12 Thoughts from Sunday's Week 11 Games
The play of the Chargers defense on the Packers’ go-ahead scoring drive was absolutely atrocious. First, they bailed the Packers out with a pass interference by Asante Samuel Jr. on a 3rd-and-20 after he unnecessarily grabbed Dontayvion Wicks. Two plays later, a missed tackle by Michael Davis turned a 5-yard completion into a 35-yard gain. And then on the game-winning touchdown, the Chargers failed to get lined up quickly enough in response to Green Bay’s no huddle. Linebacker Kenneth Murray Jr. ran to the perimeter late to cover A.J. Dillon and ended up inadvertently picking his own man, who would get beat for the game-winning touchdown. This performance comes fresh off of a loss to the Lions where there were several busted coverages.
Russell Wilson’s resurgence after an awful 2022 season is certainly a great storyline. He’s currently tied for 3rd in the NFL in TD passes, 2nd in INT %, and 3rd in passer rating. However, it’s the Broncos defense that has catapulted this team back into the playoff picture. They’ve allowed an average of just 17.4 points over the last 5 games.
The Dolphins took care of business against the Raiders, and it was the defense that came up big this time. They allowed just 13 points, got 2 sacks, and forced 3 turnovers. That offense is fun to watch, but Miami’s championship hopes rest on this side of the ball.
In their first game with Joe Brady as the offensive coordinator, the Bills brought a little more balance back to the game plan. Maybe it was more related to the circumstances of the game and the opponent. However, in the first half (before the rout was on), their run-to-pass ratio was 18-25. It seemed like this would be the approach this year based on their offseason moves. They don’t have to become the ‘93 Cowboys, but more of an emphasis on the run can give Josh Allen some much-needed relief.
The Browns and Steelers combined for just 23 points and went 7-for-31 on 3rd down. That’s just the way it should be in these AFC North clashes. The Browns came out on top in this one to move to 7-3. As we’ve said many times this year, if they can just get something out of the quarterback position, no matter who it is, they have a chance to make a surprise run with that defense.
Giants QB Tommy DeVito got the first win of his NFL career as he completed 18 of 26 passes for 246 yards and 3 touchdowns. His mother better make sure she goes out on Monday and gets the papers, gets the papers, with his name plastered all over the sports section.
The Cowboys defense held the Panthers to a season-low 187 yards and Daron Bland got his 4th defensive touchdown of 2023. The Cowboys need to make sure they take care of business on Thanksgiving vs. the Commanders, because their schedule gets pretty tough after that (Seahawks, Eagles, Bills, Dolphins, Lions).
The old Jared Goff showed up early on Sunday, throwing 3 INTs and putting the Lions in a huge hole. The new Lions showed up late, doing what they had to do on both sides of the ball to come back from a 12-point deficit with 4:15 remaining in the game.
C.J. Stroud finally looked like a rookie and fired three interceptions against the Cardinals. Still, the Texans won. You know how we feel about ugly wins - they’re often the mark of a good team. Houston is now 6-4 and will face the 7-3 Jaguars next week for the AFC South division lead (Houston already beat Jacksonville once).
Speaking of the Jaguars, their offense needed a game like that, didn’t they? Trevor Lawrence bounced back in a big way, completing 24 of 32 passes for 262 yards and 4 total touchdowns. It seemed like every big play came off of play-action, which is a great way to settle a quarterback down.
The Rams are now 2-0 against the Seahawks and 2-6 against the rest of the league. The win in Matthew Stafford’s return halted their 3-game slide. As for Seattle, I just can’t make my mind up about what type of team they are. They’re a few plays away from being 8-2 and a few away from 3-7.
Brock Purdy (21-25, 333 yds, 3 TD, 0 INT) became the first 49ers quarterback since Joe Montana in 1989 to have a perfect passer rating in a single game. His ball placement and timing were right back to where they were when the 49ers’ offense was rolling out of the gates earlier this season.