Huskers in the NFL: Week 13

Week 13 of National Football League action was highlighted by dominant performances from several former Blackshirts and a pair of former Husker specialists.

 

Place-kicker Kris Brown was 5-for-5 on field goals, scoring all of Houston’s points as the Texans fell short of the Ravens, losing 16-15 on a game-winning field goal in the final seconds. Brown’s five field goals (39, 26, 22, 29 and 39) represented the fourth time in his NFL career that he has reached that mark.

 

Safety Mike Brown had a sack and forced a fumble for Chicago in the Bears’ 19-7 win over the Packers. Brown also added six tackles in helping the division-leading Bears win their eighth game in a row, improving to 9-3 on the season.

 

Bengals' punter Kyle Larson punted five times for an average of 46.8 yards in Cincinnati's 38-31 win over Pittsburgh. Larson recorded a long punt of 55 yards as the Bengals improved to a division-leading 9-3 record.

 

Former Blackshirts Mike Minter and Mike Rucker helped Carolina hold Michael Vick and the high-powered Atlanta offense to 259 total yards in the Panthers’ 24-6 win over the Falcons. Minter recorded half a sack and added four tackles from his safety spot, while Rucker recorded one sack and added two tackles from his defensive end position. Atlanta linebacker Demorrio Williams turned in another solid performance for the Falcons, recording 10 tackles in the losing effort. Williams' team-leading season tackle total is now 103, a figure that ranks eighth in the NFL. Carolina improved to a division-leading 9-3 record on the season, while Atlanta fell to 7-5 on the year.

 

Vikings' cornerback Ralph Brown recorded two tackles in Minnesota's 21-16 win over Detroit. The win was the Vikings' fifth straight and helped the team improve to 7-5 on the season. Cory Schlesinger started at fullback for Detroit, but recorded no statistics in the Lions' loss. Dominic Raiola started at center for the Lions.

 

Seattle place-kicker Josh Brown finished 6-for-6 in extra points in the Seahawks 42-0 rout of the Eagles on Monday night in Philadelphia. Brown missed his only field goal attempt, a 40-yarder. The victory was Seattle's eighth straight, and served to improve its record to a division-clinching 10-2 on the season. Seahawks' defensive end and former NU great Grant Wistrom added one tackle in the win.

 

Linebacker Scott Shanle returned to the starting lineup for Dallas after missing last week’s game with an injury. Shanle recorded five tackles in the Cowboys’ 17-10 loss to the New York Giants. Dallas fell to 7-5 on the season, one game behind the division-leading Giants.

 

Rookie safety Josh Bullocks recorded three tackles for New Orleans in the Saints’ 10-3 loss to the Bucanneers. TampaBay rookie linebacker Barrett Ruud appeared in the contest, but recorded no statistics.

 

Defensive end Chris Kelsay had five tackles for Buffalo in the Bills’ 24-23 loss to the Dolphins. Buffalo fell to 4-8 on the season with their third consecutive loss.

 

Cornerback DeJuan Groce started for St. Louis in the Rams’ 24-9 loss to the Redskins. Groce broke up one pass and recorded no tackles in the contest.

 

Jets' defensive end Trevor Johnson played, but recorded no statistics in New York’s 16-3 loss to New England. Center Russ Hochstein logged his third-straight start for the Patriots.

 

Titans' defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch recorded one tackle in Tennessee’s 35-3 loss to Indianapolis. Vanden Bosch’s season sack total remained at 10.5, a total that places him tied for third among the NFL leaders in that category.

 

Kansas City cornerback Eric Warfield recorded seven tackles in helping the Chiefs to a 31-27 win over the Broncos. Offensive guard Will Shields recorded his 203rd consecutive start for the Chiefs, as Kansas City improved to 8-4 on the season to stay in the playoff hunt.

 

Rookie cornerback Fabian Washington recorded four tackle for Oakland in the Raiders' 34-10 loss to the Chargers.

 

Overall, a total of 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.