Injuries and three fumbles limited Velus Jones Jr. in his rookie season. But in the finale of the former Saraland High School star’s first NFL campaign, Jones spotlighted his big-play ability one more time.

In the Chicago Bears’ 29-13 loss to the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, Jones scored his first NFL rushing touchdown on a 42-yard end-around.

Jones also caught a 28-yard pass and returned four kickoffs for 82 yards against Minnesota.

Since joining Chicago as a third-round draft choice after blazing through the 40 at the NFL Scouting Combine, Jones has run for 103 yards and one touchdown on nine carries and caught seven passes for 107 yards and one touchdown. He also returned 22 kickoffs for 605 yards (with a long of 65) and five punts for 35 yards in his rookie season.

That’s an average gain of 19.8 yards every time that Jones has touched the football for the Bears in 2022.

Jones was among the 39 players from Alabama high schools and colleges (excluding Alabama and Auburn) who got on the field on the 18th Sunday of the NFL’s 103rd season.

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Five other former state players were involved in the Minnesota-Chicago game:

· Khari Blasingame (Buckhorn) started at fullback for the Bears. Blasingame did not record any stats.

· Bears wide receiver Darnell Mooney (Gadsden City) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Nicholas Morrow (Huntsville) started at linebacker for the Bears. Morrow made seven tackles.

· Vikings quarterback Nick Mullens (Spain Park) completed 11-of-13 passes for 116 yards with no touchdowns and one interception. Mullens played in the second half after Minnesota pulled QB Kirk Cousins in advance of next week’s playoff game.

· Vikings outside linebacker Za’Darius Smith (Greenville) was designated as a game-day inactive.

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In the other Sunday games:

Atlanta Falcons 30, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 17

· Rakeem Nunez-Roches (Central-Phenix City) started at nose tackle for the Buccaneers. Nunez-Roches made three tackles.

· Buccaneers safety Nolan Turner (Vestavia Hills) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

Buffalo Bills 35, New England Patriots 23

· Patriots cornerback Tae Hayes (Decatur) made one tackle.

· Marcus Jones (Enterprise, Troy) started at right cornerback for the Patriots. Jones made six tackles, returned three punts for 25 yards and ran back four kickoffs for 82 yards.

· Bills cornerback Siran Neal (Eufaula, Jacksonville State) played but did not record any stats.

·

Cincinnati Bengals 27, Baltimore Ravens 16

· Bengals cornerback Allan George (Andalusia) played but did not record any stats.

· Bengals kicker Evan McPherson (Fort Payne) made all his kicks, connecting on field goals of 34 and 26 yards and three extra-points.

· Ravens outside linebacker Jeremiah Moon (Hoover) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Ravens defensive tackle Michael Pierce (Daphne, Samford) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Cam Taylor-Britt (Park Crossing) started at cornerback for the Bengals. Taylor-Britt led Cincinnati with nine tackles, recorded a tackle for loss and broke up pass.

Houston Texans 32, Indianapolis Colts 31

· Texans defensive end Mario Addison (Tarrant, Troy) registered a quarterback hit.

· Texans wide receiver Nico Collins (Clay-Chalkville) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Tytus Howard (Monroe County, Alabama State) started at right offensive tackle for the Texans.

· Tremon Smith (Saks) started at cornerback for the Texans. Smith returned a kickoff 19 yards, made three tackles and broke up one pass.

· Texans defensive tackle Taylor Stallworth (Murphy) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

Miami Dolphins 11, New York Jets 6

· Kwon Alexander (Oxford) started at linebacker for the Jets. Alexander made four tackles and recorded one tackle for loss.

· Dolphins outside linebacker Trey Flowers (Columbia) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Tyreek Hill (West Alabama) started at wide receiver for the Dolphins. Hill caught two passes for 23 yards. He left the game with an ankle injury.

· Jets defensive end Bryce Huff (St. Paul’s Episcopal) made one tackle and registered a quarterback hit.

· Dolphins running back LaMical Perine (Theodore) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Quincy Williams (Wenonah) started at linebacker for the Jets. Williams led New York with 10 tackles to reach 106 for the season, recorded his third sack of 2022, registered three tackles for loss and broke up a pass.

Carolina Panthers 10, New Orleans Saints 7

· Saints wide receiver Kawaan Baker (South Alabama) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Panthers running back Spencer Brown (Mortimer Jordan, UAB) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Saints quarterback Jameis Winston (Hueytown) dressed for the game but did not play.

