Joe Judge's New York Giants stun the Seattle Seahawks, while Bill Belichick lives out a special teams dream
The New York Giants moved to 5-7 on the season with an incredible win over the Seattle Seahawks, the New England Patriots inflicted the Los Angeles Chargers' worst ever defeat and the New York Jets suffered late heartbreak against the Las Vegas Raiders
Monday 7 December 2020 15:09, UK
Joe Judge's New York Giants smothered the Seattle Seahawks, Bill Belichick was treated to a special teams clinic, the New York Jets moved a step closer to Trevor Lawrence and Justin Jefferson had another big day for the Vikings; here's a look at what we learned in Week 13.
New York Giants 17-12 Seattle Seahawks
It's been a long time coming, but New York football is alive and kicking once again, at least on the blue side. It's also been a long time since the G-Men were left spoilt for choice in regards to stand out performers, which was certainly the case on Sunday as they out-battled the Seahawks - with Colt McCoy at quarterback and Alfred Morris recording two touchdowns
We sang the praises of outstanding defensive coordinator Patrick Graham in last week's edition of this segment, so here's to the men putting his scheme into action. Starting with Leonard Williams, whose 2.5 sacks and five quarterback hits continued a career year in which he is burying doubts over that divisive trade from the Jets midway through last season.
He was supported by rookie production across the board. Linebacker Tae Crowder harassed Seattle with seven tackles, one sack, one tackle for loss and one quarterback hit, cornerback Darnay Holmes came up with his first NFL interception and undrafted defensive end Niko Lalos followed up last week's game-changing pick against the Bengals with a fumble recovery.
Just an exceptional team effort from a side playing as tough as anybody out there right now. Cameron Hogwood
Up Next - Giants v Cardinals (Sunday, 6pm), Seahawks v Jets (Sunday, 9.05pm)
Las Vegas Raiders 31-28 New York Jets
What were you thinking, Greg Williams?!
Derek Carr said it best, with the Raiders quarterback who, with Las Vegas trailing by four with 13 seconds left, threw a 46-yard touchdown pass deep to Henry Ruggs: "I couldn't believe they all-out blitzed us. As soon as I saw it, I was thankful."
Carr was backed up near midfield, on a third-and-10; surely all the Jets needed to do was sit in 'prevent defense', protect the endzone and tackle the Raiders short to end the game and clinch a first win of the season to avoid the fate of going 0-16.
Perhaps Williams is just a big Trevor Lawrence fan? As that's where his crazy call has the Jets headed, for the No 1 overall pick in the 2021 Draft. In that sense, perhaps the guy should be heralded a hero! David Currie
Up next - Raiders v Colts (Sunday, 9.05pm); Jets @ Seahawks (Sunday, 9.05pm)
Indianapolis Colts 26-20 Houston Texans
Jonathan Taylor is in a good spot, and it's difficult to understand why the Colts do not use him more.
The rookie running back had 91 rushing yards off 13 carries and three catches for 44 yards against the Texans, including a 39-yard touchdown catch-and-run. He also has 249 yards from scrimmage in his last two starts.
Having seen the bulk of the carries early on this season, Taylor's usage for some reason began to fall behind that of multi-purpose back Nyheim Hines, and even Jordan Wilkins on occasion. Now it is time to restore him to the lead running back job. Cameron Hogwood
Up next - Colts @ Raiders (Sunday, 9.05pm); Texans @ Bears (Sunday, 6pm)
New Orleans Saints 21-16 Atlanta Falcons
Taysom Hill has thrown his first touchdown pass as a professional footballer. In fact, he now has two.
Hill threw a 15-yarder to Tre'Quan Smith in the first quarter and then an 11-yarder to Jared Cook in the second. His stat line ended as 27 of 37 passing, for 232 yards and those two scores.
Atlanta pushed them relatively close, but New Orleans' ninth-straight win was never really in doubt. The Saints are 8-0 over the last two seasons without Drew Brees at quarterback - a tribute to the remarkable game-planning of head coach Sean Payton. David Currie
Up Next - Saints @ Eagles (Sunday, 9.05pm), Falcons @ Chargers (Sunday, 9.05pm)
New England Patriots 45-0 Los Angeles Chargers
So here we are, the business end of the season and somehow the Patriots have clawed themselves into contention for a playoff spot, just….the question, should we be surprised?
Bill Belichick delights in his team evolving over the course of a season, usually they are stacking wins without being convincing in a division that has been a cakewalk for the last decade, and roll into a perfectly oiled playoff machine.
This year the roster is much, much weaker than previous years but Belichick is still a great coach and once again he has turned the team into more than the sum of their parts. The Bills and the Dolphins are competitive so the Patriots still sit third in the AFC East so there is still an uphill battle.
However, four wins from their last five games have them in the mix and with three of their last four games against the aforementioned AFC East rivals that the Patriots' head coach knows better than anyone - would you back against them…and more specifically Belichick? Paul Prenderville
Up Next - Patriots @ Rams (Friday, 1.20am), Chargers v Falcons (Sunday, 9.05pm)
Philadelphia Eagles 16-30 Green Bay Packers
We can talk about the genius that is Aaron Rodgers becoming the first player in NFL history to have five seasons of at least 35 touchdowns and him throwing his 400th touchdown pass, we can talk about his main weapon Davante Adams stiff-arming defensive backs en route to the end zone, or we can talk about the Jalen cameo.
