Gamecocks in the NFL: Week 7
The NFL season is still going strong and so are the former South Carolina football players who are actively playing in the pros. Here's how they performed in week seven:
Fresh off a bye week, Deebo Samuel was back to business as usual and leading the former Gamecocks in the NFL on the offensive side of the ball. Samuel might have fumbled the ball during Sunday's game but he didn't let it stop him, he had seven catches for 100 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Fellow wide receiver Bryan Edwards was also able to bring in a touchdown catch on Sunday. Edwards had 43 receiving yards for the Raiders.
Rashad Fenton and Jadeveon Clowney led the way this week defensively. In the Thursday night game for the Cleveland Browns, Clowney had two tackles and half a sack.
Fenton had another strong showing for the Chiefs, totaling four tackles and one pass breakup.
Injury wise, no new names were added to the laundry list of former Gamecocks on the injured reserve. TJ Brunson (Giants), AJ Cann (Jaguars), Joesph Charlton (Panthers), Rico Dowdle (Cowboys), Jaycee Horn (Panthers) and Skai Moore (Colts) make up the six players who remain on the injured reserve.
Stephon Gilmore has yet to make his anticipated season debut with the Panthers. Per The Athletic, head coach Matt Rhule isn't sure if Gilmore's quadriceps are healthy enough for him to debut in week eight against the Atlanta Falcons.
Kicker Ryan Succop missed his first field goal since the Buccaneers week four matchup against the Patriots on Sunday. He finished the day 1-for-2 on field goals and went a perfect 5-for-5 on extra points. Succop has only missed one extra point this season.
Back on the offensive side of the ball, Damiere Byrd was able to snap a stretch of stateless games this weekend when he recorded a catch for 10 yards against the Buccaneers. Shi Smith wasn't so lucky; in his second game of the season he was targeted twice but didn't bring in a catch, he also had one rushing attempt for negative three yards.
Ernest Jones and Javon Kinlaw both had one tackle apiece for the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers, respectively.
Falcon teammates Hayden Hurst and Mike Davis were both able to contribute to the teams 30-28 win over the Miami Dolphins with Hurst hauling in three catches for 35 yards and Davis posting 10 rushing yards,.
Two former Gamecock offensive linemen still have their starting spots for their teams. Dennis Daley starts at LG for the Panthers and Brandon Shell starts at RT for the Seahawks.
Keisean Nixon (Raiders), Taylor Stallworth (Colts) and Chris Lammons (Chiefs) were unable to record a stat in week seven.
Dowdle, Israel Mukuamu (Cowboys), DJ Wonnum, Zack Bailey (Vikings), Melvin Ingram III (Steelers), Jared Cook (Chargers) and AJ Cann (Jaguars) were all apart of one of the six NFL teams that got a bye week this week.
Bailey and Kobe Smith (Tampa Bay) remain on practice squad rosters.
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