Alabama NFL roundup: Jaguars’ Calvin Ridley breaks out
Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Calvin Ridley caught his second touchdown pass of the season in a 23-7 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Oct. 1 and recorded his second 100-yard receiving game of 2023 a week later in a 25-20 victory over the Buffalo Bills.
But in the four games since then, Ridley had 13 receptions for 138 yards entering Sunday’s contest against the Tennessee Titans.
Ridley caught seven passes for 103 yards and two touchdowns as the Jaguars improved to 7-3 with a 34-14 victory over Tennessee. He also had an 18-yard run.
“They’ve been giving me (one-on-one opportunities),” Ridley said after the 14th 100-yard game of his career. “I ain’t going to lie. I’m honest. They’ve been giving me that. I’ve just got to make the plays and win.
“Today, I’m made the plays, and that’s what I know I can do. I can do that all day and all game, so I’ve got to own the moment, be where my feet are and make plays for my teammates and this organization.”
Jacksonville quarterback Trevor Lawrence connected with Ridley on a 3-yard TD pass to open the scoring with 2:58 left in the first quarter and a 20-yard TD pass as the Jaguars went up 27-0 with 3:22 left in the third quarter.
“It was good to get Calvin back in there and going again,” Jacksonville coach Doug Pederson said. “… Calvin played extremely well today. He kind of just let the game unfold before his eyes and then really just ran the routes that (offensive coordinator) Press (Taylor) called, and Trevor did the rest. But it was really good to get Calvin today the type of game he’s capable of playing.”
Ridley was among the 40 former Alabama players who got on the field on the 11th Sunday of the NFL’s 104th season.
Three other former Alabama players were involved in the Tennessee-Jacksonville game:
· Titans defensive back Shyheim Carter is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Derrick Henry started at running back for the Titans. Henry ran for 38 yards on 10 carries and caught a 6-yard pass.
· Cam Robinson started at left offensive tackle for the Jaguars.
In the other Sunday games:
Dallas Cowboys 33, Carolina Panthers 10
· Bradley Bozeman (Handley) started at center for the Panthers.
· Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
· Cowboys linebacker Rashaan Evans (Auburn High) did not record any stats.
· Panthers defensive tackle LaBryan Ray (James Clemens) did not record any stats.
· Bryce Young started at quarterback for the Panthers. Young completed 16-of-29 passes for 123 yards with one touchdown and one interception, which Dallas cornerback DaRon Bland returned 30 yards for a touchdown. Young had 3 yards on two rushing attempts and lost a fumble on one of the seven times that he was sacked.
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Cleveland Browns 13, Pittsburgh Steelers 10
· Amari Cooper started at wide receiver for the Browns. Cooper had four receptions for 34 yards.
· Browns running back Kenyan Drake is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick was designated as a game-day inactive. A hamstring injury sidelined Fitzpatrick for the third game in a row.
· Jerome Ford started at running back for the Browns. Ford ran 12 times for 31 yards and one touchdown and caught two passes for 8 yards. Ford scored the game’s first points on a 1-yard run with 4:35 left in the first quarter.
· Najee Harris started at running back for the Steelers. Harris ran 12 times for 35 yards and caught one pass for 1 yard.
· Browns offensive lineman Alex Leatherwood is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Dalvin Tomlinson started at defensive tackle for the Browns. Tomlinson made two tackles.
· Browns offensive tackle Jedrick Wills Jr. is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
· Levi Wallace started at cornerback for the Steelers. Wallace did not record any stats.
Detroit Lions 31, Chicago Bears 26
· Brian Branch started at safety for the Lions. Branch made six tackles, recorded three tackles for loss, registered one quarterback hit and broke up one pass. Branch had his second game of the season with three tackles for loss. He also had three in a 20-6 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Sept. 24. Since tackles for loss became an official status in 1999, two Detroit rookies – Chris Claiborne in 1999 and Shaun Rogers in 2001 – had three in one game before this season.
· Lions defensive tackle Isaiah Buggs was designated as a game-day inactive. Buggs missed the game because he was sick.
· Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs ran for 36 yards and one touchdown on eight carries and caught six passes for 59 yards. Gibbs scored on a 2-yard run as Detroit tied the score at 7-7 with 9:23 left in the first half. Gibbs has run for at least one touchdown in each of the Lions’ past four games.
· Eddie Jackson started at safety for the Bears. Jackson made four tackles.
· Jameson Williams started at wide receiver for the Lions. Williams caught two passes for 44 yards and one touchdown. Williams caught a 32-yard pass from quarterback Jared Goff with 2:59 left in the fourth quarter as Detroit started its comeback from a 26-14 deficit.
