Most of week 12 is in the books and it started back on Thursday night with a game between the Steelers and Browns. The Browns would go on to win with a score of 24-19 in a snow game and in a game where Nick Chubb ran for two touchdowns. Myles Garrett also had 3 sacks and if you didn’t like this game – then you didn’t like late season AFC North football. Obviously with 8 losses the Browns season is more or less over, but if I had any takeaways – it’s that I would really like to see Jameis Winston with a full season as the Browns starter and to be given a chance. Since Jameis took over, the Browns have 3 300 total yard games in 4 games, while having just 1 with Deshaun in 7. The difference is substantial, and Jameis undoubtedly gives the Browns a better chance to win. I don’t think there should be an enormous over reaction to the Steelers losing this game because they had just played their arch rival a few days prior and I have no doubt the Steelers weren’t close to 100% in this game. I don’t think that’s fair for any team to have back to back division games on a short week, but the coaching decision were also bad including the timeout from Tomlin, and the fade route to Cordarrele Patterson on a 2 point conversion for example. They’re still an 8-3 team, and they have a good defense. It is definitely worth noting their schedule is insanely difficult coming up, but there was a lot going against the Steelers heading into this game – and I don’t think there should be any enormous overreactions from this game.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat the Giants 30-7 and this game in a lot of ways summarized the Giants week. They released quarterback Daniel Jones this week and had Tommy DeVito start this game and ran into a team whose playoff window is very much alive and were coming off of a week 11 bye. Tampa had 450 yards of offense to the Giants 245 and it seemed like there was a Bucs chunk play every drive. Whether it was Bucky Irving, Rakim Jarrett, Cade Otton, or Mike Evans who led the team in receiving yards in his return – the Giants couldn’t stop Tampa’s offense. There was also a point where Baker did the Tommy DeVito touchdown celebration and this was a very stress free win for the Bucs as they were up 30–0 entering the 4th quarter. The Bucs have a clear path to the playoffs and they were 1-0 this week. The big takeaway for the Giants is aside from the Daniel Jones situation this week – this is an all around bad team. There’s nothing to say and most of this roster is from the construction of Joe Schoen and unfortunately I think we’ve seen enough from this era of the Giants. If you were starting a franchise from the ground up – this is pretty much the roster you’d get. They have a few good players yes, but this a very underwhelming team and they play like it every week.
The Dolphins are another team that has a path to the playoffs that also have to take it one game at a time and they defeated the Patriots 34-15. Tua Tagavailoa threw for 317 yards and 4 touchdowns and I’m sure fantasy owners know this – but you may be surprised to know that none of those touchdowns were to Tyreek Hill. The Dolphins completed the season sweep over the Patriots and the Dolphins have outscored their last two opponents with a combined score of 68-34. It’s certainly not going to be easy, but if the Dolphins can pull off the win in Green Bay on Thursday – they can legitimately win 10 games. This was all in a game where Miami couldn’t run the ball, and the game was on the passing game and the Dolphins delivered. I don’t have any huge takeaways for the Patriots other than this is not a good team and their lone positive is a 22 year old rookie quarterback. I think what’s frustrating for the Patriots is Jerod Mayo is supposed to be a defensive head coach, yet they’ve allowed 62 points in the last two games and granted they were against the Rams and Dolphins – but you’re not always going to play bad teams. I have a lot of questions about what the Patriots long term plans are outside of having in what my opinion is – a clear franchise quarterback.
The Detroit Lions did what they do which is take care of business. They beat the Colts 24-6 and both David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs scored. And Jahmyr actually scored twice. I tweeted this during the game, but it really seems like David and Jahmyr have scored in every game. And here we are doing another weekly recap and the Lions won another game by multiple scores. There will definitely be people that say the Lions have only played the Jags and Colts over the last two weeks, but I am not one of them. They are a dominant team and they have outscored the Jags and Colts 76-12 over the last two weeks. The only thing I would say to Lions fans is – enjoy this time period. I don’t want to say it’s almost over because it’s not – but with money, contracts, and everything else – very rarely does everything come together like this. And enjoy the 2024 season because I truly think it’s a special one for the Lions and their fanbase. The Colts had a couple of big missed opportunities and the Andrew Ogletree drop was a big one. The Colts were outmatched in this game in a big way and it showed. The Lions dominated this game in the trenches and Indy really didn’t stand a chance. Jonathan Taylor had a 14 yard run at a point in this game and only had 35 rushing yards on the day – meaning if you take away one outlier – he had 10 carries for 21 yards on the other 10 carries. This was very much big brother vs little brother in the trenches. And there could be an entire video breaking down the Colts and how they’ve got here over the last few years.
