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junker-town · 5 years ago

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5 winners from the final week of the NFL season

Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

In the final week of the regular season, Jaire Alexander’s meaningful penalties and rushing god Ryan Fitzpatrick: both great.

The 2019 NFL regular season is officially over. This means the march to Super Bowl 54 has officially begun. It also means, mercifully, there will be no more Bengals, Jets, or Washington games to muddy our national broadcasts.

In honor of their selfless decision to leave January to the good teams, the NFL’s contenders spent much of Week 17 playing like losers. The Patriots, needing a win to clinch a first-round bye in the playoffs, collapsed in upon themselves against the Dolphins. The Chiefs, in place to leapfrog New England, traded the lead with the Chargers before finally putting away their division rival and securing the conference’s second seed.

The Packers, firmly in the race for the NFC’s top seed, got roasted early by a David Blough receiving touchdown — especially notable because Blough isn’t a receiver (and is, barely, a quarterback). They needed a furious comeback and a game-winning field goal from Mason Crosby as time expired just to escape with a win. The 49ers and Seahawks went down to the wire, and a literal inch of field, to complete the NFC postseason picture.

In the middle of that chaos, the Titans and Eagles claimed the league’s final playoff spots in what turned out to be comfortable wins. And while they may have gained the most from Sunday’s action, they weren’t necessarily Week 17’s biggest winners. Instead, those honors go to ...

It wasn’t: the Browns, who finished 2019 with their worst loss yet

Cleveland didn’t have much to play for in Week 17. The playoffs, once a shining beacon of hope in the preseason, were officially out of reach. All that was left for the Browns was pride and a potential resume-building point in favor of embattled first-year head coach Freddie Kitchens.

This was not nearly enough to carry the team to victory over the previously one-win Bengals. Cleveland squandered an early 7-0 lead and gave up 162 rushing yards to Joe Mixon en route to a 33-23 loss.

Baker Mayfield, who ended 2018 as one of the league’s hottest quarterbacks, finished his season with 21 interceptions and would have led the NFL in picks if not for the continued existence of Jameis Winston. Kitchens lasted exactly 16 games as a head coach before getting fired.

Conversely, Andy Dalton went from getting benched on his birthday to staking the Bengals’ claim as Ohio state champions in what will likely be his final appearance in tiger stripes. An often toothless pass rush got to Mayfield for six sacks. Mixon also deserves credit, not just for a career-best performance, but for innovating this “accidentally assault a ref” postgame celebration.

@Joe_MainMixon bowling down the ref for the W @EvilAndyDalton @CincyProblems pic.twitter.com/X6Uz67nJxS

— chase. (@ChaseLaub1) December 29, 2019

and now, on to ...

Week 17’s actual winners

5. The Bears, who might as well give this rugby thing a shot

Chicago and Minnesota — the latter locked into the NFC’s sixth seed and thus starting a handful of backups — put together a stirring throwback to 1920 with their meaningless Week 17 showdown. The first 30 minutes of play saw the Bears take a 11-6 lead into halftime despite neither team scoring a touchdown.

The Bears broke that streak in the third quarter, but they kept up the “dawn of football” cosplay in the process. David Montgomery scored his team’s only touchdown in a play that wouldn’t have been out of place in the New Zealand All Blacks’ highlight reel.

smh pic.twitter.com/L5TvTzKPp8

— Arif Hasan, nondenominational holiday supporter ⛄ (@ArifHasanNFL) December 29, 2019

Chicago held off a Kirk Cousins-less Vikings team 21-19 to even its record at 8-8 on the season. Mitchell Trubisky, in a performance endemic of his disappointing third year as a pro, needed 37 passes to throw for 207 yards without finding the end zone once.

4. Jaire Alexander, whose mistakes somehow sparked a Packers comeback

Danny Amendola has always been one of the league’s more underrated pot-stirrers. The journeyman wideout is a chippy presence on the field. A first-quarter touchdown throw to quarterback David Blough only increased his volume.

