Emeka Egbuka and Jaxon Smith-Njigba headlined African stars' involvement in week 5 of the NFL, putting in huge shifts in a clash between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Seattle Seahawks that one had to win but neither deserved to lose.
Elsewhere, there were notable moments on offense from David Njoku and Alvin Kamara, while defensive players of African descent picked up sacks galore throughout the league.
However, in the Buccaneers' 38-35 win over the Seahawks, offense was king. Most headlines have focused on the titanic tussle between Baker Mayfield and Sam Darnold, but neither could have had the performance they did without the help of Egbuka and Smith-Njigba respectively.
African Player of the Week: Emeka Egbuka
Egbuka starred in the Buccaneers' narrow win with 163 receiving yards across seven catches and a touchdown.
The rookie wide receiver of Nigerian descent scored a crucial touchdown off a 20-yard Baker Mayfield pass in the third quarter and then additionally caught the ensuing two-point pass. As a result, the Buccaneers converted a 14-13 deficit into a 21-14 lead.
Egbuka's longest catch of the day was for 57 yards and a whopping six of his receptions were first downs. He now has five touchdowns for the season, but his impact on the team stretches far beyond that stat alone.
The Bucs are 4-1 for the season and continued their perfect record on the road with the win at Lumen Field.
African Moment of the Week: Jaxon Smith-Njigba
Smith-Njigba ended up on the losing side of the Bucs vs. Seahawks clash despite making up 132 yards across eight receptions, including a touchdown. However, his 53-yard catch off third down in the lead-up to a third-quarter touchdown from AJ Barner was the most memorable moment of the week.
Egbuka had just put the Buccaneers in the lead when Smith-Njigba pulled off a hugely impressive catch, expertly angling his body to ensure he got to the ball first, plucking Darnold's pass out of the air ahead of Antoine Winfield Jr.
All of a sudden, the Seahawks were at first & goal and they capitalized to level the scores. Although they were ultimately beaten, it was not for the want of trying from Smith-Njigba, who has had at least one catch of at least 36 yards in every game this season.
Honorable mentions
David Njoku - of Nigerian heritage - scored a touchdown for the Cleveland Browns in their 21-17 loss to the Minnesota Vikings.
Meanwhile, it was a landmark weekend for the New Orleans Saints' Alvin Kamara (of Liberian descent). He became the running back with the fifth-most receptions in NFL history, taking his total to 590 and surpassing Marcus Allen. The Saints beat the Giants 26-14.
In the history of the league, the only running backs with more receptions than Kamara have been Marshall Faulk, Larry Centers, LaDainian Tomlinson and Keith Byars.
Osa Odighizuwa picked up a sack for the Dallas Cowboys in their 37-22 win over the New York Jets, while another player with ties to Nigeria - Eyioma Uwazurike - got an important one for the Denver Broncos in their 21-17 win over the Philadelphia Eagles.
Charles Omenihu - also of Nigerian descent - got a sack for the Kansas City Chiefs against the Jacksonville Jaguars. However, the Jags picked up a 31-28 win, with 14 tackles from Foyesade Oluokun playing a part.
Africa-born Player Watch
Zimbabwe's Nate Landman matched Oluokun's 14 tackles, but ended up on the losing side as the LA Rams went down 26-23 to the San Francisco 49ers in overtime.
Joseph Ossai's sack for the Cincinnati Bengals against the Detroit Lions came in a 37-24 defeat. However, his Nigerian compatriot Samson Ebukam got a sack for the Indianapolis Colts in their 40-6 drubbing of the Las Vegas Raiders.
The Baltimore Ravens' tough start to the season continued with a heavy defeat to the Houston Texans, but Nigerian IPP product CJ Okoye continues to hold his own at the top level and made four tackles in his second regular season game to add to the three he got on debut.