Buckeye Clips: Week 16 highlights

With every NFL team in action in Week 16, we got to see more former Buckeyes than usual show out for their respective NFL teams. We highlighted some of the best performances below, starting with the new guys.

The Rookies

It seems as though Chase Young gets better and better each week (which is a scary thought because, well, he was pretty dang good to begin with. In The Washington Football Team’s loss to Carolina, Young had four tackles, one sack, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and one pass deflection.

Young was also named a team captain, joining fellow Buckeye alum Terry McLaurin (who was inactive on Sunday). Unfortunately, it was at the expense of former captain Dwayne Haskins, who was benched during the game on Sunday, and then cut from the team on Monday.

The Washington Football Team is still in the hunt for a spot in the playoffs, but must beat Philadelphia to make it theirs.

J.K. Dobbins scored in his fifth straight game on Sunday during the Ravens’ 37-13 win over the Giants. For the day, the rookie rushed for 77 yards on just 11 carries, and a touchdown

Similar to Washington, the Ravens must beat the Bengals next week to secure their spot in the playoffs.

Other miscellaneous news and notes for Buckeye rookies...

• Jordan Fuller was second on the team with seven total tackles for the Los Angeles Rams.
• Damon Arnette and Malik Harrison each had three tackles for the Raiders and Ravens, respectively.
• Jonah Jackson started at left guard for the Detroit Lions.

The Veterans

As mentioned above, the short-lived Dwayne Haskins era in Washington has come to an end just one year after the WFT selected the Buckeye QB No. 15 overall in the 2019 NFL Draft.

In their loss to Carolina on Sunday, the former Buckeye quarterback went 14/28 for 154 yards and two interceptions before getting benched for Taylor Heinicke in the fourth quarter. The team announced his release the next day.

On the other side of the ball, however, Curtis Samuel had himself a day for Carolina, leading the team in both rushing (52 yards on seven carries) and receiving (five catches for 106 yards).

Already this season, Samuel has reached his career high in receiving yards (733) and rushing yards (197).

We haven’t written about Ezekiel Elliott much this season, but that changes today as the Dallas running back, for the first time in over a month, ran for more than 100 yards in a game, with 105 yards on 19 carries in the Cowboys’ much-needed win again the Eagles. Elliott also went 4/4 on receptions for 34 yards.

After missing a few games with a calf injury, Denzel Ward returned to the field for the Browns on Sunday and recorded two tackles and two pass breakups.

Team Leaders

• Ezekiel Elliott led the Cowboys with 105 rushing.
• Curtis Samuel led the Panthers with 52 rushing yards and 106 receiving yards.
• Kendall Sheffield led the Falcons with nine tackles.
• Jerome Baker led the Dolphins with ten tackles, and also recorded one sack.
• Raekwon McMillan led the Raiders with nine tackles.

Other miscellaneous news and notes for Buckeye veterans...

• Vonn Bell was second on the team with eight total tackles for the Bengals, including one forced fumble.
• Also for the Bengals, Sam Hubbard made four tackles, one sack and one forced fumble.
• Cameron Heyward recorded five tackles and one sack for the Steelers.
• Johnathan Hankins had 4 tackles and a sack for the Raiders
• Malcolm Jenkins was second on the team with seven tackles, plus half a sack, followed by Marshon Lattimore who made six tackles, plus two pass deflections for the Saints.
• Seattle RB Carlos Hyde recorded two carries for eight yards and one touchdown, along with one reception for 18 yards.