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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
David Dorey

Tunnel Vision – Injuries, free agents and Sunday stars

SUNDAY SALUTES
Quarterbacks Pass-Rush TD
 C.J. Stroud 470-10 5
 Joshua Dobbs 158-66 3
 Dak Prescott 374-14 3
 Jalen Hurts 207-36 3
 Tyson Bagent 220-70 2
Running Backs Yards TD
Rachaad White 20-73
4-46
2
Rhamondre Stevenson 9-87
4-42
1
Josh Jacobs 26-98 2
Keaton Mitchell 9-138
1-(-4)
1
Aaron Jones  20-73
4-26
1
Wide Receivers Yards TD
CeeDee Lamb 11-191 0
Tank Dell 6-114 2
Noah Brown 6-153 1
Amari Cooper 5-139 1
Diontae Johnson 7-90 1
Tight Ends Yards TD
Dalton Schultz 10-130 1
Cade Otton 6-70 2
Cole Kmet 6-55 2
Jake Ferguson 7-91 1
Jonnu Smith 5-100 1
Placekickers XP FG
Younghoe Koo 2 4
Chase McLaughlin 4 3
Justin Tucker 4 3
Daniel Carlson 3 3
Greg Joseph 2 3
Defense Sack – TO TD
Browns 7-3 0
Colts 4-3 2
Raiders 8-2 0
Ravens 4-2 0
Saints 2-5 0

Bumps, Bruises and Bowouts

QB Jaren Hall – Concussion
QB Daniel Jones – Knee
RB Cam Akers – Ankle
RB Kendre Miller – Ankle
RB Cordarrelle Patterson – Ankle
WR Mack Hollins – Ankle
WR K.J. Osborn – Concussion
WR Marquise Goodwin – Head
WR John Metchie – Ribs
WR Josh Downs – Knee
TE Dallas Goedert – Forearm
TE T.J. Hockenson – Oblique/ribs
PK Ka’imi Fairbairn – Quad

Chasing Ambulances

QB Daniel Jones – The fear is that he tore his ACL and would be lost for the season. The Giants passing offense has been one of the least productive and devoid of reliable fantasy value. If Jones is gone, the Giants only have the rookie Tommy DeVito or Matt Barkley for when they play in Dallas for Week 10.

RB Cam Akers – He injured his left Achilles, and the severity will be determined on Monday. He already tore his right Achilles while with the Rams, and any time that Akers misses will benefit Alexander Mattison more as he would inherit back some of the workload that Akers had taken.

WR K.J. Osborn – The Vikings wideout was carted from the field after temporarily laying motionless. He appeared to have a serious concussion and Brandon Powell would later catch a touchdown at the end of the game to provide the winning margin. Jalen Nailor is the primary backup for Osborn, but Powell is more likely to see expanded use. Justin Jefferson will return at some point as well, but for this week versus the Saints, Powell is the most likely to see a bump in targets.

WR Josh Downs – The rookie was already questionable entering the game with a knee injury he suffered in practice on Thursday. He was active for the game in Carolina but left after one catch with a knee injury – assumedly the one that hampered his practices leading up to the game. Isaiah McKenzie will replace him if needed.

TE Dallas Goedert – He injured his forearm which was awkwardly caught underneath him as he was tackled. He was immediately brought back to the X-ray room and ruled out. The Eagles are already without Grant Calcaterra (concussion) but the Eagles head onto their bye for Week 10. If Goedert missed any time, his targets would more likely shift to the wideouts and running backs than be directly applied to a backup tight end

TE T.J. Hockenson – He injured his oblique and ribs but was able to finish the game. That suggests he’ll be good to go for the Saints this week, but it bears tracking in practice.

Free Agents, Flops and Other Notables

QB Joshua Dobbs (MIN) – The rookie Jaren Hall only lasted for nine passes before suffering a concussion. Dobbs entered the game having never had a practice rep with the Vikings. He completed 20-of-30 for 158 yards and two passing scores, plus he ran for 66 yards on seven runs with another touchdown. Imagine what he can do when he practices, learns the plays, and knows the names of his teammates. Justin Jefferson is eligible to return next week, but that may not happen.

QB Tyson Bagent (CHI) – He is improving. The undrafted rookie threw for 220 yards and two touchdowns in the loss at the Saints, and he ran for 70 yards on eight scrambles. They host the Panthers this week, so Bagent has a shot at another decent performance.

