NFL WEEK 5 – What To Watch For!

WHAT TO LOOK FOR – WEEK 5
WHAT TO LOOK FOR – WEEK 5

TOM AT THE TOP: New England quarterback TOM BRADY leads the NFL with 1,399 passing yards, ties for the league lead with 10 touchdown passes and ranks second with a 116.6 passer rating this season.

With a win over Tampa Bay on Thursday Night Football, Brady, who has 185 career regular-season victories as a starting quarterback, would tie Pro Football Hall of Famer BRETT FAVRE and PEYTON MANNING for the most regular-season victories by a quarterback in NFL history. Brady has 210 career wins (including the postseason), the most by a quarterback in NFL history.

​The most regular-season wins by starting quarterbacks in NFL history:

PLAYER TEAM(S) REGULAR-SEASON WINS  
Brett Favre^ Green Bay, New York Jets, Minnesota 186  
Peyton Manning Indianapolis, Denver 186  
Tom Brady New England 185  
John Elway^ Denver 148  
Dan Marino^ Miami 147  
^Pro Football Hall of Famer

— NFL —

LARRY LEGEND: Arizona wide receiver LARRY FITZGERALD had four catches, including the game-winning 19-yard touchdown catch with 32 seconds remaining in overtime, in the Cardinals’ 18-15 win against San Francisco in Week 4.

With a catch at Philadelphia on Sunday, Fitzgerald, who has a reception in 199 consecutive games, would join Pro Football Hall of Famer JERRY RICE (274) and TONY GONZALEZ (211) as the only players in NFL history with at least one catch in 200 consecutive games.

The most consecutive games with a reception in NFL history:

PLAYER TEAM(S) SEASONS CONSECUTIVE GAMES WITH A RECEPTION  
Jerry Rice^ San Francisco, Oakland 1985-2004 274  
Tony Gonzalez Kansas City, Atlanta 2000-2013 211  
Larry Fitzgerald Arizona 2004-present 199*  
Marvin Harrison^ Indianapolis 1996-2008 190  
Hines Ward Pittsburgh 1998-2010 186  
*Active streak

^Pro Football Hall of Famer

— NFL —

REMARKABLE ROOKIE: Kansas City rookie running back KAREEM HUNT had 121 scrimmage yards (101 rushing, 20 receiving) in the Chiefs’ 29-20 win over Washington on Monday Night Football last week.

With 100 scrimmage yards at Houston on Sunday night, Hunt, who has at least 100 scrimmage yards in each of his first four games, would join ADRIAN PETERSON (2007) as the only rookies in NFL history with at least 100 scrimmage yards in each of his team’s first five games of a season.

With 129 scrimmage yards in Week 5, Hunt, who has 659 scrimmage yards in his first four games, would surpass Pro Football Hall of Famer ERIC DICKERSON (787 in 1983) for the most scrimmage yards by a rookie in his team’s first five games of a season.

The rookies with the most scrimmage yards in their team’s first five games to start a season:

PLAYER TEAM SEASON SCRIMMAGE YARDS IN TEAM’S FIRST 5 GAMES  
Eric Dickerson^ Los Angeles Rams 1983 787  
Adrian Peterson Minnesota 2007 782  
Billy Sims Detroit 1980 761  
Kareem Hunt Kansas City 2017 659*  
Beattie Feathers Chicago 1934 633  
Marshall Faulk^ Indianapolis 1994 633  
*Through four games
^Pro Football Hall of Famer

— NFL —

STRONG OUT OF THE GATES: Last week, Los Angeles Rams running back TODD GURLEY had 215 scrimmage yards (121 rushing, 94 receiving) and a touchdown catch in the team’s 35-30 win at Dallas. Kansas City rookie running back KAREEM HUNT had 121 scrimmage yards (101 rushing, 20 receiving) in the Chiefs’ 29-20 win over Washington.

In Week 5, Gurley (596 scrimmage yards, seven touchdowns) and Hunt (659, six) can join Pro Football Hall of Famers MARSHALL FAULK (2000), EMMITH SMITH (1995), ERIC DICKERSON (1983) and JIM BROWN (1958, 1963) and PRIEST HOLMES (2002) as the only players in NFL history with at least 700 scrimmage yards and eight touchdowns in their team’s first five games of a season.

