Alvin Kamara was right.This has never happened in the Ups and Downs series
New Orleans Saints Erik McCoy Jersey , but for the second week in a row, we don’t have any big “Downs” to go over from the game. There were plenty of “Ups.” Here are a few that stood out:Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty ImagesUp: Tre’Quan SmithDez who?The Saints haven’t felt comfortable with their group of wide receivers not named “Michael Thomas” after Ted Ginn Jr was placed on IR. That led to the Saints signing Dez Bryant, and eventually Brandon Marshall after Bryant was injured before his first game.With Marshall inactive, rookie Tre’Quan Smith was asked to step up. Tre’Quan did more than just “step up,” as he finished the game with a career night: catching 10 of 13 targets for 157 yards and a TD.Ted Ginn is coming back soon. Brandon Marshall could see the field as early as Thursday. Keith Kirkwood has looked great in his first two games. The Saints wide receiver room could move from a weakness to a strength sooner rather than later.Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty ImagesUp: Mark IngramAfter his first 100-yard rushing game of the season against the Bengals last week, Ingram backed it up with another 100+ yard performance against the Eagles.“Angry Mark” punched it into the end zone twice, rushing for 103 yards. You can just see how this Saints offense can find another gear with Ingram joining Kamara in the New Orleans backfield.Chuck Cook-USA TODAY SportsUp: Marshon LattimoreMarshon Lattimore finally is starting to look like the defending Defensive Rookie of the Year.He’s made small strides all season, finally taking two big steps the last two weeks. Lattimore was rarely targeted against the Bengals, and carried that same Island-mentality to the game against the Eagles.Lattimore’s strong play and series of near-picks finally paid off with an interception on an under-thrown pass by Carson Wentz.If Lattimore is able to start playing like his 2017 self, watch out.Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY SportsUp: Third Down DefenseThere are so many solid options for a fourth “Up” this week.Taysom Hill called an audible at the line of scrimmage and changed the play to a tight end screen that went for a first down. Eli Apple has started to come in to his own in the New Orleans secondary after the trade with the Giants. Jermon Bushrod played admirably standing in the injured Terron Armstead, especially considering his off-the-field circumstances. Michael Thomas, Alvin Kamara, and Wil Lutz were all great as per usual, and Sean Payton called a great game.But instead, let’s go with the Saints defense as a whole.Coming into Week 11, the Saints were allowing first downs on 40% of third downs against them. They were able to hold the Eagles offense to only 30% last week, and keeping the Eagles oh-for on fourth down, taking a big step forward.Whew. SCOREBOARDMonday, Oct. 8Washington at New Orleans, 8:15 p.m. Saints QB Drew Brees has 71,740 yards passing, and needs 201 yards to move ahead of Peyton Manning for the most all-time. Brees has completed 75.8 percent of his passes for 323.8 yards per game this season. He's passed for eight TDs, no INTs and also has rushed for two TDs. Running back Mark Ingram is set to return from a four-game suspension. Redskins running back Adrian Peterson began 2017 with the Saints, and was traded to Arizona four weeks into the regular season. Running back Chris Thompson had a touchdown receiving in the previous meeting before breaking his right leg in the same game.STARSPassing鈥?Aaron Rodgers
Cheap Erik McCoy Youth Jersey , Packers, was 32for 52 for 442 yards and three touchdowns in Green Bay's 31-23 loss to Detroit.鈥?Philip Rivers, Chargers, was 22 for 27 for 339 yards and two touchdowns in Los Angeles' 26-10 win over Oakland. It is the 59th 300-yard passing game of Rivers' 15-year career and his eighth against the Raiders.鈥?Baker Mayfield, Browns, was 25 for 43 for 342 yards with a touchdown and an interception in Cleveland's 12-9 overtime victory over Baltimore. Mayfield, selected with the No. 1 overall pick in the draft, became the sixth quarterback selected with the first overall pick to win his first career home start in the common draft era. The other five are New England's Jim Plunkett (Sept. 19, 1971), Atlanta's Michael Vick (Nov. 11, 2001), Houston's David Carr (Sept. 8, 2002), Cincinnati's Carson Palmer (Sept. 19, 2004) and Indianapolis' Andrew Luck (Sept. 16, 2002).鈥?Case Keenum, Broncos, finished 35 for 51 for 377 yards with two touchdowns and an interception in Denver's 34-16 loss to the New York Jets.鈥?Eli Manning, Giants, was 22 for 36 and 326 yards and two touchdowns and two interceptions in New York's 33-31 loss to Carolina.Rushing鈥?Isaiah Crowell and Bilal Powell, Jets. Crowell had 15 carries for a franchise-record 219 yards and Powell added 20 carries for 99 yards in New York's 34-16 victory over the Denver Broncos. Crowell, who averaged 14.6 yards per carry, became the fourth player in NFL history with at least 200 rushing yards on 15 or fewer carries, joining the New York Giants' Derrick Ward (Dec. 21
