Texas Tech University Athletics
Photo by: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports
Red Raiders In The NFL: Week 17
January 04, 2017 | Football
LUBBOCK, Texas -- Each week, texastech.com details the accomplishments of former Red Raiders who now play in the NFL.
Seven former Red Raiders have clinched playoff berths, and the three Red Raiders playing for Oakland kick off playoff action on Saturday afternoon in Houston.
HEAD COACHES
On Tuesday, Dec. 27, Lynn became the first former Red Raider player to take an NFL head coaching job as the Bills named him interim head coach ... With multiple head coaching vacancies across the league, Lynn is a sought-after name and has been reported as meeting with four NFL teams so far about their head coach positions ... Lynn was a Red Raider running back from 1988-91, and was an All-SWC selection in 1990 ... in his NFL career, he was a member of the back-to-back Super Bowl Champion Denver Broncos in 1997 & 1998.
PLAYERS
Amaro did not factor into Sunday's win over Houston ... Amaro has four catches for 59 yards this season as he looks to build off an impressive 2014 rookie campaign, in which he hauled in 38 passes for 345 yards while hitting paydirt twice ... Amaro was the New York Jets' second-round pick (49th overall) in the 2014 NFL Draft.
Amendola was inactive for Sunday's win over Miami, but has returned to practice this week ... In seven NFL seasons, Amendola has caught 365 passes for 3,452 yards and scored 17 touchdowns … On top of that, he has hauled in three career postseason touchdowns, including a score in Super Bowl XLIX … Amendola was signed by the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2008.
Le'Raven Clark made his third-straight start at for the Colts on Sunday, in their dramatic win over Jacksonville ... Since Clark's insertion into the starting lineup, the Colts have only allowed one sack per game ... Clark was the first of three Red Raiders to hear their names called in the 2016 NFL draft, going at No. 82 overall … Clark started all 51 games of his Red Raider career, and his senior year he was named a CBS Sports second team All-American ... He was the third-round pick of the Colts in the 2016 NFL Draft.
Crabtree hit a pair of milestones on Sunday ... His five catches gave him 89 for the year (career high) and his 47 yards pushed him over 1,000 yards for the second time in his career ... He also pulled down eight touchdowns in 2016, making this one of the most productive years of his NFL career ... He now has 521 receptions for 6,252 yards and 43 regular-season touchdowns in his professional career … Crabtree played two seasons at Texas Tech (2007-08), where he became the first receiver in collegiate history to win the Biletnikoff Award twice, before the 49ers selected him with the 10th overall pick of the 2009 NFL Draft.
Cody Davis played 47 snaps (14 defense, 33 special teams) in L.A.'s loss on Sunday ... A week ago, Davis picked up his first NFL interception against San Francisco ... Davis was a four-year letterman with the Red Raiders (2009-12) and then signed as an undrafted free agent with the Rams in 2013.
Grant had one rush for one yard and picked up 33 yards in returns on Sunday … Grant ranks 12th in the NFL, averaging 8.3 yards per punt return this season ... Grant was Miami's sixth-round pick in the 2016 NFL Draft after a senior year at Tech in which he averaged 181 all-purpose yards per game which ranked fourth nationally, and ranked fourth nationally with 1,017 kickoff return yards and fifth with two kickoff return touchdowns … CBS Sports tabbed him as a second team All-American.
Hyder had a tackle, pass breakup and QB hurry in Detroit's loss to the Packers on Sunday night ... His 8.0 sacks this season are tied for 22nd in the NFL and 12th in the NFC ... Hyder joined the New York Jets as an undrafted free agent in 2014 after a Red Raider career which included a litany of All-Big 12 honors in 2013 and 2014.
Branden Jackson did not factor into the Oakland win, marking just the second time he has not seen the field since being called up from the practice squad more than a month ago ... Jackson was a four-year starter as a Red Raider, collecting 11 sacks during his tenure in Lubbock ... Jackson was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Raiders in 2016.
Marquez did not play against Arizona on Saturday, marking just the second game this season in which he did not log a snap … Marquez played four seasons at Texas Tech (2010-14) before the Rams signed him as an undrafted free agent in the spring of 2015.
