As the NFL schedule flips to Week 7, look back at the 10 most impressive and impactful individual performances from Week 6.
We’ve seen enough through six weeks to say with certainty that the best free agent addition of the offseason was the Kansas City Chiefs signing Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III away from the champion Seattle Seahawks.
Walker is in the midst of a career-best season in his Chiefs debut and has become the team’s offensive identity, which is a heckuva thing on a team still led by future Hall of Fame quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
But it’s true — the Chiefs are now built around Walker and he’s proving to be worth every cent of that three-year, $43.05-million contract.
Walker leads the NFL with 665 rushing yards despite already having a bye week and playing one less game than most of the other top rushers. He also has 95 receiving yards and 8 total touchdowns.
Considering his career-highs for a season are 1,050 rushing yards, 299 receiving yards and 9 total TDs, it’s fair to say Walker has exceeded expectations already in Kansas City.
And he’s back on the Game Balls list again for Week 6.
Ranking The Best Performances In Week 6 Of The NFL Season
Here’s the full ranking of the top 10 individual performances across the NFL last week.
1. Pittsburgh Steelers CB Jalen Ramsey
Fair or not, it’s usually an offensive player topping this list with a gaudy stat line, but what cornerback Jalen Ramsey did in the Steelers’ 26-19 overtime win at Tampa Bay on Sunday was too good to overlook.
Ramsey earned AFC Defensive Player of the Week honors while tallying 10 tackles (9 solo) with 4 tackles for loss, which included 2 sacks. He ended the game with an 11-yard sack of Buccaneers’ QB Jalon Daniels on fourth down in overtime.
Ramsey is the first player to record 10 or more tackles with at least 4 TFLs and 2 sacks in a game since 2023 and the first defensive back to do that dating back to 2000.
This was Ramsey’s third career Defensive Player of the Week honor — having also earned it in 2016 with the Jaguars and 2023 with the Dolphins.
2. Chicago Bears QB Caleb Williams
In his first game back from a significant hamstring injury that kept him out for three weeks in all, Caleb Williams was sublime in the Bears’ 31-23 road win over the Falcons.
Williams completed 30 of 36 passes for the best single-game completion rate (83.3%) of his career, throwing for 305 yards and a TD with 0 INTs.
His 14-yard TD pass to TE Colston Loveland capped the Bears’ first possession and he got them back in the end zone on their second drive as well, with a 23-yard connection to Rome Odunze on third-and-17 followed immediately by a 25-yard pass to Luther Burden all leading to an eventual D’Andre Swift TD run and 14-0 lead.
Williams later threw for 48 yards on a 52-yard TD drive in the third quarter that put Chicago up 28-7 on the way to victory.
3. Arizona Cardinals K Chad Ryland
This is the highest we’ve placed a kicker on the list all season, but it’s deserved.
The Cardinals delivered the biggest upset of Week 6, upending the Rams 18-16 on the road, and Chad Ryland accounted for all 18 of those points while going a perfect 6-for-6 on field goals. He had makes from 34, 30, 22, 38, 27 and ultimately 43 yards with that game-winner coming as time expired.
4. Kansas City Chiefs RB Kenneth Walker III
As noted, Kenneth Walker III keeper delivering week after week for the Chiefs.
Coming off a bye, he looked fresh in Kansas City’s 22-6 win over the Chargers, rushing for 128 yards and 2 TDs on 19 carries (with 11 receiving yards).
His 33-yard TD run in the first quarter helped stake the Chiefs to a 9-0 lead and they never looked back while improving to 5-0.
Walker has at least 117 rushing yards in four of the five games so far this season and at least 2 total TDs in four games as well.
5. New Orleans Saints CB Martin Emerson Jr.
Martin Emerson Jr. was named the NFC’s Defensive Player of the Week for his role in the Saints’ 34-27 win over the Giants as he nabbed 2 interceptions, 4 pass breakups and 7 total tackles.
Emerson intercepted QB Jameis Winston in the third quarter with the Giants driving into Saints territory and then picked off his replacement J.J. McCarthy in the fourth quarter, also in Saints territory. He nearly had a third interception but it was overturned on replay review and ruled incomplete.
The Giants ultimately cut a 24-point fourth quarter deficit to 7 points but could close the gap no further and had a slew of turnovers — including Emerson’s to picks — to lament in the end.
