Merry Christmas and welcome to Part I of my Monday Morning Quarterback Post for Week 16. I hope the holiday was good to you and your loved ones. I had a great Christmas with family and friends. I ate so much I'm kind of surprised my pants still fit.
The NFL was pretty good to this Dallas Cowboy fan as well. When the Titans knocked off the 49ers on Thursday Dallas clinched a playoff spot. On Sunday Dallas won the NFC East when the Raiders beat the Broncos due to crazy tiebreaker rules.
And to top off my holiday weekend Dallas sent a warning shot across the NFC by absolutely destroying the No-Names of Washington. It was glorious! Dallas looked great on offense, defense and special teams. Since that was the Sunday night game the details will come in Part II later this week.
Anyway fueled by Christmas cookies and Yuengling Black & Tans I'm ready to dive into Week 16. Just remember I am a Dallas Cowboys fan and I'm extremely biased. Feel free to agree or disagree about anything mentioned here. All comments are welcome.
Meet The New Boss?
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Bills 33 Patriots 21
A couple of weeks ago the Patriots used the weather to their advantage to show the Bills they weren’t ready to give up their domination of the AFC East. In Week 16 the weather was mild and Buffalo showed New England that all things being equal they are ready to be the new beast of the AFC East.
The Bills offense revolves around quarterback Josh Allen. When he is off they struggle to move the ball. When he is on they can dominate and Allen was definitely on in Week 16. He used his arms and legs to move the ball up and down the field with relative ease. New England’s defense had no answers for him. The Bills went the entire game without punting once. Their nine possessions ended with seven scores and twice killing the clock at the end of the half and regulation. Wow.
Buffalo scored a TD on their opening possession and the Patriots were left playing catch up the rest of the afternoon. New England began the game with the same offensive strategy they used in the first meeting between these two teams. They went heavy with the run and passed the ball sparingly. The Patriots had to abandon that plan as the game went along as the defense couldn’t slow down the Bills. Trailing by two scores at halftime, New England was forced to open up the passing game.
That change didn’t work well. Mac Jones was inaccurate with his throws, missing receivers and tossing two interceptions. New England did put together a couple of TD drives in the second half to prevent the game from totally slipping away from them. However every time Buffalo responded with a score of their own to keep the Patriots at bay.
Huge win for the Bills, who now control their own destiny in the AFC East. If they win their final two games against the Falcons and Jets, both at Buffalo, they will win the division no matter how New England fares in their final two games.
This game was all about Josh Allen. After mother nature struck him down in the first meeting, he came back with a vengeance the second time around. Allen (30/47, 314 yards, 3 TDs) had few problems with the Patriots secondary and he was also a force on the ground: 12 rushes, 64 yards. He led the team in rushing, which has been an issue for the Bills this year. They haven’t been able to support Josh Allen with a solid ground attack.
Isaiah McKenzie (11 receptions, 125 yards, 1 TD) and Stefon Diggs (7 receptions, 85 yards, 1 TD) were the top receiving targets. Defensively the Bills held the Patriots to under a 150 passing yards and only let them convert 1/10 third down plays. Statement game for Buffalo, who improved to 9-6.
Turns out the Patriots weren’t much of an obstacle for Buffalo without extreme weather. Mac Jones (14/32, 145 yards, 2 INTs) flopped when New England was forced to pass the ball to try to come back. They were fine on the ground as Damien Harris (18 rushes, 103 yards, 3 TDs) led a running back committee that totaled 149 yards. Unfortunately for New England they had to move away from the run when they fell behind by multiple scores.
The Patriots defense was awful. Buffalo made seven trips into the red zone and scored TDs on five of them. They kicked field goals the other two times. The Patriots could have wrapped up the division with a win. Now they’ll be playing for a wild card unless Buffalo chokes. The Patriots fell to 9-6, same record as Buffalo but the Bills hold the tiebreaker. Things should go better for New England when they host the Jaguars next week.
A Tale Of Two Halves
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Titans 20 49ers 17
Week 16 kicked off on Thursday night with an inter-conference game with playoff ramifications on both sides. The San Francisco 49ers are trying to grab a wild card spot in the NFC after a tough start to the season. The Titans are trying to secure an AFC South division title that will give them at least one home playoff game.
