Stepfan Taylor ‘13 made the most of his return to the Bay Area, helping to lift the Arizona Cardinals past the hapless Oakland Raiders with 59 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns. Taylor, the backup behind Cardinals star Andre Ellington, had 12 carries for 40 yards, while also helping out in the passing game with two receptions for 19 yards.
Taylor’s two-yard TD reception from Carson Palmer helped give Arizona a 7-0 lead to cap an 11-play, 88-yard drive. Later, after Oakland score 13 unanswered points to cut the Cardinals’ lead to 14-13, Taylor found the end zone on the ground with a four-yard TD run; his second touchdown gave Arizona some additional breathing room, as the Cardinals would ultimately push aside Oakland’s challenge by a score of 24-13.
Good Day In The Bay! #azcardinals #kulabafi http://t.co/NWtrpTYoZh
— Stepfan Taylor (@KULABAFI) October 20, 2014
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Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck ’12 continued to show that he belongs among the best with another standout performance on Sunday.
The former Heisman-candidate passed for 344 yards and two touchdowns as the Colts trounced the one-loss Cincinnati Bengals 27-0. He did record one fumble, his third in three games, but otherwise was nearly mistake-free as he lead his team to a fifth consecutive victory.
Luck found his former Stanford running mate Coby Fleener ‘12 four times over the course of the afternoon, including once on a third down conversion that kept the Colts’ second touchdown drive alive. He even did his best to vindicate any Stanford fans that were still reeling from the Cardinal’s Saturday loss to Arizona State, absorbing a massive hit from former Sun Devil linebacker Vontaze Burflict in stride.
Stanford’s former star has given Colts fans little to complain about all season, and the sky appears to be the limit for the 2012 first overall draft pick. If Luck can remain consistent and continue his impressive run, he figures to have a strong chance at tying Tom Brady to become the youngest MVP in NFL history.
Elsewhere for the Colts, Griff Whalen ’12 turned in a solid performance by bringing back the lone Bengals’ kickoff for 27 yards and two punts for a total of 13 yards.
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A week after sharing some harsh words for his teammates, Seattle’s Doug Baldwin ’11 seemed happier on Tuesday, despite the Seahawks coming up short against the NFC West laggard St. Louis Rams.
Baldwin told The Seattle Times that he thought his offense was “back on the right track” following a somewhat disappointing performance last week against the Dallas Cowboys. The defending NFL champions are just 3-3, and a series of injuries and problems with execution have kept them from playing at their best this season.
The talented Baldwin managed to catch seven passes from quarterback Russell Wilson, including a nine yard touchdown reception with just under four minutes remaining that brought the Seahawks within two. Unfortunately, his efforts failed to translate into a win, as the Rams subsequently ran out the clock to ensure that Seattle’s offense couldn’t close the remaining gap.
On the other side of the football, boisterous cornerback Richard Sherman ’11 posted a respectable performance but found himself yet again in the midst of controversy when an apparent fumble recovery with just a minute to go was not recognized by the referees.
As the Rams’ Tre Mason attempted to convert a third-and-1, the ball popped loose and started bouncing downfield. Mason and teammate Cory Harkey failed to contain the football and it seemingly fell under the body of Sherman, who was quickly submerged in a pile of players. The cornerback did not appear to gain full possession, however, and to his team’s dismay the ball was awarded to the Rams.
Sherman later claimed to have recovered the fumble and questioned why the play wasn’t reviewed. The video replay of the recovery appeared murky at best, however, and it is unclear if it would have been sufficient to change the call in Seattle’s favor.
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With Zach Ertz ’13 and the Philadelphia Eagles on a bye, Levine Toilolo ’13 was the sole representative of the Stanford tight end class of 2013 on Sunday.
Toilolo has struggled thus far with the Atlanta Falcons this season, notably leading the league in dropped passes. He fortunately avoided adding to that statistic last weekend, but he only managed to get open twice and yet again failed to find the end zone as his team fell 29-7 to the Ravens.
With the strong-throwing Matt Ryan delivering him the ball and given the comparative weakness of opponents in the NFC South, Toilolo should have plenty of chances to redeem himself this season. If he wishes to placate the Falcons fans, however, he’ll need to start contributing in a more meaningful way before the team’s playoff chances start to grow slim.
Contact Andrew Mather at amather ‘at’ stanford.edu.