In AFC, victories starting to pile up
Through Week 12, conference has 12 teams at .500 or better
The NFL has never quite seen a conference like this year’s AFC.
Heading into December, only four teams in the conference have losing records, with the 12 teams at .500 or better the most for a conference through 12 weeks since the merger.
There have been three seasons when 11 teams in a conference didn’t have losing records at this juncture, having happened previously in the AFC in 2014 and 1980, and the NFC in 2008.
The AFC West is leading the way with all four teams holding winning records with the Chiefs (7-4) one game up on a trio of 6-5 teams in the Chargers, Raiders and Broncos.
This marked the fourth time since the current eight-division format started in 2002 that all teams in a division had winning records after 12 weeks. It also happened in the 2014 AFC North and the 2008 AFC East and NFC South.
The AFC North also has provided four of the teams at .500 or better.
It’s a far different story in the NFC where, for the second straight season, only six teams are at .500 or better through 12 weeks. The last time a conference had fewer at this point in the season came in 2013, in the AFC.
It’s a jumbled mess in the middle of the NFC with four teams — Washington, the Vikings, Falcons and Saints — currently tied for seventh at 5-6, a half-game ahead of the Eagles and Panthers at 5-7.
That leaves open the possibility that a team with a losing record could make the playoffs for a second straight year after Washington won the NFC East last season with a 7-9 mark. In all, 14 of the 16 NFC teams are within one game of a playoff spot, with only the Seahawks (3-8) and Lions (0-10-1) seemingly out of contention.
The dichotomy between the conferences is less about AFC dominance than it is about the lack of a dominant team in the AFC. While the NFC has three teams with three or fewer losses — the Cardinals, Packers and Buccaneers — only the Ravens can say that in the AFC.
The AFC does have a slight edge in the interconference play with a 31-27-1 record.
Double threat
Deebo Samuel has emerged as one of the NFL’s top receivers in his third season. He’s also been a pretty effective runner of late as a unique dual threat for the 49ers.
Samuel has rushed for 181 yards and four TDs on 19 carries the last three games when lining up as a running back. Samuel is the first receiver since the merger to run for a TD in three straight games in the same season.
His five TD runs are the most for a receiver in a single season in the Super Bowl era, surpassing Tavon Austin’s four in 2015.
Samuel also joined Roger Craig (1985) and Marshall Faulk (1999) as the only players to score five TDs running and receiving and have 1,000 yards receiving in a single season.
Bad streak
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford is in the midst of a forgettable streak. Stafford has thrown a pick six in three straight games.
Stafford is the first QB to throw pick sixes in three straight games since 2013, when Matt Schaub had a record four-game streak and Blaine Gabbert did it three games in a row.
The only other players since 1991 to do it in three straight games are Peyton Manning (2001), Ty Detmer (1996) and John Elway (1994).
Take it away
The Patriots’ J.C. Jackson has a knack for taking the ball away.
Jackson had his seventh interception of the season last week against the Titans, giving him 24 in his career. That’s tied with Richard Sherman for the third-most for a player in his first four seasons since the merger, one behind Lester Hayes and Everson Walls.