Catching Up With Our NFL Heisman Winners At The Halfway Point.

With Halloween and late sunsets in the rearview mirror and the halfway point of the NFL season hitting this weekend, we’re taking stock of our Heisman Fraternity members collecting paychecks in the NFL.

It’s been a trying time for many of our Heisman alumni in the league who have battled a bevy of ailments, some besieged by bad luck.

How else to explain 2016 Heisman winner Lamar Jackson finally returning to action on Sunday after three weeks off due to an ankle injury only to leave the game after one snap.

On his first play from scrimmage, Jackson smashed his throwing hand’s thumb on against a Buffalo Bill’s helmet badly enough that it required surgery, potentially costing him the rest of the season.

DeVonta Smith, the 2020 Heisman winner, has missed the last two games with a hamstring injury and has only suited up for four games this season.

2018 Heisman winner Kyler Murray caught the hamstring bug from Smith and injured his last week, potentially costing him his Week 9 start.

Baker Mayfield has recently returned to action after missing three games with a dislocated thumb while Jayden Daniels is recently back from a dislocated elbow injury.

Maybe we need to bubble wrap our Heisman winners.

Joe Burrow, who has dealt with more than his share of injuries, is currently healthy and thriving. He leads the NFL in passing yards per game (302.1) and touchdown passes (20) and is third in completion percentage (73.0), helping Cincinnati to a 5-2 start in a tight AFC North race.

Burrow is a game or two away from cracking the NFL’s top 100 career passing yards list and will pass Jackson soon, who is 99th.

Mayfield is the Heisman’s current acting leader in career passing yards, 62nd with 29,204 while Jameis Winston is 80th with 25,749.

Mayfield made zero headway on the passing yards chart on Sunday despite playing the entire game as Tampa Bay became the first NFL team to win a game without completing a pass since 1974. Mayfield went 0-for-3 in a driving rainstorm but directed a Buc offense that shut out Atlanta, 16-0. Whatever it takes to win.

Winston, the dean of Heisman winners in the NFL, went from backup to starter for five games with the New York Giants this fall, going 2-2-1, throwing for 957 yards and seven scores.

Like Smith and Murray, Caleb Williams has missed time — three games — with a hamstring injury. Like Burrow, he has been great while healthy, helping to lead the Chicago Bears to a 6-2 start in an NFC North that is a combined 22-8.

Williams has led the Bears to three straight wins, including back-to-back victories over last season’s Super Bowl matchup, New England and Seattle.

He has passed for 1,267 yards and six TDs and has rushed for 129, scoring twice.

Travis Hunter has been a key piece in Jacksonville’s defense as the Jaguars have raced to first in the AFC South at 5-2. He’s got 26 tackles, six deflections and two interceptions as a defensive back and seven receptions for 76 yards and a score when lining up at receiver.

Jacksonville mic’d up the entertaining second-year vet during Week 8, which is of course worth a listen.

Derrick Henry is holding down the fort in Baltimore while the Ravens deal with Jackson’s injury and others. Henry is seventh in the NFL in rushing with 632 yards and is tied for third with eight rushing scores.

He has moved into ninth on the NFL’s career rushing cart with 13,640 and is just 451 yards short of sixth place. His 130 career rushing TDs are third overall, 15 back of LaDanian Tomlinson and 34 behind Emmitt Smith.

Fourth-year Carolina Panther starter Bryce Young has cooled a bit since his hot start but is still fourth in the league in passing yards per game (274.4) and has 13 scoring passes.

Marcus Mariota has gone 33-of-51 for 340 yards and four scores in backup duty for Washington while Daniels was out.

Finally, Las Vegas rookie Fernando Mendoza continues to backup Kirk Cousins for the 4-4 Raiders. He saw his first true action of the season in Las Vegas’ blowout loss at New England, completing 6-of-8 passes for 48 yards in mop-up duty.