Week 14 is the first Alvin Kamara-less round (aside from the New Orleans Saints' bye week) of the NFL season, and a few players stepped into the breach.
Kamara suffered a concussion in the first quarter of the Saints' Thursday Night loss to the Atlanta Falcons and is currently in concussion protocol.
Meanwhile...
Player of the week
Mohamed Sanu (Atlanta Falcons #12) - Wide Receiver
The only offensive player to make it into the Africa Zone this week, Sanu did what he could to help the Falcons keep pace with their NFC South rivals and stay ahead in the battle for a wildcard spot.
While quarterback Matt Ryan had one of his worst performances of the season with three interceptions (as he forced throws to his #1 receiver Julio Jones) Sanu helped keep the Falcons in the game as he caught six passes for 83 yards.
In the fourth quarter, Sanu caught an 8-yard touchdown pass to tie the game at 17. Sanu momentarily celebrated his touchdown by giving the game ball to his young son in the stands before he returned to playing his part for for the Falcons in their 20-17 win over the Saints.
Sanu now has five touchdowns on the season, equaling his career best from his 2014 season with the Cincinnati Bengals.
Notable Performances
Ezekiel Ansah (Detroit Lions #94) - Defensive End
The Detroit Lions' Ghanaian defensive end is on a solid run of form to close out the season. Ziggy tallied seven tackles and one sack in the Lions' 24-21 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
With 10 seconds left in the game and the Bucs driving downfield to get in position to level the game at 24 apiece, Ansah chased down Bucs quarterback Jameis Winston for the sack and stripped him of the ball, thereby preserving the win for the Lions.
Ziggy is now on six sacks for the season, bettering the two sacks from his injury hampered 2016 season. With three games left, the Accra-born defensive end is in position to end up with eight or more sacks, which would equal or surpass the second best sack total in his five year NFL career.
Aside from his personal bounce back, Ansah's Lions are now at 7-6 and still in the thick of the NFC wildcard hunt.
Ndamukong Suh (Miami Dolphins #93) - Defensive Tackle
In the Miami Dolphins' surprising (but not really, since the Dolphins have won three out of the last four games versus the Patriots in Miami) win over New England, Ndamukong Suh was a wrecking ball once again.
Suh had three tackles, one sack, one pass batted down, and two quarterback hits. Breaking his impact on the run and the pass further, the Cameroonian-American defensive tackle also had four QB pressures on passing downs and on 10 run defense snaps, Suh had two run stops.
The Dolphins now sit at 6-7 and while still in the wildcard mix, they gave the Pittsburgh Steelers a massive lift over the Patriots in the battle for the best record in the AFC, not to mention home field advantage throughout the playoffs.
Chidobe Awuzie (Dallas Cowboys #33) - Cornerback
Chido is quickly proving himself to be up there amongs the best rookie cornerbacks in the league this season. Once again, he had a strong game for the Cowboys, complete with solid tackling and stingy defense on opposing receivers.
In the Cowboys' 30-10 win over the New York Giants at the Meadowlands, the Nigerian-American rookie had three tackles and two passes broken up.
Giants quarterback Eli Manning targeted Awuzie five times but the cornerback allowed only two catches for a total of 19 yards. Per PFF, Manning ended up with a 51.3 passer rating when throwing to a receiver covered by Awuzie.
Chido helped close out the game late in the fourth quarter as he broke up a Manning pass and knocked the ball in the air for Cowboys linebacker Sean Lee to get the interception and seal the win.
Special mentions
Nelson Agholor (Philadelphia Eagles) - Agholor had a productive game back at his old college stadium in Los Angeles. The Nigerian receiver ended the game with eight receptions for 64 yards in the Eagles' 43-35 win over the Los Angeles Rams.
Prince Amukamara (Chicago Bears) - The veteran cornerback had a solid game in the win over the Cincinnati Bengals. Amukamara finished with six tackles and one pass broken up but should have had at least one interception in the game.
Chris Banjo (New Orleans Saints) - Banjo has played quite well over the past couple of weeks and not just on special teams where he is one of the best in the league. The Safety had two tackles and one interception in the Saints loss to the Falcons, one week after he forced a fumble on a punt return in the Saints win over the Carolina Panthers.
Players to watch in Week 13
Yannick Ngakoue (Jacksonville Jaguars #91) - Defensive End
Sacksonville's second-year defensive end got another sack on Sunday in the Jaguars' 30-24 win over Seattle to send his total up to 11. This Sunday, Ngakoue gets a second go at the Houston Texans offensive line and their third quarterback of the season in TJ Yates.
After wrecking the Texans line for two sacks in the opening game of the season, Ngakoue will be licking his chops in anticipation of Sundays game in Jacksonville. By the end of this game, the Jaguars might just top the 10 team sacks they picked up on opening day in Houston.
David Onyemata (New Orleans Saints #93) - Defensive Tackle
Lagos-born Onyemata has come into his own this season with New Orleans and has played a major part in a "bend but don't break" Saints rushing defense. The Saints allow 114.3 rushing yards per game but have only allowed eight rushing touchdowns all season.
The Nigerian's 30 tackles (12 more than last season) have been a major factor in stopping the run for the Saints. This week the Saints host the New York Jets who will be starting Bryce Petty for his eighth start in three seasons. Onyemata should be able to limit the Jets' running game and help force turnovers from Petty all game long.