Sooners in the NFL: Week 5
Another NFL Sunday has come and gone with Week 5 now in the books just short of Monday night’s collision between the Las Vegas Raiders and the Kansas City Chiefs.
As the season rolls, teams who have gotten off to slow starts begin to feel the immense pressure to turn things around before it’s too late.
At just 1-3 entering Sunday, that was certainly the case for former Oklahoma running back Rhamondre Stevenson and the New England Patriots as they hosted the Detroit Lions in Foxboro, MA.
With an increased role due to an injury to fellow running back Damien Harris, Stevenson stepped up in a major way to help get his team the pivotal home win in blowout fashion.
The former Sooner ran for a career-high 161 yards on 25 carries including a career-long 49 yard rush on the afternoon, accounting for over 90 percent of New England’s rushing yards.
After a solid rookie campaign in which he ran for 606 yards and five touchdowns with an additional 123 receiving yards in 12 games, Stevenson is beginning to see his role slowly increase in offensive coordinator Matt Patricia's offense.
This season, he already has 372 yards on the ground with another 71 in the passing game - well over half the yards in less than half the games of a year ago.
“He’s a good football player,” Patriots head coach Bill Belichick said postgame of Stevenson. “So glad we have him… He’s a good all-around back. Love him.”
It’s unclear how long Harris will be out moving forward for New England, but it looks as if Stevenson is more than poised to seize the moment if more carries are headed his way as the season rolls on.
Next up, Stevenson and the Patriots will hit the road for a matchup against the Cleveland Browns next Sunday at noon CT.
As for the rest of the Sooners in the NFL, here is a recap of how they did in Week 5:
Arizona Cardinals
(L 20-17 vs Philadelphia)
- WR Marquise Brown: 8 receptions on 10 targets for 78 yards, 1 touchdown
- OL Cody Ford: DNP (IR List)
- OL Marquis Hayes: DNP (Practice Squad)
- QB Kyler Murray: Completed 28 of 42 passes for 250 yards, 1 touchdown, 1 interception, 4 rushes for 42 yards
- S Steven Parker: DNP (Practice Squad)
Atlanta Falcons
(L 21-15 at Tampa Bay)
- RB Damien Williams: DNP (IR List)
Baltimore Ravens
(W 19-17 vs Cincinnati)
- TE Mark Andrews: 8 receptions on 10 targets for 89 yards, 1 touchdown
- OL Ben Powers: Started at left guard
Buffalo Bills
(W 38-3 vs Pittsburgh)
- DL Jordan Phillips: 1 assisted tackle
Carolina Panthers
(L 37-15 vs San Francisco)
- QB Baker Mayfield: Completed 20 of 36 passes for 215 yards, 1 interception
Cincinnati Bengals
(L 19-17 at Baltimore)
- RB Joe Mixon: 14 rushes for 78 yards, 3 receptions on 3 targets for 10 yards
- RB Samaje Perine: 3 rushes for 17 yards, 4 receptions on 4 targets for 39 yards
Cleveland Browns
(L 30-28 vs LA Chargers)
- DE Isaiah Thomas: Saw playing time in a reserve role
- DL Perrion Winfrey: 1 assisted tackle, 1 quarterback hurry, 1 pass deflection
- WR Mike Woods: DNP (Inactive)
Dallas Cowboys
(W 22-10 at LA Rams)
- LB Devante Bond: DNP (Practice Squad)
- DT Neville Gallimore: 2 solo tackles
- WR CeeDee Lamb: 5 receptions on 8 targets for 53 yards
Denver Broncos
(L 12-9 vs Indianapolis on Thursday Night)
- OLB Nik Bonitto: 1 assisted tackle
- S Delarrin Turner-Yell: Saw playing time in a reserve role
Detroit Lions
(L 29-0 at New England)
- K Austin Seibert: DNP (Inactive)
Houston Texans
(W 13-6 at Jacksonville)
- DE Ogbonnia Okoronkwo: 1 solo tackle
Kansas City Chiefs
(vs Las Vegas on Monday Night)
- TE Blake Bell:
- OT Orlando Brown:
- C Creed Humphrey:
- LS James Winchester:
Las Vegas Raiders
(at Kansas City on Monday Night)
- LB Curtis Bolton:
Los Angeles Chargers
(W 30-28 at Cleveland)
- LB Kenneth Murray: 3 solo tackles, 1 assisted tackle
Los Angeles Rams
(L 22-10 vs Dallas)
- OL Bobby Evans: Saw playing time in a reserve role
Minnesota Vikings
(W 29-22 vs Chicago)
- LB Brian Asamoah: Saw playing time in a reserve role
New England Patriots
(W 29-0 vs Detroit)
- OLB Ronnie Perkins: DNP (IR List)
- RB Rhamondre Stevenson: 25 rushes for 161 yards, 2 receptions on 2 targets for 14 yards
New York Giants
(W 27-22 vs Green Bay in London)
- DB Tony Jefferson: 3 solo tackles, 1 assisted tackle
- WR Sterling Shepard: DNP (IR List)
New York Jets
(W 40-17 vs Miami)
- OL Dru Samia: DNP (Practice Squad)
Philadelphia Eagles
(W 20-17 at Arizona)
- RB Kennedy Brooks: DNP (Practice Squad)
- QB Jalen Hurts: Completed 26 of 36 passes for 239 yards, 15 rushes for 61 yards, 2 rushing touchdowns
- OL Lane Johnson: Started at right tackle
Pittsburgh Steelers
(L 38-3 at Buffalo)
- S Tre Norwood: 3 solo tackles
San Francisco 49ers
(W 37-15 at Carolina)
- OL Trent Williams: DNP (Inactive)
Seattle Seahawks
(L 39-32 at New Orleans)
- CB Tre Brown: DNP (PUP List)
Washington Commanders
(L 21-17 vs Tennessee)
- P Tress Way: 6 punts for 247 yards, 41.2 yards per punt, 2 punts inside the 20