Come-from-behind wins and overtime thrillers made for an amazing week that was highlighted by the greatest comeback in NFL annals.
Last week, the Philadelphia Eagles were the first team to wrap up a playoff berth. This week, the San Francisco 49ers, Minnesota Vikings and Kansas City Chiefs secured division titles and the Buffalo Bills and Dallas Cowboys grabbed postseason spots as well.
Once again, the NFL will have games on Thursday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. That includes a Christmas tripleheader with game at Miami, Los Angeles and Arizona. That’s the future. What happened this week to alter the NFL Power Rankings?
Once again, the Texans played a playoff contender tough only to come up short. This time around it was the AFC West-leading Kansas City Chiefs that got everything they could handle from Lovie Smith’s team. Jeff Driskel actually opened the game but he and Davis Mills both played.
The latter threw for two scores and ran for another. Davis fumbled in overtime. The Chiefs turned that into the game-winning TD as the Texans lost their ninth straight game.
The well-rested Colts visited Minnesota on “Saturday.” Heady special teams and defense staked the club to a 17-0 first-quarter lead. The advantage would swell to 33-0 at intermission and Indianapolis owned that lead deep into the third quarter.
What followed was an unprecedented rally by the Vikings, who outscored Jeff Saturday’s club 39-3 the rest of the way. The final three points came in overtime as the stunned Colts allowed 518 total yards.
Off last week, Matt Eberflus’ club hosted the highest-scoring team in the NFL as the Bears clashed with the potent Eagles. Chicago kept pace with the Birds throughout the afternoon. Justin Fields finished with 95 of the club’s 157 yards on the ground and he also threw for 152 yards and a pair of scores.
However, the second-year signal-caller was sacked six times and fumbled twice (losing none). The beleaguered Bears’ defense gave up 421 total yards.
The Rams were back in primetime for the second consecutive week and Baker Mayfield was the club’s fourth different starting quarterback this season. The team was at Lambeau Field on Monday night to take on the Packers.
The Rams’ offense managed only 156 total yards and Mayfield was sacked five times. It’s worth noting that the only previous defending Super Bowl champion to lose 10 games were the 1998 Broncos (6-10 in ’99).
The Cardinals were coming off a short week following a Monday night home loss to the Patriots. Kliff Kingsbury’s team was in Denver to take on the struggling Broncos.
Quarterbacks Colt McCoy (1) and Trace McSorley combined to throw three interceptions as the Arizona offense was limited to 240 total yards. The Cards came up with seven sacks of Broncos’ quarterback Brett Rypien (3 by veteran J.J. Watt) but would surrender 168 yards on the ground.
Both the Falcons and Saints were off last week. The latter had a chance to sweep this series for the second time in three years.
Rookie quarterback Desmond Ridder made his first NFL start and he had a rough debut. He hit on just 13-of-26 passes for only 97 yards and was sacked four times. Led by Tyler Allgeier, Atlanta did run for 231 yards on 39 attempts. The Falcons’ struggling pass defense gave up three touchdowns as well as 134 yards on the ground.
The Broncos scored a season-high 28 points last week against the Chiefs and that still wasn’t enough to get a victory. They hosted the Cardinals on Sunday and Brett Rypien was back as the starting quarterback.
He was sacked seven times and committed a pair of turnovers. But the Denver offense got 130 yards rushing and one touchdown by Latavius Murray. Justin Simmons (2) and Patrick Surtain (1) combined to pick off three passes.
Thanks to 27-26 come-from-behind win at Atlanta in Week 1, the Saints (off last week) were in position to sweep the Falcons for the second time in three years. Quarterback Andy Dalton threw for only 151 yards but both of his scoring tosses went to wideout Juwan Johnson.
Taysom Hill connected with Rashid Shaheed for a 68-yard TD. Dennis Allen’s club opened up a 14-0 lead less than seven minutes into the first quarter and never looked back.
The Buccaneers were coming off a 28-point loss at San Francisco and faced another formidable task in hosting the Bengals. The NFC South leaders appeared to be in control early on and owned a 17-0 second-quarter lead.
Tom Brady and company self-destructed the rest of the way as the veteran signal-caller finished with 312 yards through the air and three scores. He also committed four second-half turnovers via two interceptions and two lost fumbles.
The rejuvenated Panthers hosted the Steelers on Sunday. Steve Wilks’ club struggled to run the football against a Pittsburgh defense that was gashed for 215 yards by the Ravens the previous Sunday – limited to 21 yards on 16 attempts.
Quarterback Sam Darnold threw for 225 yards and one score but was sacked four times and Carolina reached the end zone just once. The Panthers remained one game behind the first-place Bucs in the NFC South.
