Saints quarterback Drew Brees, Bears linebacker Lance Briggs and Packers kicker Mason Crosby have been named the NFC players of the week.
The offensive player of the week award goes to Brees for his superb play on Sunday night (which came with an assist from the pathetic Colts). Brees went 31-for-35 for 325 yards, with five touchdowns and no interceptions in the Saints’ 62-7 win. It was the fourth time Brees has had five touchdowns and no interceptions in a game -- only Tom Brady and Peyton Manning have done that as many times. Brady now has 34 straight games with a touchdown and 27 straight games with at least 20 completions. This is Brees’ 13th career player of the week award -- 11 in the NFC with the Saints and two in the AFC with the Chargers.
Briggs got the defensive player of the week award after he intercepted a pass, knocked down two others and had a tackle behind the line of scrimmage as the Bears beat the Buccaneers 24-18. The Bears held the Bucs to 280 total yards and forced four turnovers in the game. This is the second time Briggs has been named player of the week.
Crosby kicked four touchbacks and went 4-for-4 on field goals in the Packers’ 33-27 win in Minnesota, and his 58-yarder was the longest in team history. (Crosby broke his own Packers franchise record; he had previously made 56-yard field goals twice.) Crosby has now made 21 field-goals in a row. This is his second special teams player of the week award this season.