WHAT TO LOOK FOR – A LOOK BACK
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4,000-YARD PASSERS: New England quarterback TOM BRADY passed for 226 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions for a 116.8 passer rating in the Patriots’ 27-6 win at Houston.
Brady leads the NFL with 4,138 passing yards in 2015 and joined PEYTON MANNING (14) andDREW BREES (nine) as the only players with at least eight 4,000-yard seasons.
The players with the most 4,000-yard passing seasons:
PLAYER
4,000-YARD SEASONS
Peyton Manning*
14
Drew Brees*
9
Tom Brady*
8
Brett Favre
6
Dan Marino
6
Philip Rivers*
6
*Active
23 & UNDER: Jacksonville quarterback BLAKE BORTLES passed for 250 yards and accounted for four touchdowns (three passing, one rushing) with no interceptions for a 114.6 passer rating in the Jaguars’ 51-16 win against the Colts.
Bortles, who is 23 years old, has a single-season franchise record 30 touchdown passes and hasjoined Pro Football Hall of Famer DAN MARINO, MATTHEW STAFFORD and DAUNTE CULPEPPER as the only players in NFL history with at least 30 touchdown passes in a season at age 23 or younger.
The players with 30+ touchdown passes in a season at age 23 or younger:
PLAYER
TEAM
YEAR
TD PASSES
Dan Marino
Miami Dolphins
1984
48
Matthew Stafford
Detroit Lions
2011
41
Daunte Culpepper
Minnesota Vikings
2000
33
Blake Bortles
Jacksonville Jaguars
2015
30*
*Through 13 games
CONSECUTIVE 100-CATCH SEASONS: Pittsburgh wide receiver ANTONIO BROWN had seven catches for 87 yards in the Steelers’ 33-20 win at Cincinnati. Brown, who ranks second in the NFL with 100 receptions this season, is the sixth player in NFL history with at least three consecutive 100-catch seasons.
Brown is the only player in NFL history with at least 100 receptions and a punt return-touchdown in multiple seasons and has done so in each of the past three seasons (2013-15). New England’s TROY BROWN (2001) and Cleveland’s ERIC METCALF (1995) are the only other players to accomplish the feat in one season.
The players with at least three consecutive 100-catch seasons:
PLAYER
YEARS
CONSECUTIVE 100-CATCH SEASONS
Marvin Harrison
1999-2002
4
Jerry Rice
1994-1996
3
Herman Moore
1995-1997
3
Brandon Marshall
2007-2009
3
Wes Welker
2007-2009
3
Antonio Brown
2013-2014
3*
*Active streak
STEELER SUCCESS: With yesterday’s 33-20 win at Cincinnati, Pittsburgh head coach MIKE TOMLIN improved his regular-season record to 90-51 since joining the Steelers in 2007. The Steelers are the only NFL franchise to have three head coaches with at least 90 career regular-season wins as Tomlin joins Pro Football Hall of Famer CHUCK NOLL (193) and BILL COWHER (149).
Minnesota running back ADRIAN PETERSON rushed for 69 yards and one touchdown against Arizona on Thursday night. Peterson now has rushed for 11,441 yards and has 100 career touchdowns (95 rushing, five receiving) in 117 career games and joined Pro Football Hall of Famers JIM BROWN and EMMITT SMITH and LA DAINIAN TOMLINSON as the only players in NFL history with at least 10,000 rushing yards and 100 total touchdowns in the first 117 games to begin a career.
