Boye Mafe had a decisive impact for the Seattle Seahawks with two sacks and four quarterback hits in their 20-17 win over the Tennessee Titans, keeping his team on course for a Wild Card spot.
He was not the only young African player to have a standout week, with YaYa Diaby on top form for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a 30-12 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars and Ifeatu Melifonwu playing a starring role in the Detroit Lions clinching the NFC North Division title with a 30-24 win over the Minnesota Vikings.
Elsewhere in the league, there were impressive performances from Gus Edwards, Nelson Agholor, David Njoku, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and Romeo Okwara among others.