NFL Team of the Week featuring Deshaun Watson, James Conner and D.J. Swearinger
Tuesday 30 October 2018 15:57, UK
Who were the top performers from Week Eight in the NFL? We have picked out our Team of the Week...
Another week of NFL action action is almost over, with just one game remaining as the Buffalo Bills host the New England Patriots in the early hours of Tuesday.
So far in Week Eight, we have had huge plays, another win for the undefeated Rams, and a Wembley victory for the Super Bowl champs - and we have picked out some stars from the action.
Quarterback - Deshaun Watson, Houston Texans
After putting in sub-par performances the past two weeks against the Jacksonville Jaguars and Buffalo Bills, Deshaun Watson came back with a boom on Thursday night against the Miami Dolphins, as he threw more touchdowns than he had incompletions!
The 23-year-old completed 16 of 20 passes for 239 yards and five touchdowns in the 42-23 rout, adding one rush for 14 yards on his way to a quarterback rating of 156.0.
The former Clemson star and his receivers put on a show in the second half, racking up 28 points. Watson found speedster Will Fuller for a 73-yard touchdown before linking up twice with star receiver DeAndre Hopkins in the final quarter to ensure a fifth win in a row for the Texans.
Running back - James Conner, Pittsburgh Steelers
Le'Veon who? James Conner proved his worth yet again for the Steelers in their 33-18 win over division rivals, the Cleveland Browns.
Conner pounded the Browns for the second time this season as he ran for 146 yards and two touchdowns and had five receptions for 66 yards. He ended the game only 25 yards shy of the whole Cleveland offense.
The second-year back, who went to college in Pittsburgh, ran in a 12-yard score late in the third quarter before putting the game to bed with a powerful touchdown run from 22 yards out.
Honourable mentions go out to Joe Mixon and Marlon Mack who both rushed for over 100 yards and had two touchdowns as well.
Wide receiver - Mike Evans, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Despite Jameis Winston throwing four interceptions, Mike Evans still found a way to make an impact whenever he got the ball, in the Bucs 37-34 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
Evans ended the game with six receptions for 179 yards and a touchdown and most of his production came in the final quarter when Ryan "Fitzmagic" Fitzpatrick was in at quarterback.
The pair instantly connected for a 72-yard touchdown when Evans ran completely uncovered past the Bengals secondary. The 25-year-old was also able to haul in a crucial third down pass from Fitzpatrick on a drive that saw the Buccaneers tie the game up with under a minute to go.
Tight End - Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs
The 29-year-old brought in six receptions for 79 yards and a touchdown in the Chiefs 30-23 victory over the Denver Broncos.
Kelce showed yet again why he is so lethal in the red zone as he caught a nine-yard touchdown pass from Patrick Mahomes in the second quarter.
The All-Pro tight end now has 642 receiving yards and four touchdowns this season, putting him on track for his best season yet.
Offensive line - Indianapolis Colts
For the second week in a row, the Colts proved they have one of the meanest offensive lines in football, despite having major issues in the past.
The Colts racked up over 200 rushing yards for the second consecutive week. Marlon Mack and Nyheim Hines took complete advantage of the holes being created by the offensive line, with left tackle Anthony Costanzo proving to be a huge difference maker.
Andrew Luck threw for 239 yards and three touchdowns and was not sacked once by a depleted Oakland Raiders defense that gave up 42 points.
Defensive line - Washington Redskins
This is not going to be pretty if you are a New York Giants fan. The Redskins defensive line pummeled the Giants on their way to a 20-13 victory at the MetLife Stadium.
Eli Manning was sacked seven times for a whopping 50 yards by the rampant Redskins defense. They were led by defensive end Matt Ioannidis and linebacker Ryan Kerrigan, who finished with 2.5 and 1.5 sacks, respectively.
The Redskins were also able to limit Saquon Barkley and the Giants to just 37 rushing yards all game. This brought down an already impressive average of allowing just 80.1 rushing yards per game, second-best in the NFL.
Cornerback - Jalen Ramsey, Jacksonville Jaguars
Ramsey showed yet again at Wembley why he is one of the league's best shutdown cornerbacks. He snagged his first interception of the season when Carson Wentz was looking for Joshua Perkins in the end zone during the Jags 24-18 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
The 24-year-old was able to limit Eagles receiver Alshon Jeffery to just four catches for 35 yards on five targets and also had three tackles.
Safety - D.J. Swearinger, Washington Redskins
When the Redskins defensive line was not making plays, Swearinger was. The former Arizona Cardinal came up big with two interceptions, taking his tally for the season up to four.
The hard-hitting safety recorded his first interception of the day when he jumped a slant route ran by Giants' wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr to pick off Eli Manning inside the red zone.
Swearinger's second interception came in much easier fashion, when Manning overthrew Bennie Fowler and the 27-year-old was able to pick the ball off with ease to set up a field goal.
Kicker - Adam Vinatieri, Indianapolis Colts
Vinatieri set the record for most points scored in NFL history this week, breaking Morten Andersen's record of 2,544 career points.
The 45-year-old went into the game needing five points to break the record, and did so in the dying embers of the first half as he sent a 25-yard field goal through the posts.
The veteran kicker made both of his field goals and all four of his extra points in the match.
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