What another wild week in the NFL as there were plenty of blowouts and some unexpected results by undermanned teams. The craziness extended to the red zone in all phases of the game as well. It’s time we look at the red zone trends from last week and the last few before heading into another crazy week of NFL action for Week 11.

 

Red Zone Passing

Patrick Mahomes, KC - Now that was the Mahomes we’ve wanted to see all season. The 10 red zone tosses he had in Week 10 are the most he’s posted in a game this year and five of those were inside the 10 with three going for scores. The Chiefs certainly needed a get right game and got one against the Raiders but there are lingering questions as to whether that continues or not going forward. Dallas’ defense has been up and down this year but if they can force Mahomes into the quicker throws, it’ll be tough for him to match this output in Week 11.

Mason Rudolph, PIT - Rudolph was able to step in and pilot the Steelers’ offense well enough in Week 10 and that included nine pass attempts in the red zone. Six of those were inside the 10 and one went for a score but it was a productive enough outing for Rudolph in his first start of the year in place of the ailing Ben Roethlisberger. If Big Ben can’t go in Week 11, Rudolph should find a bit more room to operate in the red zone against the Chargers.

Ryan Tannehill, TEN - It was a weird day for the Titans last week but Tannehill still had his most red zone passes of the year with eight passes and two rushing attempts. Those attempts resulted in two total touchdowns for the quarterback and seven total touches inside the 10. WIthout some key offensive pieces heading into Week 11, it’ll once again be up to Tannehill to make the most of his opportunities inside the 20 for the Titans to have a good day against Houston.

Cam Newton, CAR - Newton returned to the Panthers lineup last week and while he didn’t do much, he did see time and touches in the red zone. He did carry it inside the 20 more than he passed it but still, him getting touches near the goal line ups his flier status for Week 11 against a struggling Washington defense that just lost Chase Young for the year. There’s not a lot to go on yet for Newton, but it was good to see him getting usage near the end zone.

 

Red Zone Rushing

Dalvin Cook, MIN - We thought last week was a big red zone week for Cook, well that was until this week happened. He carried it 11 times inside the 20, eight of those inside the 10 and produced a score. He’s been a massive cog in the Vikings offense but this year could be a lot better if he wasn’t getting stuffed inside the two-yard-line so often this year. He’s had so many missed opportunities close to the goal line but at some point all that volume has to turn into bigger results for Cook.

AJ Dillon, GB - Dillon became the lead back in earnest, at least for the next few weeks, last week as Aaron Jones was out with an injury. He used that time as a lead back to produce nine red zone touches with five inside the 10 and two becoming scores. The Packers are big believers in a one-back system and with Jones on the shelf for a few more weeks, Dillon will continue to be the beneficiary of a bunch of volume and the Packers are quite good at converting in the red zone as well.

Antonio Gibson, WAS - Where did this version of Gibson come from? For weeks it’s been all about his ability or inability to manage the pain of a stress fracture in his shin but then against the best rush defense in the league, he produces that game? Gibson carried it seven times inside the 20 with four touches inside the five and two going for scores. It’s always been about pain management for him but this game is certainly an outlier right now but it is encouraging going forward.

James Robinson, JAC - Robinson came back from injury and picked up right where he left off with three red zone carries which he’s had three other times this year. While it’s not a ton of volume, he was productive with it and posted a score. He’s been in the favor of his head coach even when coming back from injury and that’s held true in the red zone as well which gives him upside for scoring touchdowns too.

 

Red Zone Receiving

Stefon Diggs, BUF - It was a big day for Diggs as he had a coming out party and that included in the red zone as well. He tied a season-high with four targets inside the 20 and all four came inside the 15. He did only catch one of them but it went for a score. It’d been a few weeks since we’d seen Diggs with volume in the red zone but if the Bills want to continue to hold off the Patriots in the division, they’ll need as much Diggs as they can get.

CeeDee Lamb, DAL - It was a huge day all around for the Cowboys and that included Lamb inside the 20. He saw a season-high three targets, catching two of them, both for touchdowns in the blowout. It was the first time in a few games that he saw targets inside the 20 in general but with Amari Cooper now out for Week 11, Lamb should see another good week in the red zone in the expected shootout against the Chiefs.

Van Jefferson, LAR - Who cares if OBJ is with the Rams now right? Jefferson certainly didn’t care. He put up his second three-target red zone game in a row and now how nine targets inside the 20 in the last four games with six in the last two out of his 11 on the season. While he didn’t catch any of targets in Week 10, it wasn’t exactly the most accurate day for Stafford in general. With the Week 11 bye week we’re expecting OBJ to get a better handle on the playbook but it’s possible that Jefferson remains a weapon inside the 20.

Pat Freiermuth, PIT - It hasn’t much mattered who’s been under center for the Steelers the last few weeks for Freiermuth to see his targets. In the last three games, he’s seen seven targets with three of them coming in Week 10 for season-high. The tight end caught two of the targets but none for a score this week, however, getting this many targets inside the 20 will up his touchdown upside which is all we’re looking for from tight ends each week so long as they’re not members of the big three at the position.