Amendola’s flexing was nearing all-time non-Patriot highs in Week 17 ... until Alexander sent him to Suplex City.

yes, it was a penalty. but i still admire the form on the Jaire Alexander belly-to-back suplex pic.twitter.com/xp5QCG7lkk

— Christian D'Andrea (@TrainIsland) December 29, 2019

That suplex drew a flag and gifted the Lions seven yards, but Alexander earned every one of those yards with his perfect form. While Detroit would go on to score a touchdown at the end of the drive, Amendola wouldn’t have another catch for the rest of the game. The next time he’d have his name called on the broadcast would be after getting flagged for a late hit on another Packers defensive back he’d been jawing with — this time, safety Kevin King.

This, somehow, wasn’t the only penalty on Alexander that seemed to have a net benefit for the Packers. Alexander was shadowing Chris Lacy in man coverage without any safety help when he tripped while tracking down a Blough deep ball. Rather than let Lacy get away for what would have certainly been a breakaway touchdown, the second-year corner grabbed the Lions wideout and intentionally drew a pass interference penalty.

Jaire Alexander with the "welp, i'm screwed" PI here. saved a touchdown, too pic.twitter.com/CvqcS0HD6l

— Christian D'Andrea (@TrainIsland) December 29, 2019

Detroit’s drive would stall out soon after, ending with a 56-yard Matt Prater field goal instead of a touchdown.

Those points were crucial for Green Bay. Aaron Rodgers, on a day when he struggled to connect with his wideouts downfield, found his rhythm in time to lead the Packers back from a 17-3 deficit with 19 minutes to play. Mason Crosby’s 33-yard field goal as time expired sealed a 23-20 win for the visitors and a first-round bye in the postseason.

More importantly, it made Green Bay 2-0 against the Lions in 2019 when the Packers led, technically, for zero seconds of game time.

3. Shaquil Barrett, officially better than Warren Sapp (in one specific way)

The Buccaneers ended 2019 in the most Jameis Winston way possible: on a pick-six. Bruce Arians summed up the finale in the most Bruce Arians way possible.

#GoBucs coach Bruce Arians on Jameis Winston throwing a pick six to end the game and the season with a loss in OT. “It smells as bad as it could possible smell and it’ll smell that way for a long time.''

— Rick Stroud (@NFLSTROUD) December 29, 2019

In the midst of that lesser Lynyrd Skynyrd song were other reasons for optimism. Mike Evans and Chris Godwin emerged as the league’s top wideout tandem, and Breshad Perriman balled out once injuries took each of them off the field. Young cornerbacks Carlton Davis and Sean Murphy-Bunting took the first steps necessary to repair one of the league’s worst secondaries.

But no Buccaneer had a better year than Barrett, who came to Florida on a one-year, $4 million contract and gave Tampa Bay roughly $20 million of value as a pass rusher. The former Broncos rotational piece — he had just 15 starts in 61 games in Denver — went from afterthought to Defensive Player of the Year candidate as the keystone of Arians’ defense.

He had so many sacks in his first four games (nine) it prompted SB Nation’s own Stephen White to write about how absurd he was three different times in the first month of the season. On Sunday, he passed Sapp as the Buccaneers’ all-time single-season sack leader by bringing down Matt Ryan in the second quarter.

Your NEW franchise leader! That's 1️⃣7️⃣.5️⃣ sacks on the season for @MOOCHIE048. pic.twitter.com/80ofRPvJon

— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) December 29, 2019

That wasn’t enough for Barrett. He’d add two more sacks to bring his season total to 19.5. That’s 5.5 more than he’d had in five total seasons as a Bronco. It’s also enough to tie for 13th-most in a single season in league history, joining names like Bruce Smith, Robert Mathis, and Mark Gastineau among players with at least 19 sacks in a season.

