NFL News: What To Look For – Week 17

By Lydia Jane Allison

(courtesy NFL)

NEW YORK — Dec. 26, 2024 — Below are players that can set historic marks or reach career milestones in Week 17 of the 2024 NFL season, including:

  • QB Josh Allen
  • QB Joe Burrow
  • WR Ja’Marr Chase
  • QB Sam Darnold
  • QB Jared Goff
  • RB Jahmyr Gibbs
  • WR Amon-Ra St. Brown
  • QB Aaron Rodgers
  • WR Davante Adams
  • QB Jayden Daniels
  • QB Bo Nix
  • QB Caleb Williams
  • TE Brock Bowers
  • WR Malik Nabers
  • WR Brian Thomas Jr.
  • LB Micah Parsons

JOSH ALLEN

Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen has 75 career regular-season wins and with a win against the New York Jets (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET, CBS), can surpass Russell Wilson (75 wins) for the most regular-season wins by a quarterback in his first seven seasons in NFL history.

Allen has 37 combined passing and rushing touchdowns (26 passing, 11 rushing) this season and can join Aaron Rodgers (six seasons) as the only players in NFL history with five career seasons with at least 40 combined passing and rushing touchdowns.

Since entering the NFL in 2018, Allen has 193 touchdown passes and with three touchdown passes, will tie Russell Wilson (196 touchdown passes) for the fifth-most by a player in his first seven seasons in NFL history.

The players with the most touchdown passes in their first seven seasons in NFL history:

PLAYER TEAM PASS TDs
Dan Marino HOF Miami 220
Patrick Mahomes Kansas City 219
Peyton Manning HOF Indianapolis 216
Russell Wilson Seattle 196
Josh Allen Buffalo 193*
*in seventh season

JOE BURROW

Cincinnati quarterback Joe Burrow leads the NFL with 4,229 passing yards, is tied for first with 39 touchdown passes, and became the first player in NFL history with at least 250 passing yards and three touchdown passes in seven consecutive games.

On Saturday against Denver (4:30 p.m. ET, NFL Network), Burrow can become the fourth player all-time with at least three touchdown passes in eight consecutive games, joining Tom Brady (10 consecutive games in 2007), Andrew Luck (eight in 2018) and Pro Football Hall of Famer Peyton Manning (eight in 2004).

The players with at least three touchdown passes in the most consecutive games in NFL history:

PLAYER TEAM SEASON(S) GAMES
Tom Brady New England 2007 10
Andrew Luck Indianapolis 2018 8
Peyton Manning HOF Indianapolis 2004 8
Joe Burrow Cincinnati 2024 7*
Dan Marino HOF Miami 1986-87 7
*active streak

Burrow has 136 career touchdown passes and can surpass Josh Allen (138 touchdown passes) and Pro Football Hall of Famer Peyton Manning (138) for the third-most touchdown passes by a player in his first five seasons in NFL history. Only Pro Football Hall of Famer Dan Marino (168 touchdown passes) and Patrick Mahomes (151) have more.

JA’MARR CHASE

Cincinnati wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase leads the league with 108 receptions for 1,510 yards and 16 touchdowns this season and became the third player in NFL history with at least 100 receptions, 1,500 receiving yards and 15 touchdown receptions in his first 15 games in a season, joining Pro Football Hall of Famers Randy Moss (2003) and Jerry Rice (1995).

Since entering the NFL in 2021, Chase has 45 career touchdown receptions and can surpass Pro Football Hall of Famer Bob Hayes (45 touchdown receptions) for the third-most touchdown receptions by a player in his first four seasons in NFL history. Only Pro Football Hall of Famers Randy Moss (53 touchdown receptions) and Jerry Rice (49) have more.

The players with the most touchdown receptions in their first four seasons in NFL history:

PLAYER TEAM REC. TDs
Randy Moss HOF Minnesota 53
Jerry Rice HOF San Francisco 49
Ja’Marr Chase Cincinnati 45*
Bob Hayes HOF Dallas 45
*in fourth season

SAM DARNOLD

Minnesota quarterback Sam Darnold has career highs in passing yards (3,776) and touchdown passes (32) this season and became the third non-rookie quarterback since 1970 to record at least 13 wins in his first season with a team, joining Pro Football Hall of Famer Peyton Manning (2012 with Denver) and Steve McNair (2006 with the Baltimore Ravens).

With two touchdown passes on Sunday against Green Bay (4:25 p.m. ET, FOX), Darnold can surpass Pro Football Hall of Famer Brett Favre (33 touchdown passes in 2009 with Minnesota) and Vinny Testaverde (33 in 1996 with the Baltimore Ravens) for the fourth-most touchdown passes by a player in his first season with a team. Only Matthew Stafford (41 touchdown passes in 2021 with the Los Angeles Rams), Tom Brady (40 in 2020 with Tampa Bay) and Pro Football Hall of Famer Peyton Manning (37 in 2012 with Denver) have more.

