Week 12 Thoughts

It feels like something's missing in the Sunday NFL games when your team played on Thursday. There's a great deal of comfort to that missing feeling when your team won that Thursday game. As the Minnesota Vikings did for me this week. Here are some thoughts about a slate of games that didn't include the Vikings.

I've found the NFC South to be a fun division in recent years. There were a few seasons in which I thought the New Orleans Saints-Atlanta Falcons rivalry was the best in the league. My fondness for that division was the reason that I watched the Falcons-Buccaneers game in the morning. Well, that and the fact that the Falcons host the Vikings next week.

Julio Jones is a beast. No explanation needed there. 12 catches for 253 yards and 2 touchdowns. He even added a 15-yard run. The Buccaneers had no answer.

Falcons receiver Mohamed Sanu sure throws a perty pass. He tossed a 51-yard touchdown to Jones. He's completed all six passes that he's thrown over his career.

Some of the speediest linebackers in the league were playing in the Bucs-Falcon game. Kwon Alexander and Lavonte David for the Bucs. Deion Jones and Duke Riley for the Falcons. They get to ball carriers in a blink. The only linebacker that rivals those four is Ryan Shazier of the Pittsburgh Steelers.

I was slow to accept the new touchdown celebrations that are all the rage in the NFL this season. I've always preferred players to toss the ball to the official and get on with the game. I've softened that stance. I like some of these celebrations. I especially like those that include the offensive linemen. The big guys like to be a part of the fun.

The Carolina Panthers shook off a sluggish offense and put and end a back-and-forth contest with the New York Jets during a flurry in the fourth quarter. Linebacker Luke Kuechly returned a fumble 34 yards for a score. Two minutes late Kaelin Clay returned a punt 60 yards for a score. In those two minutes the Panthers flipped a 20-18 deficit into a 32-20 lead. Good teams do this sort of thing. If one unit is floundering another can carry the team to a win.

The Los Angeles Rams rebounded nicely from the loss to the Vikings last week. They stopped the eight game win streak of the previously soaring New Orleans Saints, 26-20. That eight-game win streak had a lot of media talking heads already sticking the Saints in the NFC Championship game against the Philadelphia Eagles. It's always proper to let the games play before anointing anyone.

Speaking of the Eagles, the Chicago Bears couldn't do a single thing against them. Actually, the Bears did boot a field goal. The final was 31-3 and it felt like the Eagles were cruising from the start.

I thought that this could be the week that the Cleveland Browns would finally get their first win of the season. In a battle for Ohio, they were visiting a Cincinnati Bengals team that has left a lot to be desired. Instead the Bengals won Ohio 30-16.

The Kansas City Chiefs keep sinking. They started the season by ripping off five straight wins in very impressive fashion. They lost to the Buffalo Bills yesterday, 16-10, to drop to 6-5. They've won a single game in the last six after that 5-0 start. It's as if they're trying to match what the Vikings did last year. 5-0 start to 8-8 finish.

The game of the day was the last game of the day. Green Bay Packers at Pittsburgh Steelers wasn't supposed to be a fair fight. Despite being a little inconsistent the Steelers had powered to an 8-2 start. The Packers were hacking away at 5-5 without Aaron Rodgers. Packers quarterback Brett Hundley had, by far, his best game in place of Rodgers. He completed 17 of 26 passes for 245 yards and three TDs. TDs of 39, 54, and 55 yards. With a last second 53-yard field goal, the Steelers were able to sneak away with a 31-28 win. They needed great games from their great players to do that sneaking away. Ben Roethlisberger completed 33 of 45 passes for 351 yards and four TDs. Le'Veon Bell carried the 20 times for 95 yards and caught 12 passes for 88 yards. Antonio Brown caught 10 passes for 169 yards and two TDs. That's a dynamic trio. When they are on they are very tough to beat. They were on last night and the Packers damn near beat them.

Here's how things stand with tonight's game and five weeks to go.

NFC Playoff Picture

Division Leaders
1. Philadelphia Eagles  10-1
2. Minnesota Vikings  9-2
3. LA Rams  8-3
3. NO Saints  8-3

Wild Card
5. Carolina Panthers  8-3
6. Atlanta Falcons  7-4

In The Hunt
Seattle Seahawks  7-4
Detroit Lions  6-5
Green Bay Packers  5-6
Dallas Cowboys  5-6
Washington Redskins  5-6
Arizona Cardinals  5-6

AFC Playoff Picture

Division Leaders
1. New England Patriots  9-2
2. Pittsburgh Steelers  9-2
3. Tennessee Titans  7-4
4. Kansas City Chiefs  6-5

Wild Card
5. Jacksonville Jaguars  7-4
6. Buffalo Bills  6-5

In The Hunt
Baltimore Ravens  5-5
Cincinnati Bengals  5-6
Los Angeles Chargers  5-6
Oakland Raiders  5-6

Advantage: NFC.