Across The Shield: TreVeyon Henderson Runs For Two 50-Yard Touchdowns Again, Jaxon Smith-Njigba Has Ninth 100-Yard Game of 2025, Dre’Mont Jones Dominates and Trash Talks Bengals

By Dan Hope and Matt Gutridge on December 16, 2025 at 7:35 am
TreVeyon Henderson
Brian Fluharty – Imagn Images
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A full contingent of 16 NFL games in Week 15 brought plenty of notable performances from former Ohio State players throughout the league.

TreVeyon Henderson had two long touchdown runs in the same game for the second time in his rookie season to match an NFL record. Jaxon Smith-Njigba continued his remarkably productive season with his ninth 100-yard game of the year. Dre’Mont Jones had a big game against the Cincinnati Bengals and plenty to say afterward. C.J. Stroud, Joey Bosa, Terry McLaurin, Chris Olave, Chase Young and Jonathon Cooper also made highlight-reel plays.

We’ve recapped all of their performances and more in Across The Shield, Eleven Warriors’ weekly look at how former Ohio State players are performing throughout the NFL.

Henderson hits two home runs – again

Five weeks after TreVeyon Henderson had two touchdown runs of 50-plus yards against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the former Ohio State running back did it again Sunday against the Buffalo Bills.

First, Henderson wiggled through the middle of the Bills’ defense and ran away from two Bills defensive backs on his way to the end zone for a 52-yard touchdown, giving the New England Patriots a 21-0 lead in the second quarter.

After the Bills came back to take a 28-24 lead in the fourth quarter, Henderson did it again. After initially running right into a wall of defenders, Henderson saw open field to his left and took off, running past four defenders – with a blocking assist from Patriots quarterback Drake Maye – to go all the way to the end zone for a 65-yard touchdown.

Henderson is now just the third player in NFL history to have two separate games in which he ran for two touchdowns of 50 or more yards – and it took him just 14 NFL games to get there.

Henderson’s four 50-yard touchdown runs this season are twice as many as any other player in the NFL this year, and also the most ever in a single season for a New England Patriot.

Henderson finished the game with 148 total rushing yards on 14 carries, making him the NFL’s leading rusher for Week 15. It also earned him our Pro Buck of the Week award as Ohio State’s top NFL performer of the week, making him the first three-time winner of the award this season.

Pro Bucks of the Week
Week Player Stats
1 Buccaneers WR Emeka Egbuka 4 catches, 67 yards, 2 TD; 1 rush, 9 yards
2 Bills DE Joey Bosa 2 tackles, 1 sack, 2 FF, 7 QB pressures
3 Steelers DT Cameron Heyward 6 tackles, 1 sack, 1 FF, 1 PD, 4 QB pressures
4 Buccaneers WR Emeka Egbuka 4 catches, 101 yards, 1 TD; 1 rush, 0 yards
5 Texans QB C.J. Stroud 23/27, 244 yards, 4 TD; 1 rush, 30 yards
6 Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba 8 catches, 162 yards, 1 TD
7 Browns RB Quinshon Judkins 25 carries, 84 yards, 3 TD
8 Texans QB C.J. Stroud 30/39, 318 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT; 7 carries, 30 yards
9 Cardinals CB Denzel Burke 7 tackles, 1 INT, 2 PD
10 Patriots RB TreVeyon Henderson 14 carries, 147 yards, 2 TD; 1 catch, 3 yards
11 Patriots RB TreVeyon Henderson 19 carries, 62 yards, 2 TD; 5 catches, 31 yards, 1 TD
12 Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba 8 catches, 167 yards, 2 TD; 1 carry, 4 yards
13 Panthers S Lathan Ransom 11 tackles, 1 sack
14 Texans DT Tommy Togiai 10 tackles, 1 sack, 2 QB hits
15 Patriots RB TreVeyon Henderson 14 carries, 148 yards, 2 TD; 2 catches, 13 yards

Henderson has now scored multiple touchdowns in three of the Patriots’ last five games, and he’s up to 773 rushing yards for the season – the second-most among NFL rookies behind only fellow former Ohio State running back Quinshon Judkins. Per FanDuel, he now has the best odds (+190) of winning this year’s NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Award, just ahead of another former Ohio State teammate, Buccaneers wide receiver Emeka Egbuka.