Darnold has 11 games with at least two touchdown passes and a passer rating of 100-or-higher this season and can become the fourth player in NFL history with 12 such games in a season, joining Aaron Rodgers (14 games in 2020 and 13 in 2011), Patrick Mahomes (13 in 2018) and Matt Ryan (12 in 2016). Each of the players with 12 games with at least two touchdown passes and a passer rating of 100-or-higher earned Associated Press Most Valuable Player honors that season.

The players with the most games with at least two touchdown passes and a passer rating of 100-or-higher in a season in NFL history:

PLAYER TEAM SEASON GAMES
Aaron Rodgers MVP Green Bay 2020 14
Patrick Mahomes MVP Kansas City 2018 13
Aaron Rodgers MVP Green Bay 2011 13
Matt Ryan MVP Atlanta 2016 12
       
Sam Darnold Minnesota 2024 11*
*entering Week 17

JARED GOFF

The Detroit Lions are 7-0 on the road this season and with a win at San Franciso on Monday Night Football (8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN/ABC), can become the sixth team since 2000 to go undefeated on the road in a season, joining the 2020 Kansas City Chiefs2016 and 2007 New England Patriots2014 Dallas Cowboys and 2001 St. Louis Rams.

Detroit quarterback Jared Goff passed for 336 yards and three touchdowns with a 137.0 passer rating in Week 16 and became the first player in NFL history with at least 275 passing yards, two touchdown passes and a passer rating of 135-or-higher in five games within a single season in NFL history.

Goff has 41 career games with at least 300 passing yards and can surpass Pro Football Hall of Famer Dan Marino (41 games) and Matt Ryan (41) for the second-most games with at least 300 passing yards by a quarterback in his first nine seasons in NFL history. Only Patrick Mahomes (48 games, in first eight seasons) has more.

The players with the most games with at least 300 passing yards in their first nine seasons in NFL history:

PLAYER TEAM(S) GAMES
Patrick Mahomes Kansas City 48#
Jared Goff L.A. Rams, Detroit 41*
Dan Marino HOF Miami 41
Matt Ryan Atlanta 41
Peyton Manning HOF Indianapolis 40
*in ninth season
#in eighth season

Goff has 34,524 career passing yards and can surpass Matthew Stafford (34,749 passing yards) for the fifth-most by a player in his first nine seasons in NFL history. Only Matt Ryan (37,701 passing yards), Pro Football Hall of Famers Peyton Manning (37,586) and Dan Marino (35,386) as well as Derek Carr (35,222) have more.

Goff has 2,994 career completions and can become the fifth player all-time with at least 3,000 completions in his first nine seasons, joining Matt Ryan (3,288 completions), Derek Carr (3,201), Pro Football Hall of Famer Peyton Manning (3,131) and Matthew Stafford (3,005).

JAHMYR GIBBS

Detroit running back Jahmyr Gibbs, who turns 23 years old on March 20, 2025, has 2,857 scrimmage yards and 26 scrimmage touchdowns (22 rushing, four receiving) in his first two career seasons, including 19 games with a touchdown.

With a touchdown on Monday at San Francisco (8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN/ABC), Gibbs will become the fifth player under the age of 23 with at least 20 games with a touchdown in NFL history, joining Pro Football Hall of Famers Barry Sanders (22 games) and Edgerrin James (20) as well as Maurice Jones-Drew (21) and Jonathan Taylor (21).

The players under the age of 23 with the most games with a touchdown in NFL history:

PLAYER TEAM GAMES
Barry Sanders HOF Detroit 22
Maurice Jones-Drew Jacksonville 21
Jonathan Taylor Indianapolis 21
Edgerrin James HOF Indianapolis 20
     
Jahmyr Gibbs Detroit 19*
*turns 23 on March 20, 2025.

The Lions – with Jahmyr Gibbs (15 scrimmage touchdowns in 2024), David Montgomery (12) and Amon-Ra St. Brown (11 entering Week 17) – can become the fourth team in NFL history with three players each with 12 scrimmage touchdowns in a season, joining the 2013 Denver Broncos (Knowshon Moreno, Demaryius Thomas and Julius Thomas), 2014 Green Bay Packers (Randall Cobb, Eddie Lacy and Jordy Nelson) and 1961 Houston Oilers (Billy Cannon, Bill Groman and Charlie Hennigan).

