NFL locals: Minshew suffers serious injury while Ward shines
Cam Ward had arguably his best game of the year. Gardner Minshew had one of the most unfortunate days of his career.
Sunday’s matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and Tennessee Titans pitted former Washington State quarterbacks against each other. The rookie for Tennessee looked sharp, guiding his team to a 26-9 home win over the Chiefs. On the other side, Minshew’s day ended early due to a serious injury.
The veteran quarterback was filling in for star Patrick Mahomes, who tore his ACL last week during a loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. Minshew scrambled on the third play of the game against Tennessee and fell with what appeared to be a noncontact injury. He grabbed at his left knee and hobbled after he got to his feet.
Minshew attempted to stay in the game, but looked uncomfortable. He finished 3 of 8 passing for 15 yards before heading to the locker room early in the second quarter. Reports surfaced after the game that Minshew likely tore his ACL.
A seventh-year pro in his first season with the Chiefs, Minshew was making his 47th career start and first since last season, when he started nine games for Las Vegas before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury.
WSU fans were no doubt eager to see the program legend, a show-stealing phenomenon during the Cougs’ 11-win season in 2018, get his opportunity to reintroduce “Minshew Mania” on the NFL stage and square off with a young QB who also made his name on the Palouse.
After Minshew went down, Ward captured the spotlight. He completed 21 of 28 passes for 228 yards and two touchdowns with no turnovers, picking up his third NFL win with his most efficient passing performance of the season. Ward was Pro Football Focus’ highest-graded player of the game (80.3).
Ward led long scoring drives late in the second quarter and early in the third, capping them with short TD passes, to put Tennessee up 16-6. He connected with Elic Ayomanor for a key 24-yard gain on a third down early in the fourth to set up a rushing touchdown that extended the Titans’ lead to 23-9 and effectively put the game away.
Ward, who became an NFL prospect during his time at WSU (2022-23) before finishing his career at Miami, has shown some promise while toiling through a difficult rookie season. The No. 1 overall draft pick has thrown for 2,866 yards and 13 touchdowns with seven interceptions on a 60.2% completion rate. He’s taken 51 sacks, second most in the league.
Sunday’s matchup was the first NFL game to feature former Cougars starting at QB on both sides since 1992, when a Mark Rypien-led Washington team beat Timm Rosenbach’s Phoenix Cardinals.
• Jaylen Watson (WSU), a starting cornerback for Kansas City, recorded two stops in the run game, but allowed a couple of big receptions.
Watson finished with seven tackles (three solo), assisting on a tackle for loss early in the fourth quarter and making a tackle to limit a run play to 2 yards on that same drive. Moments later, he surrendered a 24-yard reception to Ayomanor, who also caught a 25-yarder on Watson earlier in the game.
For the season, Watson has a career-high 64 tackles, two interceptions and two sacks. The fourth-year pro, a seventh-round draft pick in 2022, has started every game this season.
• Jaden Hicks (WSU) appeared on 17 defensive snaps off the bench for the Chiefs at strong safety, per PFF, and recorded four tackles.
Two of his stops came at the line of scrimmage. The second-year pro allowed two catches for 24 yards.
• Marcus Harris (Idaho), a rookie cornerback for Tennessee, exited in the second quarter with a knee injury and did not return.
A sixth-round draft pick this year, Harris had started the past four games, carving out a key role at the nickel corner position. He played 16 snaps Sunday before the injury, logging one tackle. Harris didn’t allow a catch.
• Kyle Williams (WSU), a rookie receiver for New England, caught a momentum-swinging touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter, helping the Patriots rally to a 28-24 win over Baltimore.
Williams beat his defender off the line on a vertical route and hauled in a high-arching pass just inside the pylon for a 37-yard touchdown, his third scoring catch as a pro.
Williams finished with 46 yards on two catches and totaled 89 yards on three kick returns with a long of 36 yards.
• Christian Elliss (Idaho), an inside linebacker for the Patriots, registered five tackles.
The fifth-year pro made his 11th start in 13 games this season. Elliss ranks second on the team with 81 tackles.
• Daiyan Henley (WSU), an inside linebacker for the Los Angeles Chargers, totaled six tackles (four solo) during their 34-17 win over Dallas.
Henley surrendered four catches on short routes for 40 yards, per PFF.
The third-year pro, an L.A. team captain, leads the Chargers this season with 92 tackles.
• Chau Smith-Wade (WSU), a cornerback for Carolina, came off the bench to play in 50 of 64 defensive snaps at the nickel position during the Panthers’ 23-20 win over Tampa Bay.
Smith-Wade, a fifth-round draft pick in 2024, finished with five tackles (three solo). He gave up three catches for 23 yards, according to a PFF report, but Smith-Wade also appeared to be responsible for Emeka Egbuka getting open for a 40-yard reception in the fourth quarter.
• Kaden Elliss (Idaho), a captain at linebacker for Atlanta, tallied four tackles (one solo) during the Falcons’ 26-19 win over Arizona.
The seventh-year vet has a team-high 98 tackles on the season.
• Ryan Rehkow (Central Valley) averaged 52 yards on four punts for Cincinnati during its 45-21 win over Miami.
The BYU grad, the NFL’s leader in punting average (51.3), placed each of his punts inside the Dolphins’ 20-yard line.
• Jalen Thompson (WSU), a longtime starter at strong safety for Arizona, missed his second game in a row as he recovers from a hamstring injury.
Thompson, an 85-game starter over the past seven years with the Cardinals, started the first 13 games of this season before suffering the injury.