The players with at least 700 scrimmage yards and eight touchdowns in their team’s first five games of a season:

PLAYER TEAM YEAR SCRIMMAGE YARDS TOUCHDOWNS
Jim Brown^ Cleveland 1958 857 14
Jim Brown^ Cleveland 1963 988 10
Eric Dickerson^ Los Angeles Rams 1983 787 9
Emmitt Smith^ Dallas 1995 776 9
Marshall Faulk^ St. Louis 2000 797 8
Priest Holmes Kansas City 2002 803 10
         
Todd Gurley* Los Angeles Rams 2017 596 7
Kareem Hunt* Kansas City 2017 659 6
*Through four games

^Pro Football Hall of Famer

 

— NFL —

GORE GAINING GROUND: Indianapolis running back FRANK GORE has rushed for 13,256 yards and 76 touchdowns in 13 career seasons. With four rushing yards against San Francisco on Sunday, Gore, who spent the first 10 seasons of his career with the 49ers and is the franchise’s all-time leading rusher (11,073), will surpass Pro Football Hall of Famer ERIC DICKERSON (13,259) for the seventh-most rushing yards in NFL history. All seven players currently in front of Gore are enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

The players with the most rushing yards in NFL history:

PLAYER TEAM(S) RUSHING YARDS
Emmitt Smith^ Dallas, Arizona 18,355
Walter Payton^ Chicago 16,726
Barry Sanders^ Detroit 15,269
Curtis Martin^ New England, New York Jets 14,101
LaDainian Tomlinson^ San Diego, New York Jets 13,684
Jerome Bettis^ Los Angeles/St. Louis, Pittsburgh 13,662
Eric Dickerson^ Los Angeles Rams, Indianapolis, Los Angeles Raiders, Atlanta 13,259
Frank Gore San Francisco, Indianapolis 13,256
^Pro Football Hall of Famer

— NFL —

PRECISION PASSERS: New England’s TOM BRADY (10 touchdown passes, zero interceptions), New Orleans’ DREW BREES (eight, zero) and Kansas City’s ALEX SMITH (eight, zero) each have least eight touchdown passes with zero interceptions through their team’s first four games this season.

In Week 5, Brady and Smith can join STEVE BARTKOWSKI (1983) and ROMAN GABRIEL (1969) as the only quarterbacks in NFL history with at least 11 touchdown passes and zero interceptions through their team’s first five games of a season. Brees, who has a bye this week, will attempt to join the list in Week 6.

The quarterbacks with the most touchdown passes without an interception in their team’s first five games of a season:

PLAYER TEAM YEAR TD PASSES INTs
Steve Bartkowski Atlanta 1983 11 0
Roman Gabriel Los Angeles Rams 1969 11 0
Randall Cunningham Minnesota 1998 10 0
Craig Morton Dallas 1969 10 0
         
Tom Brady* New England 2017 10 0
Alex Smith* Kansas City 2017 8 0
Drew Brees*^ New Orleans 2017 8 0
*Through four games  
^Has bye in Week 5  

— NFL —

DEMARCUS DOMINATING: Dallas defensive end DEMARCUS LAWRENCE recorded a sack and forced fumble in the Cowboys’ Week 4 loss to the Los Angeles Rams.

Lawrence, who has recorded at least one sack in each of his team’s first four games of the season, leads the NFL with 7.5 sacks. With 1.5 sacks against Green Bay on Sunday, Lawrence would become the fifth player with at least nine sacks in his team’s first five games of a season since the sack became an official statistic in 1982.

The players with the most sacks in their team’s first five games of a season since 1982:

 

PLAYER TEAM YEAR SACKS IN TEAM’S FIRST 5 GAMES  
Kevin Greene^ Carolina 1998 10  
Robert Mathis Indianapolis 2013 9.5  
Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila Green Bay 2001 9  
Mark Gastineau New York Jets 1984 9  
         
Demarcus Lawrence Dallas 2017 7.5*  
*Through four games
^Pro Football Hall of Famer

— NFL —

PRIMETIME DEBUT: Chicago rookie quarterback MITCHELL TRUBISKY, the No. 2 overall selection of the Bears in the 2017 NFL Draft, is expected to make his NFL debut on Monday Night Football against Minnesota.

Trubisky would be the third rookie quarterback selected in the first round to make his first career start on Monday Night Football, joining Detroit’s CHUCK LONG (December 15, 1986 vs. Chicago) and Philadelphia’s JOHN REAVES (October 2, 1972 vs. New York Giants).