In the first half it looked like it was going to be the 49ers night. The Titans could do nothing on offense in the first half. And I mean nothing. The Tennessee offense totaled only 55 yards before halftime and were met with boos from the home crowd.
The Niners received the opening kickoff and marched right down the field for a TD. After a Titans punt, the Niners drove right down the field again with their second possession. They made it all the way down to the Tennessee 8-yard line before Jimmy Garoppolo threw an interception in the end zone to kill the drive. That turnover seemed to spark the Titans defense, who played much better after the two initial drives from San Francisco. The Niners kicked a field goal in the 2nd quarter and took a 10-0 lead into halftime.
I don’t know what Tennessee head coach Mike Vrabel told his team at halftime, but it worked as the Titans were much better after the break. They gained 60 yards with their first possession of the 3rd quarter, more than they gained in the entire first half, and kicked a field goal to cut their deficit to 10-3. The 49ers took the ball and Jimmy Garoppolo gave it right back to the Titans with an interception on San Fran’s first play. Setting up on the 49ers 18-yard line, the Titans only needed a couple of plays to score a TD and tie the game at 10-10.
The Niners took the ball and moved into Tennessee territory, where they faced a 4th and 6. Head coach Kyle Shanahan decided to go for it, but Garoppolo missed a wide open receiver and the Titans took over on downs. The Titans stayed hot on offense as Ryan Tannehill found A.J. Brown with an 18 yard TD pass to give Tennessee their first lead of the game, 17-10.
After a few punts, the Niners found themselves with the ball on their own 5-yard line with five minutes left in the game. Garoppolo suddenly got hot and with the aid of a 56 yard pass to Deebo Samuel quickly moved the 49ers into the red zone. Two plays later Garoppolo threw a TD pass and the game was tied at 17-17.
The Titans had a little over two minutes left to avoid overtime. Ryan Tannehill broke free for a 23 yard scramble to cross midfield. After a few more runs the Titans kicked a field goal with 9 seconds left to go ahead 20-17. The Niners had time for one miracle play, but it didn’t happen.
Tennessee wide receiver A.J. Brown came back after missing three games and he saved this game for the Titans. Brown (11 receptions, 145 yards, 1 TD) exploded in the second half and let Tennessee finally put some points up on the board. Ryan Tannehill (22/29, 209 yards, 1 TD) struggled to find any other receivers. The ground game sorely misses Derrick Henry, the running back committee gained 90 yards and 1 TD on 24 carries.
After a bad start, the Titans defense came through with big turnovers that prevented the 49ers from running away early. Tennessee improved to 10-5, first place in the AFC South. The Colts are still on their heels, but they can clinch the division with a win at home next week over the Dolphins.
Jimmy Garoppolo’s (26/35, 322 yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs) total numbers weren’t bad, but his mistakes were costly. His first interception killed a scoring drive and his second set up the Titans for their first TD. Huge swing in points with those two mistakes. He also missed a wide open receiver on a 4th down play. The bad outweighed the good.
San Francisco wasted a monster performance by Deebo Samuel (9 receptions, 159 yards in the air and 6 rushes, 32 yards on the ground). The defense shut down the Titans in the first half, but lost control of A.J. Brown in the second. Hurtful loss that dropped San Francisco to 8-7. The 49ers are still in good position to grab a wild card and they host the Texans next week.
The Gift That Kept Giving
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Packers 24 Browns 22
Christmas is the season of giving and on Christmas day Baker Mayfield was more generous than the fat guy with the beard himself. Not me, I’m talking about Santa Claus. Mayfield was a turnover machine and the Packers took full advantage to eke out a win at home.
Cleveland got off to a good start by scoring a TD on their first possession. They missed the extra point, but still went ahead 6-0. The Packers punted after only gaining one first down with their first possession. Mayfield jump started the Pack’s offense by throwing his first interception on the next play. Aaron Rodgers said thank you very much for the thoughtful present and led Green Bay to their first TD and a 7-6 lead.
