Rookie quarterback play has been up and down as many might have expected. The group was more down than up in Week 6, which opened the door for some new names in this week’s rookie spotlight. 

Here are some of the rookies who stood out in this weekend’s action:

Offensive Rookies of the Week

TE Michael Mayer, Raiders

Mayer finished Sunday’s win over the Patriots with five receptions for 75 yards. He did a good job of settling into the soft spots in zone coverage. The sure-handed pass catcher was able to snatch the ball out of the air and turn upfield quickly. His contributions were not limited to the pass game, however. The Notre Dame product was also effective engaging and sustaining blocks in the run game. 

OG O’Cyrus Torrence, Bills

Torrence allowed two pressures in Sunday’s win over the Giants, according to TruMedia. The difference between watching Torrence and other rookie offensive linemen is that he plays calm and balanced. There is rarely a moment where he does not look like he is under control. There were 44 players who were not beaten once in Week 6, according to TruMedia, and Torrence was one of them. 

OT Dawand Jones, Browns

San Francisco’s defensive line is a difficult assignment for any offensive lineman, let alone a rookie who was thrust into the starting lineup due to injury. He had a lot of chip help early in this game but when the game was drawing to a close and Cleveland needed a sustained drive, Jones was able to deliver against the likes of Nick Bosa and Randy Gregory. 

Honorable mention: Cardinals wide receiver Michael Wilson, Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers, Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice, Giants wide receiver Jalin Hyatt, Seahawks wide receier Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Jaguars offensive tackle Anton Harrison, Seahawks offensive guard Anthony Bradford

Defensive Rookies of the Week

CB Devon Witherspoon, Seahawks

What was seen of Witherspoon in college at Illinois was all…

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A Chargers fan captured attention during ESPN’s “Monday Night Football” loss to the Dallas Cowboys. (ESPN broadcast)

Not even a pregame scuffle could top the drama one Los Angeles Chargers fan epitomized during the team’s 20-17 Monday Night Football loss to the Dallas Cowboys.

The fan’s passionate reactions led ESPN’s cameras to repeatedly cut to her during the ups and downs of the close contest — which ultimately ended in heartbreak for anyone wearing blue and yellow.

That fan’s name is Merianne Do, and she went so viral that her favorite team changed its X profile picture to her face. With that attention, came accusations that she was an actor or fan-for-hire paid by the league. AI robots were spotted in the crowd when the Chargers hosted the Miami Dolphins last month, and Do was also suspected to be a similar anomaly.

But once Do learned about those allegations, she reached out to the Chargers. On Tuesday, the team confirmed she’s a real deal fan who has season tickets with her husband, Tuan Pham.

Hours later, Do appeared on “The Pat McAfee Show” and insisted that she wasn’t planted in the stands for publicity, adding that she brings the same energy to her children’s sporting events.

“I wish I was getting paid,” Do said. “I wish I could make myself AI and as beautiful as I want, but at the end of the day, this is me, guys. This is me, a crazy mom of four. Crazy Chargers fan. Crazy freaking football fan. It is what it is, so I’m not offended.”

She apparently goes to so many Chargers games that she’s used to being on SoFi Stadium’s jumbotron but has never been on TV. She recalled that her focus couldn’t be broken from the game by text notifications or someone on the field telling her she was all over the broadcast. Her children pointed it out when she got home to tuck them in, which she said she brushed off. She expects everyone to be used to her animation, admitting the attention has been “too much.”

It will be interesting to see how the lore of Do’s fandom…

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The Cowboys and Chargers each scored a touchdown in the first quarter, but it took until the last seconds of the second for either team to put up more points.

But with Brandon Aubrey’s 32-yard field goal, Dallas has a 10-7 lead at halftime.

The Cowboys’ first chance to score late in the second quarter came when they went for it on fourth-and-1 from the Chargers’ 13. But Dallas’ version of the “tush push” (or “Brotherly shove” if you prefer) left the Cowboys short of the sticks for a turnover on downs.

On the ensuing drive, Los Angeles got to midfield but a holding penalty on second down put the offense behind the sticks. Herbert’s third-down pass to Quentin Johnson was incomplete.

That’s when the Cowboys got the ball back with three timeouts on their own 29. With a 23-yard completion to CeeDee Lamb, Dallas was in L.A. territory. An unnecessary roughness penalty on Chargers safety Derwin James gave Dallas the ball at the Chargers 17 with 14 seconds left. But after a short completion to Tony Pollard, head coach Mike McCarthy elected to let the clock run down to three seconds before calling his second timeout to kick a field goal.

The Chargers went down the field on their first drive, scoring on a 1-yard pass from Herbert to receiver Keenan Allen. That ended a five-play, 42-yard drive that began with good field position after a long punt return.

While the Cowboys went three-and-out on their first possession, they came back with a nine-play, 75-yard scoring drive on their second. Prescott kept a zone-read and darted 18 yards into the end zone on fourth-and-1 to tie the game at 7-7.

Prescott is 15-of-20 passing for 161 yards. He’s also Dallas’ leading rusher with four carries for 33 yards with a TD. Lamb has caught all five of his targets for 84 yards. The Cowboys could stand to feed him more in the second half.

On the other side, Herbert is 11-of-18 for 113 yards with a touchdown. He was under heavy pressure at points in the first half.

The Chargers…

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