Eagles fans were finally given a look at Jalen Hurts under center as he replaced Carson Wentz in the third quarter before finishing five of 12 passing for 109 yards and his first NFL touchdown. On his first drive he connected with rookie wide receiver Jalen Reagor for 34 yards in a possible glimpse of months, maybe years to come.
This is not the end of Wentz in Philly, but you have to feel it is a significant moment in his career. You have to give Hurts the chance to try and salvage this season for the Eagles. Cameron Hogwood
Up Next - Eagles v Saints (Sunday, 9.05pm), Packers @ Lions (Sunday, 9.25pm)
Jacksonville Jaguars 24-27 Minnesota Vikings (OT)
Jacksonville fired their general manager last week and the writing might be on the wall for Doug Marrone but once again his team stayed competitive forcing the Vikings into overtime.
They had a chance to win in normal time after some James Robinson heroics gave them a 61-yard field goal attempt. They did not make it but there was enough to make people think this team are going to be on the up next year.
With a bevvy of first and second-round picks, things could not be going better for a Jags team for whom next season has always looked like the target and any new GM is likely to be picking in the top three with a chance of Trevor Lawrence or Justin Fields.
Quick word on the Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson, a legitimate Offensive Rookie of the Year candidate after another 100+ yards game - that makes it 1,039 yards for the season and seven touchdowns. Paul Prenderville
Up Next - Jaguars v Titans (Sunday, 6pm), Vikings @ Buccaneers (Sunday, 6pm)
Detroit Lions 34-30 Chicago Bears
It may be time to clean house in Chicago. Matt Nagy, Ryan Pace, the lot.
The Bears were in good shape in the first half as they put up 23 points, with David Montgomery running the ball well and Mitchell Trubisky doing a steady job under center.
Then for the 11th time out of 12 games so far this season, they failed to score in the third quarter having entered it up 23-13. Cue a Lions comeback.
Even a Bears defense that so often holds up its end of the bargain look defeated, allowing 460 yards against a Bears offense tied for 20th in total yards. The Lions had also only put up 34 points once under recently-fired Matt Patricia.
Down by 30-20 with 4.33 remaining, the Lions were allowed to string together a seven-play, 96-yard touchdown drive before a fumble recovery on the Bears' ensuing drive paved the way for Detroit to grab the go-ahead score via Adrian Peterson. This team needs change. Cameron Hogwood
Up Next - Lions v Packers (Sunday, 9.25pm), Bears v Texans (Sunday, 6pm)
Cincinnati Bengals 7-19 Miami Dolphins
There was an eagerly-anticipated Lynn Bowden Jr sighting in Miami. In what has been a slow-burner of a rookie season for the Kentucky product, who was drafted by the Raiders before being traded to the Dolphins in September, he made four catches for 41 yards as well as rushing for 11 yards from one carry.
Bowden came out of college a Paul Hornung Award winner as the most versatile player in the country having featured at wide receiver, running back and quarterback - the latter of which he played across the second half of last season.
During an interview with him earlier this offseason, he explained to me how he had the 'it factor' as the kind of multi-purpose gadget capable of slaloming through the line of scrimmage, running jet sweeps and making catches in the open field.
Though his stats on Sunday were unspectacular, they entailed glimpses of just how breathtaking he can be in open space. In the right scheme and when used the right way, he could be a major weapon for the Dolphins. Cameron Hogwood
Up next - Bengals v Cowboys (Sunday, 6pm); Dolphins v Chiefs (Sunday, 6pm)
Denver Broncos 16-22 Kansas City Chiefs
It was far from vintage Chiefs - again.
Kansas City sit 11-1 and are rightly many people's favourites for a repeat Super Bowl run, but their last four wins have all been one-score games; should we be worried?
To put that into context, only one of their first seven wins this season was a one-scorer. Denver were the latest team to push them all the way, with Kansas City repeatedly misfiring in the redzone until they finally seemed to get things going in the second half.
Two tough road trips now await, at Tua's Dolphins and then Taysom's Saints. But would you back against Mahomes and co getting it together? No, nor would I. David Currie
Up Next - Broncos @ Panthers (Sunday, 6pm), Chiefs @ Dolphins (Sunday, 6pm)
Los Angeles Rams 38-28 Arizona Cardinals
This was 'good Jared Goff'. Or certainly 'better Jared Goff', particularly in the second half.
Goff had his struggles against the 49ers last week, throwing two picks and fumbling the football, but he was 37 of 47 for 351 yards and one TD against the faltering Cards.
People will still point to Sean McVay and say his success is down to the skilled offensive play-caller. He certainly likes playing against Arizona, that's for sure, as he is now 7-0 against their NFC West division rivals during his tenure. David Currie
Up Next - Rams v Patriots (Friday, 1.20am), Cardinals @ Giants (Sunday, 6pm)
Cleveland Browns 41-35 Tennessee Titans
Kevin Stefanski's admirable job with this offense is a story in itself, and perhaps one best left for the playoff berth the Browns are heading towards.
We saw the best of Baker Mayfield against the Titans, once again witnessed the excellence of Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt out of the backfield as both march towards 1,000 yard rushing seasons, were reminded of Myles Garrett's importance following his return from the reserve/COVID-19 list and saw heavy investment in the offensive line reap its rewards.
But the story for me was Rashard Higgins, who led the team with six catches for 95 yards and a touchdown. The 2016 fifth-round pick has a special relationship with Mayfield in Cleveland, and seems to be turning his career around after barely featuring in 2019.
With no Odell Beckham Jr, he is needed. Cameron Hogwood
Up Next - Browns v Ravens (Tuesday, 1.15am), Titans @ Jaguars (Sunday, 6pm)
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