The Browns then drove deep into Green Bay territory, but Mayfield threw another interception to stop the drive. Once again the Packers converted the turnover into points with a long TD drive and a 14-6 lead. Baker Mayfield managed to keep possession of the ball on Cleveland’s next drive and the Browns got another TD. They tried for two, but failed. The Browns now trailed 14-12.
Green Bay punted and Cleveland had a chance to retake the lead. At least they did until Baker Mayfield threw his 3rd interception of the half. The Packers took over at midfield and Rodgers led them on a third TD drive before the break. The Packer led 21-12 at halftime by converting three turnovers into three TDs.
Both teams kicked a field goal in the 3rd quarter which ended with Green Bay ahead 24-15. The 4th quarter started with a few punts before Cleveland found the end zone again to cut their deficit to 24-22. With 4 minutes left on the clock, the Packers could have iced the game with a few first downs. It didn’t happen as the Browns defense stepped up and forced a punt. The Browns had two minutes left to steal a victory with a field goal. They made it to midfield before Mayfield threw interception number four. The Packers ran a few plays and bled the clock for the win.
This game was all about the turnovers as the Packers scored 21 of their 24 points after picking off Baker Mayfield. Aaron Rodgers (24/34, 202 yards, 3 TDs) took advantage of those short fields with the help of Davante Adams (10 receptions, 114 yards, 2 TDs). Aaron Jones (12 rushes, 66 yards) and A.J. Dillon provided the ground support.
The Packers defense gave up a lot of yards, but forced a lot of turnovers too. The Browns only punted once, the rest of the time they either scored or were picked off. The Packers improved to 12-3. Already champs of the NFC North, they retained the top seed in the NFC. They will host the Vikings next week.
If Baker Mayfield (21/36, 222 yards, 2 TDs, 4 INTs) wouldn’t have shot his offense in the foot so many times the Browns could have won this game easily. Not only did his turnovers stop his own offense, they kick started the Green Bay offense that was struggling to put together drives.
Why did Kevin Stefanski call for so many passes when Baker was playing so poorly? Cleveland is supposed to be a run first team and they had no problems there. Nick Chubb (17 rushes, 126 yards, 1 TD) led a ground attacked that piled up 219 yards and a TD on only 25 carries. The Browns were crushing the Pack on the ground, but Stefanski kept going back to Baker. Bad play calling for a team desperate for a win. The Browns fell to 7-8 and their playoff chances are in jeopardy. They’ll travel to Pittsburgh next Monday night.
Clipping Wings
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Colts 20 Cardinals 16
The other Christmas game wasn’t visited by Santa Claus, instead the Grinch showed up in the form of Covid for Indianapolis. Five offensive lineman and defensive stud Darius Leonard all had to sit the game out. It should have been a devastating blow, but Carson Wentz was able to lift his team up over the tail-spinning Cardinals in the desert.
The Colts are a run first offense, but that was difficult behind a makeshift offensive line. Jonathan Taylor busted out a 43 yard run on Indy’s first possession, yet he struggled to find running lanes the rest of the game. That meant Carson Wentz would need to lead the offense and he did just that. The Colts scored a TD and field goal in the first half while the defense added a safety. The Cardinals scored a TD, but missed the extra point. At halftime the Colts led 12-6.
Arizona scored a TD early in the 3rd quarter behind a Kyler Murray TD pass to take the lead 13-12. Then the Cardinals offense went into hibernation. Indianapolis kicked a field goal to back ahead before the quarter ended and Wentz led a TD drive in the 4th quarter to give the Colts a 22-13 lead. Both offenses then sputtered as the Colts were unable to run out the clock. The Cardinals made a last ditch effort late in the 4th. Down by two scores and running out of time, the Cardinals kicked a field goal with 40 seconds left and attempted an onside kick. The Colts recovered and took a knee to claim the road victory.
Jonathan Taylor (27 rushes, 108 yards) gained 40% of his yards with one carry. The rest of the game he was hindered by a lack of push by the offensive line. The Colts had to adjust their strategy and Carson Wentz (18/28, 225 yards, 2 TDs) picked up the slack. Wentz hit a number of difficult passes and most importantly didn’t turn the ball over.
