Ten unheralded players set to shine in NFL Week 4

With NFL Week 4 comes the first bye week of the season. Still, even with a slightly smaller week, we have plenty of unheralded players ready to shine.

Whose good start has fallen under the radar? Who’s having a rough start, but is ready to break out?

Which 10 unheralded players are most likely to be noticed in a big way during NFL Week 4?

Jamison Crowder, wide receiver, Washington Redskins

Crowder has been a frequent target of Kirk Cousins over the first three weeks of the season. In Week 3, he showed us all how dangerous he can be.

Washington certainly has a favorable assignment this week against the Cleveland Browns. The Cleveland defense has allowed no fewer than 278 yards and two touchdowns to opposing quarterbacks in any of the three games this season.

Cousins, for all of his troubles, has thrown for no fewer than 296 yards in his three games.

Naturally, the Redskins’ receivers have benefited from that.

Crowder has become more a part of the Washington offense this year. In a favorable matchup against the Browns, we should expect to hear his name a lot on Sunday.

Jordan Jenkins, outside linebacker, New York Jets

The rookie made his NFL debut against the Kansas City Chiefs this past Sunday. Expect big things from him in Week 4.

Don’t be fooled by the lopsided victory over the San Francisco 49ers, the Seattle Seahawks’ offensive line still has a lot of work to do. Even with the offense putting up 37 points, the line still surrendered two sacks and six hits.

Week 4 should be even tougher. Seattle is headed east to play in the 10 a.m. pacific time slot. For a west coast team, that’s always a challenge. Also, while he’s expected to play, who knows how healthy Russell Wilson is?

With a sprained MCL, we certainly can’t count on full mobility from the Seattle quarterback.

The Jets’ front seven is basically a better, more experienced version of what the 49ers have. The Seahawks are going to have to pick their poison. That will mean giving a lot of attention to the likes of Leonard Williams, Muhammad Wilkerson and Sheldon Richardson. That’s going to create favorable matchups for Jenkins.

Nothing that we’ve seen from the Seattle offensive line indicates that its members will do well in one-on-one settings. That’s going to work in Jenkins’ favor.

Whether that will lead to a win remains to be seen. After all, Ryan Fitzpatrick is still going against the Legion of Boom. But we should expect a low-scoring game with Jenkins serving as a constant presence in the Seahawks’ backfield.

Anquan Boldin, wide receiver, Detroit Lions

Even at this point of his career, few receivers do as many things well as Boldin.

If Detroit decides to go run heavy against a poor run defense, Boldin can be counted on to make the big blocks needed to spring the backs. If Matthew Stafford needs someone to pick up a few yards on a third or fourth down, Boldin is still about as reliable as it gets.

Lastly, while Boldin’s not likely to fill up a stat sheet, he has caught a touchdown in consecutive weeks.

The Chicago Bears’ defense will give a receiver like Boldin a chance to do what he does best. With that, he may not dominate in any one area, but Boldin should be very good in several.

Blake Bell, tight end, San Francisco 49ers

How do we justify including a man who’s caught one pass for six yards on this list?

We start with the Dallas Cowboys’ defense, which has yielded a 141.7 passer rating to quarterbacks throwing to the tight end. That’s 23-for-27, 247 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions. That fits right into the hands of Blaine Gabbert.

Since joining the 49ers, Gabbert has thrown 14 touchdown passes. Half of those have gone to a tight end. San Francisco doesn’t have much of a vertical passing game, but Gabbert tends to love the short routes. That’s where a tight end can thrive.

Lastly, of course, we have to look at Bell. With Vance McDonald and Garrett Celek both hobbled, Bell is the only 49ers’ tight end at full strength. Come Sunday, he may actually be the only tight end in uniform.

Chip Kelly will really need to design a game plan that fits the skills of his limited quarterback. In this case, Gabbert’s skills happen to play into the opponent’s weakness. That should all mean a big day for San Francisco’s tight end.

Fozzy Whitaker, running back, Carolina Panthers

Facing the Denver Broncos and Minnesota Vikings in two of the first three weeks has taken its toll on Cam Newton. The Panthers are going to have to establish a ground game against the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday. With Jonathan Stewart out of action, the starting job will likely to go Cameron Artis-Payne.

But if Week 3 is any indicator, Whitaker will see as much or more action.

Whitaker was also better than Artis-Payne in Week 3. He went for 4.4 yards per carry, while Artis-Payne averaged 3.9 yards per tote. Whitaker has also proven to be a better pass-catching option.

