It was a hard-fought week for many NFL Pack Pros around the league in Week 10, with plenty of well-known names performing under expectations. For all the underperforming, there was a lone bright spot in the week that Wolfpack fans are likely ecstatic about. Without further ado, here’s how a couple Pack Pros stood up to the challenges that Week 10 presented them:
Jakobi Meyers, wide receiver, New England Patriots
It finally happened for Patriots receiver Jakobi Meyers, who turned his 135th career catch into his first career receiving touchdown in the dying moments of New England’s game against the Cleveland Browns in Week 10. Coming into this game, Meyers had been extending the streak for most passes caught by a wide receiver without a touchdown. His 134 receptions without finding the endzone for six were clear of anyone else behind him on the list, with the record now belonging to former Cleveland Brown Ricardo Louis, with 45 career receptions without a touchdown.
What was perhaps even better than the touchdown curse being broken was the reaction from Meyers’ teammates, who swarmed the veteran receiver with their support. The touchdown itself didn’t hold much significance, with the game being all but decided by the Patriots’ 38-7 lead before the snap, but Patriots players made sure to validate Meyers’ big moment for him. It wasn’t just the offensive unit either; players from all sides of the ball rushed to the endzone to congratulate Meyers on his accomplishment, signifying how important he is as an individual in the Patriots’ locker room.
Meyers would finish the day with four receptions for 49 yards and the aforementioned touchdown. While four receptions seems like a relatively small number, Meyers has consistently been at or near the top of the receiving pecking order, tying for the team high in receptions in Week 10 with three other Patriot pass catchers. The touchdown will hopefully be a sign of big things to come for Meyers, who has established himself as a critical asset in this young offense, but only time will tell if the receiver has truly opened the scoring floodgates for himself.
Russell Wilson, quarterback, Seattle Seahawks
It was a rough return to the field for Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, who was shut out for the first time in his 150-game career in Seattle’s 17-0 loss to the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, Nov. 14. Wilson was returning on the early side of his missed time prediction from a finger injury that had kept him off the field since Week 5 of this season.
Wilson would finish the game with 161 yards on 40 attempts, completing only 50% of his passes for no scores and an atrocious 13 QBR. The veteran quarterback has become known for his accuracy in the pocket, and the 50% completion mark is one that Wilson hasn’t fallen to since Week 13 of the 2018 NFL season.
A lot of the inconsistencies in Wilson’s performance can be drawn up to the return from injury, which is not something that Wilson has ever had to experience before seeing as how his missed time this season was the first time in his career the signal caller has been forced to sit out any games. There is an expectation that this rust will wear off for Wilson quickly heading into the upcoming week, as Seattle is in real danger of not making the playoffs this season with its current 3-6 record.
Jacoby Brissett, quarterback, Miami Dolphins
Miami Dolphins quarterback Jacoby Brissett was awarded the starting spot in Week 10 amid a finger injury forcing the typical starter, Tua Tagovailoa, to serve as the teams’ backup on Thursday Night Football against the Baltimore Ravens. There was a small possibility that Tagovailoa could rehab the finger injury in time to reclaim the starting role, but the quick turnaround for a Thursday night game and limited practices throughout the week would allow Brissett to take the spot just as he did in Week 9.
It wasn’t a pretty one for Brissett, who finished the game with 156 passing yards on a 47.8% completion percentage with no scores and a QBR of 14.2. The quarterback also didn’t get the chance to remedy his early mistakes after leaving the game in the third quarter with a knee injury. While Tagovailoa did not perform much better in relief of Brissett, the Dolphins did enough to pull out a win against an extremely good Ravens squad, all but locking up the starting role for Tagovailoa in the coming week.
