After diving into the game tape and sifting through every box score from Week 3 of the NFL season, these were the 10 most outstanding individual performances.
Game-winning interceptions, resurgent past-their-prime quarterbacks keying big wins, clutch kickers and some feisty Falcons contributed to full list of “Game Ball”-worthy performances from Week 3 of the NFL season.
But only 10 can make the list — those are the rules, and without rules we’d a lawless, chaotic NFL column.
So the TeamFB7 “Game Ball” selection committee made some tough decisions (and bent those rules as best we could) to settle on the final 10 (plus a bunch of honorable mentions because why not?).
Week 3 Game Balls For The 10 Best NFL Performances
1. Atlanta Falcons RB Bijan Robinson and WR Drake London
The return of quarterback Michael Penix Jr. — saving Atlanta and its fans from having to watch Cooper Rush take another snap — gave the Falcons a fresh spark after their lifeless 0-2 start.
But it was the team’s top stars who shined brightest in the Falcons’ 35-14 win over the Green Bay Packers last Thursday night.
And we couldn’t honor one without the other, so Bijan Robinson and Drake London will just have to share custody of their Week 3 Game Ball.
Robinson rushed for 194 yards and 2 TDs on 29 carries (plus 19 receiving yards) and London had 9 catches for 194 yards, awakening an offense that didn’t even reach the red zone in two games with Rush at QB.
Don’t count out the Falcons just yet. With a two-time NFL Coach of the Year in Kevin Stefanski and those elite offensive playmakers, all this team needs is competent quarterback play to have a chance most weeks.
2. Denver Broncos S Talanoa Hufanga
The Broncos scored one of the biggest wins of Week 3, outlasting the Los Angeles Rams in a thrilling back-and-forth duel that saw 24 points scored in the fourth quarter before Denver closed out a 30-26 win.
With safety Talanoa Hufanga leaving his fingerprints all over that victory.
Hufanga had two interceptions in that frenetic fourth quarter, turning the first one into a 66-yard touchdown return that gave Denver a 23-19 lead at the time and then ending the game with another pick of Matthew Stafford on the final play of the game from the Broncos’ 19.
Hufanga also had 5 tackles, a sack and 3 passes defended.
3. Washington Commanders LB Kain Medrano
It doesn’t always take a gaudy stat line to command Game Ball recognition — making the biggest play of the game in one of the biggest upsets of the week counts just as much.
And that’s what Kain Medrano did for Washington on Sunday with a 50-yard pick-6 late in the fourth quarter of the Commanders’ stunning 33-31 upset win over the Seattle Seahawks.
The Commanders entered the game as 11.5-point underdogs with backup quarterback Marcus Mariota going up against Seattle’s vaunted defense, and yet it was Washington looking in control most of the game.
But it looked like the momentum was swinging back to the reigning Super Bowl champs as they erased a 14-point deficit to tie the game early in the fourth quarter before Washington went back up 27-24 on a field goal.
Seattle got the ball with 4:24 remaining and had moved across midfield, looking primed to seize control … until Medrano stepped in front of Sam Darnold’s intended target and took the ball 50 yards back for a touchdown and 33-24 Commanders lead.
Seattle followed with a quick touchdown to narrow the score again, but the Commanders were able to run out the clock and complete the upset.
Medrano, a sixth-round draft pick out of UCLA last year, also had 5 tackles in helping Washington improve to 1-2 and keep hope alive for its season.
4. Chicago Bears QB Case Keenum
Case Keenum had not played an NFL game in three seasons before stepping in for the Bears on Monday night with starting QB Caleb Williams sidelined by his hamstring injury and backup Tyson Bagent limited during the week recovering from a concussion.
And he didn’t just beat the Philadelphia Eagles — Keenum and the Bears embarrassed Philadelphia in a 27-7 win.
The 38-yard Keenum completed 24 of 34 passes for 247 yards, 2 TDs and 0 INTs and added a rushing TD.
It was only his second win as a starting quarterback in five seasons.
5. Detroit Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs
Jahmyr Gibbs now has the best NFL MVP odds of any non-quarterback at +2800, per DraftKings Sportsbook, after another all-around outstanding performance in Week 3.
Gibbs and Robinson are neck-and-neck as the best all-purpose running backs in the league, and the Lions star kept pace Sunday with 20 carries for 99 yards and 2 TDs along with 7 catches for 65 yards and a score in Detroit’s 31-24 win over the New York Jets.
Gibbs’ 11-yard receiving touchdown came on third-and-5 with a little more than 2 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, breaking the tie and standing as the game-winning score to help the Lions improve to 2-1.
