Penn State players in the NFL: Week 11

Story posted November 23, 2018 in CommRadio, Sports by Matthew White

Former Penn State players that are currently playing in the NFL made quite a statement last week, particularly on the defensive end.  The game between the New York Giants and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers featured five Penn State alumni.  The list of players that made the biggest contributions last weekend are as follows:

Saquon Barkley, RB, New York Giants

The star running back continued to make his case for rookie of the year by having a career-high game in touchdowns with three last weekend in the win against the Buccaneers.  The running back carried the team to victory with 27 carries for 142 yards and two rushing touchdowns.  Barkley also caught the ball twice for 10 yards and connected with Eli Manning in the red zone on one of those catches. 

Jason Cabinda, LB, Oakland Raiders

Cabinda made his second career start last weekend and also helped propel the Raiders to their second win on the season.  The linebacker finished with one solo tackle and one assisted tackle. Head coach Jon Gruden described Cabinda’s performance by saying, “Cabinda's got that Penn State Linebacker U tradition all over. He's got that stuff. We need that at MLB. We haven't had an MLB in terms of stability here for a while, maybe since Greg Biekert.”

Jack Crawford, DT, Atlanta Falcons

Crawford had a stellar performance last weekend, finishing the game with two solo tackles and one forced fumble.  Crawford was able to knock the ball out of Ezekiel Elliott's hand and also recover the fumble. 

Adrian Amos, S, Chicago Bears

The former fifth-round pick is playing superb by helping the Bears take first place of the NFC North last weekend.  Amos finished the game with two solo tackles and also had an interception off Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins. 

Chris Goodwin, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Goodwin had a quiter game last weekend by his standards.  He finished with three receptions for 50 yards.  However, the wide receiver now has 533 yards this year, which passed his previous season-high he had at 525 yards as a rookie. 

Grant Haley, CB, New York Giants

The undrafted rookie has solidified his big role on the Giants defense by playing 48 snaps in last weekend’s win.  Haley finished with one tackle. 

Carl Nassib, DE, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Another former Penn State player that made major contributions last weekend was Carl Nassib, who finished with a career-high six tackles.  Nassib also had an assist on a sack.  The 6-foot-7 defensive end has been great for the Buccaneers with 4.5 sacks and 13 solo tackles on the season. 

Allen Robinson, WR, Chicago Bears

Robinson was targeted seven times on Sunday Night football, but was only able to complete three of his targets for 39 yards.  Robinson has been the best wide receiver for the Bears and a big reason for the team’s success this season. 

DaeSean Hamilton, WR, Denver Broncos

Hamilton returned to the field for the first time in a month after being sidelined with a knee injury.  Hamilton only had one catch for four yards, but should make a bigger presence for the Broncos after they traded Demaryius Thomas. 

Austin Johnson, DT, Tennessee Titans

Johnson had a minimal impact on the stat sheet with just one tackle, but he also had his first batted ball of the season.  The defensive lineman has 24 tackles and two sacks this year in his third season with the Titans. 

 

 

Matthew White is a freshman majoring in broadcast journalism with a double minor in Business and Spanish.  To contact him, email mmw42@psu.edu.