Top Performances From Gamecocks In The NFL: Week Thirteen

On By CPhilly19In Football

As we head into the final weeks of the NFL season, former Gamecocks continue to leave their footprint on the league. Veterans like Jared Cook and Stephon Gilmore had a great week while rookies like Javon Kinlaw continued to impress.

Here are some notable performances from week thirteen:

MVP: Jared Cook 

Without Drew Brees, there was a clear drop off in production for Cook. Taysom Hill liked to run the ball a lot, but he’s becoming more of a prominent passer.

Cook won the battle of Gamecock tight ends against Hayden Hurst. Cook finished with three receptions for 28 yards and a touchdown. This was his first time finding the endzone since week eight.

If Drew Brees comes back, expect Cook and the top seed Saints to continue their dominance into the postseason. 

Deebo Samuel 

I think the gameplan for Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers is pretty simple. Give the ball to Deebo.

The 49ers lost, but Deebo still had great production. He finished with six receptions for 73 yards. That was his second highest yardage of the season despite coming off of an injury.

Here’s an interesting note this year. In four out of Deebo’s six games this year, he has gone up against Tre’davious White, Stephon Gilmore and Jalen Ramsey. He’s also having a solid year with Nick Mullens as his quarterback.

Deebo is a playmaker, and there’s still a chance he could make the playoffs this year. 

Javon Kinlaw 

Kinlaw isn’t lighting up the stat sheet this year, but he’s getting a ton of pressures.

Kinlaw finished with three tackles, but he was really good at getting after Josh Allen. Kinlaw is making the best of his rookie year by being a dominant interior force for a beat up 49ers defensive line. One could only think of how well he’d be doing if the 49ers had Nick Bosa and Solomon Thomas.

Brian Baldinger, an NFL analyst, did a good job analyzing how good Kinlaw has been at creating pressures. 

Conclusion

It’s amazing how well Deebo and Kinlaw have been doing. Maybe it’s because the 49ers are so plagued with injuries this year.

Some of the older guys like Gilmore and Alshon Jeffery have been having a down year, and some guys like Damiere Byrd and Mike Davis have had breakout years.

With the season winding down, some players will have to fight for contracts. My biggest hope is that Mike Davis finds a new team because he’s a starter on other teams.

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