It's unsporting of the Lions to block Sebastian Janikowski's potential game-winning 65-yard field goal. I get that they would have lost the game and possibly missed the playoffs, but when someone's going for an all-time record, I want to see if the kick has the distance. Incidentally, I might have had the Raiders plus half a point.
Maurice Jones-Drew owners had to be ecstatic with his 112 rushing yards in a game that the Jaguars trailed 41-0 late in the third quarter, and Jones-Drew sprained his ankle. It seems he wants to win the rushing title, and I'd expect the Jaguars to try to get it for him to the extent they can.
When Aaron Rodgers has a bad game, you get 235 yards and a touchdown, no interceptions, 32 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown. If you double the rush yards (as they usually count double), that's 297 yards passing and 10 points worth of touchdowns (2.5 TD passes in most leagues). So his floor is 300 and 2.5 with no turnovers.
Like the Packers, the Texans had a bad game, but Arian Foster had 16 carries for 109 yards and five catches for 58 yards. He now has 50 catches for 600 yards despite missing two games.
C.J. Spiller, Reggie Bush and the Seahawks defense put a lot of people in the finals this week. Wes Welker, Percy Harvin. Rob Gronkowski and the Ravens Defense sent a lot of people home.
Drew Brees, Calvin Johnson and LeSean McCoy are supposed to do well for you, but it's nice when your best players have their best games of the season during the playoffs.
Donald Brown, Reggie Bush and McCoy all had long touchdown runs after the game was largely salted away, giving them huge days.This seemed to be a routine occurrence in the days of Emmitt Smith and Terrell Davis - they'd have 20 for 100 and a TD, and they'd be running clock against a tired defense, break a big one and finish with a monster numbers. These days, between the better teams often being pass-heavy and also having running back committees, it's a rarer sight.
The Giants played one of the worst games I've ever seen by any team at any level in any sport. It was beyond unwatchable, and I seriously had to question whether I had been a murderous dictator in a past life to deserve to watch (and be emotionally invested in) such a ghastly spectacle.
Had Cleveland (up 17-7 with 10 minutes left) held on, I would have won a survivor pool.
That the Titans would trot out an aging and injured Matt Hasselbeck over the more dynamic future of their franchise Jake Locker makes no football sense. It makes you wonder whether personal/political considerations are at play - maybe Hasselbeck's a popular veteran in the locker room. Otherwise, it's hard to fathom.
The Chiefs must have really hated Todd Haley. In a way, they were all Jamaal Charles owners last year - in reality football.
Tim Tebow (8.8 YPA, 92 rushing yards, no INTS) didn't play badly, but he's not the type to overcome three fumbles against the Patriots - at least not at this point. Tebow also made an instinctual (and also very lucky) play to avoid a safety by fumbling the ball in the end zone, then picking it up and throwing it away. He also took a 29-yard sack late in the game, but on 4th down, it was the right idea - keep the play alive anyway you could as an incomplete pass would have been game over just the same.
The Chargers and Eagles could beat any team in the NFL right now, and both are still alive for the playoffs. The Eagles need to win out (@ DAL, vs. WAS) and the Giants (3-point dogs) to lose to the Jets, then beat Dallas (who they beat in Dallas). It's not that farfetched. The Chargers need to win out, and the Broncos to lose at Buffalo and to the Chiefs at Denver (less likely).
A healthy Ryan Mathews is a top-10 back. Despite missing two full games (and parts of others), he's got 47 catches and is sixth in the league in yards from scrimmage (1472).
Philip Rivers played a nearly perfect game against the Ravens Sunday night and now has his YPA up to 8.0 on the year. Of course, that makes him ninth in the league this year, behind even Carson Palmer.