Patrick Mahomes he was usually in prime time. Gena Smith was as good as ever in a shootout. Both defenders earned it NFL Player of the Week Awards.
What other players came out last weekend? Let’s unlock the Week 4 rewards.
AFC Offensive Player of the Week: QB Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs
Patrick Mahomes heard naysayers suggest he can’t produce the same numbers without a WR Tyreek Hill. He watched as his peers ranked him as the third best QB in football. And so far, despite the doubts surrounding him, he has done nothing but score.
Mahomes led the Chiefs to a 3-1 record and atop the AFC West. I Sunday evening against Tom Brady and BuccaneersMahomes added another historic performance to his long haul, rushing for 249 yards and three touchdowns on a 23-of-37 clip. He added four rushes for 34 yards on the ground while making perhaps the play of the week with an acrobatic throw Clyde Edwards-Eller early in the second quarter.
AFC Defensive Player of the Week: S Jordan Poyer, Buffalo Bills
ravens has coach John Harbaugh received a ton of criticism for his choice to go for fourth down during the detachment of Art 23-20 loss to Buffalo, but the reason he’s setting up such a big firestorm is Bills safety Jordan Poyer.
Poyer made a great play on the ball to cap a 14-play, 93-yard drive by Baltimore, diving in front of the receiver to record an economical TD. Even better for Poer, it was his second INT of the day. The first came earlier, the fourth later Lamar Jackson the pass was tipped at the line of scrimmage. Poyer finished the game with six tackles and three pass deflections, but it was his pair of late interceptions that helped Buffalo win.
NFC Offensive Player of the Week: QB Gena Smith, Seattle Seahawks
Genoa! Those who thought Gene Smith wasn’t cut out to lead the Seattle Seahawks had another thing coming into the season. I while Sunday was one of the 20 highest scoring games in NFL history, it was also probably the top performance of Smith’s career.
Throughout the game, Smith was unstoppable, dropping dime after dime for 320 yards (23-for-30) and two TDs through the air while also scoring another TD on the ground. He also ran for 49 yards on seven attempts in the 48-45 victory. Of course, Seattle’s defense can’t give up 45 points per outing if they want to maintain success, but a showing like this from Smith will only bring positives to the offense going forward.
Geena Smith and Rashaad Penny lead the Seahawks to a 48-45 win over the Lions
Genea Smith finished with 320 yards and three touchdowns in the Seahawks’ 48-45 win over the Lions
NFC Defensive Player of the Week: LB Hassan Reddick, Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles’ defense was lower the beginning of its output against Jaguars, but after the team fell behind 14-0, the unit stepped up decisively, shutting down Jacksonville’s offense as the game wore on. And Hassan Reddick was at the center of it all.
Jacksonville drove eight times for 80 yards on its second drive, but was held scoreless in the second and third quarters after taking early leads. Redick’s pressure on the QB Trevor Lawrence was a huge catalyst in that effort as he posted four tackles, two sacks, a tackle for loss and a solo QB hit. Both sacks resulted in forced fumbles, and Redick cleaned them up by pouncing on both to seal his team’s possession.
Special Teams: AFC, NFC Players of the Week: K Evan McPherson (Cincinnati Bengals) and K Greg Joseph (Minnesota Vikings)
McPherson helped clean up Dolphins in the fourth quarter of the Cincy game Thursday night, hitting a pair of field goals of 19 and 57 yards, respectively, making all three of his attempts throughout the match. He earned his third AFC Player of the Week award after two last season.
Joseph was the Vikings’ strongest scorer in their 28-25 to win New Orleans in London. He made all five of his FG attempts, one of which was a 47-yarder to seal the win for Minnesota. Joseph is 8-of-10 on field goals and 8-of-9 on extra points this season.
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