash-mouth against us, bully us and everybody was thinking the same thing nationally.” Not anymore.
Source : NFL Stats
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at https://theladylovessports.com/contact.