As the NFL season has now officially turned the three-quarter pole and is sprinting towards the checkered flag, there’s a lot more excitement surrounding the chase for survival than that for superiority. That was no more evident than the results from yesterday when the double-digit winning franchises produced scant little entertainment. The league-best Patriots were off on an odd December bye week, the Broncos sleptwalked their way to a ninth straight win over the increasingly inept Raiders, and the Rams and Seahawks each breezed to high-scoring road conquests of Arizona and Atlanta. I did like those outcomes, but the road to them was an undeniable slog.
The real excitement, in a manner consistent with the most confusing pop culture obsession around, came from teams defined by Six Seven–as in the number of wins and/or losses they had already amassed. Which means at this point another defeat could indeed be fatal in their playoff pursuit. We got several harsh reminders of that yesterday afteroon and last night–and from surprising teachers so many of us thought would have been part of that aforementioned upper echelon.
In Baltimore, the surging Ravens were brought back to earth by a couple of all-too familiar faces, as HEAVY.com’s Dave Holcomb chronicled:
Quarterback Aaron Rodgers isn’t afraid to tell it like it is during postgame press conferences. He did exactly that when asked about what the team’s 27-22 victory against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday meant.
“It means that maybe you guys will shut the hell up for a week,” said Rodgers. The quarterback finished the answer with a slight shoulder shrug, eyebrow raise and smirk on his face.
Rodgers experienced one of his best games as a member of the Steelers in his first-ever Pittsburgh-Baltimore rivalry showdown on December 7. The quarterback, who celebrated his 42nd birthday last week, completed 23 of 34 passes for 284 yards with a touchdown. Rodgers also ran for a score, which was his first of the season. He averaged 8.4 yards per pass while the Steelers only gained 34 rushing yards. With the five-point win, the Steelers moved back into sole possession of first place in the AFC North with a 7-6 record.
An equally modest battle for another division title–and a guaranteed playoff berth–took a surprising turn, as NBC SPORTS’
On a rainy day, in a mud bath, the Saints rained on the Buccaneers’ NFC South parade. New Orleans’ 24-20 upset of Tampa Bay leaves the Bucs tied with the Panthers atop the division at 7-6. Carolina is on its off week. The Bucs repeatedly shot themselves in the foot. Baker Mayfield was only 14-of-30 for 122 yards with a touchdown and an interception. They had seven penalties, dropped a walk-in touchdown pass, had a turnover, and five times, the Bucs turned it over on downs.
Yet Florida was a bit kinder to the team due northeast of Tampa, with a signature win that signaled a distinct turn of events in the AFC South. SPORTS ILLUSTRATED’s John Shipley:
The Jacksonville Jaguars are in a groove, once again taking care of business at home against the Indianapolis Colts with a 39-16 win in Week 14. One thing was clear from the Jaguars from the start of the game to the finish: they were the most physical team, by far. The Jaguars’ defense especially flew around the field all game, delivering several hard hits on the perimeter and stuffing Jonathan Taylor with consistency. For a Jaguars team that lacked edge in recent years, this is where they have done their biggest 180. The Jaguars needed to win this game in the trenches, and that is exactly what they were able to do. However he did it, Liam Coen has dramatically changed the toughness of this team overnight. Yes, the loss of Daniel Jones clearly impacted the Colts — as you would expect losing a starting quarterback would do. But the Jaguars were winning this game even before then.
Yes, you read that correctly; the miracle year of Indiana Jones and the once-dominant Colts are in free fall. These cats have raced past those horses and now control the #3 seed in the conference. Adding to the Colts’ consternation is another team coming up in the stretch that may have taken out a standardbearer for good in the process. The HOUSTON CHRONICLE’s Matt Young explained:
After a miserable third quarter in which C.J. Stroud didn’t complete a pass and the offense actually had negative-2 total yards, the Texans quarterback and his teammates stepped up in a big way for a 20-10 win over the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium.
Stroud finished 15-for-31 for 203 yards and a touchdown, but only three of those completions came after halftime. Two of those throws were a couple of Stroud’s best this season and critical in securing the Texans’ fifth straight win.
“He made a lot of nice plays for us throughout this game,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. “I’m proud of the way he led for us. No matter how it looked, he led, he put us in a good spot and made some plays for us.”
And with that, the Chiefs–the team that has represented the conference in all but one of the last six Super Bowls now has the same record as the Miami Dolphins–somehow still “in the hunt” after a lucky schedule break against the decrepit Jets allowed them to notch a fourth consecutive win despite a cold-weather disadvantage. Their nine consecutive division title streak is now history, Yes, they’re still mathematically alive for a playoff berth, but after a home showing that poor against a Houston team that had been left for dead a few weeks back it’s hard not to have the sort of outlook that THE MIRROR US’ Sahil Kurup postured:
Travis Kelce has built a career on reliability. When Patrick Mahomes needed a rescue play, the ball almost always found No. 87, and the result was usually positive. This season has been different, and Sunday night delivered the harshest example yet.
With the game tied late in the fourth quarter against Houston, a pass that reached Kelce’s hands ended up in the arms of Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair. Arrowhead Stadium, where fans ruthlessly booed the team in the first half, fell silent…The Chiefs went on to lose 20-10, falling to 6-7 and sinking deeper into unfamiliar territory.
Kinda difficult to see how he or his team can, well, shake it off.
Courage…