Despite Henderson’s spectacular performance, the Bills defeated the Patriots, 35-31, snapping New England’s 10-game winning streak. Former Ohio State defensive end Joey Bosa effectively sealed the victory for the Bills by tipping a fourth-down throw by Maye to force a turnover on downs with less than two minutes to play.

JSN tops 100 for ninth time in 2025

Jaxon Smith-Njigba continued putting together one of the greatest seasons ever for an NFL receiver as he topped 100 receiving yards for the ninth time in 14 games this season.

Smith-Njigba had seven catches for 113 yards in the Seattle Seahawks’ 18-16 win over the Indianapolis Colts. His day was highlighted by a 29-yard reception in the third quarter and a 39-yard reception in the fourth quarter, both plays on which he turned intermediate catches into long gains by running for more yards after the catch.

JSN has now caught 96 passes for 1,541 yards this season, 174 yards more than second-place Puka Nacua. He’s emerged as the heavy favorite (-550 on FanDuel) to win the NFL’s Offensive Player of the Year Award as he’s led the Seahawks to an 11-3 record this season, putting them in a tie for first place in the NFC with Nacua’s Los Angeles Rams – who they play on Thursday Night Football this upcoming week.

Following the win over the Colts, Smith-Njigba reunited with his former Ohio State teammate JT Tuimoloau, who had three tackles – all in kickoff coverage – for the Colts in defeat.

Dre’Mont doesn’t hold back

Dre’Mont Jones helped lead a defensive shutout for the Baltimore Ravens that eliminated the Cincinnati Bengals from playoff contention, then had plenty to say afterward.

The former Ohio State defensive tackle turned NFL outside linebacker had a dominant performance as a pass rusher on Sunday, recording a career-high five quarterback hits in the Ravens’ 24-0 win in Cincinnati. 

Jones got in an additional hit against Joe Burrow – his former Ohio State teammate – with some friendly trash talk after the game.

Jones had more to say about the Bengals in his postgame press conference. On a day when it was just 10 degrees in Cincinnati, Jones – a Cleveland native who grew up rooting for the Browns – said he felt the Bengals couldn’t handle the cold.

 “I felt play one that they weren’t ready to play. It was too cold for them,” Jones said.

Traded to the Ravens midseason after signing with the Tennessee Titans in the offseason, Jones has had one of the best seasons of his NFL career in 2025, recording a career-high 21 quarterback hits with 35 tackles and six quarterback hits through 15 games.

Terry puts ’em through the spin cycle

In what’s been an injury-plagued seventh season in the NFL for Terry McLaurin, the former Ohio State wide receiver made one of his best plays of the year in Week 15.

With the Washington Commanders holding a 22-14 lead early in the fourth quarter, McLaurin extended his team’s advantage to two scores – ultimately resulting in a 29-21 win over the New York Giants – as he caught a deep ball from Marcus Mariota, then made two Giant defensive backs look silly as he spun his way into the end zone for a 51-yard touchdown.

The touchdown was McLaurin’s third of the season and his second catch over 50 yards this year. He’s now caught 26 passes for 409 yards in seven games this season.

Olave, Young help lead Saints to upset win

Chris Olave and Chase Young both played big roles in helping the New Orleans Saints earn an upset win over the Carolina Panthers in Week 15.

Olave caught a 12-yard touchdown pass, his sixth touchdown catch of the season, to tie the game at 17-all with 2:29 left to play.

On the Panthers’ subsequent drive, Young ran through Panthers left tackle Ikem Ekwonu and leaped on Panthers quarterback Bryce Young to take him down for a 9-yard sack, ultimately forcing Carolina to punt the ball back to New Orleans.