AARON RODGERS & DAVANTE ADAMS

New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers has 499 regular-season touchdown passes in 246 career games and can become the fifth player in NFL history with 500 regular-season touchdown passes, joining Tom Brady (649 touchdown passes), Drew Brees (571) and Pro Football Hall of Famers Peyton Manning (539) and Brett Favre (508). He can also join Manning (244 games) as the only players to reach 500 regular-season touchdown passes in fewer than 250 career games.

The players with the most regular-season touchdown passes in in NFL history:

PLAYER TEAMS PASS TDs
Tom Brady New England, Tampa Bay 649
Drew Brees San Diego Chargers, New Orleans 571
Peyton Manning HOF Indianapolis, Denver 539
Brett Favre HOF Green Bay, N.Y. Jets, Minnesota 508
Aaron Rodgers Green Bay, N.Y. Jets 499*
*active

Rodgers, who has 24 touchdown passes this season, has 13 career seasons with at least 25 touchdown passes and with one touchdown pass, will tie Drew Brees (14 seasons) for the third-most such seasons in NFL history. Only Tom Brady (17 seasons) and Pro Football Hall of Famer Peyton Manning (16) have more.

Rodgers and wide receiver Davante Adams, who have connected for six touchdowns this season with the Jets and had 76 touchdowns (including the postseason) together in Green Bay, can surpass Miami’s quarterback-wide receiver duo of Pro Football Hall of Famer Dan Marino and Mark Clayton (82 touchdowns) for the third-most touchdowns, including the playoffs by a quarterback-wide receiver pairing in NFL history.

The quarterback-wide receiver duos with the most touchdowns, including the postseason, in NFL history:

QUARTERBACK WIDE RECEIVER TEAM(S) TOUCHDOWNS
Peyton Manning HOF Marvin Harrison HOF Indianapolis 114
Steve Young HOF Jerry Rice HOF San Francisco 92
Dan Marino HOF Mark Clayton Miami 82
Aaron Rodgers Davante Adams Green Bay, N.Y. Jets 82*
Ben Roethlisberger Antonio Brown Pittsburgh 78
*active

ROOKIE QUARTERBACKS

Rookie quarterbacks are set to appear in multiple single-window games this week, with Chicago’s Caleb Williams on Thursday Night Football against Seattle (8:15 p.m. ET, Prime Video), Denver’s Bo Nix on Saturday at Cincinnati (4:30 p.m. ET, NFL Network) and Atlanta’s Michael Penix Jr. and Washington’s Jayden Daniels on Sunday Night Football (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC).

The matchup between Penix Jr. (No. 8 overall in the 2024 NFL Draft) and Daniels (No. 2) will mark the first primetime game in NFL history between rookie starting quarterbacks each selected in the first round.

Daniels, who has 22 touchdown passes and six rushing touchdowns this season, can become the fourth rookie quarterback in NFL history with at least 30 combined passing and rushing touchdowns, joining Justin Herbert (36 combined passing and rushing touchdowns in 2020 with the Los Angeles Chargers), Cam Newton (35 in 2011 with Carolina) and Russell Wilson (30 in 2012 with Seattle).

Daniels can become the seventh rookie quarterback all-time to win 11 regular-season games, joining Dak Prescott (13 wins in 2016 with Dallas), Ben Roethlisberger (13 in 2004 with Pittsburgh), Joe Flacco (11 in 2008 with Baltimore), Andrew Luck (11 in 2012 with Indianapolis), Matt Ryan (11 in 2008 with Atlanta) and Russell Wilson (11 in 2012 with Seattle).

Daniels has 737 rushing yards this season and can join Robert Griffin III (815 rushing yards in 2012 with Washington) as the only rookie quarterbacks all-time with at least 800 rushing yards.

Daniels and Nix each have 22 touchdown passes this season and can join Justin Herbert (31 touchdown passes in 2020), Baker Mayfield (27 in 2018), Pro Football Hall of Famer Peyton Manning (26 in 1998) and Russell Wilson (26 in 2012) as the only rookie quarterbacks in NFL history with 25 touchdown passes.

The rookies with the most touchdown passes in NFL history:

PLAYER TEAM SEASON PASS TDs
Justin Herbert L.A. Chargers 2020 31
Baker Mayfield Cleveland 2018 27
Peyton Manning HOF Indianapolis 1998 26
Russell Wilson Seattle 2012 26
Daniel Jones N.Y. Giants 2019 24
       
Jayden Daniels Washington 2024 22*
Bo Nix Denver 2024 22*
*entering Week 17

Nix has eight games with at least two touchdown passes this season and can join Justin Herbert (10 games in 2020 with the Los Angeles Chargers) and Baker Mayfield (nine in 2018 with Cleveland) as the only rookie quarterbacks all-time with nine games of two-or-more touchdown passes.

