Winner – Bryce Young
How would you explain the Carolina Panthers to a higher life form visiting earth? They have a case for being the NFL’s biggest enigma, with the potential to submit to the league’s worst while toppling the best as underdogs. They have been beaten by the 2-10 New Orleans Saints, been blown out 42-13 by the New England Patriots and 40-9 by the Buffalo Bills, while beating the Super Bowl-chasing Green Bay Packers and Los Angeles Rams 16-13 and 31-28, respectively. What are they?
- Josh Allen breaks NFL record in Bills win as Panthers stun Rams in upset
- Eagles booed in ugly defeat to Bears on Black Friday
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Bryce Young was Sunday’s winner as he out-duelled MVP-contending Matthew Stafford with 15 passes for 206 yards and three touchdowns, including a 33-yard strike to Jalen Coker on fourth-and-three and a 43-yard house call to Tetairoa McMillan on fourth-and-two for a passer rating of 147.1. The Rams had rolled into Carolina riding the momentum of six straight wins as the NFC’s top dogs. Stafford had thrown 28 touchdowns and just two interceptions in 11 games, before throwing two picks and losing a fumble. Any. Given. Sunday. Every so often there is a pressing reminder to stick with Bryce Young, to retain patience with him, to believe in his marriage with Dave Canales. This was the latest.
Loser – Lamar Jackson
How healthy is Lamar Jackson right now? The Ravens are nothing without their two-time MVP quarterback, but Jackson continues to look a shade of his usual explosive self since returning from injury, seemingly still nursing the issues that arose since. Baltimore need their talisman at least close to his electric best if they are to avoid a shock playoff omission over the final month of the regular-season, their latest setback coming in an ugly 32-14 defeat to the Joe Burrow-led Cincinnati Bengals on Thanksgiving Thursday. Jackson rushed for just 27 yards from six carries, having been held to 11 and 10 rushing yards in his previous two games. It also marked the fourth successive game in which his completion percentage was below 60 and the third straight game in which he has failed to throw a touchdown pass. Something feels off, and the Ravens might be in more trouble were it not for Pittsburgh’s inconsistencies. Suddenly, the Bengals – a completely different beast with Burrow at the helm – are threatening a late needs-to-be-perfect surge.
Winner – Chicago and their running game
The Rams’ defeat to the Panthers means the Chicago Bears will enter December as the No 1 seed in the NFC; the NFL is wide-open, and the new-era Ben Johnson-led Bears are in contention. Their credentials had been questioned in light of opponent strength and reliance on late heroics, but they delivered one of their most meaningful answers yet on Friday by bullying the – admittedly-faltering – Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles 24-15 to provoke boos from a furious Lincoln Financial Field crowd. They are about to post just their second winning season in the last 13 years; times are changing, for the long-term, they hope.
Caleb Williams’ conjured a beauty to Cole Kmet to put the game to bed, but this was all about Ben Johnson’s running game. Kyle Monongai posted 22 carries for 130 yards and a touchdown while D’Andre Swift followed with 18 carries for 125 yards and a first-quarter score to remind the rest of the NFL why the Bears are the No 1-ranked rushing attack in the league. The sole moment of adversity for Johnson’s side arrived when Williams was intercepted by Jalyx Hunt, before seeing Nahshon Wright rip out of a fumble from the tush-push and then returning to his running game to restore control via Monongai’s resulting touchdown. The Eagles had no answer, and it left offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo facing more heat after another despondent loss.
Loser – Kevin O’Connell
Not even Kevin O’Connell can whisper his coveted recipe for quarterback success into the ears of J.J. McCarthy and Max Brosmer; his genius offensive architecture and elite development are irrelevant in the face of quarterback hell in Minnesota. Sunday might have been his most painful episode yet as the Vikings were blown out 26-0 by the Seattle Seahawks, led by the MVP-contender they let depart in the offseason in Sam Darnold. Minnesota were without second-year starter McCarthy due to a concussion amid his early failure to convince as a long-term solution under center, paving the way for undrafted rookie Brosmer to make his first start. It ended in him completing 19 of 30 passes for 126 yards and four picks, including an 84-yard Ernest Jones pick-six that may go down as the worst interception thrown all season. Such was their incompetence and the devoid of threat on offense that Darnold barely need break sweat to lift Seattle to 9-3. Justin Jefferson had two catches for four yards. Repeat: hell.
Winner – Brock Purdy’s 49ers
The NFL is wide-open. The Super Bowl champions are fading, the AFC’s elite are wildly inconsistent, underdogs are beating top dogs and mediocrity across the league is opening the door for all to stake their claim. As much means the injury-stricken San Francisco 49ers have quietly clawed their way to 9-4 in the latest reminder that fans should not be so quick to put heat on Kyle Shanahan; how the rest of the league would love to have him pulling the strings. San Francisco just beat the Cleveland Browns 26-8, during which Myles Garrett was limited to just one sack – by his standards it’s a modest return – while Brock Purdy, without being spectacular, navigated a clean, well-drilled performance including a touchdown pass and a rushing score. The 49ers – missing Nick Bosa, Mykel Williams and, even while less of a pass rush threat, Fred Warner – managed to generate a pressure rate of 36.7 per cent and limit Shedeur Sanders to a 3.37-second average time to throw while recording three sacks behind Keion White and Clelin Ferrell. Shanahan has the 49ers in playoff contention having missed multiple stalwarts, including his starting quarterback, for large chunks of the season.
Loser – The sliding Colts… and officials
Indianapolis Colts fans erupted into boos around Lucas Oil Stadium when Kenny Moore was flagged for pass interference on Xavier Hutchinson at the start of the fourth quarter. And there were within their right to be furious. It was a phantom PI, Moore barely touching the left arm of the Texans receiver, only to be punished for a loss of eight yards to sustain a drive ending in Nico Collins’ seven-yard touchdown. To pile onto their anger, officials then called Ka’imi Fairbairn’s extra point as good, despite it appearing to miss wide to the right upright. On top of that, they had also seemingly missed a delay of game penalty and, potentially, a face-mask penalty.
The bigger picture was a 20-16 defeat to their division rival Houston Texans as the Colts suffered their third defeat in the last four following a 7-1 start to the year as the class of the AFC. The chasing pack have caught or are catching them up as Daniel Jones, who did throw dimes to Alec Pierce and Josh Downs, plays banged up with a broken bone in his leg and as Jonathan Taylor faces more stubborn solutions to his dominance; when Taylor is quiet, the Colts tend to be quiet. Fittingly, the Colts and Texans meet in the final weekend of the regular-season in a potential division decider.
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