Penn State defenders take over our Week Three NFL standouts

It wasn’t a strong weekend for the Penn State offensive players in week three of the NFL season. Mike Gesicki only saw 14 offensive snaps against the Bills, while Ryan Bates left the game early with an injury after struggling in the Miami heat. Jahan Dotson, Allen Robinson, and KJ Halmer didn’t make an impact as receivers on Sunday either. 

Defensively things were quite different. We’ll get to the lone Penn State offensive standout before switching to the defense. Stats are via PFF. 

Penn State players who stood out in Week Three

Pat Freiermuth– While Thursday night football feels like ages ago, Pat Freiermuth remained Penn State’s leading receiver with two catches for 41 yards through the weekend. It was the former Penn State tight end’s lowest target volume of the season, with most of his four targets coming late in the contest. However, he made the best of it with two contested receptions. 

Jaquan Brisker – Former Penn State standout Jaquan Brisker finally rounded into form on Sunday and played a clean game for the Chicago Bears in his team’s 23-20 victory over the Houston Texans. Brisker didn’t miss a tackle in the game, gave up only two catches for nine yards, and tallied two stops. Brisker chipped in four tackles and was solid in run defense.

It’s a reversal for the normally sure-fire Brisker, who missed seven tackles in the first two games. Brisker played a key role in the Bears’ secondary and played at least ten snaps at every level of the defense and in the slot. That level of versatility is what the Bears drafted him to do. 

Odafe Oweh: Odafe Oweh still hasn’t found his way to the quarterback this season, but that hasn’t stopped him from making plays overall. He notched four stops on five tackles in the Baltimore Ravens win over the New England Patriots yesterday and still got three pressures on Pats QB Mac Jones.

Without digging into how the Ravens are using Oweh, it’s still a concern that he hasn’t gotten a hit or a sack on a quarterback in 123 rushes this season. 

Haley plays a strong game for the Rams

Grant Haley: Slot corner Grant Haley saw significant playing time against the Cardinals’ spread offense and rose to the occasion. He allowed five catches on five targets in the slot but only for 45 yards and limited first downs. 

Austin Johnson – Former Penn State nose tackle Austin Johnson does the dirty work for the Chargers, clogging up interior rushing lanes and taking on double teams to free up the Chargers superstar pass rushers. He racked up three tackles and was a lone bright spot in the Chargers’ 38-10 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. 

Adrian Amos – The veteran Penn State safety struggled out of the gate the first two weeks of the season but had a bounce-back game in Green Bay’s 14-12 win over the Bucs. Adrian Amos’ job mostly had him playing deep free safety, but he didn’t give up any big plays and totaled two catches for 8 yards in underneath coverage. 

Shaka Toney: The one pass rusher from Penn State known for his speed and undersized frame, Shaka Toney had one of the best days as a run defender on Sunday. He tallied three tackles, but all were run stops, according to PFF. The Commanders still miss Chase Young providing pressure off the edge, but Toney and the rest of the defensive line did a sound job bottling up Miles Sander for less than 50 yards on the afternoon.  

Still to play: It’s a battle of former Penn State superstars on Monday night football. Saquon Barkley and the New York Giants travel to Dallas to face Micah Parsons, Connor McGovern, and the Cowboys. Barkley is seventh in the NFL in rushing coming into the game tonight, and Parsons is a half-sack off the NFL lead.