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Hawkeyes in the NFL: Week One Top Performers

On3 imageby: Kyle Huesmann7 hours agoHuesmannKyle
Noah Fant caught a touchdown pass for the Bengals. (Photo by Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA Today)
Noah Fant caught a touchdown pass for the Bengals. (Photo by Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA Today)

The opening weekend of the NFL season is complete, with TJ Hockenson and the Vikings picking up a win over the Bears on Monday Night. 29 former Hawkeyes were on active rosters for week one, while 13 players were in the starting lineup. We take a look at the top performances from the weekend, as well as a couple that didn’t quite make the cut.

Honorable Mention Performances

CB Cooper DeJean vs Dallas – 5 tkls, 1 PD

LB Jack Campbell vs Green Bay – 9 tkls

1. Baltimore C Tyler Linderbaum

The Rimington Trophy winner as a senior at Iowa in 2021, Tyler Linderbaum has been one of the best centers in all of football since getting drafted by Baltimore back in 2022. In his first three seasons in the league, Tyler has graded 6th-best (’22), 9th-best (’23) and 4th-best (’24) center according to Pro Football Focus.

Although the Ravens dropped a heart-breaking season-opener against Buffalo on Sunday Night Football, Linderbaum was one of the best performing linemen during week one. He did not allow a single quarterback pressure over 23 pass blocking snaps, while his 87.4 overall grade was second-best for the week only trailing Jets tackle Armand Membou (89.0). Linderbaum was also the only center with a game grade above 80.0 for the week.

2. Cincinnati TE Noah Fant

An offseason acquisition by the Bengals, Noah Fant is now on his third team since joining the league back in 2019. He was drafted by Denver and moved to Seattle in the Russell Wilson trade, but was released after last season. With the Seahawks a year ago, Fant caught 48 passes for 500 yards.

In the Bengals season-opener on Sunday against the Browns, Fant caught four passes for 26 yards, including a one-yard touchdown reception that put Cincinnati in front 14-7 in the second quarter. He caught just one touchdown pass in his last two years with Seattle and has already matched that in one game with Joe Burrow as his quarterback.

3. Denver CB Riley Moss

In his third year with the Broncos, Riley Moss is looking to improve on his numbers from last season after starting 14 games on one of the best defenses in the NFL. He tallied 86 tackles, eight passes defended and one interception a year ago, but graded 29th out of 41 corners that played at least 800 snaps.

In the Broncos season-opener against Tennessee, Moss tallied seven tackles and two passes defended. Rookie quarterback Cam Ward targeted him eight times, but Riley allowed just three completions for 21 yards. His 78.7 game grade ranked 5th-best amongst corners for week one.

4. Detroit TE Sam LaPorta

Sam LaPorta had one of, if not the best rookie seasons by a tight end in NFL history, but did not get quite the same number of targets during his sophomore season last year. He went from 120 targets to 83 targets but still finished the year with 60 catches for 726 yards and six touchdowns.

The Lions dropped their season-opener to the Packers and didn’t look real great in the process, but LaPorta caught six passes on eight targets for 79 yards. In 16 starts last season, LaPorta was targeted eight or more times just once.

5. Green Bay DE Lukas Van Ness

Could Lukas Van Ness be the beneficiary of more pass rushing opportunities with Micah Parsons on the roster? Only time will tell. Since getting drafted by Green Bay in the first round of the ’23 draft, Van Ness has been called a bust by some, despite totaling 65 tackles, 14 tackles for loss and seven sacks through two seasons.

In the Packers dominating season-opening win over Detroit, Van Ness finished with four tackles, four quarterback pressures, one tackle for loss and one sack. Notably, it was his first start since he was a senior at Barrington High School in Illinois. His four QB pressures is a good start after totaling just four games with multiple pressures last season.

6. San Francisco TE George Kittle

One of best tight ends in all of football and one of the more well-liked players in the entire league, George Kittle is already into his ninth year in the NFL. Last season, Kittle had one of the best seasons of his career, tallying 78 receptions for 1,106 yards and eight touchdowns. It was his third-best season for catches, second-best for yards and second-best for touchdown catches.

In the 49ers season-opening win over the Seahawks, Kittle caught four passes for 25 yards, including a touchdown to get San Francisco on the board late in the first quarter. However, George injured his hamstring later in the game and is expected to miss multiple weeks.

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