Symmank signed an NFL futures contact with the Minnesota Vikings, the organization announced Tuesday afternoon ... Symmank ended his Red Raider career following the 2015 season after averaging 43.6 yards per punt, the highest mark in school history. He averaged a booming 46.0 yards per punt attempt during his senior year alone, easily the highest in his career and the second-highest mark for a single season in school history ... The McKinney, Texas native was a candidate for the Ray Guy Award as both a junior and senior and also earned All-Big 12 second team accolades following the 2014 campaign.
Waddle was inactive in New England's win over the Dolphins … in 2015, after missing the first two games of the season recovering from off season knee surgery, Waddle came back strong for Detroit, earning a starting spot for the rest of the season … Waddle played four seasons at Tech (2009-12) before being signed by the Lions as an undrafted free agent.
After a breakout performance in week 16, Washington was the feature back in Denver on Sunday, logging more snaps than starter Latavius Murray ... Washington recorded 57 yards of total offense on just nine touches ... His 467 rushing yards this season rank third among Oakland running backs ... Washington was the first Red Raider running back to register back-to-back 1,000 yard seasons since former Doak Walker Award winner Byron Hanspard in 1995 and 1996 ... one of five players in school history to rush for over 1,000 yards twice in a career.
Seven former Red Raiders have clinched playoff berths, and the three Red Raiders playing for Oakland kick off playoff action on Saturday afternoon in Houston.
HEAD COACHES
Anthony Lynn -- Buffalo Bills
Week 17 Matchup: New York 30, Buffalo 10On Tuesday, Dec. 27, Lynn became the first former Red Raider player to take an NFL head coaching job as the Bills named him interim head coach ... With multiple head coaching vacancies across the league, Lynn is a sought-after name and has been reported as meeting with four NFL teams so far about their head coach positions ... Lynn was a Red Raider running back from 1988-91, and was an All-SWC selection in 1990 ... in his NFL career, he was a member of the back-to-back Super Bowl Champion Denver Broncos in 1997 & 1998.
PLAYERS
Jace Amaro – Tennessee Titans
Week 17 Matchup: Tennessee 24, Houston 17Amaro did not factor into Sunday's win over Houston ... Amaro has four catches for 59 yards this season as he looks to build off an impressive 2014 rookie campaign, in which he hauled in 38 passes for 345 yards while hitting paydirt twice ... Amaro was the New York Jets' second-round pick (49th overall) in the 2014 NFL Draft.
Danny Amendola – New England Patriots
Week 17 Matchup: New England 35, Miami 14Amendola was inactive for Sunday's win over Miami, but has returned to practice this week ... In seven NFL seasons, Amendola has caught 365 passes for 3,452 yards and scored 17 touchdowns … On top of that, he has hauled in three career postseason touchdowns, including a score in Super Bowl XLIX … Amendola was signed by the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2008.
Le'Raven Clark – Indianapolis Colts
Week 17 Matchup: Indianapolis 24, Jacksonville 20Le'Raven Clark made his third-straight start at for the Colts on Sunday, in their dramatic win over Jacksonville ... Since Clark's insertion into the starting lineup, the Colts have only allowed one sack per game ... Clark was the first of three Red Raiders to hear their names called in the 2016 NFL draft, going at No. 82 overall … Clark started all 51 games of his Red Raider career, and his senior year he was named a CBS Sports second team All-American ... He was the third-round pick of the Colts in the 2016 NFL Draft.
Michael Crabtree – Oakland Raiders
Week 17 Matchup: Denver 24, Oakland 6Crabtree hit a pair of milestones on Sunday ... His five catches gave him 89 for the year (career high) and his 47 yards pushed him over 1,000 yards for the second time in his career ... He also pulled down eight touchdowns in 2016, making this one of the most productive years of his NFL career ... He now has 521 receptions for 6,252 yards and 43 regular-season touchdowns in his professional career … Crabtree played two seasons at Texas Tech (2007-08), where he became the first receiver in collegiate history to win the Biletnikoff Award twice, before the 49ers selected him with the 10th overall pick of the 2009 NFL Draft.