Barrett may have come to Tampa on a prove-it deal. Keeping him there is going to cost the club significantly more.

2. Christian McCaffrey, the NFL’s third-ever 1,000/1,000 man

Unlike the Buccaneers, there haven’t been many moral victories for the Panthers this fall. Cam Newton played in just two games, and while Kyle Allen was able to rally Carolina to a 4-2 start, that lack of talent manifested in a 5-11 season that led to longtime coach Ron Rivera getting fired.

There was one bright shining star in the Panthers’ dim constellation, however. McCaffrey claimed his place as one of the league’s best dual-threat tailbacks by rushing for 1,387 yards and hauling in 1,005 receiving yards from Carolina’s depressing lazy Susan of underwhelming QBs. This 17-yard reception — buried in the latter half of a 42-10 loss to the Saints — launched him into the eight-digit stratosphere.

This is the play where CMC makes HISTORY ⤵️@CMC_22 | #KeepPounding pic.twitter.com/06EwirDDUI

— Carolina Panthers (@Panthers) December 29, 2019

Only two other players in NFL history have matched that feat: Roger Craig and Marshall Faulk. The former was an All-Pro on a team that won three Super Bowls. The latter won 2000’s MVP award and is now a Hall of Famer.

Pretty good company to keep!

Carolina stands on the precipice of a rebuild. Team owner David Tepper will have to hire a new coach and make a choice when it comes to retaining former MVP Cam Newton or letting him go. Other expensive veterans like Dontari Poe and Greg Olsen could be on the chopping block as well.

McCaffrey will be the sun around which the rest of the Panthers’ solar system rotates, though.

1. Ryan Fitzpatrick, officially the Dolphins’ 2019 rushing leader

The Patriots’ problem isn’t that they missed out on a first-round bye because they lost as a 17-point favorite Sunday afternoon. Their problem is that they lost to a team whose top runner was a 37-year-old quarterback.

Trades, injuries, arrests, and general ineptitude left Miami’s year-end rushing stats look like this:

Holy crap.

That ground game FitzMagic was on full display Sunday. His scramble on first-and-goal in the third quarter pushed the Dolphins out to a 17-10 lead.

Grit, determination, and a great beard #MIAvsNE #FinsUp pic.twitter.com/bXhlWW2QLZ

— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) December 29, 2019

His ability to keep plays alive — he was only sacked twice against a defense that came into Week 17 ranked fifth in the NFL in sack rate (8.4 percent) — gave the Dolphins just enough latitude to hold off the Patriots’ comeback efforts and drive a final nail into the AFC East champion’s bye week hopes. New England will play in the Wild Card Round for the first time since 2009, and it’s at least partially thanks to a Miami team whose top running threat was an aging dropback passer.

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junker-town · 5 years ago

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The 7 dumbest mistakes from NFL Week 17, ranked

Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images

The Seahawks got it wrong at the 1-yard line again, and the Browns are looking for a new coach. What better way to pay tribute to the last week of the 2010s?

Endings are hard to get right. Well, except maybe if you’re Damon Lindelof (yes, even the Lost finale). Goodbyes are even harder.

Although we have to close the book on another NFL season, and an entire decade now, we can take comfort in two things:

1) the playoffs are coming, and 2) the last Sunday of the 2019 season went out with a bang.

The Patriots got Fitzmagic’d AT HOME and missed out on a first-round bye for the first time in 10 years. Christian McCaffrey became the NFL’s third ever 1,000/1,000 player. Jameis Winston became the NFL’s first ever 30-30 quarterback. The 49ers and Seahawks battled to the 1-inch line to wrap up the playoff picture.

Despite those surprises, there were other moments that felt like a tribute to the 2010s as a whole. The Titans fulfilled their 9-7 destiny, the Lions blew it against the Packers, the Seahawks screwed up at the 1-yard line, and the Browns fired another coach.

