Admin December 10, 2024
NFL Overreactions Week 14
Mackenzie Salmon breaks down the biggest NFL storylines from Week 14.
Sports Seriously
NFL power rankings entering Week 15 of the 2024 season (previous rank in parentheses):
1. Detroit Lions (1): Their positioning at the top of the heap feels fairly unassailable – the NFC leaders tied for the league’s best record (12-1), consecutive playoff berths in hand for the first time in 29 years and with the NFL’s largest point differential (+183). And yet there are the mounting defensive injuries, the potential double-edged sword borne of HC Dan Campbell’s fearless decision making, to say nothing of the fact that Minnesota (11-2) just will not go away – regardless of how overshadowed the Vikings tend to be. Said more succinctly, the Lions are – currently – the best team, but they’re operating in an environment where a hard left turn seems increasingly possible.
2. Philadelphia Eagles (2): QB Jalen Hurts is two wins shy of the third 11-game winning streak (playoffs excluded) of his career. But rather than the focus being on such success, he’s at the center of another potential meltdown as internal complaints about Philly’s struggling passing game are surfacing despite the team’s loaded win column. Having to deal with Pittsburgh’s T.J. Watt and Co. this Sunday seems unlikely to help the cause of Hurts, who hasn’t passed for 200 yards in a month.
3. Buffalo Bills (3): “Josh Allen is an alien.” Quite the assessment from Rams HC Sean McVay, who watched the very legal alien account for six touchdowns Sunday even though the AFC East champs dropped a 44-42 decision. The effort might help Allen land the MVP award, but the loss seriously damaged Buffalo’s bid to win the conference’s No. 1 playoff seed.
4. Kansas City Chiefs (5): Sunday night’s two-point, division-clinching victory was pretty much a microcosm of K.C.’s bizarre season – including the fact the champs have had three kickers, two more than any other team in league history has had in one season, hit a game-winning field goal on the final play. But nice to have a two-game lead in the overall AFC standings, especially with Myles Garrett, Danielle Hunter and Watt set to test the Chiefs’ festering inability to protect QB Patrick Mahomes over the next month.
5. Minnesota Vikings (9): They’re 11-2. Seriously, they’re 11-2 and have just as good a shot as the Eagles of stealing home-field advantage from Detroit. Coming off a career performance Sunday (347 yards, 5 TDs passing), the future of QB Sam Darnold, who’s on an expiring contract, is going to be one of the offseason’s most fascinating topics.
6. Green Bay Packers (4): Really tough Week 14 loss in Detroit relegates them to a very strange spot – having to navigate the final month of a season in which they’re already virtually assured of a wild-card spot but basically have no shot at the NFC North crown.
7. Pittsburgh Steelers (6): And now begins the stretch – at Philadelphia, at Baltimore, vs. Kansas City and vs. Cincinnati – which should really be indicative of how legitimate a contender this team truly is.
8. Baltimore Ravens (7): How ever will they ever handle the Giants on Sunday without suspended WR Diontae Johnson? Perhaps one of many latent, if less serious, questions about the Ravens as they try to avoid a December fate similar to Green Bay’s.
9. Washington Commanders (8): The last time they won more than 10 games was 1991 – also the last time Washington enjoyed a Super Bowl season. Coming out of their bye at 8-5, the Commanders seem likely to be favored in three of their final four games, when they could be warding off NFC West teams for the conference’s final playoff spot.
10. Los Angeles Rams (18): They’re making a late push for the second straight season, winning six of their past eight – Sunday’s upset of the Bills an exclamation that LA could be a force to be reckoned with moving forward … if all of those play-making studs stay in the lineup.
11. Seattle Seahawks (10): The current NFC West leaders won’t remain on their perch if the Rams win out. The ‘Hawks are currently on a four-game heater of their own, the defense playing much better while RB2 Zach Charbonnet balanced the offense Sunday. But immediate tests ahead with the Packers and Vikings coming to Lumen Field the next two weeks.
12. Los Angeles Chargers (12): Pretty good effort Sunday night at Arrowhead, especially with RB J.K. Dobbins and WR Ladd McConkey, the Bolts’ leaders in yards from scrimmage, both unavailable. Their six turnovers are the league’s fewest, yet it still feels like a conservative, mistake-mitigating approach is one that isn’t going to pay many dividends in the playoffs.
13. Denver Broncos (13): Surtain Island? CB Patrick Surtain II is playing like prime Darrelle Revis, thriving in all aspects of the game while allowing just 26 receptions (one for a TD) this season, per PFF. He’s got to be on the short list of candidates for Defensive Player of the Year.
14. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (16): QB Baker Mayfield leads the league in fumbles (12) and fumble recoveries (7). Seems on brand for a first-place team that had lost four in a row going into its Week 11 bye but has won every game since.
15. Houston Texans (14): “Nobody embodies our program more than Azeez,” GM Nick Caserio recently said of (rightfully) suspended LB Azeez Al-Shaair. Yet is it worth wondering if Caserio should’ve kept blossoming players like DE Jonathan Greenard and LB Blake Cashman rather than building this program around the likes of free-agent signings like Al-Shaair and aging Danielle Hunter.
16. Arizona Cardinals (11): A prominent reason for their untimely three-game skid? QB Kyler Murray serving up multiple INTs in consecutive games for the first time in his NFL career.
17. Cincinnati Bengals (19): QB Joe Burrow’s latest MVP-caliber (if not worthy) performance plus an inspired defensive showing are the latest indicators this team could be a dangerous spoiler in the season’s final weeks.
18. San Francisco 49ers (21): They could potentially be relying on RB4 Patrick Taylor Jr. this Thursday, though maybe it wouldn’t be a major issue given the Niners’ top three runners have all averaged at least 5.4 yards per touch this season.
19. Indianapolis Colts (20): Sunday’s game at Denver is a virtual must-win if Indy wants any viable shot at the playoffs. And though many of QB Anthony Richardson’s passing stats are cringeworthy, the man who leads the NFL in yards per completion (14.8) can still rip off chunks … it just remains to be seen if he can do that frequently enough.
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20. Miami Dolphins (17): They barely escaped the lowly Jets at home but finish the season with three of four on the road, including potential cold-weather games at Cleveland and New York. Even QB Tua Tagovailoa’s league-best precision (73.8% completion rate) might not be enough to overcome the problematic narratives this team has yet to slay.
21. Atlanta Falcons (15): As their season comes crashing down around instantly disintegrating QB Kirk Cousins, wouldn’t it be wild if ATL is further crippled Monday night in Las Vegas by former QB1 Desmond Ridder?
22. New England Patriots (22): Seriously, is there really any doubt that former HC Bill Belichick’s flirtation with the University of North Carolina is actually a fact-finding mission surrounding current Pats QB Drake Maye and BB’s desire to neutralize him when he’s going for Don Shula’s all-time NFL wins record as a coach – which will doubtless be on the line when Belichick next faces the Pats? Right?
23. Carolina Panthers (24): They’ve lost three in a row coming out of their bye … yet are playing markedly better football and are about three plays away from being 6-7 and in the thick of the NFC South race. However, RB Jonathon Brooks’ ACL re-injury is quite a bummer given the future role projected here for the explosive rookie.
24. Chicago Bears (23): Thomas Brown will never forget his debut in the interim HC role, when his offense was outgained by 315 yards and outscored 24-0 by the Niners … in the first half.
25. New Orleans Saints (25): As well as things have gone under fiery interim HC Darren Rizzi, who’s now 3-1, if the Saints are going to extend their season, they’ll likely have to do so with a backup quarterback and certainly amid a schedule that will serve up three teams (Commanders, Packers, Bucs) projected to make the playoffs over the next four weeks.
26. Dallas Cowboys (26): “I wouldn’t wish this on anybody. You can’t even put that (loss) into words, bro, to be honest.” Don’t want to read too much into LB Micah Parsons’ words after another painful defeat Monday … but speculation seems likely to grow that maybe it would be best if he and the Cowboys go their separate ways in the coming months.
27. Cleveland Browns (27): No team has a higher percentage of drives (73.9%) end without points … which is what happens when you commit 21 turnovers and miss nine field-goal tries.
28. New York Jets (28): When constantly falling short of the playoffs, you get associated with the likes of the Buffalo Sabres and Los Angeles Angels. But rejoice, Jets fans – even if QB Aaron Rodgers won’t be around much longer to let you down, new Mets OF Juan Soto allegedly will be breaking your hearts for the next 15 years.
29. Las Vegas Raiders (29): Brock Bowers’ record-setting season – almost surely destined to be the greatest ever by a rookie tight end – is so much more impressive given the general limitations of this offense.
30. Jacksonville Jaguars (31): They came, uh, roaring back in the fourth quarter to win the NFL’s lowest-scoring game of the season 10-6 in Nashville on Sunday. But, for some reason, everyone’s obsessed with the Rams-Bills shootout. Whatever.
31. Tennessee Titans (30): Hats off to RB Tony Pollard, who’s on pace to surpass 1,500 yards from scrimmage for the first time in his career – despite the obvious shortcomings of this attack.
32. New York Giants (32): ICYMI, they’ve been in existence for exactly 100 seasons. They are also two losses from the first 10-game skid in franchise history.
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