When the Cowboys and Panthers faced off during Week 4 of the NFL season, tight end Dalton Schultz ’18 found himself in the end zone while Christian McCaffrey ’17 missed his first game of the season due to a hamstring injury. In Week 12, the two Stanford alumni encountered similar situations in their respective games, with Schultz returning to the end zone and McCaffrey again on the injured reserve.
McCaffrey had ten carries for 35 yards against the Miami Dolphins before he was forced to exit Sunday’s game due to an ankle injury. The running back was placed on the injured reserve list following the game, effectively ending his season. McCaffrey played in seven games this year, two of which he had to leave early due to a respective hamstring and ankle injury.
The Heisman Trophy runner-up rushed 99 times for 442 yards and a touchdown and had 37 receptions for 343 yards and a touchdown this season. By the end of this year, McCaffrey will have missed 23 of the Panthers’ 33 games since his historic 2019 campaign, where he became just the third player in NFL history to have over 1,000 rushing and 1,000 receiving yards in a season.
On a more positive note, Schultz had three catches for 46 yards on Thursday, including a 32-yard touchdown — his first TD since Week 4 — against the Las Vegas Raiders.
Immediately following this touchdown, Schultz hauled in a two-point conversion to tie the game for the Cowboys and help force overtime, but Dallas was ultimately defeated by the Raiders, 36-33, in the first overtime game on Thanksgiving since 2012.
Later on Thanksgiving night, running back Ty Montgomery ’15 took on a larger than normal role for the Saints due to injuries to running backs Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram. Montgomery had six carries for 14 yards, along with five receptions for 31 yards, but the Saints fell to the Buffalo Bills, 31-6.
After going without a catch for the first 10 games of the Eagles’ season, wide receiver J.J. Arcega-Whiteside ’19 had his second reception in as many games. This week, he caught a pass from quarterback Jalen Hurts for 13 yards in the Eagles’ 13-7 loss to the Giants.
Former Stanford offensive linemen were also active in multiple games throughout the NFL this weekend. Cameron Fleming ’14 started and played every offensive snap for the Denver Broncos this weekend. Fleming’s protection of quarterback Teddy Bridgewater allowed the Broncos to take down the Los Angeles Chargers, 28-13, and keep their playoff hopes alive. Nate Herbig ’19 played the majority of the Eagles’ snaps in a 13-7 loss to the New York Giants.
Although rookies Drew Dalman ’21 and Walker Little ’21 did not start for their respective teams this weekend, the two former teammates were able to reunite after Dalman’s Falcons bested Little’s Jaguars, 21-14.
On the defensive line, Solomon Thomas ’17 led the way for former Cardinal with four total tackles, including one on Cowboys’ running back Tony Pollard for a loss of five yards.
Defensive linemen Harrison Philips ’18 and Casey Toohill ’20 each had two tackles on the defensive lines for Buffalo and Washington, respectively. Toohill added two hits on Seahawks’ quarterback Russell Wilson as Washington defeated Seattle, 17-15, on Monday Night Football.
Rookie cornerback Paulson Adebo ’21 had another solid performance for the Saints, making four total tackles with one being for a loss. Adebo was the only Stanford defensive back who appeared in the statsheet this weekend, as Justin Reid ’18 was suspended by the Texans for violating team rules.
Entering his team’s game against the Jets with a record of 2-8, Reid challenged the coaching style of Texans’ head coach David Culley and was ultimately suspended for this confrontation. Reid’s absence was surely felt, as Houston was defeated by the 2-8 New York Jets, 21-14. After the game, Culley said that Reid’s availability for their next game against the Colts has not yet been determined.
Bobby Okereke ’19 highlighted the contributions of Stanford linebackers with eight total tackles for the Colts as they fell to the Bucs 38-31. Linebacker James Vaughters ’15 added a tackle and a quarterback hit for the Falcons in their 21-14 win over the Jaguars.
The only punt of the game for Jake Bailey ’19 went for 48 yards as the Patriots defeated the Titans 36-13.