Middle-of-pack AFC teams catching fire
1. The league flex-scheduled the Packers-49ers contest into the Sunday night slot, a sensible decision to showcase the NFC’s top-seeded outfits entering the weekend. But in the process, Seahawks-Eagles — this matchup was the originally scheduled “SNF” game — was relegated to a 1 p.m. ET start. Didn’t love it for Seattle, which won nevertheless but had to deal with another early kickoff on the East Coast, and hated it for afternoon viewing purposes. Cowboys-Patriots on Fox was a sexy matchup, but a weather-impaired game wasn’t much fun to watch ... though better than the CBS offering of Jaguars-Titans. Please, Commissioner Goodell, can we try to build in (or flex in) a little more variety in the late Sunday afternoon viewing window, especially when other games are stripped out of it?
2. Bravo to the Patriots, who added another feather to their dynastic headdress. With its win over Dallas, New England became the first team in NFL history to win at least 10 games in 17 consecutive seasons. The Pats previously shared the mark with San Francisco (198398).
3. The victorious Patriots held the Cowboys to a seasonlow nine points. However, that might not have been the case had conservative Dallas coach Jason Garrett, his team trailing 13-6, gone for it on 4th-and-7 from the Patriots’ 11-yard line with 6:04 to go. He settled for a field goal ... and Dallas eventually lost 13-9.
4. Tom Brady misfired on 20 of 37 passes amid those poor weather conditions in Foxborough. However, his passer rating over the past three weeks is just 73.9, which will continue to fuel concerns about the viability of the Patriots’ offense.
5. Who wants the AFC’s final playoff berth? The Colts surrendered it to the Raiders on Thursday, then Oakland turned it over to the Steelers on Sunday. All three teams are 6-5, but none is playing as well as Cleveland or Tennessee right now.
6. The Bosa brothers enjoy sacking Aaron Rodgers, combining to bag the Packers’ star 21⁄2 times this season.
7. For whatever it’s worth, the Saints are 5-0 this year under backup QB Teddy Bridgewater with a point differential averaging 6.6 points. With Drew Brees starting under center, New Orleans is 4-2 with an average point differential of 1.5.
8. Not sure how the league could fail to designate GiantsBears as its #NFL100 game of the week given the franchises’ shared history, which includes 17 league championships dating to the pre-Super Bowl era.
9. Seattle keeps winning, which is all the Seahawks care about, but QB Russell Wilson (two TDs, two interceptions over last two games) is losing serious momentum to Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson in the MVP debate.
10. Cleveland’s Baker Mayfield has started 24 straight games, the longest active streak among quarterbacks in the AFC North, for so long a division known for stability at the position.
11. Despite suspended DE Myles Garrett’s absence, the Browns have returned to relevance, winning their third game in a row and returning to the AFC wild-card chase.
12. Did you know the Grey Cup, the Canadian Football League’s Super Bowl, blows out halftime, too? Keith Urban performed at intermission Sunday in what appeared to be a better show than many Super Bowl attendees are treated to.
13. Congratulations to Bills RB Frank Gore (15,289 yards), who overtook Barry Sanders to become the No. 3 all-time rusher in league history behind Emmitt Smith and Walter Payton. Gore, now in his 15th season, has a lot of work to do to catch Payton, needing 1,438 more yards to surpass “Sweetness.”
14. The Jets have suddenly caught fire, winning three straight while scoring 34 points in every one of those victories. The last time the Jets scored 34+ points in three consecutive weeks was in 2008 ... when Brett Favre was their quarterback.
15. Jets S Jamal Adams has at least a half-sack in each of his past four games, totaling 61⁄2 in that stretch. He had 51⁄2 sacks in his first 39 NFL games.
16. The turtleneck was nice (and titillating). But please, Gronk, we want you back on the field. You’re off to a Wittenesque start with this TV gig.
17. Saints WR Michael Thomas became the second player with three consecutive seasons of at least 100 catches, joining Antonio Brown, who did it six years in a row.
18. Good thing the trade deadline has passed. Can you imagine the number of Philadelphians who’d be demanding the Eagles reacquire Nick Foles? Carson Wentz fumbled twice and was picked off twice Sunday, while operating a depleted offense and getting hurt himself, for a team that will probably have to win the NFC East if it’s going to crack a loaded playoff field.
19. Is there a more quietly consistent, perhaps underrated, bunch than the Texans? Perhaps it’s because Bill O’Brien and Co. have yet to make much hay in January, but it’s worth noting Houston is now in position to win the AFC South for the fourth time in the past five seasons.
20. It’s not unusual for a rookie quarterback to lack selfawareness. But Washington’s Dwayne Haskins is surely the first without selfie-awareness.
21. The Lions have held a lead in every game this season.
22. The Bengals have fielded scads of horrendous teams. But this is the first Cincinnati squad to start a season 0-11.
23. The Buccaneers have two 1,000-yard receivers for the second time in team history, Mike Evans and Chris Godwin both eclipsing the mark Sunday.
24. However, let’s not forget Tampa Bay’s big men. Defensive linemen Ndamukong Suh and Vita Vea both scored touchdowns in the team’s 3522 win at Atlanta, Suh returning his second fumble recovery of the season to pay dirt.
25. Josh Allen > Brandon Allen.
26. Win or lose, during the season or not, Falcons coach Dan Quinn consistently supports the military and integrates service members into club operations. He even wore Army Airborne paratrooper wings on his sideline shirt Sunday. We salute you, Coach Q.
27. Titans RB Derrick Henry scored two touchdowns in a 16second span Sunday. Ten of Henry’s 35 career TDs have come against Jacksonville.
28. Ryan Tannehill ran for two TDs and passed for two more in Tennessee’s win, making him the first Titans’ quarterback to do that in a game since Steve McNair in 2001.
29. Did you know the Falcons refer to QB Matt “Matty Ice” Ryan’s kids as the “Ice Cubes”? The Ryans completed passes at a 50% clip Sunday, Matt going 23-for-46 in Atlanta’s loss and one of his sons appearing to finish 1-for-2 in pregame warm-ups.
30. Panthers rookie Joey Slye missed two extra point tries and a 28-yard field goal attempt in Carolina’s 34-31 loss in New Orleans. Slye might be opening the door for injured veteran Graham Gano to get his job back in 2020.
31. Bye bye bye. Week 12 exhausted the remaining byes for the league’s 32 teams, the Chiefs, Vikings, Cardinals and Chargers all getting their downtime.
32. Dearest mother — I’m in a state of great dismay to hear the Maplemen are competing for a “Grey Cup.” Why not a “Blue Cup”? What has happened in the trenches? And what, pray tell, is a Blue Bomber? Surely an insidious weapon if I am to believe reports from the remotest of fronts. Even though Nicole and I are now with child, I cannot stop thinking of the men following their ambush in Texas. — Andrew