.@KingCrab15 and @AmariCooper9 become 1st @RAIDERS WR duo since '01 (Brown/Rice) to record 1,000 yards in same season. Coop 1149, Crab 1003
— Evert Geerlings (@E_Geerlings) January 2, 2017
Cody Davis – Los Angeles Rams
Week 17 Matchup: Arizona 44, Los Angeles 6Cody Davis played 47 snaps (14 defense, 33 special teams) in L.A.'s loss on Sunday ... A week ago, Davis picked up his first NFL interception against San Francisco ... Davis was a four-year letterman with the Red Raiders (2009-12) and then signed as an undrafted free agent with the Rams in 2013.
Jakeem Grant – Miami Dolphins
Week 17 Matchup: New England 35, Miami 14Grant had one rush for one yard and picked up 33 yards in returns on Sunday … Grant ranks 12th in the NFL, averaging 8.3 yards per punt return this season ... Grant was Miami's sixth-round pick in the 2016 NFL Draft after a senior year at Tech in which he averaged 181 all-purpose yards per game which ranked fourth nationally, and ranked fourth nationally with 1,017 kickoff return yards and fifth with two kickoff return touchdowns … CBS Sports tabbed him as a second team All-American.
Kerry Hyder – Detroit Lions
Week 17 Matchup: Green Bay 31, Detroit 24Hyder had a tackle, pass breakup and QB hurry in Detroit's loss to the Packers on Sunday night ... His 8.0 sacks this season are tied for 22nd in the NFL and 12th in the NFC ... Hyder joined the New York Jets as an undrafted free agent in 2014 after a Red Raider career which included a litany of All-Big 12 honors in 2013 and 2014.
"Kerry Hyder has been a pleasant surprise this year as a pass-rusher..."#GBvsDET pic.twitter.com/3sVu9UKdAB
— Pro Football Focus (@PFF) January 1, 2017
Branden Jackson – Oakland Raiders
Week 17 Matchup: Denver 24, Oakland 6Branden Jackson did not factor into the Oakland win, marking just the second time he has not seen the field since being called up from the practice squad more than a month ago ... Jackson was a four-year starter as a Red Raider, collecting 11 sacks during his tenure in Lubbock ... Jackson was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Raiders in 2016.
Bradley Marquez – Los Angeles Rams
Week 17 Matchup: Arizona 44, Los Angeles 6Marquez did not play against Arizona on Saturday, marking just the second game this season in which he did not log a snap … Marquez played four seasons at Texas Tech (2010-14) before the Rams signed him as an undrafted free agent in the spring of 2015.
Taylor Symmank – Minnesota Vikings
Week 17 Matchup: Minnesota 38, Chicago 10Symmank signed an NFL futures contact with the Minnesota Vikings, the organization announced Tuesday afternoon ... Symmank ended his Red Raider career following the 2015 season after averaging 43.6 yards per punt, the highest mark in school history. He averaged a booming 46.0 yards per punt attempt during his senior year alone, easily the highest in his career and the second-highest mark for a single season in school history ... The McKinney, Texas native was a candidate for the Ray Guy Award as both a junior and senior and also earned All-Big 12 second team accolades following the 2014 campaign.
Former Red Raider punter Taylor Symmank has signed an NFL futures contract with the @Vikings.
— Texas Tech Football (@TexasTechFB) January 3, 2017
??: https://t.co/mWfriJqahj #WreckEm pic.twitter.com/udLJMsvQig
LaAdrian Waddle – New England Patriots
Week 17 Matchup: New England 35, Miami 14Waddle was inactive in New England's win over the Dolphins … in 2015, after missing the first two games of the season recovering from off season knee surgery, Waddle came back strong for Detroit, earning a starting spot for the rest of the season … Waddle played four seasons at Tech (2009-12) before being signed by the Lions as an undrafted free agent.
DeAndre Washington – Oakland Raiders
Week 17 Matchup: Denver 24, Oakland 6After a breakout performance in week 16, Washington was the feature back in Denver on Sunday, logging more snaps than starter Latavius Murray ... Washington recorded 57 yards of total offense on just nine touches ... His 467 rushing yards this season rank third among Oakland running backs ... Washington was the first Red Raider running back to register back-to-back 1,000 yard seasons since former Doak Walker Award winner Byron Hanspard in 1995 and 1996 ... one of five players in school history to rush for over 1,000 yards twice in a career.
.@dwa5hington showing off some tough running. First down! #RaiderNation
— OAKLAND RAIDERS (@RAIDERS) January 1, 2017
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