White Rick Leonard Jersey , 2008 vs. Carolina), Hall of Famer Bobby Mitchell (Nov. 15, 1959 at Washington) of the Cleveland Browns and the Los Angeles Rams' Dan Towler (Nov. 22, 1953 at the Baltimore Colts).鈥?Todd Gurley, had 22 carries for 77 yards and three touchdowns in the L.A. Rams' 33-31 win over Seattle.鈥?Chris Carson, Seahawks, had 19 carries for 116 yards in Seattle's 33-31 loss to the L.A. Rams.鈥?James Conner, Steelers, had 21 carries for 110 yards and two touchdowns in Pittsburgh's 41-17 win over Atlanta.Receiving鈥?Davante Adams, Packers, had nine receptions for 140 yards and a touchdown in Green Bay's 31-23 loss to Detroit.鈥?Odell Beckham Jr., Giants, had eight catches for 131 yards and a touchdown and added a 57-yard touchdown pass in New York's 33-31 loss to Carolina.鈥?Robby Anderson, Jets, had three receptions for 123 yards, including touchdowns of 76 and 35 yards, in New York's 34-16 win over Denver.鈥?Adam Thielen, Vikings, had seven catches for 116 yards and a touchdown in Minnesota's 23-21 win over Philadelphia. Thielen is the first player in the Super Bowl era to have at least 100 receiving yards in each of his team's first five games of a season.鈥?A.J. Green, Bengals, had six catches for 112 yards in Cincinnati's 27-17 win over Miami. Green has passed Chad Johnson for most games with at least 100 receiving yards in Bengals franchise history (32).Special Teams鈥?Graham Gano and Colin Jones, Panthers. Gano was 4 for 4 on field goals, including a 63-yarder with 1 second remaining in Carolina's 33-31 win over the New York Giants. The 63-yarder is tied for the second longest in NFL history. Jones recovered a fumbled punt return in the end zone for a touchdown.鈥?Jakeem Grant, Dolphins
Rick Leonard Jersey 2019 , returned a punt 70 yards for a touchdown in Miami's 27-17 loss to Cincinnati.鈥?Stephen Hauschka, Bills, made a 46-yard field goal as time expired to give Buffalo a 13-12 win over Tennessee.鈥?Greg Joseph, Browns, made a knuckling 37-yard field goal in overtime to give Cleveland a 12-9 win over Baltimore.Defense鈥?Michael Johnson and Sam Hubbard, Bengals. Johnson returned an interception 22 yards for a touchdown and Hubbard returned a fumble 19 yards for a touchdown in Cincinnati's 27-17 win over Miami.鈥?Linval Joseph, Vikings, returned a fumble 64 yards for a touchdown in Minnesota's 23-21 win over Philadelphia.鈥?Chris Jones, Chiefs, returned an interception 20 yards for a touchdown in Kansas City's 30-14 win over Jacksonville.鈥?T.J. Watt and L.J. Fort, Steelers. Watt had three sacks and a forced fumble and Fort recovered a fumble in the end zone for a touchdown in Pittsburgh's 41-17 win over Atlanta.鈥?Josh Bynes, Cardinals, returned a fumble 23 yards for a touchdown in Arizona's 28-18 win over San Francisco.MILESTONESThe Jets topped the Broncos 34-16. Isaiah Crowell had a 77-yard touchdown run and Robby Anderson had a 76-yard touchdown reception. According to the Jets, it was the first time they have had multiple TDs on offense of 75 yards or more in the same game since Sept. 24, 1972, against the Baltimore Colts. Joe Namath tossed TD passes of 79 and 80 yards to Rich Caster in that one. ... The Bengals overcame a 17-0 deficit and rallied for a 27-17 win over Miami. They hadn't been shut out in an opening half and rallied to win since 2004, when they trailed Miami 3-0 at halftime and pulled it out 16-13. It was only the fourth time in franchise history that the Bengals scored 24 points in the fourth quarter and won 鈥?they also did it in 1972, 1978 and 2004. ... Jakeem Grant's 70-yard punt return for a touchdown made him the first Dolphin to score on a reception, a kickoff return and a punt return in the same season. He had a 102-yard kickoff return against Tennessee in the season opener. Grant joins Dante Hall (2003) as the only NFL players with a 100-yard kickoff return, a 70-yard punt return and a 50-yard TD catch in the same season. The previous NFL player with a touchdown of all three varieties was the Chiefs' Tyreek Hill in 2016. ... The