After Week 4, former Louisville players were scattered all over the NFL box score, with some turning in clean performances and others dealing with injuries, snap-count changes, and uneven team results.
Lamar Jackson helped Baltimore get to 3-1 with a second straight win, putting together another efficient outing before leaving with an injury late. He finished with 242 yards and two touchdowns, pushing his season QBR to 81.4, which ranks fourth in the league. Jackson was hurt on a left ankle issue in the closing moments and is officially listed as "questionable" for Week 5.
"We're still gathering a lot of the information and the imaging and things like that, just dealing with a little bit of an ankle, and we'll kind of see where that shakes out," head coach Jesse Minter said.
Tyler Shough’s Monday Night Football debut with the Saints came with plenty of attention. He threw 48 passes and finished with 286 yards and a touchdown in a loss to the Falcons, but the raw numbers still pointed to a quarterback handling a big stage.
Chris Bell had a quieter stat line for Miami in the loss to Minnesota, finishing without a catch on three targets. Still, his night nearly changed the game when what appeared to be a 68-yard touchdown was wiped out after he stepped out of bounds before securing the ball. The Dolphins fell by five points, and Bell said, "I saw the quarterback scrambling out of the pocket, in my mind immediately thinking scramble drill… Thought it was a touchdown."
Coming off an ACL tear, Bell has 5 catches for 92 yards, which is third on the team.
Tutu Atwell saw limited work for the Rams in their win over the Eagles, playing 23% of the offensive snaps. With Puka Nacua healthy again, Atwell’s chances have shrunk, and he finished with one catch for eight yards. He now has two catches for 27 yards this season, and the Rams are 2-0 when he’s healthy after he missed two games because of injury.
Mark Redman continued building a role in Green Bay, catching two passes for 29 yards while also holding up as a blocker. PFF gave him a 74.5 offensive grade, second on the team behind Jordan Love.
Bryan Hudson got his first career start for the Giants at center after John Michael Schmitz missed practice time because of the birth of his child. Hudson played all 62 snaps, didn’t allow a pressure, and posted a 78.5 PFF offensive grade.
Schmitz had a 45.7 grade in three starts, and John Harbaugh said, "He didn't have a lot of rest. It just made sense, and I think it paid off.
It's not a long-term thing. I mean, we just have two centers we really like,"
Sheldon Rankins started on the Houston defensive line and logged two tackles in another loss, with his playing time rising after Mario Edwards suffered an ACL tear in Week 3. Rankins played 73% of the defensive snaps, has 11 tackles on the season, and his two sacks are second on the team behind All-Pro Will Anderson.
Ashton Gillotte helped Kansas City stay unbeaten, contributing three tackles in a win over the Raiders. PFF graded him at 71.9, which was fifth-best on the team, and he now has two quarterback pressures on the season.
Yaya Diaby’s Tampa Bay season has been much tougher. The Buccaneers fell to 0-4, and Diaby’s 45.8 pass rush grade ranks 109th out of 110 according to PFF.
He is still looking for his first sack, though he did record two tackles against Green Bay to bring his total to eight for the year. He remains in a key contract season.
Wesley Bailey kept moving up for the Rams, with injuries opening the door for more snaps. With both Aaron Donald and Myles Garrett out this past weekend, the undrafted rookie played 48% of the snaps after being at 19% in Week 3, and he finished with two tackles in the win over the Eagles, a career high.
Yasir Abdullah got one over on Tyler Shough in Atlanta’s Monday night rout of New Orleans, helping the Falcons to a 45-24 win. Abdullah had a highlight-reel deflection at the line of scrimmage, and he has two tackles this season.
Quincy Riley also worked in that Saints-Falcons matchup, making four tackles for New Orleans in a defense that gave up 420 total yards and 45 points. He has 10 tackles on the year and two pass deflections.
Jarvis Brownlee has been one of the Jets’ few bright spots, and his PFF grade reflects that. His 75.5 mark ranks 10th among 97 qualified defensive backs, and he sits top-12 in both coverage and run defense grades. Brownlee left the Bears loss after injuring his head in the fourth quarter and is now in concussion protocol, with a chance to play this week.
Kei'Trel Clark was also included among the former Cardinals being tracked after Week 4.
In Other News...
Louisville Gets A Timely Secondary Lift Before Florida State
Koen Entringer is set to return for Louisvilles Week 6 matchup with Florida State after sitting out the previous two games, giving the Cardinals a needed boost in the secondary. His absence showed up in a defense that had a rough stretch in recent losses to Wake Forest and North Carolina State, where the back end had to hold up without one of its more important pieces.
Louisville does not get much time to ease back into things, either. The Cardinals are heading into the Florida State game on a short week, with kickoff set for 7 p.m. local time, so getting Entringer back now could matter as much for stability as for talent. [Read more 🡒]
Louisville Faces A Game Plan That Could Test Everything Saturday
Florida States zone read package has become a real point of attention heading into Saturday, especially after Ashton Daniels found success with it in recent weeks. The Seminoles leaned on that wrinkle against Virginia, and it gives this matchup another layer for Louisville to sort through as it prepares for an offense that can create stress in a hurry. For a Cardinals team looking to keep its own attack rolling, the key is understanding how quickly a seemingly ordinary run concept can turn into a problem if the defense loses discipline.
Louisvilles side of the equation is straightforward enough: the Cardinals have enough firepower to make opponents pay, but they also know this is the kind of game where one breakdown can change the tone fast. Even with the broader season outlook still unsettled, Saturday offers another chance for players to show they can rise above the teams struggles and make a case for bigger things ahead. The challenge is not just handling the run game, but proving Louisville can impose itself when a game plan is designed to poke at every weakness. [Read more 🡒]
Louisvilles Comeback Hopes Turned On A Brutal Fourth Quarter Swing
Louisville had enough flashes in its game against NC State to keep the comeback picture alive for a while, with Kaleb Beasleys interception and a few productive runs from Isaac Brown giving the Cardinals something to build on. The defensive takeaway helped swing momentum, and Louisvilles ground game showed it could still find cracks when the blocking held up.
Keyjuan Browns fumble and the protection issues on several snaps told a different part of the story, though, and those breakdowns kept Louisville from fully cashing in on its better moments. The Cardinals had stretches where the response looked there, but the details in pass protection and ball security left too much room for NC State to widen the gap. [Read more 🡒]