That ultimately led to a game-winning field goal for the Saints in the final seconds of regulation after former Ohio State safety Lathan Ransom drew an unnecessary roughness penalty for hitting Saints quarterback Tyler Shough on a slide.

Pete Werner recovered a fumble on the Panthers’ final play to seal a 20-17 victory for New Orleans.

Olave led the Saints with six catches for 85 yards for the game, while Young led the Saints’ defense with six tackles – tying his career-high –  including two tackles for loss.

WRU Billboard

Stroud sharp vs. Cardinals

C.J. Stroud had one of his best games of the season against the Arizona Cardinals, leading the Houston Texans to a 40-20 victory – their sixth straight win – by completing 22 of 29 passing attempts for 260 yards and three touchdowns.

Stroud and Nico Collins connected for the NFL’s first touchdown of the day on Sunday as Stroud threaded a throw over the middle of the field to Collins, who took the pass all the way to the end zone for a 57-yard score just 49 seconds into the game.

Stroud followed that up with two 4-yard touchdown passes to Dalton Schultz and Collins in the second half.

Following the game, Stroud made sure to high-five Cal McNair after going viral for accidentally snubbing the Texans owner following their Week 14 win over the Chiefs – which led to some entertaining social media content last week.

Stroud’s 137.1 quarterback rating was the third-best of Week 15, behind only Jalen Hurts and Brock Purdy, and his second-highest passer rating of the year behind only his 23-of-27, 244-yard, four-touchdown performance against the Ravens in Week 5.

Hartline and Egbuka reunite

In Tampa last week to begin his duties as South Florida’s new head coach before returning to Ohio State to finish out the season as the Buckeyes’ offensive coordinator, Brian Hartline made a trip to Raymond James Stadium to watch Emeka Egbuka and the Buccaneers play the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday Night Football.

Jeff Dubrof, a sports anchor for WFLA, captured video of Egbuka and Hartline connecting before the game.

With his former Ohio State position coach in attendance, Egbuka caught four passes for 64 yards in the Buccaneers’ 29-28 loss to the Falcons. 

Quick Hits

  • Jonathon Cooper helped seal the Denver Broncos’ 11th straight victory with a fourth-down sack to force a turnover on downs late in the fourth quarter of their 34-26 win over the Green Bay Packers.
  • Cameron Heyward recorded five tackles with two tackles for loss and a sack in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 28-15 win over the Miami Dolphins.
  • Cameron Johnston debuted as the Giants’ punter after signing to their practice squad earlier in the week. He averaged 45.5 yards per punt on four punts in their loss to the Commanders.
  • Michael Jordan made his sixth start of the season at left guard for the Buccaneers and went head-to-head with Falcons cornerback Cobee Bryant, prompting both teams to have some social media fun with the matchup resembling a battle between two NBA legends.

Week 15 Stats

Week 15 and season stats for every Buckeye around the NFL can be found in the table below compiled by Eleven Warriors researcher Matt Gutridge. The table only includes players who have been on an active roster for at least one game this season and who finished their college careers at Ohio State.