RB Keaton Mitchell (BAL) – The rookie finally had his first carry of the year and ended with nine runs for 138 yards and a touchdown and caught a pass for a four-yard loss. He was popular with fans in the summer but suffered a shoulder injury and later a hamstring strain. The East Carolina back runs a 4.37 40-time . He broke a 60-yard run and later ran 40 yards for a touchdown in the win over the Seahawks. And it wasn’t just late fourth-quarter mop-up duty. Mitchell had runs in every quarter. Gus Edwards scored twice on his five runs for 50 yards and the Ravens let the rookie get more reps in the game that was decided early.

WR Noah Brown (HOU) – He’s only played in four games, but Brown led the team with 153 yards on six catches with a touchdown against the Buccaneers. His previous best was only three catches for 57 yards (Week 8). That’s probably a single-game performance, but it was impressive on a day when C.J. Stroud passed for 470 yards.

TE Cade Otton (TB) – The Texan defense is actually good against the pass but weakest versus tight ends. That showed up on Sunday when the Bucs’ Otton caught six passes for 70 yards and two scores – all season-high marks. He’s seen more use in the last three weeks, and the success of Week 9 should help him stay in the game plan.

QB Taylor Heinicke (ATL) – Hidden behind the defensive collapse of the Falcons was Heinicke’s first start. He replaced Desmond Ridder, who had a 28-24 lead over the Vikings with only two minutes left to play. He played without Drake London and passed for 100 yards to Jonnu Smith while Kyle Pitts (4-56) was better than usual. HC Arthur Smith said Ridder remains the starter, so they may return to him at the Cardinals this week. But their personnel decisions are often surprising, like letting Tyler Allgeier (12-39, TD) carry more often than Bijan Robinson (11-51) despite the greater effectiveness of Robinson.

RB Aaron Jones (GB) – After disappointing over the first eight games of the season, Jones ran 20 times for 76 yards and a touchdown, plus caught four passes for 26 yards. Jones had never had more than 11 touches in a game, so it is encouraging to see him with a heavier workload.

RB Rachaad White (TB) – The Bucs starting running back hasn’t set the world on fire and had not scored since Week 2. But he was better for two weeks with around 100 total yards and then became the No. 1 fantasy running back for Week 9 when he ran for 73 yards on 20 carries with two touchdowns and caught four passes for 76 yards. He’s taking over the backfield and getting more touches. The Bucs still handed out seven carries between Chase Edmonds (3-(-5)) and Ke’Shawn Vaughn (4-9) but White is rising in the rankings.

RB D’Onta Foreman (CHI) – The Bears lost to the Saints, but Foreman carried the ball 20 times for 83 yards – more carries in a game than any other Bear this year. Roschon Johnson only ran twice for six yards and caught a nine-yard pass. Foreman is looking good for this week at home versus the Panthers.

Huddle player of the week

Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

C.J. Stroud  –  The rookie just set the all-time record for a rookie quarterback with 470 passing yards, breaking Andrew Luck’s 433 yards in 2012. His five touchdown passes tie an all-time NFL record for a rookie. He is only the second rookie quarterback with 400 yards and five touchdowns in a game. Stroud only needed 40 of the 46 seconds left to play when he drove the Texans from their 25-yard line and ended with a 15-yard touchdown pass to Tank Dell with six seconds left to play.

Salute!

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

Comedy Yards TDs Tragedy Yards TDs
QB Joshua Dobbs 158-66 3 QB Tua Tagovailoa 193-7 1
RB Keaton Mitchell 9-138
1-(-4)
1 RB Kenneth Walker 9-16
1-1
0
RB Brian Robinson 18-69
1-4
1 RB Bijan Robinson 11-51
2-8
0
WR Tank Dell 6-114 2 WR George Pickens 2-(-1) 0
WR Noah Brown 6-153 1 WR DK Metcalf 1-50 0
WR Odell Beckham 5-56 1 WR Cooper Kupp 2-48 0
TE Cade Otton 6-70 2 TE Travis Kelce 3-14 0
PK Chase McLaughlin   4 XP  3  FG PK Harrison Butker 2  XP
Huddle Fantasy Points = 175 Huddle Fantasy Points = 46

Now get back to work…

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