Huskers in the NFL: Week 12

Week 12 of National Football League action was highlighted by solid performances from several former Blackshirts and a game-winning field goal by a former Husker specialist.

 

Seattle place-kicker Josh Brown connected on a game-winning 36-yard field goal to give the Seahawks a 24-21 overtime victory over the Giants. It was Brown’s only field goal attempt in the game, and he connected on all three of his extra point attempts. The victory was Seattle's seventh straight, and served to improve its record to 9-2 on the season. Seahawks' defensive end and former NU great Grant Wistrom added seven tackles in the win.

 

Titans' defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch recorded two sacks to increase his season sack total to 10.5, a total that ranks third in the NFL. Vanden Bosch also forced a fumble and added six tackles as Tennessee defeated San Francisco, 33-22.

 

Atlanta linebacker Demorrio Williams turned in another solid performance for the Falcons, recording seven tackles in the Falcons 27-7 Thanksgiving Day win over the Lions. Williams' team-leading season tackle total is now 93, a figure that ranks eighth in the NFL. Cory Schlesinger started at fullback for Detroit, but recorded no statistics in the Lions' loss. Dominic Raiola started at center for the Lions.

 

Houston place-kicker Kris Brown was 2-for-3 on field goals and connected on all three of his extra points as the Texans fell short of the Rams, 33-27, in overtime. St. Louis cornerback DeJuan Groce was inactive for the contest. Houston dropped to 1-10 on the season, while St. Louis improved to 5-6.

 

Former Blackshirts Mike Minter and Mike Rucker helped Carolina hold Buffalo to 216 yards of total offense in the Panthers 13-9 win over the Bills. Minter recorded is first sack of the season and added five tackles from his safety spot, while Rucker recorded six tackles from his defensive end position. Defensive end Chris Kelsay had one tackle for Buffalo. Carolina improved to a division-leading 8-3 on the season.

 

Safety Mike Brown had seven tackles for Chicago in the Bears’ 13-10 win over the Buccaneers. Brown helped the division-leading Bears win their seventh game in a row, improving to 8-3 on the season. TampaBay rookie linebacker Barrett Ruud was inactive for the game.

 

Vikings' cornerback Ralph Brown recorded one tackle in Minnesota's 24-12 win over Cleveland. The win was the Vikings' fourth straight and helped the team improve to 6-5 on the season.

 

Kansas City cornerback Eric Warfield recorded ten tackles in helping the Chiefs to a 26-16 win over the Patriots. Offensive guard Will Shields recorded his 202nd consecutive start for the Chiefs, while Russ Hochstein logged his second-straight at center for the Patriots.

 

Rookie cornerback Fabian Washington recorded one tackle for Oakland in the Raiders' 33-21 loss to the Dolphins.

 

Rookie safety Josh Bullocks recorded a career-high ten tackles for New Orleans in the Saints’ 21-19 victory over the Jets. Jets' defensive end Trevor Johnson recorded one tackle in a losing effort.

 

Bengals' punter Kyle Larson punted three times for an average of 37.0 yards in Cincinnati's 42-29 win over Baltimore. Larson recorded a long punt of 47 yards while twice pinning the Ravens inside their own 20-yard line.

 

Overall, a total 33 former Huskers are on NFL rosters, including three players on injured reserve and three players on NFL practice squads. A total of 27 former Huskers are currently on active rosters.