This article is part of our NFL Barometer series.
RISING
Bryce Brown, RB, SEA
Dujuan Harris was cut Tuesday, paving the way for Brown to take over as the early-down runner in Seattle with Thomas Rawls (ankle) out.
Will Tye, TE, NYG
Eli Manning can make almost any tight end productive, be it Kevin Boss, Jake Ballard, Larry Donnell or, now, an undrafted rookie out of Stony Brook named Will Tye. With Donnell (neck) on IR, Tye has really stepped up for the Giants, and against the Dolphins on Monday he caught all five of his targets for 30 yards and a touchdown. He's now up to 29 catches for 326 yards and a touchdown on 42 targets, including three games of 56 or more yards in his last four contests. With 4.5 speed and an encouraging start to his career, Tye's production appears sustainable for as long as he remains the clear lead tight end for the Giants.
Eric Ebron, TE, DET
As a general rule, it's bad to have Ebron optimism at any particular time. As someone who fell for the idea of Ebron Breakout 2015, however, I am invested in the idea of a happy ending I don't deserve, and so with Brandon Pettigrew (ACL) out against the Saints this week, I'm going to cross my fingers and say Ebron will have a good game against New Orleans. It shouldn't be a bold statement – Ebron is a fast former 10th overall pick who is facing off against what might be
RISING
Bryce Brown, RB, SEA
Dujuan Harris was cut Tuesday, paving the way for Brown to take over as the early-down runner in Seattle with Thomas Rawls (ankle) out.
Will Tye, TE, NYG
Eli Manning can make almost any tight end productive, be it Kevin Boss, Jake Ballard, Larry Donnell or, now, an undrafted rookie out of Stony Brook named Will Tye. With Donnell (neck) on IR, Tye has really stepped up for the Giants, and against the Dolphins on Monday he caught all five of his targets for 30 yards and a touchdown. He's now up to 29 catches for 326 yards and a touchdown on 42 targets, including three games of 56 or more yards in his last four contests. With 4.5 speed and an encouraging start to his career, Tye's production appears sustainable for as long as he remains the clear lead tight end for the Giants.
Eric Ebron, TE, DET
As a general rule, it's bad to have Ebron optimism at any particular time. As someone who fell for the idea of Ebron Breakout 2015, however, I am invested in the idea of a happy ending I don't deserve, and so with Brandon Pettigrew (ACL) out against the Saints this week, I'm going to cross my fingers and say Ebron will have a good game against New Orleans. It shouldn't be a bold statement – Ebron is a fast former 10th overall pick who is facing off against what might be the worst pass defense of all-time – but this is also a guy who has just 59 catches for 632 yards and five touchdowns on 101 career targets. Still, with Pettigrew out of the picture and the Saints (36 passing touchdowns allowed) up next, surely Ebron can't screw this one up?
FALLING
LeGarrette Blount, RB, NE
Blount left Sunday's game against Houston with a hip injury, and as of Tuesday he was spotted using crutches. There's no reliable prognosis available this early, or at least, the Patriots are not inclined to share any such information, but a hip injury followed by crutch usage does not make things look good in the short term. Brandon Bolden was the primary ball-carrier following Blount's exit, finishing with 51 yards on 16 carries, but the obviously more explosive James White caught four passes for 38 yards and even vultured a two-yard touchdown on his lone carry.
DeMarco Murray, RB, PHI
This will end in a divorce. It's been obvious for some time now, but the fact that Murray is a misfit in the Philadelphia offense has become especially clear the last two weeks, and at this point coach Chip Kelly has all but quit trying to salvage any sunk costs. News leaked prior to Sunday's game against Buffalo that Darren Sproles would likely be the lead back for Philadelphia against the Bills, and even if done for 'game-planning reasons,' it still marked the second straight week that Sproles was clearly ahead of Murray in the running back pecking order. Sproles finished the game with 41 yards and a touchdown on seven carries, while Murray had just 34 yards on 11 carries. Ryan Mathews, meanwhile, finished with 38 yards on a team-high 13 carries.
C.J. Spiller, RB, NO
It seemed this offseason that the Saints considered Spiller a leading component in the plan to replace Jimmy Graham, as the former Bill has always been a good pass-catching threat at the very least. That obviously hasn't worked out, and it appears at this point that the Saints coaches simply consider Spiller useless. A non-factor all year, Spiller remained invisible against the Buccaneers on Sunday, even with Mark Ingram (shoulder) out for the year. Spiller sat while the Saints trotted out Tim Hightower, who had been out of the league for three whole years before the Saints picked him up this season. Spiller is just 28 years old, but it seems like he might be nearing the end of the line.
Jonathan Stewart, RB, CAR
Stewart suffered a foot injury against the Falcons on Sunday, and while the injury is characterized as 'minor,' it still looks like the sort of issue that will cost Stewart at least one game. The Panthers can't take his health for granted after nagging injuries wrecked most of the three years prior to this one, so it makes sense for the team to sit Stewart until he's fully healthy, particularly at 13-0 with the playoffs looming. If Stewart should miss any time, an uninspiring rotation of Fozzy Whittaker and Cameron Artis-Payne would likely take over at running back.