Gibbs ranks fourth in the NFL in rushing yards (307), is tied for the league lead with 6 TDs and narrowly trails Robinson in combined rushing/receiving yards (467-463).
6. Las Vegas Raiders TE Brock Bowers
Brock Bowers made his much-anticipated return after missing the first two games following an arthroscopic procedure on his knee at the end of the preseason, and he immediately returned to his standard elite form.
Bowers had a game-high 10 catches for 116 yards and a TD as the Raiders won 35-27 on the road at New Orleans to move to 3-0 as the biggest surprise team in the NFL.
Bowers’ touchdown came midway through the fourth quarter on a third-and-goal from the 4, putting the Raiders ahead by that final 8-point margin.
7. Indianapolis Colts K Spencer Shrader and New York Giants K Dominic Zvada
Kickers are people too and deserve their share of the spotlight!
But we’re also only going to allocate one spot on the Game Balls list to the position. So, we don’t know if the Colts’ Spencer Shrader and the Giants Dominic Zvada are friends, but they’re sharing a Game Ball here. Maybe they can trade off weekends with it.
The Colts didn’t produce a ton of offense, but they managed to beat the Houston Texans 19-17 thanks to the reliable right leg of Shrader. The third-year NFL pro who has already played for three teams made all four of his field goal attempts Sunday, hitting from 39, 58 37 and 53 yards. That final 53-yarder was the game-winner with 16 seconds left.
Meanwhile, Zvada, an undrafted rookie out of Michigan, also went 4-4 on field goals Sunday while accounting for all of the Giants’ points in a 12-7 win over the Tennessee Titans.
Zvada connected on kicks from 39, 27, 39 and 30 yards.
8. San Francisco 49ers QB Brock Purdy
Brock Purdy is back on the list again while continuing to perform as one of the best quarterbacks in the league so far this season.
No matter how many setbacks he incurs to his wide receiver corps, Purdy keeps the chains moving and the points piling up for San Francisco.
He completed 15 of 27 passes for 297 yards, 4 TDs and 0 INTs while also rushing for 34 yards in the 49ers’ 36-30 win over the Arizona Cardinals to move to 3-0. (He also had a long touchdown run of his own called back by penalty).
After the Cardinals cut the 49ers’ lead to 29-27 with a touchdown late in the fourth quarter, Purdy immediately led a 7-play, 65-yard drive capped by a 20-yard touchdown toss to tight end George Kittle to help close out the win.
Through three games, Purdy has passed for 789 yards, 9 TDs and 1 INT (plus a rushing TD).
9. Pittsburgh Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers
Aaron Rodgers hadn’t shown much through the Steelers’ first two games, passing for a combined 408 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT and looking every bit of 42 years old.
Then he went and outdueled Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday …
Rodgers completed 19 of 34 passes for 292 yards, 3 TDs and 1 INT in a 30-27 win to improve Pittsburgh to 2-1 and ignite some fresh optimism for what this offense can be under new coach Mike McCarthy.
Beyond just the stats, Rodgers looked like his vintage self at times with throws like these …
10. Washington Commanders QB Marcus Mariota
This required making some painful (and unfair) cuts from the list, but given the magnitude of the Commanders’ upset win over the reigning Super Bowl champs and what it means for their season overall after and 0-2 start and losing starting QB Jayden Daniels to yet another elbow injury, Marcus Mariota deserved the spotlight.
Mariota was just 2-6 as a starter in relief of Daniels last season and approaching his 33rd birthday one could have been excused for assuming he didn’t have much left in the tank.
Then he went out and beat the best defense in football Sunday (even if Seattle is dealing with some key injuries). Mariota completed 19 of 31 passes for 183 yards, 3 TDs and 0 INTs and then rushed for 9 yards on third-and-7 for the final first down Washington would need before taking a knee and running out the clock.
Honorable Mentions
Buffalo Bills RB James Cook III: Season-high 24 carries for 154 yards and a TD in Bills’ 24-16 win over the Chargers.
New York Jets QB Geno Smith: Completed 31 of 37 passes for 321 yards, 3 TDs and 0 INTs in a 31-24 loss to the Lions.
Seattle Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Another huge output with 10 catches for 128 yards and 2 TDs in a 33-31 loss to the Commanders to increase NFL receiving yards lead to 405 while remaining tied for TDs lead at 6.
Pittsburgh Steelers RB Jaylen Warren: Season-high 17 carries for 127 yards, 3 catches for 49 yards in a 30-27 win over the Bengals.
Baltimore Ravens K Tyler Loop: Game-winning 56-yard field goal as time expired in wild 34-31 win over Cowboys in Brazil.
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