The Colts improved to 9-6 and are still alive in the AFC South, although their chances of winning the division are diminishing quickly as the Titans keep winning. However Indy is in n excellent spot to claim a wild card. With a healthy running game they will be tough to beat. The Colts host the Raiders next week.
Like last year, the Cardinals are collapsing down the stretch as they lost their third game in a row. Kyler Murray made plays in the air (27/43, 245 yards, 1 TD) and on the ground (4 rushes, 74 yards), but he was unable to make the big play to put the Cardinals over the top. It didn’t help that kicker Matt Prater missed an extra point and two field goal attempts.
The defense was able to contain Jonathan Taylor behind his backup line, but let Carson Wentz make the big plays. Another poor showing at home, where the Cardinals are only 3-4 this season. This loss dropped the Cardinals to 10-5 and second place in the NFC West. The good news for Arizona is they did manage to clinch a wild card spot with the Vikings loss. The bad news for Arizona is they have to play the Cowboys in Dallas next week.
Around The League
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Bengals 41 Ravens 21
With Lamar Jackson (ankle) and Tyler Huntley (covid) both out for this game, the Raven had to turn to 35 year old veteran Josh Johnson to play quarterback. Johnson had only signed with the Ravens 10 days prior, so Baltimore needed its defense to step up. Instead they fell flat on their face as Joe Burrow incinerated them in a blowout win for the Bengals.
It didn’t matter who played quarterback for the Ravens because their defense was destroyed. Joe Burrow (37/46, 525 yards, 4 TDs) was unstoppable. The Bengals never punted. They did miss one field goal and ran out the clock with their last possession. The remaining seven possessions ended up with scores.
Burrow had plenty of options as all of his receivers were open the entire game. Tee Higgins (12 receptions, 194 yards, 2 TDs), Ja’Marr Chase (7 receptions, 125 yards), Tyler Boyd (3 receptions, 85 yards, 1 TD) and Joe Mixon (6 receptions, 70 yards, 1 TD) all ran wild. Mixon also ran for a TD.
The win improved the Bengals to 9-6 and gave them sole possession of first place in the AFC North. The Bengals are sitting pretty as they hold the tiebreaker over the Ravens and the Steelers. Good thing for Cincy since they will host the Chiefs next week.
Under trying circumstances Josh Johnson (28/40, 304 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT) played well. Per usual tight end Mark Andrews (8 receptions, 125 yards, 1 TD) was the top target in the passing game. Those two were the entire offense as the Ravens only gained 39 yards on the ground.
Defensively the Ravens embarrassed themselves by giving up one of the biggest passing games in NFL history. The Ravens have now lost 4 straight games and their record fell to 8-7. They are in serious danger of missing the playoffs. They will host the Rams next week.
Rams 30 Vikings 23
Speaking of the Rams, they got a good road win in Minnesota despite the fact that Matthew Stafford was in giving holiday mood. Maybe playing in Minnesota gave him a Detroit flashback. In the end it didn’t matter as the running game and the defense were able to prop him up.
Los Angeles should have blown out the Vikings, but Stafford’s turnovers kept Minnesota in the game even though Kirk Cousins made a bad mistake as well. The Rams scored a TD on their first possession and the Vikings were poised to respond, but Cousins threw an interception on the Rams 2-yard line.
The Rams were up 10-0 when Stafford threw his first interception, giving the Vikings the ball on the Rams 11-yard line. Despite the ultra-short field, the Vikings couldn’t push the ball across the goal line and had to settle for a field goal. The Rams kicked another field goal before the break and took a 13-3 lead into halftime.
Stafford threw an interception on the Rams first possession of the second half, but the defense held firm and Minnesota punted. So Stafford threw another interception that gave the Vikings the ball on the Rams 2-yard line. This time they cashed it in and cut their deficit to 13-10. It was as close as they would get for the rest of the game. The Rams extended their lead to 20-10 a few series later when they returned a punt for a TD.
The Rams tacked on 10 more points in the 4th quarter. The Vikings made a run, but had to settle for too many field goals. It wasn’t enough as the Rams held on for a 30-23 victory.
Matthew Stafford (21/37, 197 yards, 1 TD, 3 INTs) was off of his game. However unlike his days in Detroit he has a team around him that can bail him out. Sony Michel (27 rushes, 131 yards, 1 TD) had a strong game on the ground. The special teams scored a TD and the defense prevented the Vikings from scoring too many points from the turnovers.
