A Mid-Season Update On Our Heisman Winners in the NFL

We’ve reached the halfway (ish) point of the NFL season as teams play their eighth or ninth games this weekend, so time for a check-in on our Heisman winners in the league.

It’s been a challenging season for many members of our Heisman Fraternity in the National Football League, the injury bug spreading like a virus on a cruise ship.

Joe Burrow got hurt in the second week of the season, suffering a true toe injury that required surgery and which may sideline him through the end of the season.

Lamar Jackson missed three recent games due to a hamstring injury but is finally set to return to the lineup this week against Miami, hoping to jumpstart a Ravens squad that is 2-5.

Jayden Daniels has also missed three recent games with leg injuries and hopes to make a return this weekend. Kyler Murray has sat for the last two weeks with a foot injury, and could return this weekend as well.

Well, what about the healthy guys?

Let’s start with Heisman NFL rookie and Jacksonville Jaguar two-way threat Travis Hunter, who is coming into his own in the league.

Offensively, he has 28 receptions for 289 yards, the third-most yards among NFL rookie receivers. That includes a season-best eight-reception, 101-yard receiving yard effort in his last game on Oct. 19 that included his first career touchdown catch. His offensive participation is on the upswing and he could be primed for a big second half.

Defensively he has made 15 tackles, 11 of them solo, and has been credited with three passes defended. In total, he has played 462 snaps, including special teams. He has played two-thirds of the Jaguars’ snaps on offense.

Baker Mayfield is having another standout season for Tampa Bay and has the NFC South-leading Buccaneers off to a 6-2 start thanks to 1,919 passing yards and 13 TDs to just two interceptions. He is currently on pace for his third straight 4,000-yard passing season.

He’s ranked No. 2 on NFL.com‘s latest quarterback rankings and has seen his name included in mid-season league MVP chatter.

Derrick Henry, meanwhile, is on pace for another 1,000-yard rushing season despite Baltimore’s slow start and averaging only 15.6 carries per game, below is average in most recent seasons.

Henry has gained 510 yards on 109 carries, averaging 4.7 a rush with six touchdowns. He has moved into 17th place on the NFL’s career rushing chart with 11,933, passing Fred Taylor earlier this season, and is just 347 yards away from jumping into the 12th spot ahead of Marshall Faulk. His six rushing scores give him 112, now fifth on the NFL’s career list. Fourth is Adrian Peterson at 120.

Ravens teammate Jackson has thrown for 869 yards and 10 TDs with one interception in his four games. It’s a small sample size, but his completion percentage of 71.6 is at a career best level. He has also rushed for 169 yards and a score.

Daniels, our 2023 winner, set such a high bar for himself as a 2024 rookie that a sophomore slump was almost inevitable. While he has yet to match the same success he had last year, he has still thrown for 1,031 yards and eight scores in five games while rushing for 211 yards and another score.

His fellow 2024 NFL draftee, 2022 winner Caleb Williams, is 12th in the NFL with 1,636 passing yards in seven games, tossing nine TDs while rushing for two. He and the Bears are off to a 3-5 start.

Third-year vet Bryce Young has the Carolina Panthers playing well and recently led them to three straight wins to open October before missing Week 8. Young, who is set to return this weekend, has passed for 1,288 yards and 11 scores and has rushed for one as Carolina experiences what a playoff race feels like for the first time in a few years.

2020 Heisman winner DeVonta Smith is sixth in the NFL with 588 receiving yards on 44 receptions, scoring twice for the 6-2 Eagles. The almost-27-year-old now has 352 career receptions for 4,599 career yards and 29 TDs, all totals already in Philadelphia’s career top 15.

He’s also turning heads with his threads, per this NFL.com fashion story.

Assuming Murray returns this week, he’ll try to end a slide in which the Cardinals have lost five straight by four points or less. He has thrown for 962 yards and six scores, completing 74.2% of his passes while rushing for 173 yards and a score.

Marcus Mariota has played in four games as Daniels’ backup in Washington, leading the Commanders to a win over Las Vegas. He has passed for 639 yards and four scores and has rushed for 122 yards and a score.

The dean of Heisman winners in the NFL remains Jameis Winston, who is backing up Jaxson Dart and Russell Wilson on the New York Giants. He has yet to play this season.