Huskers in the NFL: Week 3

Week three of National Football League action again was highlighted by solid efforts from many ex-Huskers on the defensive and special teams front.

 

Defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch turned in another monster performance for Tennessee, recording two sacks and forcing a fumble in his third game for the Titans. Vanden Bosch, who now has a league-leading five sacks on the season, recorded four total tackles as Tennessee fell to St. Louis, 31-27. DeJuan Groce, starting at left cornerback for the Rams, added four tackles in St. Louis’ winning effort.

 

In Buffalo, defensive end Chris Kelsay returned his third-quarter interception 17 yards off Atlanta’s Michael Vick to set up a Bills’ field goal. Kelsay’s efforts were not enough, as the Falcons handed the Bills their second loss of the season, 24-16. Linebacker Demorrio Williams continued his solid play for the Falcons, racking up eight tackles to bring his team-leading season total to 26, a total that ranks 12th in the NFL.

 

Punter Kyle Larson again put up big numbers for the undefeated Cincinnati Bengals. In Sunday’s 24-7 win over Chicago, Larson punted nine times for an average of 40.0 yards per punt with a long of 55 yards. Larson pinned the Bears inside their own 20 twice. Free safety Mike Brown continued to lead the Bears’ defense with 10 tackles, bringing his season total to a team-leading 23.

 

In Miami, former Huskers Mike Minter and Mike Rucker were unable to help Carolina to back-to-back wins, as the Panthers fell to the Dolphins, 27-24, one week after defeating the two-time defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots. Minter recorded five tackles from his strong safety spot, while Rucker recorded two tackles from his defensive end position.

 

Place kicker Josh Brown connected on all three of his field goal attempts, including a long of 47 yards, and was 4-for-4 on extra points, as he helped Seattle collect its second win of the season in dominant fashion, defeating Arizona, 37-12.

 

Running back Ahman Green carried the ball 19 times in Green Bay's 17-16 loss to TampaBay. Green gained 58 yards on the ground, while catching three passes for 27 yards. Rookie linebacker Barrett Ruud recorded two tackles for the Bucaneer's defense.

 

Rookie safety Josh Bullocks recorded the first tackle of his short NFL career, but was unable to help the Saints as they fell to the Vikings, 33-16. A season-ending injury to starting safety Jay Bellamy in the game is expected to result in Bullocks starting next week's game against the Bills.

 

In Philadelphia, Oakland rookie cornerback Fabian Washington recorded three tackles as he logged his first career NFL start. It was not enough to save the Raiders from falling to 0-3 on the season, as they lost the game on a last second field goal, 23-20.

 

Dallas linebacker Scott Shanle recorded four tackles in the Cowboys 34-31 win over the 49ers.

 

On Monday night, offensive guard Will Shields continued his 194 game consecutive-start streak for the Chiefs. Kansas City suffered its first loss of the season, dropping the division matchup with Denver, 30-10.

 

Overall, a total 31 former Huskers are on NFL rosters, including two players on injured reserve and two players on NFL practice squads. A total of 27 former Huskers started the 2005 NFL season on active rosters.