Though the Stanford football team’s season is largely over, the NFL season is still in full swing, and there are quite a few phenomenal former Cardinal players making their marks on a weekly basis in the pros.
Last week, Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey shredded the Seattle Seahawks defense, rushing for 112 yards and a touchdown while racking up 125 yards and a touchdown through the air. McCaffrey led the team in rushing yards, rushing touchdowns, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns, and continued his season of versatility and efficiency. McCaffrey also put up the most fantasy points of any player in the NFL this week with a career-best PPR total of 46.9. McCaffrey is the first player in the NFL since Arian Foster in 2011 to register 100 receiving and 100 rushing yards in a single game.
Green Bay Packers middle linebacker Blake Martinez led the NFC in total tackles this week, racking up 13 in a rivalry game on Sunday night in a tough loss to the Minnesota Vikings. Martinez has been incredibly productive this season as the leader of the Packers defense and currently leads the NFC in total tackles with 97.
Quarterback Andrew Luck led the Indianapolis Colts to victory this week over the Miami Dolphins, bringing the team over the .500 mark for the first time all year. The team currently stands at 6-5 and will be vying for a wildcard spot in the playoffs in a few weeks. Luck racked up 343 yards and three touchdowns passing, along with an impressive completion percentage of 81.1 to push the Colts over the top.
Tight end Zach Ertz continued his record-breaking season as the Philadelphia Eagles’ top pass-catcher this past Saturday. Ertz hauled in seven catches for 91 yards and a touchdown in a close win over the New York Giants 25-22.
Ertz set the Eagles’ franchise record for catches in a single season by a tight end Saturday, and his 84 catches are ninth-most in NFL history by any player after 11 games and most ever by a tight end. The prolific pass-catcher has emerged as quarterback Carson Wentz’s top target this season and has set a new single-season career high in receptions (84) and receiving yards (865). He might just break the NFL records for tight end receptions and receiving yards this season, records that are held currently by Jason Witten and Rob Gronkowski, respectively.
Contact Shan Reddy at rsreddy ‘at’ stanford.edu