Pittsburgh Steelers 28, Cleveland Browns 14

· Browns linebacker Tae Davis (Oxford) made one tackle on special teams.

· Browns offensive tackle Chris Hubbard (UAB) played but did not record any stats.

· George Pickens (Hoover) started at wide receiver for the Steelers. Pickens had three receptions for 72 yards and one touchdown. Pickens caught a 31-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Kenny Pickett as Pittsburgh tied the game at 7-7 with 1:47 left in the first half.

· Steelers linebacker Malik Reed (Dothan) was designated as a game-day inactive.

· Trent Scott (Lee-Huntsville) started as an extra offensive lineman for the Steelers. Pittsburgh’s first five plays of the game were runs that gained 31 yards, with Scott on the field for two of the snaps.

· Browns defensive end Alex Wright (Elba, UAB) made three tackles and recovered a fumble for the first time in his NFL career. Wright recovered a Pittsburgh fumble on the Cleveland 5-yard line with 6:14 left in the first quarter.

Denver Broncos 31, Los Angeles Chargers 28

· Gerald Everett (UAB/South Alabama) started at tight end for the Chargers. Everett caught three passes for 8 yards and one touchdown. Everett scored his fourth touchdown of the season on a 3-yard throw from quarterback Justin Herbert as Los Angeles took a 14-7 lead with 10:57 left in the first half.

· Broncos punter Corliss Waitman (South Alabama) averaged 47.6 yards on five punts, with a net of 40.2. Waitman had a 46-yard punt returned 9 yards to the Los Angeles 47-yard line, a 52-yarder for a fair catch at the Los Angeles 27, a 38-yarder downed at the Los Angeles 37, a 43-yarder for a fair catch at the Los Angeles 12 and a 59-yarder returned 28 yards to the Los Angeles 40.

· Broncos wide receiver Montrell Washington (Samford) was designated as a game-day inactive.

Philadelphia Eagles 22, New York Giants 16

· Eagles safety Reed Blankenship (West Limestone) made four tackles and recovered an onside kick with 1:38 to play.

· James Bradberry (Pleasant Grove, Samford) started at right cornerback for the Eagles. Bradberry made four tackles and broke up two passes.

· Giants offensive tackle Korey Cunningham (Montevallo) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Cordale Flott (Saraland) started at nickelback for the Giants. Flott made three tackles and broke up pass.

· Eagles wide receiver Quez Watkins (Athens) caught two passes for 14 yards.

· Giants defensive lineman Nick Williams (Minor, Samford) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

Seattle Seahawks 19, Los Angeles Rams 16 (OT)

· Chandler Brewer (Florence) started at right guard for the Rams.

· Mike Jackson (Spain Park) started at left cornerback for the Seahawks. Jackson made five tackles and broke up one pass.

San Francisco 49ers 38, Arizona Cardinals 13

· Cardinals center Rodney Hudson (B.C. Rain) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Forty-Niners cornerback Jackrabbit Jenkins (North Alabama) made one tackle. San Francisco elevated Jenkins from its practice squad to make him eligible to play.

· Christian Matthew (Samford) started at cornerback at the Cardinals. Matthew ended his rookie season by equaling his career high with five tackles.

· Forty-Niners tight end Jordan Matthews (Madison Academy) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Cardinals offensive lineman Lachavious Simmons (Selma) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Cardinals safety Josh Thomas (Montgomery Academy) made three tackles. Thomas had one tackle in three career games entering Sunday’s contest. Arizona elevated Thomas from its practice squad to make him eligible to play.

· Forty-Niners defensive back Jimmie Ward (Davidson) made three tackles and registered a quarterback hit.

Washington Commanders 26, Dallas Cowboys 6

· Bobby McCain (Oxford) started at safety for the Commanders. McCain made one tackle and broke up a pass.

· Commanders running back J.D. McKissic (Central-Phenix City) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Jeremy Reaves (South Alabama) started at safety for the Commanders. Reaves made two tackles.

· Cowboys defensive tackle Anthony Rush (UAB) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Cowboys wide receiver Jalen Tolbert (McGill-Toolen, South Alabama) was designated as a game-day inactive.

· Cowboys defensive end Sam Williams (Lee-Montgomery) made two tackles, recorded one sack and registered two tackles for loss. Williams has four sacks as a rookie.

Detroit Lions 20, Green Bay Packers 16

· Lions guard Logan Stenberg (James Clemens) played but did not record any stats.

Week 18 started on Saturday, when the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Las Vegas Raiders 31-13 and the Jacksonville Jaguars defeated the Tennessee Titans 20-16.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.