Auburn in the NFL: Week 3 recap

Auburn in the NFL: Week 3 recapAuburn in the NFL: Week 3 recap

AUBURN, Ala. – Here's a look at how the 27 former Auburn players on active NFL rosters fared this past weekend in week three of the NFL season.
 
BEST OF WEEK 3
 
Blake Countess, DB, Los Angeles Rams
In a week where Auburn's special teams stole the show on Saturday, Countess made some key special teams plays for the Rams on Sunday. He returned two kicks for 51 yards and also recovered a blocked punt in the end zone for his second career NFL touchdown. The first also came on a blocked punt that he picked up and ran back 16 yards to the end zone last season.

***On Wednesday, Countess was named the NFC Special Teams Player of the Week. 
 
Kerryon Johnson, RB, Detroit Lions
In only the third game in his NFL career, Johnson reached the century mark on the ground with 101 yards rushing on 16 carries to help the Lions beat the New England Patriots, 26-10, on Sunday Night Football. It was the first time a Lions player had run for over 100 yards since Reggie Bush did so in 2013, and it even earned him a shoutout from former Lions' legend Barry Sanders. Johnson now has 213 yards from scrimmage in three games.
 


Cam Newton, QB, Carolina Panthers
Johnson wasn't the only former Auburn player to make history this past weekend. Newton threw for two touchdowns and rushed for two more in a 31-21 win over the Cincinnati Bengals, and the eighth-year pro now has 57 rushing touchdowns for his career – a new NFL record for a quarterback. Newton, who now has eight total touchdowns on the season, ranks No. 9 among all NFL quarterbacks with a PFF grade of 79.8.
 



 OTHER TIGERS IN THE NFL
 
Montravius Adams, DT, Green Bay Packers
Adams continues to play sparingly for the Packers as he played five snaps in Sunday's 31-17 loss to the Washington Redskins. The second-year player has one tackle through the first three games.
 
Cameron Artis-Payne, RB, Carolina Panthers
Artis-Payne was active but didn't see the field for the third straight week.
 
Peyton Barber, RB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Barber earned his third straight start for the Buccaneers on Monday Night Football and rushed for 33 yards on eight carries in a 30-27 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Through the first three games, he now has 124 yards on 43 carries and remains one of the league's better pass blockers at the running back spot with a PFF grade of 84.2.
 
Daren Bates, LB, Tennessee Titans
The sixth-year pro and special teams captain did not record a tackle in Tennessee's 9-6 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
 
Angelo Blackson, DE, Houston Texans
Blackson recorded three total tackles, including his first sack of the year, in a 27-22 loss to the New York Giants. With his performance in week three, the former fourth-round pick has now recorded a tackle in every game this season.
 
Josh Bynes, LB, Arizona Cardinals
For the second time in three games this season, Bynes recorded double-digit tackle. The seventh-year player had 10 tackles in a 16-14 loss to the Chicago Bears and now has a team-high 27 tackles on the year. His PFF grade against the run (88.7) is tops among all NFL linebackers.
 
Sammie Coates, WR, Houston Texans
The fourth-year pro was inactive this week against the New York Giants.
 
Shon Coleman, OL, San Francisco 49ers
Coleman did not play again in week three. The third-year player was traded from the Cleveland Browns to the 49ers at the end of August.
 
Carlton Davis, CB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Davis finished with three tackles in a 30-27 loss to the Steelers. The rookie cornerback has seen action in each of the first three games this season, recording 13 tackles, a pass deflection and a fumble recovery, and he's already a big part of the Buccaneers defense.
 
Casey Dunn, C, Washington Redskins
Dunn did not play in a week three win over the Green Bay Packers. The rookie center made the 53-man roster after signing with the Redskins as an undrafted free agent in the offseason.
 
Dee Ford, LB, Kansas City Chiefs
Ford recorded his second sack of the season in a 38-27 win over the San Francisco 49ers. It was his lone tackle in the game, but the fifth-year pro has played 199 snaps through the first three games with seven tackles and two sacks. He has an overall PFF grade of 74.8.
 
Rudy Ford, DB, Arizona Cardinals
Ford did not record any stats in a 16-14 loss to the Chicago Bears, but the former sixth-round pick has three tackles in the team's first three games this season.
 
Corey Grant, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars
Playing 20 or more snaps for the second straight week, Grant had six rushing attempts for 11 yards and also recorded a catch in a 9-6 loss to the Tennessee Titans. The fourth-year player has now caught a pass in back-to-back contests, and his PFF receiving grade (81.2) ranks No. 8 among all NFL running backs.
 
Josh Harris, LS, Atlanta Falcons
Harris served as the team's long snapper in their 43-37 loss to the New Orleans Saints.  
 
Jonathan Jones, CB, New England Patriots
The undrafted third-year pro recorded four solo tackles and a pass defended in a 26-10 loss to the Detroit Lions on Sunday Night Football. Jones has now collected multiple tackles in every game this season and is second on the team with three passes defended. Through three weeks, he has a PFF grade of 72.2.
 
Brandon King, LB, New England Patriots
King was active but did not record any stats. The fourth-year pro, who plays primarily on special teams, has two tackles on the season.
 
Devaroe Lawrence, DL, Cleveland Browns
Lawrence, who is in his first season with the Bengals after being traded over from the Saints, had no stats in a 21-17 win over the New York Jets on Thursday night.
 
Carl Lawson, DE, Cincinnati Bengals
Lawson played only 20 snaps in a 31-21 loss to the Carolina Panthers and finished with one tackle. The second-year pro now has three tackles on the year and a PFF grade of 76.1 rushing the passer.
 
Cody Parkey, K, Chicago Bears
Parkey, now in his fifth NFL season, made 3 of his 4 field-goal attempts Sunday, including a 43-yard field goal with four minutes left that turned out to be the go-ahead kick in a 16-14 victory over the Arizona Cardinals. Parkey also added an extra point.
 
Greg Robinson, OL, Cleveland Browns
For the third straight week, Robinson – the No. 2 pick in the NFL draft – did not play. He signed with the Browns this offseason after spending his first four seasons in the Rams organization.
 
Braden Smith, OL, Indianapolis Colts
A week after not playing, Smith saw two snaps in a 20-16 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. The rookie was taken in the second round, No. 37 overall, in April's NFL draft.
 
Neiko Thorpe, CB, Seattle Seahawks
Thorpe was active but failed to record a stat again in week three.
 
C.J. Uzomah, TE, Cincinnati Bengals
Uzomah caught two passes for 19 yards and also hauled in a 1-yard touchdown, which leveled the score at 14 midway through the second quarter. It was the third career touchdown catch for Uzomah, who has now recorded a catch in every game this season and has a total of six catches for 68 yards.
 
Jermaine Whitehead, S Green Bay Packers
Whitehead played 15 snaps and finished with one tackle in a 31-17 loss to the Washington Redskins. The fourth-year player now has seven tackles on the season.
 
DNP (Reserve/Injured or Practice Squad)
 
Jeff Holland, LB, Denver Broncos
Joshua Holsey, CB, Washington Redskins
Ricardo Louis, WR, Cleveland Browns
Tray Matthews, DB, Minnesota Vikings
Cassanova McKinzy, LB, Washington Redskins
Jonathon Mincy, CB, Chicago Bears
Chad Slade, OL, Houston Texans
Robinson Therezie, S, Indianapolis Colts