Benedict Bermange picks out the best stats from Week 15 in the NFL, including Jonathan Taylor continuing his remarkable scoring streak, Tom Brady being shut out at home for the very first time and Cooper Kupp setting a new Rams receptions record
Wednesday 22 December 2021 16:25, UK
Sky Sports Cricket statistician - and big Buffalo Bills fan - Benedict Bermange dives into the 2021 NFL season to pick out the best stats from each week...
Travis Kelce had 10 receptions for 191 yards and two touchdowns in the Kansas City Chiefs' Thursday night victory over the Los Angeles Chargers to become one of only three tight ends ever to have at least 10 catches, 175 yards and two TDs in the same game.
The Chargers did not help themselves, failing to score points on three separate drives that ended inside the Chiefs' five-yard line - resulting in two turnovers on downs and one lost fumble. The only other occasions in the past 30 years when a team had no points on three drives inside their opponent's five-yard-line were the Cleveland Browns against the New York Jets in 2017.
Jonathan Taylor's 67-yard touchdown run in the Indianapolis Colts' victory over the New England Patriots on Saturday night made him the first player since LaDainian Tomlinson in 2004 to have a rushing touchdown in 11 consecutive games in a season.
In Week 15, the team with the worst record in the NFL (the Detroit Lions) defeated the team with the best record in the NFL (the Arizona Cardinals) for just the third time in the Super Bowl era. However, on both previous occasions (the 2004 Patriots losing to the Miami Dolphins and the 1995 Dallas Cowboys losing to Washington), the defeated team went on to win the Super Bowl.
Trevon Diggs intercepted his 10th pass of the season, becoming just the third Cowboy to reach that mark, after Mel Renfro in 1969 and Everson Walls in 1981. Helped by Diggs, the Cowboys forced four turnovers for the third-successive game, the first team to do so since the 2007 Lions.
With Micah Parsons recording 12 sacks so far, the Cowboys are the first team to boast players with double-figures in interceptions and sacks since the 2007 Chargers, for whom Antonio Cromartie had 10 interceptions and Shawne Merriman had 12.5 sacks.
The Green Bay Packers edged out the Baltimore Ravens 31-30 on Sunday, with Aaron Rodgers equalling Brett Favre's franchise record for the most touchdown passes, doing so while throwing fewer than a third of Favre's interceptions.
Marquise Brown had 10 receptions for 43 yards for the Ravens against the Packers. Only three players in NFL history have had fewer receiving yards when posting 10 catches in a game.
The New Orleans Saints defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-0 and dealt Tom Brady his first shutout since Week 14 of the 2006 season when the Patriots lost 21-0 to the Dolphins. This week was Brady's first home shutout in his NFL career.
Having held Rodgers' Packers without a TD in Week One and Brady's Buccaneers without one this week, the Saints became the first team in NFL history to face the reigning MVP and reigning Super Bowl MVP in separate games in a season and hold both teams without a touchdown.
In the process of catching nine passes in the Los Angeles Rams' Tuesday night victory over the Seattle Seahawks, Cooper Kupp set a new franchise record for the most receptions in a season with 122, surpassing Isaac Bruce's previous mark of 119 which dated back to 1995.
Sky Sports NFL is your dedicated channel for NFL coverage through the season - featuring a host of NFL Network programming. Don't forget to follow us on skysports.com/nfl, our Twitter account @SkySportsNFL & Sky Sports - on the go!