The Panthers are just getting into the normal part of their schedule. The Atlanta’s defense isn’t anywhere near as formidable as Minnesota’s or Denver’s.

This is the ideal week for Carolina to break out. Getting Whitaker and the ground game established is the way to do that.

Marcus Cooper, cornerback, Arizona Cardinals

While the Tampa Bay Buccaneers may disagree, we’re still saying that a game against the Los Angeles Rams is a good assignment for the opposing defense.

By the same token, the Cardinals are more than capable of making life very difficult for Case Keenum. We should expect them to get in Keenum’s face all day, forcing him to get rid of the ball quicker than he’d like.

Cooper can benefit from this. We know this because Cooper got a pick six in Week 2 in a very similar scenario.

Cooper can be even more aggressive this week. The Arizona pass rush, combined with a fairly non-threatening group of Los Angeles receivers, will allow Cooper to jump routes and get into Keenum’s passing lanes.

Another interception, or even another pick six, is very much in play.

Cairo Santos, kicker, Kansas City Chiefs

Heading into the week, it certainly seems like the Sunday Night Football game between the Chiefs and Pittsburgh Steelers will be an offense heavy affair. So, other than kicking extra points, how does a kicker fit into this?

Heinz Field is a place where its notoriously difficult to kick. So, having a kicker who hasn’t missed a field goal or extra point all year is important.

Enter Santos.

Kansas City has been very dependent on its kicking game. His seven field goals tie Santos for the third highest total in the league. Those kicks have accounted for 30 percent of the Chiefs’ points, and that doesn’t even include his extra points.

Pittsburgh has shown a bend but don’t break defense through three weeks. By total yards, the Steelers have struggled, allowing the sixth most yards in the NFL. Their scoring defense hasn’t been great, but it’s been much better, ranking 14th in the league.

As such, Pittsburgh has allowed eight field goals, tied for second most in the league. None of those kicks were beyond 40 yards.

Kicking on the road, in a tough venue, against a team that many yards but not scores, Santos will be important. All signs point to him coming through in the clutch.

T. J. Clemmings, left tackle, Minnesota Vikings

Going against the mighty Carolina defense, Week 3 had all the makings of being a tough one for Sam Bradford. It didn’t work out that way, and Clemmings’ efforts were a big reason why.

“His strides in pass protection, specifically, didn’t go unnoticed Sunday as Bradford took just three hits on 30 drop-backs against a strong Panthers defense,” Andrew Krammer of The Star Tribune said. “Only one of those hits came from Clemmings’ guy as the offensive game plan called for quick passes and often left him without additional help.”

This week, Minnesota gets a home game against the New York Giants, a team whose defense doesn’t stack up to Carolina’s.

Olivier Vernon won’t be an easy task for Clemmings. But given how much he’s improved and what Clemmings has done against comparable competition, he seems up for the task.

Terrance Williams, wide receiver, Dallas Cowboys

Granted, the first three weeks of the season haven’t gone swimmingly for Williams. Even when the Dallas receiver has managed to make a good play, he’s found a way to negate it with a mistake.

But Week 4 offers Williams a perfect opportunity to put his stamp on the game and get his season going in the right direction.

The 49ers’ defense has surrendered 300 plus passing yards in each of the last two weeks. The secondary is improving, but still vulnerable. Cole Beasley and Jason Witten will likely see the majority of the targets. But someone needs to stretch the field.

With Dez Bryant either hobbled or completely out of action, Williams is the Cowboys’ best down-field option. Expect the Dallas receiver to overcome an uneven two weeks with some big plays.

Willie Young, outside linebacker, Chicago Bears

Detroit Lions rookie Taylor Decker struggled against the Green Bay Packers in Week 3. So, heading into Week 4, Detroit is left with a choice.

  1. Leave Decker matched up in mostly single coverage against Leonard Floyd.
  2. Give Decker help and leave Young with one-on-one assignments on the other side of the field.

Given that Floyd was a top-10 pick in April, option No. 2 seems more favorable for the Lions.

But while it may be more favorable, it’s still not a great bargain for a struggling Detroit offensive line.

Over the last two weeks, Young has recorded 11 tackles (six solo), two tackles for a loss, one sack, and one hit. Those efforts came against the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys. Objectively, the Lions’ offensive line doesn’t stack up to either.

If Young doesn’t have a good statistical game, it’ll likely be because Detroit chose Option No. 1 and left Decker isolated with Floyd. Even then, the attention he draws will make him an impact player.

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