Would you like to receive DawgNation news alerts? Excellent! News alerts will be displayed in your browser.
Gary McCllough/AP
Roquan Smith had two interceptions

Former Georgia linebacker Roquan Smith, Leonard Floyd have dominant showings in Week 16

Connor Riley
Connor Riley

Two former Georgia linebackers put on strong showings during Week 16 of the 2020 season.

We’ll start with Chicago Bears linebacker Roquan Smith, who intercepted two Mike Glennon passes in addition to racking up eight tackles for the Bears and a fumble recovery in a 41-17 win.

Chicago has won three straight games now and with a win against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, the Bears would lock up the final playoff spot if the Arizona Cardinals were to lose. While the Bears have been streaky all season, Smith has been a consistent force in the middle of the defense.

The third-year linebacker is second in the NFL with 97 solo tackles and fifth in overall tackles with 136. Smith is also fifth in the NFL in tackles for loss. Smith was not named to the Pro Bowl this year in one of the puzzling snubs.

If the Bears are to make the playoffs, they’ll need some help from the Los Angeles Rams who play Arizona this week. Leonard Floyd did his best last week to try and help the Rams, as he racked up another two sacks for the Rams. But due to some offensive struggles and an injury to Jared Goff, the Rams lost 20-9 to the Seattle Seahawks.

Floyd has been at this best this season when playing the Seahawks, as he’s got five sacks in the two games against Seattle. In Floyd’s first season with the Rams, he’s posted a career-best 9.5 sacks. If the Rams beat the Cardinals, Los Angeles will clinch a playoff berth.

On the offensive side of the ball, Nick Chubb had the worst rushing output of his season, as he finished with 28 rushing yards. But he had five catches for 38 yards and scored another touchdown. The Browns were without their top four wide receivers due to contract tracing. Because of this, the Jets loaded up to stop the run, which resulted in Cleveland throwing the ball 53 times.

The Browns can clinch a playoff berth with a win in Week 17 against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Chubb needs 41 rushing yards to finish the season with over 1,000.

In Detroit, Matthew Stafford left the game with an injury and the Lions floundered without him. The Lions lost 47-7 to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. D’Andre Swift had 45 rushing yards to go along with 25 receiving yards.

In Indianapolis, kicker Rodrigo Blankenship was once again perfect as made his lone field goal attempt and converted on all three of his extra points. However, the Colts lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers 28-24.

As for this week’s Top Dawg, our weekly NFL honor that goes to the top former Bulldog, we’re going with Smith. The performance from Smith was just another in what has been a stellar season for the former Bulldog.

Top Dawgs in the NFL

Week 16: Roquan Smith, Chicago Bears ILB
Week 15: Nick Chubb, Cleveland Browns RB
Week 14: Roquan Smith, Chicago Bears ILB
Week 13: Justin Houston, Indianapolis Colts OLB
Week 12: Nick Chubb, Cleveland Browns RB
Week 11: Rodrigo Blankenship, Indianapolis Colts K
Week 10: Leonard Floyd, Los Angeles Rams OLB
Week 9: Roquan Smith, Chicago Bears ILB
Week 8: Mecole Hardman, Kansas City Chiefs WR
Week 7: Leonard Floyd, Los Angeles Rams OLB
Week 6: Tae Crowder, New York Giants LB
Week 5: Andrew Thomas, New York Giants OT
Week 4: Mecole Hardman, Kansas City Chiefs WR
Week 3: Nick Chubb, Cleveland Browns RB
Week 2: Rodrigo Blankenship, Indianapolis Colts K
Week 1: Leonard Floyd, Los Angeles Rams OLB

More Georgia football stories from around DawgNation

NEXT 5 questions with Cincinnati beat writer leading into Georgia Peach Bowl matchup
We have a new way to comment on our DawgNation stories. To do so, you must be a registered user on the DawgNation forum. If you haven’t registered, please go to the Forum homepage on DawgNation and look for “register” on the right side.
Comments by

Recent

view all

Popular

view all