Buckeyes Around the NFL
PLAYER POSITION TEAM WEEK 15 STATS SEASON STATS
ELI APPLE CB 49ERS Practice squad  
DAMON ARNETTE CB TEXANS Practice squad 3 tackles
JEROME BAKER LB BROWNS 4 tackles 28 tackles, 1.5 sacks (11.5 yards), 2 TFL, 1 QB hit, 1 FF
JOEY BOSA DE BILLS 1 QB hit, 1 PD 26 tackles, 5 sacks (40 yards), 8 TFL, 16 QB hits, 1 PD, 5 FF
NICK BOSA DE 49ERS Injured reserve (knee) 17 tackles, 2 sacks (9 yards), 4 TFL, 3 QB hits, 2 FF, 1 FR
NOAH BROWN WR COMMANDERS 1 catch, 28 yards 5 catches, 83 yards
BARON BROWNING LB CARDINALS 3 tackles, 1 TFL 29 tackles, 2 sacks (13 yards), 4 TFL, 5 QB hits, 1 INT, 1 PD, 1 FR
DENZEL BURKE CB CARDINALS 1 tackle, 1 PD 35 tackles, 1 TFL, 2 INT, 8 PD
PARRIS CAMPBELL WR COWBOYS Practice squad 1 tackle
JONATHON COOPER LB BRONCOS 5 tackles, 0.5 sack (5.5 yards), 1 QB hit 46 tackles, 8 sacks (59.0 yards), 8 TFL, 13 QB hits, 4 PD
TAYLOR DECKER OT LIONS Started at LT 12 starts at LT
J.K. DOBBINS RB BRONCOS Injured reserve (foot) 153 carries, 772 yards, 4 TD; 11 catches, 37 yards
EMEKA EGBUKA WR BUCCANEERS 4 catches, 64 yards 58 catches, 870 yards, 6 TD; 2 carries, 9 yards
TOMMY EICHENBERG LB RAIDERS 5 tackles, 1 TFL 23 tackles, 1 TFL
LUKE FARRELL TE 49ERS Played at TE 11 catches, 85 yards, 2 TD; 2 tackles
JUSTIN FIELDS QB JETS Inactive 128/204, 1,259 yards, 7 TD, 1 INT; 71 carries, 383 yards, 4 TD
JOSH FRYAR OL CARDINALS Started at LT 9 games played; 2 start at OL
JORDAN FULLER S FALCONS Practice squad 2 tackles
MIKE HALL JR. DT BROWNS 2 tackles 9 tackles, 1.5 sack (13 yards), 2 TFL, 4 QB hits
DAVON HAMILTON DT JAGUARS 3 tackles 32 tackles, 1 sack (7 yards), 3 TFL, 3 QB hits
TY HAMILTON DT RAMS Inactive 8 tackles, 1 QB hit
JORDAN HANCOCK S BILLS Played at S 14 tackles
MALIK HARRISON LB STEELERS 5 tackles 32 tackles, 1 TFL
ZACH HARRISON DL FALCONS Injured reserve (knee) 22 tackles, 4.5 sacks (16.5 yards), 5 TFL, 5 QB hits, 2 FF, 1 PD
MARVIN HARRISON JR. WR CARDINALS Inactive 40 catches, 594 yards, 4 TD
TREVEYON HENDERSON RB PATRIOTS 14 carries, 148 yards, 2 TD; 2 catches, 13 yards 143 carries, 773 yards, 7 TD; 34 catches, 212 yards, 1 TD; 9 KR, 209 yards
CAMERON HEYWARD DT STEELERS 5 tackles, 1 sack (7 yards), 2 TFL, 1 QB hit 62 tackles, 2.5 sacks (11 yards), 7 TFL, 6 QB hits, 6 PD, 1 FF
RONNIE HICKMAN S BROWNS 7 tackles, 1 PD 90 tackles, 1 TFL, 2 INT, 5 PD
JALYN HOLMES DE COMMANDERS Played at DE 15 tackles, 1 QB hit
MALIK HOOKER S COWBOYS 6 tackles 38 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 PD
WILL HOWARD QB STEELERS Inactive  
DONOVAN JACKSON OL VIKINGS Started at LG 11 starts at LG
JONAH JACKSON OG BEARS Started at RG 14 starts at RG
PARIS JOHNSON JR. OL CARDINALS Inactive 12 starts at LT
CAMERON JOHNSTON P GIANTS 4 punts, 45.5 average 11 punts, 44.5 average, 2 inside 20