Vikings' Adam Thielen is the first player in the Super Bowl era to have at least 100 receiving yards in each of his team's first five games of a season.STREAKS & STATSThe four rookie starting quarterbacks 鈥?the Jets' Sam Darnold, the Browns' Baker Mayfield, the Bills' Josh Allen and the Cardinals' Josh Rosen 鈥?all won. Darnold was 10 for 22 for 198 yards with 3 TDs and an INT in New York's 34-16 win over Denver. Mayfield was 25 for 43 for 342 yards with a TD and INT in Cleveland's 12-9 overtime win over Baltimore. Rosen was 10 for 25 for 170 yards and a TD in Arizona's 28-18 victory over San Francisco. Allen was 10 for 19 for 82 yards and an interception in Buffalo's 13-12 win over Tennessee. ... The Chiefs and Rams both stayed perfect on the season at 5-0. Kansas City handled Jacksonville 30-14 and the Rams edged the Seahawks 33-31. The Rams are the fifth team to score at least 30 points in each of their first five games to start a season in NFL history, joining the 2013 Denver Broncos (eight consecutive games), 2011 New England Patriots (five)
Womens Nick Easton 2019 Jersey , 2007 Patriots (eight) and 2000 St. Louis Rams (eight). The 2013 Broncos, 2011 Patriots and 2007 Patriots all advanced to the Super Bowl. ... Minnesota's Kirk Cousins completed 30 of 37 passes for 301 yards with one touchdown in the Vikings' 23-21 win at Philadelphia. Cousins, who completed 35 passes in Week 2, 40 passes in Week 3 and 36 passes in Week 4, is the first player in NFL history to complete at least 30 passes in four consecutive games. ... The Bills have eight takeaways (five forced fumbles and three interceptions) in their past three games.WORKING OVERTIMEThe Cleveland Browns defeated Baltimore 12-9, in overtime. The Browns have played in overtime three times this season, tied with the 2002 Buffalo Bills, 1995 Indianapolis Colts and 1987 Green Bay Packers for the most such games in a team's first five games of a season since the regular-season overtime rule was instituted in 1974. At least one game has gone to overtime in each of the first five weeks of the 2018 season, marking the first time it's happened.EJECTEDKansas City defensive lineman Chris Jones was ejected in the second half after he dropped an elbow on a Jaguars lineman while both were on the ground following a point-after attempt during the Chiefs' 30-14 win. Then, pass rusher Dee Ford joined him in the locker room when he was whistled for his second unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.SIDELINEDThe Rams' leading receivers, Brandin Cooks and Cooper Kupp, were both lost to concussions late in the first half of the Rams' 33-31 win over the Seattle Seahawks. Cooks was hit hard by Tedric Thompson as he came across the field. Most of the hit was with Thompson's shoulder, but there was some helmet-to-helmet impact and Cooks appeared to be immediately knocked out. He jogged off the field on his own but was ruled out early in the second half. Kupp was also lost with a concussion, although it wasn't immediately clear when he got hurt. ... Kansas City lost four defensive players to injuries in the first half against Jacksonville with linebackers Justin Houston (hamstring) and Tanoh Kpassagnon (ankle) and free safeties Armani Watts (groin) and Eric Murray (lower leg) not returning. The Chiefs' most significant injury might have come in the final minutes, when right guard Laurent Duvernay-Tardif left with a fractured fibia in his left leg. ... Tennessee left tackle Taylor Lewan left his second game this season with an injury in the Titans' 13-12 loss in Buffalo. Lewan hurt a foot in the second quarter. ... In Cincinnati, Miami left tackle Laremy Tunsil left with a concussion during the Bengals' fourth-quarter comeback. ... The San Francisco 49ers lost running back Matt Breida to an injured ankle in their 28-16 loss to Arizona. Center Weston Richburg injured a knee and left in the second half.SPEAKING"These NFL games are crazy, man. It's an up-and-down roller-coaster ride. You ride it and hope you come out on top." Bengals receiver A.J. Green after his team overcame a 17-0 deficit and rallied for a 27-17 win over Miami. The Bengals scored 24 points in the fourth quarter, including a pick-6 and a fumble return for a touchdown."A wise man told me once that a great quarterback is only as good as his kicker. Graham put the whole team on his back today. ... well, on his toe today." 鈥?Panthers quarterback Cam Newton on his kicker Graham Gano. Gano was 4 for 4 on field goals and made a 63-yarder with 1 second remaining as the Panthers slipped past the Giants for a 33-31 victory.