To another AFC clash we go to discuss Titans Texans. I said in the week 12 preview that I thought the Texans getting 8 points was a lot for the spread and I would be shocked if the Titans didn’t cover – and they did as they outright won this game. I don’t think the Titans play to a true 3-8 record – and I think they have more talent on their roster than the record indicates. Titans obviously know this – but their special teams unit this year is all time bad. And their offensive line isn’t good either and Will Levis was sacked 8 times in this game. Not 4, not 5, not 6, not 7, but 8 times. And in some ways it’s a miracle they won this game but anytime you can win over a rival you’ll take it. With how the Commanders are playing and given the Jags are Jags – I really wouldn’t be surprised if the Titans go on a winning streak and are 5-8 through 13 games. The Texans are 7-5 and I think they are going to win the AFC south really by default – but there’s a lot of problems with this team. The offensive play calling has been horrendous at times and this type of season is why I’m a little hesitant on deeming teams the next team up that has a lot of questions into the year – and in the Texans case – offensive line was a big one. The Texans defense has more 2nd half touchdowns than the offense over the last 6 games. And my takeaway is I think the Texans are on a path where they’re going to be first round exits. And it absolutely has the potential to be a long offseason for the Houston Texans,
The Minnesota Vikings narrowly beat the Chicago Bears 30-27 and this game was a lot closer than it should have been. This game should have never went to overtime and there was definitely a lot to be frustrated about for the Vikings because the final Bears drive was disgusting from an effort standpoint. But anytime you can win 3 straight road games and improve to 9-2 – it’s hard to be too upset. An ugly win will always beat a pretty loss and I think that’s the takeaway for the Vikings. If you want me to say they’re a divisional round exit at maximum in the postseason – then yes I would agree with that. But 9-2 is 9-2 and Jordan Addison had the best game of his career in this game and I am glad they finally prioritized getting him the football. I also think this was the best case scenario for the Bears. Caleb Williams looked great in this game. There were countless plays where he hit a receiver on a closing window just over the outstretched defender and he had what I thought was the best game of his rookie year – with Jacksonville, or Carolina being the other contenders. I know the Bears are 4-7, but your number one overall pick looked phenomenal, and Bears fans know it’s another day closer to the end of the Matt Eberflus era. I think Bears fans would take every game ending like this – if Caleb continues to play this well – aside from the loss part when they play Green Bay again. But Caleb Williams is absolutely here,
The Kansas City Chiefs narrowly escaped the Queen City with a 30-27 win over the Panthers and I thought the Chiefs being double digit favorites was a little rich against a team coming off their bye and a team that’s looked better over the last few weeks in Carolina. Noah Gray had a multi touchdown game for the second consecutive week and some are asking if he’s the best tight end on the roster. In all seriousness, the Chiefs obviously win a lot of games and there’s a reason they are back to back defending champions – but 8 of their 10 wins this year have been by one score. I don’t think there should be an overreaction that they barely beat the Panthers when this is how they play most of their games. I think they’re going to win the AFC West, and I also think they’re going to be the number one seed. And that’s really when football gets started for the Chiefs. Now the Panthers have a lot to take from this game. Bryce Young looked completely different in this game than he has in any other game as a pro. He truly looked like the guy. And this was extremely encouraging because of everything that’s transpired over the past few months. I know moral victories are not what fans want, but this was one of the best games the panthers have played over the past two years when you factor in what all of it means. I hope – and I really hope this is a sign of things to come. Also we wish Ja’Tavion Sanders and anyone else who was hurt this week nothing but the best moving forward.