DAWAND JONES OT BROWNS Injured reserve (knee) 2 starts at LT, 1 start at RT
DRE'MONT JONES DE RAVENS 2 tackles, 5 QB hits 35 tackles, 6 sacks (39 yards), 6 TFL, 21 QB hits, 1 PD, 1 FR
MICHAEL JORDAN LG BUCCANEERS Started at LG 6 starts at LG, 8 games played
QUINSHON JUDKINS RB BROWNS 12 carries, 21 yards; 3 catches, -4 yards 222 carries, 805 yards, 7 TD; 21 catches, 142 yards
MARSHON LATTIMORE CB COMMANDERS Injured reserve (knee) 27 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 INT, 7 PD, 1 FR
TYQUAN LEWIS DT COLTS 1 tackle, 1 QB hit 9 tackles, 3 sacks (18 yards), 4 TFL, 4 QB hits, 1 PD
LIAM McCULLOUGH LS FALCONS Played at LS 14 games played at LS; 1 tackle
TERRY McLAURIN WR COMMANDERS 3 catches, 69 yards, 1 TD 26 catches, 409 yards, 3 TD, 1 tackle
JAKE McQUAIDE LS RAMS Played at LS 6 games played at LS
THAYER MUNFORD OT PATRIOTS Played at OT 2 games played
JOSH MYERS C JETS Started at C 14 starts at C
JEFF OKUDAH CB VIKINGS Injured reserve (concussion) 14 tackles, 1 FR
CHRIS OLAVE WR SAINTS 6 catches, 85 yards, 1 TD 82 catches, 896 yards, 6 TD; 1 carry, -3 yards; 0/1 passing, 1 INT
LATHAN RANSOM S PANTHERS 3 tackles 48 tackles, 1 sack (8 yards), 2 TFL, 1 QB hit, 1 FF
JEREMY RUCKERT TE JETS 2 catches, 13 yards 20 catches, 163 yards, 1 TD
CURTIS SAMUEL WR BILLS Injured reserve (elbow, knee) 7 catches, 81 yards, 1 TD; 9 KR, 223 yards; 1 tackle
JACK SAWYER LB STEELERS 3 tackles 26 tackles, 1 sack (9 yards), 2 TFL, 4 QB hits, 1 INT, 3 PD
TREY SERMON RB STEELERS Released 1 tackle
KENDALL SHEFFIELD CB DOLPHINS Practice squad 1 tackle
JOSH SIMMONS OT CHIEFS Injured reserve (wrist) 8 starts at LT
CODY SIMON LB CARDINALS Started at LB 46 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 PD, 1 FF
JAXON SMITH-NJIGBA WR SEAHAWKS 7 catches, 113 yards 96 catches, 1,541 yards, 9 TD; 7 carries, 36 yards
CADE STOVER TE TEXANS 3 catches, 22 yards 9 catches, 60 yards; 4 carries, 3 yards
C.J. STROUD QB TEXANS 22/29, 260 yards, 3 TD; 6 carries, 10 yards 220/337, 2,441 yards, 15 TD, 6 INT; 38 carries, 204 yards
TOMMY TOGIAI DT TEXANS 3 tackles 44 tackles, 1.5 sacks (13.5 yards), 5 TFL, 5 QB hits, 3 PD
JT TUIMOLOAU DE COLTS 3 tackles 16 tackles, 1 TFL, 6 QB hits
NICK VANNETT TE RAMS Played on special teams 1 start, 8 games played
DENZEL WARD CB BROWNS Inactive 38 tackles, 2 TFL, 1 INT, 8 PD
PETE WERNER LB SAINTS 3 tackles, 1 FR 72 tackles, 2 sacks (1 yard), 4 TFL, 3 QB hits, 5 PD, 3 FR
TYLEIK WILLIAMS DL LIONS 1 tackle 16 tackles, 1 TFL, 2 QB hits, 3 PD
GARRETT WILSON WR JETS Injured reserve (knee) 36 catches, 395 yards, 4 TD
LUKE WYPLER C BROWNS Started at C 1 start at T, 1 start at C, 14 games played
CHASE YOUNG DE SAINTS 6 tackles, 1 sack (9 yards), 2 TFL, 2 QB hits 26 tackles, 6 sacks (44.5 yards), 7 TFL, 10 QB hits, 3 PD, 1 FF, 1 FR
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