The Rams improved to 10-5, first place in the NFC West. The win clinched a wild card spot and the loss by the Cardinals gave the Rams a clear path to win the division. I’d say it was a good day for Los Angeles. The Rams will travel to Baltimore next week.
The Vikings really needed this game, but despite having multiple opportunities to come back after turnovers they fell short. Kirk Cousins (27/38, 315 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT) didn’t play well in the red zone. Justin Jefferson (8 receptions, 116 yards) was his top target. No Dalvin Cook meant Alexander Mattison (13 rushes, 41 yards, 1 TD) had to handle the running duties and he wasn’t able to make any explosive plays.
The Vikings fell to 7-8 and will most likely need to win out to have any chance of making the playoffs. That is going to be a tall task since the Vikings will visit Green Bay next week.
Falcons 20 Lions 16
The Lions got bit by the covid bug and had to play a lot of backups. They were game, but they couldn’t make the plays needed to put Detroit over the Falcons. The Lions winning streak was halted at one game.
Despite using a bunch of guys I’ve never heard of, the Lions were able to move the ball. Until they got close to the goal line. Three times Detroit drove inside the Falcons 10 yard line and all three times they came away without a TD. Ouch. Those three drives ended with two field goals and an interception.
The Falcons weren’t exactly dynamite on offense either, but they scored two TDs on their two trips to the red zone. The Falcons had the lead 20-16 and the ball with two minutes left in the game when they did what the Falcons do: Russell Gage fumbled the ball, giving the Lions possession on the Falcons 37-yard line. Yeesh.
The Lions had a chance to win with a TD, but Tim Boyle threw an interception in the end zone. That is also what the Lions normally do. A fitting screwy ending to a game between these two duds.
Matt Ryan (18/24, 215 yards, 1 TD) had a decent day. Tight end Kyle Pitts (6 receptions, 102 yards) was his top target by far. Somehow the Falcons improved to 7-8. A soft schedule has helped, but I’m surprised Atlanta has won this many games. They travel to Buffalo next week.
The fact the Lions were competitive missing so many starters says something about their grit, I’ll give them that. Tim Boyle (24/34, 187 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT) didn’t play any worse than Jared Goff usually does. Jamaal Williams (19 rushes, 77 yards) had a decent day on the ground. The Lions fell to 2-12-1. They play the Seahawks in Seattle next week.
Jets 26 Jaguars 21
The top two picks of the 2021 draft went to head-to-head and we got the awful game you would expect to see. The Jets couldn’t pass, the Jaguars couldn’t stop the run and at the end the Jaguars last chance of winning died on the one yard line.
Zach Wilson couldn’t throw well, but he scored a TD on a 52 yard run where half of the Jaguars defense missed a tackle and the other half stood there and watched as he ran by them.
https://twitter.com/i/status/1475171531126808576
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The Jets also scored on a 102 yard kickoff return. Those two big plays helped them carry a 26-21 lead late into the 4th quarter. The Jaguars had one last chance to win and they drove the ball all the way down to the Jets 1-yard line, where they face a 4th and goal with 9 seconds left. Most teams would run, but Jacksonville called a pass. Trevor Lawrence’s pass fell incomplete and the game was over.
New York piled up 273 total yards on the ground, led by Michael Carter (16 rushes, 118 yards). They needed it as Zach Wilson (14/22, 102 yards, 1 TD, 1 rushing TD) didn’t do much in the air. The Jets improved to 4-11. They will travel to Tampa Bay next week.
The Jaguars offense showed some life this week, but their defense was steam rolled. Trevor Lawrence (26/39, 280 yards) had one of his better games, but he still comes up short in critical moments. At least he didn’t turn the ball over. Jacksonville used 6 different runners to gain 132 yards and a TD on 31 carries. The Jaguars fell to 2-13, last in the NFL. They will travel to New England next week.
That's the end of Part I. Part II will be out later this week when I find time in between scarfing down Christmas cookies. Hmm, it could be a while. Thanks for reading and feel free to leave a comment below.