Fun NextGen Stats from Week 18
By Rhys Knott
They say form is temporary but class is permanent, well welcome to the Derrick Henry takeover of fun NextGen stats.
NextGen Fastest Carries
It’s impossible to overstate just how great Derrick Henry is. This might have been his last week as a Titan, and he was 30 on the 4th of January (running backs are supposed to become less effective at 26). But he clocked the 7th fastest speed of the season as he racked up a season high 153 yards against the Jags.
Henry’s 21.68 mph was faster than any carry the whippersnappers like Breece Hall and Kenneth Walker II have recorded this season.
The second fastest carry of the week came from 29-year-old Calvin Ridley, a good week for the vets. Ridley hit 21.52 mph in the same game as Henry. The going must have been firm in Nashville.
There’s a youngster at 3 this week though. Nico Collins has been around for a while but he’s only 24. The Texans sudden superstar hit 21.35 mph as he lit up the Colts defense on the first play from scrimmage. Collins 75-yard touchdown was his longest reception of the season. It was 16 yards further than his previous best against the Broncos.
Bijan Robinson is 4th this week, it’s absolutely criminal that the Falcons couldn’t win more than 7 games with such a gifted running back on their roster. He hit 20.70 mph on a 71-yard touchdown reception.
Khalil Shakir from the Bills also hit 20.70 mph as the Bills dismantled the Dolphins in Miami. His top speed came on a 46-yard reception down the sideline as the Bills passing game repeatedly shredded the Dolphins dinged up defense.
Derrick Henry reached a top speed of 21.68 mph on his 69-yard run, tied for the 7th-fastest speed by a ball carrier this season, and Henry's fastest play since Week 6, 2021 (career-high 21.80 mph).
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) January 7, 2024
🔹 Expected Rush Yards: 10
🔹 Rush Yards Over Expected: +59#JAXvsTEN | #Titans pic.twitter.com/SRUnlZlGis
Week 18’s Remarkable Rushes
Not only did Derrick Henry’s 69-yard rush see him clock the fastest speed of the week. It was also went 59 yards over expected according to the NextGen algorithm. That’s the 10th most remarkable rush of the season. Henry’s contract with the Titans is up, but it’s difficult to imagine he won’t get plenty of offers if he wants to continue.
Breece Hall is second this week, he’s had a remarkable season, he has 3 of the top 20 most remarkable rushes. Following his 66 yards over expected in Week 17, Hall managed 49 yards over expected this week. He made 50 yards on a run that was expected to go just 1 yard!
Jonathan Taylor’s had a wild season with the Colts. He wanted to be traded at the start of the season. But he re-signed for 3 years, and if Anthony Richardson can stay fit it’s going to be a fun few years. This week even Taylor couldn’t drag the colts across the finish line against DeMeco Ryans’ Texans team. But Taylor did manage to rack up 188 yards on the ground. Both he and Zack Moss looked unstoppable for a period in the 3rd quarter. Taylor turned what should have been a 1-yard gain into a 49-yard run.
Joe Mixon is the first Bengal in the top 5. The Bengals took the Browns reserves to the woodshed in Week 18. They ended the game with 183 yards on the ground as Cleveland focused on a trip to Houston next week. Mixon made 44 yards on a run that should have gone for just 10.
Then comes Chase Brown, the Bengals change of pace guy is 5th this week. He went 26 yards over expected when he turned a run that should have gained just 1 yard into a 27-yard gain.
DERRICK HENRY IS ETERNAL pic.twitter.com/6NlG01UjpF
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) January 7, 2024
Week 18’s NextGen Fastest Sacks
Will never understand how Karl Brooks didn’t get a combine invite and fell to the sixth-round. Absolute steal by the Packers.
— Bobby Football (@Rob__Paul) January 7, 2024
Violent club-swim here for the sack. pic.twitter.com/ZFzANU6Y44
To be honest this week’s fastest sack wasn’t actually that fast. The fastest of the season took Jaleel Johnson just 1.7 seconds. This week the fastest sack took 2.74 seconds. Green Bay Packer Karl Brooks got to Justin Fields as the Pack sent da Bears packing.
The second fastest sack was in Miami as Christian Wilkins made his 9th of the season, that’s twice as many as he’d ever made in a single season. He got to Josh Allen in just 2.77 seconds. Not only did Wilkins record the sack, he also stripped the ball from Allen’s hands and recovered it.
Joe Tryon from the Buccaneers is third, the Panthers offense have allowed Bryce Young to be sacked 62 times this season! David Carr’s record of 76 in a 16-game season is safe, but Bryce Young evidently is far from safe behind that line. Tryon’s sack was one of 3 times the Bucs got too Young on Sunday. He took just 2.8 seconds to deck the rookie.
Kyle Van Noy is the Ravens’ secret weapon. He’s only started 3 games this season, but he’s made 9 sacks! The Ravens sacked Mason Rudolph 4 times in a very soggy Baltimore, Van Noy only took 2.88 seconds to put Rudolph on the ground. Not very Christmassy there Kyle.
In a rare move a Falcons defender did something impressive, Bud Dupree recorded the 5th fastest sac of the week. It took 3 seconds, but still, you gotta take the W’s when you get them. It didn’t stop the Saints shellacking the Falcons 48-17 though!
RHYS KNOTT
NFL/FANTASY FOOTBALL ANALYST
Rhys has been watching the NFL for 30 something years and still hasn’t managed to pick a team to support. When he’s not fixatED on pass rushers you can find him blithering on about most sports on Twitter @wrhys_writes