I never would have thought the Cowboys would go into Washington and win – yet they did with a score of 34-26. Cooper Rush threw for 247 yards and 2 touchdowns and the 4th quarter of this game was where it really got interesting. 41 of the games 60 points were scored in the 4th quarter and 34 of those 41 points were scored in the final 5 and a half minutes of the game. I don’t have any major takeaways for Dallas, but this was a very entertaining game and reminded me of the 2013 Vikings Ravens game in the snow – and for those who remember – you know what I’m talking about. But I think Cowboys fans know they’re going to have a very interesting offseason, and the win over their former defensive coordinator was worth the lesser draft pick. I have a lot of concerns with Washington moving forward and I think it starts with the offense. The second half Kliff Kingsbury was even more apparent in this game and it’s been extremely frustrating over the past few weeks. I didn’t think Washington was a super bowl contender at any point in time mainly because of the talent they have on defense, but the lack of execution consistently from the offense is extremely frustrating and also disappointing. This is a team that could easily make the playoffs and quickly went from 7-2 to 7-5 – and there’s far more questions than answers.
Packers fans tune this part out but it’s always going to be tough to go on the road and win when you’re down a franchise quarterback, defensive player of the year, and hall of fame left tackle no matter who you are. And Packers fans you can tune back in now, but having just 241 yards of offense on the road isn’t good enough, and the missed tackles were seemingly endless in this game for the 49ers. Jeff Hafley called a great game and did the logical thing – which was to shut Christian McCaffrey down and force Brandon Allen to beat them on the road. CMC only had 31 rushing yards and it was a very long day for the 49ers. And they play in Buffalo next week and I think that will be a loss for them whether they are healthier or not. If you would have said to a Packers fan that Josh Jacobs would run for 106 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 4 touchdown win over the 49ers in March – they would have signed up for it no matter what. Green Bay dominated this game in the trenches and as we get more into December and January – they’re going to need to be able to win games like this on the frozen tundra. Green Bay still has road games against the Lions and Vikings, and the division title is still in play – but if they can play turnover free football like this – and with the defense clicking on all cylinders – they will be a very very difficult team to beat when it matters.
The Raiders fell to 2-9 with a 29-19 loss to the Broncos and we discussed this in the week 12 preview – but heading into a game with Gardner Minshew, Sincere McCormick, and Ameer Abdullah as your starting quarterback and top two running backs in 2024 is not going to win you many games. The Raiders were actually up at half as they had a 13 point second quarter which was certainly offensive explosion for this team, but Gardner eventually broke his collarbone later in the game and is unfortunately out for the year and we of course wish him the best. There’s no real takeaways for the Raiders maybe aside from this being one of the worst Raider teams in recent memory. This was another solid Bo Nix game as he nearly had 275 yards and 2 passing touchdowns and Courtland Sutton looked really good in this game and the Broncos can absolutely get to the postseason. This franchise has been through a lot over the past several years, but they play Cleveland next week, and Indy after that – and if they can just one of their final 3 games – they can get to 10 wins which should be enough to get to the playoffs. I couldn’t be happier for Denver fans, and I think Bo Nix has come a long way in a very short period of time. He’s been a completely different player than he was in the first few games of the year.
The Seahawks took care of business as they won 16-6 and this was huge because the Cardinals were 6-4 and leading the division, with Seattle at 5-5 needing a win to keep their division hopes alive. This was also critical for Seattle because I think there is a real chance this team hit a turning point last week in a late win against the 49ers. They’ve allowed just 23 points insect their week 10 bye and if they can beat a struggling Jets team next week – which I think they can – then that’s going to set up a very interesting final few weeks for the Seahawks because there’s a real chance they can steal the division. The Coby Bryant pick 6 completely turned this game around and if Geno Smith can dial the interceptions back a little bit – this team can easily win a playoff game. I really think they were a mistake away from winning by 14 points, if not 3 scores. This was a very disappointing game for Arizona who has done so much right this year. What I was most frustrated with in this game was Arizona was coming off a bye and outside of a singular 14 yard run from Emery Demercado – they had 35 rushing yards on 13 carries as a team. And this teams goal is to establish the run – which they obviously never did. Every team has a flat game here or there, but I think having a flat game off a bye is very disheartening. I still believe in the Cardinals long term vision, but this was a really bad loss coming off the bye. I hope you enjoyed and if you did please like and subscribe as only about 41% of people watching are subscribed and helps the channel tremendously. Please check out Gametime as well if you are attending a game soon and until next time please be safe and have a great day. Love you guys