The Browns looked to avoid a season sweep at the hands of the Ravens as they hosted John Harbaugh’s team on Saturday. Quarterback Deshaun Watson led a balanced attack that didn’t generate a lot of yards (283) or points (13).
Cleveland won the time-of-possession battle (33:08) and more significantly, did not turn over the football. Meanwhile, the Browns came away with a pair of takeaways. Nick Chubb ran 21 times for 99 yards in the win.
In a battle of 5-8 teams, the Steelers were in Charlotte for the first time since 2014 to take on the Panthers. The team’s ground attack took center stage once again as Najee Harris finished with 24 carries for 86 yards and one score.
Pittsburgh orchestrated a 21-play, 91-yard TD drive to open the second half that consumed 11:43. The Steelers gave up just 209 total yards (21 yards rushing) and sacked Panthers’ quarterback Sam Darnold four times.
The Silver and Black hosted the Patriots and wound up winners via an unimaginable ending. Tied at 24-all in the closing second, New England appeared to be running out the clock when Rhamondre Stevenson tossed the ball to wideout Jakobi Meyers.
He threw the ball backward that wound up in the hands of Raiders’ pass rusher Chandler Jones. He would run over Patriots’ quarterback Mac Jones on his way to the end zone for the game-winning score.
The Patriots were in Sin City to take on the Raiders. New England got 172 rushing yards and a TD from Rhamondre Stevenson. Tied at 24-all, the teams appeared to be headed to overtime.
Stevenson took a handoff and just before heading out of bounds, he inexplicably tossed the ball to Jakobi Meyers. He threw the ball backwards and right to Raiders’ defender Chandler Jones. He scored on a 48-yard fumble return and handed the Pats a stunning loss.
After a week off, the Packers hosted the Rams on Monday night. Green Bay’s defense rose to the occasion in prime time as Joe Barry’s unit limited Sean McVay’s club to only 156 total yards on 43 offensive plays.
The Pack corralled Rams quarterback Baker Mayfield five times and limited Los Angeles to only 72 yards on the ground. Aaron Jones ran for 90 yards and caught four passes for 36 yards and one score. A.J. Dillon added a pair of rushing touchdowns.
Doug Pederson’s team hosted the surging Cowboys. The Jaguars brought a 20-game losing streak vs. NFC teams into Sunday’s contest. Trailing by 17 points late in the third quarter, Trevor Lawrence responded with three TD passes.
Down 34-31 with 3:02 remaining, Lawrence drove the team to a 48-yard field goal that forced overtime. Rayshawn Jenkins’ second interception of the afternoon was returned 52 yards for a game-winning touchdown.
Off a primetime victory over the visiting Dolphins, the Chargers were at home again and welcome the first-place Titans to SoFi Stadium. There was the good and the bad from quarterback Justin Herbert, who threw a pair of interceptions.
Herbert got the ball back with less than a minute to play and the team tied at 14-all. He would drive the team 52 yards in six plays. Cameron Dicker would hit a 43-yard field goal with four seconds to play for the win.
The reigning AFC South champions took a three-game losing streak to Los Angeles when they faced the Chargers. Derrick Henry carried 21 times for 104 yards and a score. Quarterback Ryan Tannehill had the team’s other TD via a one-yard plunge with 48 seconds to play.
Tennessee’s defense couldn’t slow down Chargers’ quarterback Justin Herbert in the closing seconds in a three-point loss. The Titans now own just a one-game lead in the AFC South.
When the Commanders last took the field, they managed a tie with the Giants at MetLife Stadium in Week 13. Ron Rivera’s club would once again face their NFC East rival, this time in prime time at FedEx Field. Taylor Heinicke threw for 249 yards and one score.
However, the Commanders’ quarterback was sacked three times and lost a pair of fumbles – one of those resulting in a Giants’ touchdown. Washington fell to 1-3-1 within the division this year.
Losers of three of their previous four games, the Seahawks welcomed the rival 49ers to the Pacific Northwest. Pete Carroll’s offense was limited to 277 total yards – including only 70 yards on the ground.
Quarterback Geno Smith threw for 238 yards and a score but his TD toss to tight end Noah Fant came with just 3:35 left in the game. Smith was sacked three times and fumbled once (zero turnovers) as the Seahawks fell to 7-7 after a promising 6-3 start.
Quarterback Zach Wilson returned to the starting lineup as the Jets hosted the explosive Lions. It was an erratic performance by the second-year quarterback as he barely completed half of his passes (18-of-35) albeit for 317 yards and two touchdowns.
Wilson was sacked four times and served up one interception. One disappointing aspect of Robert Saleh’s defense had to be the failure of the pass rush to sack Lions’ quarterback Jared Goff.