Green Bay Packers 23, Los Angeles Chargers 20
· Chargers punter JK Scott averaged 47.7 yards on three punts, with a net average of 44.7 yards. Scott had a 41-yard punt returned 7 yards to the Green Bay 19-yard line, a 57-yarder that was muffed and recovered by the Packers with a 1-yard return to the Green Bay 30 and a 45-yarder returned 1 yard to the Green Bay 41.
Houston Texans 21, Arizona Cardinals 16
· Will Anderson Jr. started at defensive end for the Texans. Anderson made two tackles, recorded one sack, registered two tackles for loss and had two quarterback hits. Anderson has three sacks this season.
· Christian Harris started at linebacker for the Texans. Harris made five tackles, recorded one tackle for loss and broke up two passes.
· Texans wide receiver John Metchie III caught a 12-yard pass.
· Texans linebacker Henry To’oTo’o was designated as a game-day inactive. A concussion kept the rookie sidelined for a second straight game.
Miami Dolphins 20, Las Vegas Raiders 13
· Lester Cotton (Central-Tuscaloosa) started at left guard for the Dolphins.
· Dolphins defensive tackle Raekwon Davis made one tackle and registered one quarterback hit.
· Dolphins defensive tackle Da’Shawn Hand did not record any stats.
· Josh Jacobs started at running back for the Raiders. Jacobs ran for 39 yards on 14 carries and caught a 12-yard pass.
· Tua Tagovailoa started at quarterback for the Dolphins. Tagovailoa completed 28-of-39 passes for 325 yards with two touchdowns and one interception and ran twice for 6 yards. Tagovailoa threw a 38-yard pass to wide receiver Tyreek Hill as Miami took a 7-3 lead with 2:03 left in the first quarter and an 11-yard pass to running back Salvon Ahmed as the Dolphins went ahead 14-10 with 2:28 left in the first half.
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· Jaylen Waddle started at wide receiver for the Dolphins. Waddle had four receptions for 55 yards.
· Raiders defensive tackle Byron Young was designated as a game-day inactive.
New York Giants 31, Washington Commanders 19
· Jonathan Allen started at defensive tackle for the Commanders. Allen made four tackles and recorded 1.5 sacks. Allen has 5.5 sacks this season.
· Commanders running back Derrick Gore had two carries for 23 yards on his first rushing attempts since the 2021 season. Gore’s rushing attempts went for no gain and 23 yards on Sunday. Washington elevated Gore from its practice squad to make him eligible to play.
· Giants center J.C. Hassenauer is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
· Commanders defensive tackle Phidarian Mathis made two tackles.
· Xavier McKinney started at free safety for the Giants. McKinney made a career-high 12 tackles, recorded one tackle for loss and recovered one fumble. McKinney had set and then equaled his career high for tackles with 10 in each of the previous two games. McKinney recovered a fumble at the Washington 45-yard line in the first quarter to set up New York’s first touchdown.
· Giants offensive tackle Evan Neal was designated as a game-day inactive. An ankle injury sidelined Neal for a second straight game.
· Daron Payne (Shades Valley) started at defensive tackle for the Commanders. Payne made three tackles, recorded one sack and registered two quarterback hits. Payne has two sacks this season after recording 11.5 in 2022.
· Giants cornerback Aaron Robinson is on reserve/physically unable to play.
· A’Shawn Robinson started at defensive tackle for the Giants. Robinson made four tackles.
· Brian Robinson Jr. (Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa) started at running back for the Commanders. Robinson ran for 73 yards on 17 carries and caught seven passes for 58 yards.
San Francisco 49ers 27, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 14
· Forty-Niners tight end Cameron Latu is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
Buffalo Bills 32, New York Jets 6
· Bills running back Damien Harris is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
· C.J. Mosley (Theodore) started at linebacker for the Jets. Mosley made four tackles.
· Bills wide receiver Tyrell Shavers is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Quinnen Williams (Wenonah) started at defensive tackle for the Jets. Williams made six tackles, recorded one sack and registered two tackles for loss. Williams has two sacks this season after making 12 in 2022.
Los Angeles Rams 17, Seattle Seahawks 16
· Rams tight end Miller Forristall is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Jarran Reed started at nose tackle for the Seahawks. Reed made three tackles, recorded one tackle for loss and broke up one pass.
Denver Broncos 21, Minnesota Vikings 20
· Kareem Jackson started at safety for the Broncos. Jackson made nine tackles in his return after a two-game absence. The NFL suspended Jackson after he was ejected twice this season for helmet-to-helmet hits.
· Jerry Jeudy started at wide receiver for the Broncos. Jeudy had five receptions for 58 yards.
· Broncos inside linebacker Drew Sanders did not record any stats.
· Patrick Surtain II started at cornerback for the Broncos. Surtain made four tackles and broke up a pass.
Week 11 started on Thursday night, when the Baltimore Ravens defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 34-20.
Week 11 concludes on Monday, when the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs square off at 7:15 p.m. CDT at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. ABC and ESPN will televise the game.
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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.