Giving thanks in the NFL Recap

WASHINGTON — I know we’re almost a week removed from Thanksgiving…but
‘tis the season to give thanks, right?

As is customary for the NFL Recap, the week beginning with the Thanksgiving
games is a time to appreciate the best of what we’ve seen over the course of
the season to date. Here’s a few of mine:

Crazy divisions

Two in particular: First, the AFC North, which is the first division ever to
have all of its teams at least three games over .500 11 games into the season.
You can thank their collective 11-1-2 record against the NFC South for that
gem.

Meanwhile, the aforementioned (and blatantly awful) NFC South is so top-to-
bottom bad, that their last place team (Tampa Bay) is in rare air: they
entered Week 13 just two games out of the division lead — and thus, still a
threat to host a playoff game — and simultaneously only one game away from
holding the worst record in the league, entitling them to the first overall
pick in the upcoming draft. Any way the NFL would contract an entire division?

Odell Beckham, Jr.
I simply can’t get enough of this catch.

The end of the RGIII Era in Washington

As
I said in the wake of his benching
, Robert Griffin III has spent the 2014
season proving he’s not the long term answer at quarterback. His attitude, his
play, and his lack of durability have all rapidly worn out his welcome in D.C.
just a year or so after being the most celebrated athlete in town. The sooner
this divorce happens, the better off everyone is.

J.J. Watt

Sunday, this dude had his second game in three weeks with a forced fumble,
fumble recovery, and TD reception. No other player has had such a performance
in the last 5 seasons.

This season, Watt has three touchdown receptions on offense, 11.5 sacks and
two more scores on defense, and a blocked kick on special teams. Not to
mention stories like this
one
remind us he’s one of the nicest guys in the league. At a time when
awful topics like domestic violence and locker room drama dominate the off-
field narrative, it’s refreshing to have a guy like Watt around.
Now for the Week 13 recap. You’ll thank me later (unless you’re a ‘Skins fan.)

Bears 17

Lions 34

The exploits of Megatron and Stafford are definitely impressive, but Detroit
has won back-to-back Thanksgiving games for the first time since the turn of
the century because of its defense. It’ll be fun to see how far that unit can
carry the Lions in the playoffs.

Eagles 33

Cowboys 10

Philly (now 6-0 all-time on Thanksgiving) is almost unstoppable on offense
with Mark Sanchez running the read option. Meanwhile, Tony Romo (whose streak
of 38 consecutive games with a TD pass was snapped) looked beat up just in
time for Dallas’ December swoon. This is now the Eagles’ division to lose.

Seahawks 19

49ers 3

This was more than a statement game; it was more like an elimination game.
Seattle owns Colin Kaepernick and suddenly has the
inside track toward an NFC wild card spot — and maybe even stealing the
division from Arizona.

Redskins 27

Colts 49

Andrew Luck could’ve played Madden on rookie level and not lit up a secondary
like he did the Redskins’ on Sunday. Colt McCoy, RG3, Sammy Baugh…no
quarterback can win with a matador defense like that.

Chargers 34

Ravens 33

San Diego solidified their wild card spot by scoring 21 points in the fourth
quarter to hand Baltimore their first home loss to a west coast opponent. This
will one will haunt the Ravens like Annabelle Lee.

Titans 21

Texans 45

Here’s the list of NFL QBs with 6 TD performances this year: Aaron Rodgers,
Ben Roethlisberger (twice), and Ryan Fitzpatrick. I know one of these is not
like the others…but it just proves we can’t underestimate the power of a good shave and a great education.

Browns 10

Bills 26

Nothing like the combination of Brian Hoyer’s limp right arm and Donte Whitner’s big fat mouth to screw up Mike
Pettine’s return to Buffalo. It looks like Johnny Football’s time to put aside
off-field fisticuffs and start kicking ass on the field.

Giants 21

Jaguars 22

Pretty ironic that New York’s first seven-game losing streak in a decade
spills into Jacksonville, where Tom Coughlin’s head coaching career began.
Super Bowls or not, everything must go in Gotham.

Bengals 14

Bucs 13

Just think…the play on the field was only the second nastiest thing about this game.

Raiders 0

Rams 52

How bad is Oakland? “The Greatest Show on Turf” Rams never scored more than 35
points in a half…yet this St. Louis squad took a 38-0 lead to halftime,
putting the Raiders in their largest halftime hole in team history — en route
to their worst shutout loss since 1962.

Saints 35

Steelers 32

This was the Saints’ first win in Pittsburgh since 1987. To put that in
perspective, that’s the same year Sean Payton played replacement quarterback
for the Bears during the strike.
Speaking of the da Bears…it’s good to see the Ryans’
endearing trait of pissing off the boss
hasn’t skipped a generation.

Panthers 13

Vikings 31

Minnesota hadn’t blocked a punt and run it back for a score in 28 years…so
they made sure to do it twice while they were there. Basically, the Vikings
got seconds on Thanksgiving weekend. Imagine that.

Cardinals 18

Falcons 29

The Cards keep getting dealt key injuries and Drew Stanton is quickly
turning into…Drew Stanton. If this persists, Arizona is going to miss out on
a division title.

Patriots 21

Packers 26

In what many saw as a Super Bowl preview, Aaron Rodgers posted his 6th
straight home game with multiple TD passes and no interceptions–something
only Peyton Manning has matched in the Super Bowl Era.

Meanwhile, Tom Brady posted his first profanity-laced tantrum since Week 4. Tis
the season.

Broncos 29

Chiefs 16

Peyton Manning (now 6-0 against the Chiefs since coming to Denver) is right to
think C.J. Anderson kicks the Broncos offense up a notch. If Anderson keeps up
this level of play, Denver’s Super Bowl hopes kick up several notches as well.

Dolphins 16

Jets 13

Worst…Monday Nighter…of the year.

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