So much of what happened Sunday was stressful, thrilling, and incredibly stupid. In other words, it was the perfect way to send out 2019.

Before we head into 2020, let’s take a look at the final dumbest mistakes of the regular season:

7. The Bengals couldn’t even celebrate a win right

The Bengals had already secured the top pick in the draft last week. Then they went ahead and won a meaningless game in Week 17, just for the heck of it.

After taking the final kneeldown to beat the Browns and double their win total, the Bengals managed to bungle their celebration.

@Joe_MainMixon bowling down the ref for the W @EvilAndyDalton @CincyProblems pic.twitter.com/X6Uz67nJxS

— chase. (@ChaseLaub1) December 29, 2019

That’s running back Joe Mixon taking off his helmet to fling it up in the air. But he wasn’t paying attention and he bowled over a referee with the dang thing. The ref went to the ground immediately. Whoops!

At least Mixon went on to apologize on Twitter.

I will always apologize for a mistake however unintentional and accidental. To the ref I’m sorry I never saw you coming. Will never apologize for my excitement when the Bengals win!! #WhoDey already thinking about 2020 season

— ⚡️Primetime!!!⚡️ (@Joe_MainMixon) December 29, 2019

Now let the Joe Burrow countdown begin.

6. Lol, the Chargers used a linebacker to cover Tyreek Hill

The Chargers had just scored a touchdown to cut their deficit against the Chiefs to 24-21. The Chiefs, who needed a win and a New England loss to lock down a first-round bye, were looking at third-and-7 late in the fourth quarter.

That’s when the Chargers inexplicably assigned rookie linebacker Drue Tranquill to Tyreek Hill, one of the fastest receivers in the NFL. His nickname is “Cheetah,” after all. The result was a complete mismatch, and a gain of 47(!) yards:

Fire yourself when you cover Tyreek Hill with a LB pic.twitter.com/zSD3kGfNk1

— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) December 29, 2019

Five plays later, the Chiefs scored to go up 31-21 and snag that No. 2 seed.

We don’t think any future opposing defenses will try that again anytime soon. Or at least they shouldn’t.

5. Sam Darnold wasted a scoring chance by taking a bad sack

The Jets didn’t need much offense to get out in front of the Bills. With Josh Allen on the bench and Matt Barkley under center, Buffalo was shut out in the first half of Week 17. That could’ve meant a 10-0 hole at halftime, if Darnold hadn’t messed it up.

With just a little over 10 seconds left, the Jets should’ve had two more shots at the end zone before a short field goal. An ill-timed sack by the Bills’ Trent Murphy killed that opportunity.

Trent Murphy QB hunting. #NYJvsBUF | #GoBills pic.twitter.com/GlWOorDDFr

— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) December 29, 2019

Darnold has to get the ball out of his hand fast or feel the pressure coming. He did neither and the Jets settled for a 34-yard field goal try, which Sam Ficken missed. Despite an eventual win for the Jets, a matchup against Buffalo’s backups shouldn’t have been this difficult.

4. David Blough and Danny Amendola gifted the Packers a short field

Blough is an undrafted rookie who was thrust into the Lions’ starting quarterback role thanks to injuries to Matthew Stafford and Jeff Driskel. As such, he’s prone to ... uh, teachable moments. Like this one, where in a quest to protect a 20-13 lead with eight minutes to play in the fourth quarter, he uncorked this unanswered prayer.

David Blough, where was this pass supposed to go? pic.twitter.com/tTyIzzb4th

— Christian D'Andrea (@TrainIsland) December 29, 2019

Not only did Blake Martinez (two career interceptions before Sunday) return Blough’s pick near midfield, but a stupid late hit penalty on Danny Amendola — who took his frustrations out on Kevin King by blasting him after the whistle — set up Aaron Rodgers at the Detroit 40-yard line. Seven plays later, this game was tied.

The Packers went on to win, despite once again never leading against the Lions.