In Week 17, Nix can join Dak Prescott (2016) as the only rookie quarterbacks in NFL history with at least two touchdown passes and a passer rating of 90-or-higher in four consecutive road games.

Williams has attempted 326 consecutive pass attempts without an interception, including nine consecutive games with at least 20 pass attempts and no interceptions. In Week 17, he can move into the top-five for most consecutive pass attempts without an incompletion in a season all-time and can become the third quarterback in NFL history with 10 consecutive games with at least 20 pass attempts and no interceptions, joining Tom Brady (10 consecutive games in 2010 with New England) and Derek Carr (10 consecutive games in 2018 with the Oakland Raiders).

The players with the most consecutive pass attempts without an interception within a single season in NFL history:

PLAYER TEAM SEASON ATTEMPTS
Aaron Rodgers Green Bay 2018 402
Tom Brady Tampa Bay 2022 399
Justin Herbert L.A. Chargers 2024 357
Tom Brady New England 2010 335
Derek Carr Oakland Raiders 2018 332
Caleb Williams Chicago 2024 326*
*active streak

ROOKIE PASS CATCHERS

Las Vegas rookie Brock Bowers leads all tight ends and is tied for second in the NFL with 101 receptions this season, while New York Giants rookie wide receiver Malik Nabers is tied for fifth with 97.

In Week 17, Bowers (at New Orleans on Sunday, 1 p.m. ET, FOX) and Nabers (vs. Indianapolis on Sunday, 1 p.m. ET, FOX), can surpass Puka Nacua (105 receptions in 2023) for the most receptions by a rookie in NFL history.

The rookies with the most receptions in NFL history:

PLAYER TEAM SEASON RECEPTIONS
Puka Nacua L.A. Rams 2023 105
Jaylen Waddle Miami 2021 104
Anquan Boldin Arizona 2003 101
Brock Bowers Las Vegas 2024 101*
Malik Nabers N.Y. Giants 2024 97*
*entering Week 17

Bowers leads all tight ends with 1,067 receiving yards this season and in Week 17, can surpass Pro Football Hall of Famer Mike Ditka (1,076 receiving yards in 1961) for the most receiving yards by a rookie tight end in NFL history.

Nabers has 12 games with at least five receptions and can surpass Anquan Boldin (12 games in 2003) and Terry Glenn (12 in 1996) for the most such games by a rookie in NFL history.

Jacksonville rookie wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. leads all rookies with 1,088 receiving yards and nine touchdown receptions this season, including at least 100 receiving yards and a touchdown catch in each of his past two games.

With 12 receiving yards and a touchdown reception against Tennessee (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET, CBS), Thomas Jr. can become the fourth rookie in the Super Bowl era with at least 1,100 receiving yards and 10 touchdown receptions, joining Odell Beckham Jr. (2014 with the New York Giants), Ja’Marr Chase (2021 with Cincinnati) and Pro Football Hall of Famer Randy Moss (1998 with Minnesota).

The rookies with at least 1,100 receiving yards and 10 touchdown receptions in the Super Bowl era:

PLAYER TEAM SEASON REC. YARDS REC. TDs
Odell Beckham Jr. N.Y. Giants 2014 1,305 12
Ja’Marr Chase Cincinnati 2021 1,455 13
Randy Moss HOF Minnesota 1998 1,313 17
         
Brian Thomas Jr. Jacksonville 2024 1,088* 9*
*entering Week 17

Thomas Jr. can become the fifth rookie in NFL history with at least 100 receiving yards and a touchdown reception in three consecutive games, joining Odell Beckham Jr. (four consecutive games in 2014), Jimmy Orr (four in 1958), Mike Evans (three in 2014) and Pro Football Hall of Famer Randy Moss (three in 1998).

MICAH PARSONS

Dallas linebacker Micah Parsons has 9.5 sacks in 2024 and can become the fourth player since 1982 with at least 10 sacks in each of his first four NFL seasons, joining Pro Football Hall of Famers Dwight FreeneyDerrick Thomas and Reggie White.

Parsons has 50 career sacks since entering the NFL in 2021 and needs one sack to tie Pro Football Hall of Famer Dwight Freeney (51 sacks) for the fifth-most sacks by a player in his first four seasons since 1982, when the individual sack became an official statistic.

The players with the most sacks in their first four seasons since 1982:

PLAYER TEAM SACKS
Reggie White HOF Philadelphia 70
Derrick Thomas HOF Kansas City 58
J.J. Watt Houston 57
DeMarcus Ware HOF Dallas 53.5
Dwight Freeney HOF Indianapolis 51
Micah Parsons Dallas 50*
*in fourth season

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