Auburn NFL overview: Backup QB comes through again for Green Bay

Malik Willis had not played since making two starts for the Green Bay Packers in September when starting quarterback Jordan Love was sidelined with a knee injury. The Packers needed Willis again on Sunday. By September, he had helped Green Bay win both of his starts. On Sunday, Willis came through again.

Love left the Packers’ game against the Jacksonville Jaguars with 11:41 left in the third quarter due to a groin injury. But when the game was over, Green Bay pulled off a 30-27 win in the final second on Brandon McManus’ 24-yard field goal.

When the Packers began their final possession at their 30-yard line with 1:48 to play, Willis had completed 3-of-4 passes for 5 yards and twice ran for 25 yards against the Jaguars.

On the second snap of the final series, Willis connected with wide receiver Jayden Reed for a 51-yard gain at the Jacksonville 15-yard line. From there, the Packers ran down the clock to get the win on the final snap.

Green Bay scored a touchdown on three of Willis’ five full possessions at the helm, including a three-yard touchdown pass from Willis to Tucker Kraft as the Packers took a 27–17 lead with 14:06 remaining.

Willis was one of the 21 first named Chestnut brown players who took the field on the eighth Sunday of the NFL’s 105th season.

Three other former Auburn players were involved in the Green Bay-Jacksonville game:

· Tank Bigsby started running back to Jacksonville. Bigsby ran for 78 yards on 18 carries and caught two passes for 8 yards in his first NFL start. Bigsby entered Sunday with two receptions in 24 career games.

· Jaguars safety Daniel Thomas (Lee-Montgomery) has no stats recorded.

· Packers defensive end Colby Wooden made two tackles and broke up one pass.

In the other Sunday matches:

Philadelphia Eagles 37, Cincinnati Bengals 17

· Eagles offensive tackle Jack Driscoll recorded no stats.

· Bengals guard Tashawn Manning is on the practice squad and is not eligible to play.

· Bengals defensive tackle Justin Rogers is on the practice squad and is not eligible to play.

· Eagles tight end CJ Uzomah is on the practice squad and is not eligible to play.

Detroit Lions 52, Tennessee Titans 14

· Carlton Davis started at cornerback for the Lions. Davis made two tackles, broke up one pass and recovered one fumble. Davis recovered a fumble at the Tennessee 26-yard line for a touchdown in the third quarter.

· Titans defensive tackle Marlon Davidson (Greenville) is on injured reserve and ineligible to play.

· Titans cornerback Roger McCreary (Williamson) made three tackles, recorded one sack and recorded two tackles for loss.

Houston Texans 23, Indianapolis Colts 20

· Colts cornerback Jaylin Simpson is on the practice squad and is not eligible to play.

· Braden Smith started at right tackle for the Colts.

· Texans offensive tackle Kilian Zierer is on the practice squad and is not eligible to play.

Arizona Cardinals 28, Miami Dolphins 27

· Cardinals defensive tackle Angelo Blackson is on the practice squad and is not eligible to play.

· Cardinals inside linebacker Owen Pappoe made two tackles on special teams.

· Dolphins wide receiver Anthony Schwartz is on injured reserve and ineligible to play.

New England Patriots 25, New York Jets 22

· Patriots defensive tackle Marcus Harris (Park Crossing) is on the practice squad and is not eligible to play.

· Patriots cornerback Jonathan Jones made one tackle.

· Jamien Sherwood started at linebacker for the Jets. Sherwood led New York with 11 tackles and recorded one tackle for loss.

Atlanta Falcons 31, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 26

· KJ Britt (Oxford) started at inside linebacker for the Buccaneers. Britt led Tampa Bay with 10 tackles.

· Buccaneers cornerback Jamel Dean is on injured reserve and is not eligible to play.

· Buccaneers running back DJ Williams is on the practice squad and is not eligible to play.

Los Angeles Chargers 26, New Orleans Saints 8

· Chargers long snapper Josh Harris handled the snaps for six punts, three extra points and two field goals. But Harris also had an off-target snap that went out of the end zone for the safety and the first points of the game.

Buffalo Bills 31, Seattle Seahawks 10

· Derick Hall started at strongside linebacker for the Seahawks. Hall made three tackles.

· Seahawks cornerback Nehemiah Pritchett (Jackson) was designated inactive on game day. An ankle injury kept Pritchett off the field a week after he made his first NFL start.

Denver Broncos 28, Carolina Panthers 14

· Derrick Brown is on injured reserve and ineligible to play.

· Bo Nix (Pinson Valley) started at quarterback for the Broncos. Nix completed 28 of 37 passes for 284 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions and ran five times for 4 yards and one touchdown. Nix threw two touchdown passes and scored on a 1-yard quarterback sneak in the second quarter as Denver built a 28–7 halftime lead.

· Jarrett Stidham dressed for the game but did not play.

Kansas City Chiefs 27, Las Vegas Raiders 20

· Raiders kicker Daniel Carlson made field goals of 54 and 32 yards and made two extra points.

· Raiders tight end John Samuel Shenker caught a 7-yard pass for the first reception of his NFL career.

Washington Commanders 18, Chicago Bears 15

· Bears defensive tackle Byron Cowart made two tackles and recorded one tackle for loss.

· Noah Igbinoghene (Hewitt-Trussville) started at cornerback for the Commanders. Igbinoghene made two tackles.

San Francisco 49ers 30, Dallas Cowboys 24

· Forty-Niners kicker Anders Carlson made all his kicks – field goals from 50, 44 and 41 yards and three extra points. San Francisco signed Carlson from the practice squad and made him eligible to play.

· Carl Lawson started at defensive end for the Cowboys. Lawson made three tackles and recorded one quarterback hit.

· Cowboys wide receiver Seth Williams (Paul Bryant) is on the practice squad and is not eligible to play.

Week 8 started on Thursday evening, when the Los Angeles Rams defeated the Minnesota Vikings 30-20.

Week 8 concludes on Monday when the New York Giants and Pittsburgh Steelers face off at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh at 7:15 PM CDT. ABC and ESPN will televise the game.

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Mark Inabinett is a sportscaster for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AmarkG1.