Week 11 came to a close with a bit of a dud, but it was to be expected. Overall it wasn’t a terrible week for me as Christen and I tied at 10-5. I did pick up some ground vs the spread and had my best week on the over/under to get over .500 on the season. Here’s the details for anyone who cares:
| Nick – W | Nick – L | Nick – T | Spread W | Spread L | Spread Push | O/U – W | O/U – L | O/U – Push | Christen W | Christen L | Christen T |
| 10 | 5 | 0 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 10 | 5 | 0 | 10 | 5 | 0 |
| Previous | Previous | Previous | Previous | Previous | Previous | Previous | Previous | Previous | Previous | Previous | Previous |
| 91 | 58 | 1 | 78 | 70 | 2 | 64 | 66 | 3 | 88 | 59 | 1 |
| Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall |
| 101 | 63 | 1 | 87 | 76 | 2 | 74 | 71 | 3 | 98 | 64 | 1 |
As you’d expect with the Giants heading into Tampa Bay, the Buccaneers won comfortably, 30-10. It was close at the half, but there was a sense that the G-Men were lucky to be down a score at the half and the Bucs closed the show in the second half. I often wonder why games like that get slotted into the Monday night feature and it was especially disappointing after a thrilling Sunday night game.
The Chargers came away with the 41-37 win over the Steelers, but that’s not the whole story. The Bolts were up 27-10 late in the 3rd quarter, behind a monster game from Austin Eckler, before Pittsburgh stormed the gates in dramatic fashion and posted 27 4th-quarter points to take the lead with 3:24 left in the game. Los Angeles would answer with a 53-yard TD pass to big-play Mike Williams who finally reemerged. One defensive stand later and they secured the win.
America’s Game of the Week saw the Chiefs dominate the Cowboys, mostly on defense, to get the 19-9 home win. Amari Cooper’s presence was desperately missed by the Cowboys’ offense. It wasn’t a great game for KC either, but their defense played very well and forced a pass heavy game script despite the Boys running the ball effectively. The over/under for this game was set at 56.5 and neither star QB even threw a TD pass. it just goes to show you, expect the unexpected.
Elsewhere in the AFC contender jumble, the Colts rolled into Buffalo and right over the Bills, 41-15. It was a record-setting performance for Jonathan Taylor as he posted 5-TDs behind a dominant O-line performance. The Bills handed over the AFC East lead to the Patriots in the process and join the wild card race.
The Bengals took a step forward in that race with their dominant win over the Raiders in Las Vegas, 32-13. Cincy was installed as 1-pt favorites but they sprinted to the finish after playing a close one heading into the 4th-quarter. Joe Mixon dominated with 132-yards and 2-TDs.
Baltimore and Cleveland both picked up wins against lesser competition but it wasn’t as easy as it should have been for either. Lamar Jackson was out at the last minute for the Ravens and they were on the brink of defeat when Tyler Huntley found Sammy Watkins wide open in blown coverage. That set up Devonta Freeman for the game-winning TD, 16-13 Ravens. The Browns got up 13-0 at the half over the Lions and then failed to score the rest of the way and barely hung on for the 13-10 win. Even with Nick Chubb dominating with 130-yards rushing, Baker Mayfield continues to struggle to move the ball through the air and it’s going to be a rough road for the Browns.
The biggest not so surprsing result was the Texans beating the Titans 22-13. I had Houston covering but I had a sneaking feeling that the Titans were going to lose because of their injuries and their positioning in the AFC race. The last time the Titans played with major injuries they were upset by the Jets and I should just trusted my gut. However, that’s a game they are still supposed to win. I’m happy for Tyrod Taylor though.
Moving across the league to the NFC side of things, we were treated to a great game between the Vikings and the Packers. These teams traded Ws last season and Minnesota held first serve this time out, picking up a 34-31 win on a last second field goal by Greg Joseph. This game was back and forth the whole way with both QBs dealing. Green Bay is still in favorable position but the division race is closer now.
Philadelphia got right back into the thick of things in the NFC with a 40-29 win over the Saints. This was another crazy game that saw the Eagles leading 33-7 with less than 3-minutes left in the 3rd quarter. Halfway through the 4th, the Saints had somehow rallied to make it an 11-point game. Philly got Miles Sanders back and he looked good, but he fumbled once and it was Jalen Hurts who vultured 3-TD runs.
Ron Rivera won his homecoming game against Cam Newton and the Panthers in Carolina, 27-21. That’s back-to-back wins for Washington who aren’t out of it just yet and even with the loss, Carolina is right there in the conversation for the division and the wild card.
Seattle had their last stand at home against the, Cardinals who were without DeAndre Hopkins and Kyler Murray, and fell 23-13. Russell Wilson wasn’t looking too good before his injury and he’s looked awful since returning as the Hawks’ offense can’t get anything going. I had a feeling Seattle might miss the playoffs this season as I watched their offseason moves and they haven’t addressed their needs during the season either, despite some good available players that could help. Arizona is 9-2 atop the NFC (6-0 on the road) and they are 2-1 without their two best offensive weapons.
Just to bury Seattle a bit deeper, the 49ers went down to Jacksonville and beat the Jags 30-10 to improve to 5-5 on the year. The win gets them right into the middle of the wild card conversation while the loss moves the Jags to 2-8.
And finally, in a game that has no real significance to any race other than the draft positioning for next season, the Dolphins won their third in a row by beating the Jets 24-17.
With the Holiday season upon us, Week 12 gets started with a slew of Thanksgiving Day games. The Bears head to Detroit to take on the Lions in the morning slot, the Raiders go to Dallas to battle the Boys in the afternoon, and the Bills travel to new Orleans to take on the Saints in primetime.
It was moving day in the Power Rankings as the Cardinals retook the top spot, the Pats continued their climb, and several other contenders gained or lost serious ground.
| 1. Cardinals 9-2 (⬆3)+2 |
| 2. Packers 8-3 (⬇)-1 |
| 3. Titans 8-3 (⬇2)-1 |
| 4. Buccaneers 7-3 (⬆6)+1 |
| 5. Rams 7-3 (=) |
| 6. Ravens 7-3 (⬆8)+2 |
| 7. Cowboys 7-3 (⬇4)-3 |
| 8. Patriots 7-4 (⬆10)+2 |
| 9. Chiefs 7-4 (=) |
| 10. Chargers 6-4 (⬆14)+4 |
| 11. Bengals 6-4 (⬆16)+5 |
| 12. Colts 6-5 (⬆17)+5 |
| 13. Bills 6-4 (⬇7)-6 |
| 14. Steelers 5-4-1 (⬇12) |
| 15. Browns 6-5 (=) |
| 16. Vikings 5-5 (⬆20)+4 |
| 17. 49ers 5-5 (⬆21)+3 |
| 18. Raiders 5-5 (⬇11)-7 |
| 19. Eagles 5-6 (⬆23)+4 |
| 20. Saints 5-5 (⬇13)-7 |
| 21. Broncos 5-5 (⬇19)-2 |
| 22. Panthers 5-6 (⬇18)-4 |
| 23. Washington 4-6 (⬆26)+3 |
| 24. Falcons 4-6 (⬇22) |
| 25. Dolphins 4-7 (⬆28)+3 |
| 26. Seahawks 3-7 (⬇24)-2 |
| 27. Giants 3-7 (=) |
| 28. Bears 3-7 (⬇25)-3 |
| 29. Texans 2-8 (⬆31)+2 |
| 30. Jaguars 2-8 (⬇29)-1 |
| 31. Jets 2-8 (⬇30)-1 |
| 32. Lions 0-9-1 (=) |