The win snapped a three-game losing streak for the 2-4 Saints.
6. New York Giants WR Malik Nabers
Speaking of that spirited Giants comeback, the main catalyst was star WR Malik Nabers, who would finish with 12 catches for 165 yards in the loss.
Nabers had 95 of those yards in the final 8:30, helping set up two touchdowns and a field goal during the Giants’ frenetic finish in that ultimate 34-27 loss.
Nabers is up to 41 receptions for 494 yards and 2 TDs in his return from last year’s season-ending knee injury.
7. Houston Texans QB C.J. Stroud
The Texans have won two games in a row after an 0-4 start, and QB C.J. Stroud deserves a ton of credit for the team’s resurgence.
Stroud completed 24 of 34 passes for 312 yards, 3 TDs and 1 INT in Houston’s 34-31 win over the Jaguars in London on Sunday.
He’d be higher on this list if not for that costly interception, which came late in the fourth quarter on a second-and-goal play from the Jags’ 4-yard line on a throw that he never should have made.
Jacksonville drove for the game-tying field goal, but Stroud got a chance to redeem himself as the Texans took possession with 1:55 left. Stroud had a pair of completions to RB Woody Marks for 25 yards to get the Texans in position for Ka’imi Fairbairn‘s game-winning 49-yard field goal as time expired.
That was Stroud’s first interception of the season, though, as he’s protected the ball well coming off his brutal playoff performance. He’s thrown for at least 261 yards in five of the six games so far this season.
He had a number of impressive throws Sunday on the way to victory.
8. Chicago Bears S Kyler Gordon
There was doubt at the start of this season if safety Kyler Gordon would ever play another game for the Bears.
He had missed all of the team’s training camps and practices throughout the offseason with a calf injury and opened the season on the reserve/physically unable to perform list. There was palpable frustration over the matter within the coaching staff and front office.
But Gordon did indeed return to action, making his season debut Sunday and putting his stamp on the Bears’ win in Atlanta with 3 sacks and 2 forced fumbles.
It was still a one-score game late when Gordon sacked Falcons QB Michael Penix Jr. and jarred the ball free as the Bears recovered and ran out the clock.
Per ESPN, he became the first Bears defensive back with 3 sacks in a game since 1983 and just the third Bears player since sacks became official in 1982 to record 3 sacks and 2 forced fumbles in a game.
9. Buffalo Bills RB James Cook III
It’s easy to take James Cook III for granted with his consistent week to week excellence, but he absolutely belongs on this list after rushing 22 times for 95 yards and a TD while adding 58 receiving yards in the Bills’ 33-30 win over the Raiders.
On a key touchdown drive late in the fourth quarter that put the Bills up 30-23 at the time, Cook had a 26-yard reception and 20 rushing yards, including the score.
For the season, Cook is up to 627 rushing yards (third-most in the NFL) and 6 TDs on 5.4 YPC along with 89 receiving yards.
10. Pittsburgh Steelers WR Germie Bernard
Rookie second-round pick Germie Bernard didn’t have much of a role in the Steelers offense through the first month of the season, but injuries have opened the door the last two weeks and Bernard has charged through it while putting himself in the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year conversation.
After breaking out with 6 catches for 80 yards in a win over the Colts in Week 5, Bernard was even better last week with 11 catches for 87 yards and the go-ahead touchdown in overtime to beat the Buccaneers.
Honorable Mentions
Carolina Panthers RB Chuba Hubbard: 28 carries for 120 yards and a TD in Carolina’s 25-14 win at Philadelphia.
New England Patriots QB Drake Maye: 18-of-32 passing for 235 yards, 3 TDs and 0 INTs plus 24 rushing yards in a 26-19 win over the Jets.
Seattle Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba: Season-high 12 catches for 134 yards in a 17-14 overtime loss to the Broncos.
Jacksonville Jaguars WR/CB Travis Hunter: 4 catches for 59 yards and a TD; defensive INT, 3 tackles and a pass breakup in 34-31 loss to the Texans.
Tennessee Titans K Joey Slye/Buffalo Bills K Tyler Bass: Slye was 4-for-4 on field goals of 29, 56, 49 and 44 yards in the Titans’ first win of the season, 26-20 over the Colts; Bass was 4-for-4 on field goals of 44, 28, 47 and 38 yards in the Bills’ 33-30 win over the Raiders.