The Dolphins were in position to sweep the rival Bills on Saturday night at Orchard Park. A third straight road game resulted in a third consecutive loss despite a big effort from Mike McDaniel’s club.
Miami rolled up 405 total yards as Raheem Mostert ran for 136 yards and Tua Tagovailoa threw for 234 yards – including TD strikes to Jaylen Waddle (67 yards) and Tyreek Hill (20 yards). But the Dolphins’ defense surrendered 446 total yards in the setback.
Brian Daboll’s team took a four-game winless streak (0-3-1) into Sunday night’s rematch with the Commanders. Rookie defender Kayvon Thibodeaux had a big evening with a team-high 12 tackles.
He got his team on the scoreboard via a strip sack of Commanders’ quarterback Taylor Heinicke and recovery for a touchdown. Saquon Barkley added 120 yards from scrimmage and one TD. The Giants finished with 128 rushing yards and played turnover-free ball.
The Ravens were in Cleveland for the teams’ second meeting of the year. John Harbaugh’s club looked to sweep the Browns for the second time in three years. Tyler Huntley got the start but it was Baltimore’s running game that excelled as J.K. Dobbins finished with 125 of the club’s 198 rushing yards.
Huntley threw for only 138 yards, was sacked three times and had one of the club’s two turnovers. The Ravens slipped to second place in the AFC North.
Dan Campbell’s team came up with a statement win over the Vikings. Next, they headed to MetLife Stadium for the second time in 2022 to face the equally-improved Jets. The Lions got two huge plays from their special teams and the offense.
The first was via a 47-yard punt return for a score in the first quarter by Kalif Raymond. The second came with less than two minutes left in the game as Jared Goff found tight end, Brock Wright, for a 51-yard TD.
The Cowboys made their way to Jacksonville looking to extend a four-game winning streak. Dallas owned a 27-10 lead with 5:21 remaining in the third quarter but the Jaguars responded with 21 straight points. The Cowboys regained the lead but Jacksonville would force overtime.
Dak Prescott’s second interception of the afternoon was returned 52 yards for a TD. Losses by the Seahawks and Commanders wrapped up a playoff berth for Dallas.
The Vikings hosted the Colts on Saturday. A series of miscues by the offense and special teams as well as some questionable decision-making had the Purple Gang down 33-0 at halftime.
The Vikings came roaring back as Kirk Cousins survived seven sacks and two interceptions by throwing for 460 yards and four TDs. Greg Joseph’s 40-yard field goal in overtime capped off the greatest comeback in NFL history and gave the Vikings the NFC North title.
The Bills hosted the Dolphins on Saturday night looking to avenge a 21-19 loss in Week 3. It was another down-to-the-wire affair, this time in snowy Orchard Park. Sean McDermott’s club owned a 21-13 lead at intermission but Miami responded with 13 straight points to take a 29-21 lead.
Josh Allen led the Bills to the final 11 points of the evening. The last three were courtesy of a Tyler Baas 25-yard field goal at the gun, capping off an 86-yard drive.
Andy Reid’s club could wrap up a seventh consecutive division title by simply beating the one-win Texans at Houston. But there was nothing simple about this game as the Chiefs turned over the ball two times. Still, Kansas City finished the afternoon with 502 total yards.
Patrick Mahomes threw for 336 yards and a pair of touchdown passes and ran for another score. Jerick McKinnon’s 26-yard TD run in overtime sealed the deal.
The streaking Bengals took a five-game winning streak into Tampa to face the struggling Buccaneers. It didn’t look good for the reigning AFC champions early on as they fell behind 17-0.
Joe Burrow shook off an early interception and led the Bengals to 34 consecutive points, throwing for 200 yards and four TDs to four different pass-catchers. Burrow got a big assist from the Cincinnati defense, which forced Bucs’ quarterback Tom Brady into four turnovers.
A win at Seattle on Thursday night would not only give the 49ers their first sweep of the Seahawks, but also the club’s first NFC West title since 2019. Rookie Brock Purdy threw for 217 yards and two touchdowns, both to tight end George Kittle.
Christian McCaffrey finished with 138 total yards from scrimmage and one score. The Niners are 5-0 vs. division rivals this season — by a combined 141-53 score — and have won seven consecutive games this season.
The NFC East leaders made their way to the Windy City having already secured a playoff berth. Quarterback Jalen Hurts had an interesting outing. He threw for 315 yards and zero scores but was picked off twice, however, he ran for 61 yards and three TDs.
The Philadelphia defense came up with six sacks of Bears’ quarterback Justin Fields. On Monday afternoon, it was revealed that Hurts suffered a shoulder injury on Sunday (via ESPN’s Adam Schefter).