3. Tom Brady chose a bad time for his first pick-six against the Dolphins

Oh hi, in case you missed it, the New England Patriots lost to the Miami Dolphins. During the second quarter with his team trailing 3-0, Brady threw a pick-six to safety (and former Patriot) Eric Rowe:

ERIC. ROWE. PICK. SIX.#MIAvsNE #FinsUp pic.twitter.com/4HbdX8qXgb

— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) December 29, 2019

That was the first time in Brady’s playing career that he had ever thrown a pick-six against the Dolphins, a team he’s faced 35 times. It also was his first pick-six since 2017, and the 14th of his career.

And in a game that was ultimately decided by three points, it’s that kind of mistake that’s the difference — not just between a win and a loss, but between a first-round bye and having to host the Titans in the Wild Card Round.

2. The Browns only had 10 men on defense at the goal line

The Browns fired Freddie Kitchens just hours after losing 33-23 to Cincinnati. This didn’t help his case. In the first quarter, the Bengals went up 14-7 on this touchdown run, aided by the Browns only having 10 men on defense:

10 men on defense. Generally a situation where you'd want to call timeout. Oof. https://t.co/VvbwTgGpPi

— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) December 29, 2019

Mixon took it right up the middle for an easy touchdown in what turned out to be a 162-yard game for him. Here’s another look at the play — just, yeesh:

Browns had 10 guys on the field for Bengals third-and-goal TD run (proof via @NextGenStats) pic.twitter.com/h3a8WzVsry

— Jake Trotter (@Jake_Trotter) December 29, 2019

Even worse is Kitchens had called a timeout literally the play before and the defense was still a mess. Usually, most teams don’t screw up something that simple in Week 17.

On the other hand, that sums up another coaching era that Browns fans would love to forget.

1. The Seahawks’ delay of game penalty probably cost them the NFC West

Sunday night’s 49ers-Seahawks game will go down as one of the best Week 17 finales in league history, with San Francisco winning 26-21 to earn the NFC’s No. 1 seed. The game came down to the wire, and a late penalty might’ve cost Seattle the win and the division title.

With 23 seconds left on the 49ers’ 1-yard line, the Seahawks spiked the ball with no timeouts. Head coach Pete Carroll wanted to put running back Marshawn Lynch in for what could’ve been an easy goal-line score. Lynch, in his much-celebrated return to Seattle, had already scored on a 1-yard run earlier in the quarter. Another chance to do that, in this situation, wouldn’t just help the Seahawks take the NFC West crown, but it’d also give Carroll a chance to rectify the most infamous moment in the franchise’s history.

Then, miscommunication doomed them as the Seahawks tried to substitute Lynch on the field when he either wasn’t ready to go or no one let him know.

When Lynch got on the field, there were only 10 seconds left on the play clock. That didn’t give the Seahawks much time in the huddle and they got hit with a delay of game penalty. Take a look at how much time runs off the game and play clock:

Changing a personnel package is a pre planned, pre orchestrated event. The Seahawks were total chaos. That is squarely on the OC/HC pic.twitter.com/EX2XcKdHiC

— Steve Sandmeyer (@SteveSandmeyer) December 30, 2019

Head coach Pete Carroll admitted the mistake after the game:

Pere Carroll says going from no-back previous play to bringing in Marshawn Lynch from the 1 created hesitation, led to regrettable delay of game penalty that changed everything at the end for #Seahawks pic.twitter.com/a1W90vJTtg

— Gregg Bell (@gbellseattle) December 30, 2019

That penalty backed them up to the 6-yard line, and instead of a punch-in score, Russell Wilson threw two incomplete passes, and then one last pass to Jacob Hollister that was ultimately short of the goal line.

Maybe one of these days the Seahawks will figure out what to do with Lynch at the 1-yard line. Maybe one of these days they won’t pay a steep price for a goal-line failure. Sunday was not one of those days.

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