BBNFL Week 16: Chris Rodriguez returns from injury and immediately scores a touchdown

It is settled. Chris Rodriguez Jr. is the starting running back for the Washington Commanders. It may have taken a while to get here, but C-Rod kept beating out the man ahead of him on the depth chart until there was no one left to beat out. On a rare Saturday NFL game in Week 16, Rodriguez returned from his one-game absence due to a groin injury and picked up right where he left off.

The former Kentucky running back led the Commanders in rushing attempts with 15, nearly doubling the eight carries given to Jacory Croskey-Merritt, the player Washington selected in the third round of this year’s draft. C-Rod ripped off 63 yards on those 15 totes and added on a catch for six yards. On one of his rushes, Rodriguez did what he does best and fell forward into the endzone.

The score marked his fifth touchdown of the season, or to put it more impressively, his fifth touchdown in his last eight games. He also graded out as Washington’s best offensive player.

Ultimately, the artists formerly known as the Football Team fell to the Eagles, but C-Rod continues to be one of the few bright spots on the team.

Chris Rodriguez Jr. in for six points

PHIvsWAS on FOX/FOX Onehttps://t.co/HkKw7uXnxV pic.twitter.com/GRL1Y9wUGY

— NFL (@NFL) December 21, 2025

Liam Coen and the Jacksonville Jaguars secure a playoff spot

The unlikely duo of Kentucky football past, Josh Hines-Allen and Liam Coen, has clinched the Jacksonville Jaguars’ first playoff berth since 2022 and second since 2017. The Jags upset the AFC-leading Broncos in Denver, and with the Colts loss on Monday, Liam Coen is officially going to the postseason in his first season as an NFL head coach.

He also added a little bit of snark while he was at it. Earlier this week, Broncos head coach Sean Payton said of the Jaguars, “As you look at them and you watch the tape, it’s a smaller market, but you see a real good team.” Payton probably didn’t mean anything by it, but Coen and the Jags used that ‘small market’ term as bulletin board material.

After the 34-20 win, Coen said during his post-game presser, “Just thankful that a small-market team like us can come into a place like Mile High and get it done.”

Coen also reminded his team of those comments during the Jags’ post-game celebration. A fiery locker room turned even more rucus at the lead of Kentucky’s two-time former offensive coordinator. They even pulled an Auburn and got out the belts.

Not the belts 💀#DUUUVAL pic.twitter.com/bEI1OhnhBe

— Jacksonville Jaguars (@Jaguars) December 22, 2025

Hines-Allen racked up six more QB pressures during the game, as he continues to be a professional havoc-causer in opposing teams’ backfields. He ranks third in the league in this category, just five pressures behind Detroit’s Aiden Hutchinson and Houston’s Will Anderson.

Go Jags?

Other BBNFL Notes:

• Wan’Dale Robinson led the Giants in receiving, accounting for 58 percent of the team’s total yards through the air and tallying up more than double the amount of the next closest receiver. The bad part of that stat? Robinson only had 19 total yards. Yep, the Giants only threw for 33 total yards in a stinker of an offensive performance. They lost to the Vikings 16-13.
• On the same week we celebrated Chris Rodriguez’s return to the field, Trevin Wallace and Bud Dupree sat out with injuries. Wallace was inactive due to a shoulder issue, while Dupree sat out due to an ailing back.
• Brenden Bates played the most snaps of his career on Sunday, seeing action for 28 plays for the Browns, mostly as a blocking tight end. Unfortunately, he dropped his only target. Similarly, Lonnie Johnson played the most snaps he has played since 2022, as he is making a strong comeback after missing most of the year with an injury with the Raiders.

BBNFL snap counts and stats for Week 16

(ST): Special Teams snaps; player did not play on offense or defense.

Player	POS	Snaps	Stats
Luke Fortner (NO)	C	78	1 sack allowed
Carrington Valentine (GB)	DB	64	1 QB pressure, 1 tackle, 1 assist
Wan’Dale Robinson (NYG)	WR	55	4 rec, 3 targets, 19 yards
Josh Hines-Allen (JAX)	LB	50	6 QB pressures, 1 tackle
Lonnie Johnson Jr. (LV)	DB	45	1 tackle, 1 assist
Deone Walker (BUF)	DL	36	2 QB pressures, 2 batted balls, 1 tackle, 1 assist
Dru Phillips (NYG)	DB	28	2 tackles
Brenden Bates (CLE)	TE	28	1 target, 0 rec
Chris Rodriguez (WAS)	RB	28	15 rushes, 63 yards, 1 TD, 1 target ,1 rec, 6 yards
Maxwell Hairston (BUF)	DB	18	0 tackles
Brandin Echols (PIT)	DB	15	4 tackles
Mike Edwards (KC)	DB	12	2 tackles
Darian Kinnard (GB)	OL	11	no pressures allowed
Ray Davis (BUF)	RB	8	3 rushes, 14 yards, 2 targets, 2 rec, 20 yards
Trevin Wallace (CAR)	LB		Inactive (shoulder)
Bud Dupree (LAC)	LB		Inactive (back)