WATCH: Former LSU star Leonard Fournette makes long-distance house call
Just two weeks after putting together a career day against the Indianapolis Colts, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Leonard Fournette is back at it in Week 14.
The Buccaneers are currently playing host to the 7-5 Buffalo Bills in a pivotal AFC matchup, as both teams figure to be legitimate candidates to win the conference by season’s end. On Tampa Bay’s second drive of the game, Brady needed just a few plays to set up the Buccaneers from the Bills’ 47-yard line, and Fournette took care of the rest.
Fournette exploded for a 47-yard rushing touchdown, his eighth rushing touchdown of the season. At the time of publication, Fournette already has 56 yards and a touchdown through one quarter, and his impact performance came just two weeks after a career-best game against the Colts. In that 38-31 win, Fournette had 17 carries for 100 rushing yards and three touchdowns, along with seven receptions for 31 receiving yards and another touchdown.
Heading into Sunday’s contest, Fournette has rushed for 665 yards and seven touchdowns, averaging just shy of 4.5 yards per carry. Additionally, Fournette had tallied 58 receptiuons for 402 receiving yards and two more touchdowns, good for 6.9 yards per catch, and he’s helped lead the Buccaneers to a 9-3 overall record, including a perfect 5-0 home record. Fournette had a slow start to the season, eclipsing 70 yards just once through the first five games of the year. However, he quickly bounced back from that performance, making the most of his opportunities and scoring five total touchdowns in the last two weeks alone.
A native of New Orleans, Fournette committed to LSU as a five-star running back recruit, and he tore up the SEC in three years with the Tigers. Fournette in 2015 was named a first-team All-SEC and consensus All-American running back, then followed it up with a second-team All-SEC selection his final season.
Fournette finished his three-year career at LSU with 3,830 rushing yards and 40 touchdowns, along with 41 receptions for 526 receiving yards and one more score. In the end, Fournette’s explosive play was enough for the Jacksonville Jaguars to select him with the first-overall draft pick in the 2017 NFL Draft.