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Each week of the NFL season brings a host of new questions…and answers some old ones, too. Let’s review what we learned in Week 14… and what we’ll be asking ourselves in Week 15 and beyond.
QUESTION: Who is more desperate, the Jets or the Bears?
This weekend saw a couple of ignominious milestones in the NFL. First, the Jets lost (surprise) and their longest loss in any major American professional sport. Meanwhile, the Bears, in the first game of the post-Eberflus era, were blown out by San Francisco, 38-13, in a game that didn’t even seem that competitive. Combined, they are 7-19, and the hopes that flickered when Aaron Rodgers signed and when the Bears won a couple of games earlier this season have now been extinguished.
So that raises a crucial question. Assuming you’re not a fan of any of these teams (if you are, my condolences), which one would you rather support? I know, it’s like choosing whether to eat live, wriggling worms or three-month-old leftovers. But which of these teams has the greatest growth potential? If you say “Bears,” that’s reasonable (after all, Chicago has Caleb Williams), but the Bears front office has an uncanny ability to hire the worst personnel possible to maximize the potential of their stars. If you say “Jets,” that doesn’t take into account the mysterious suction aura that sucks the talent out of every player who wears green, even a four-time MVP. Chicago probably has a brighter immediate future, but “brighter” in the sense that a 40-watt light bulb is brighter than candlelight.
Either way, it’s a bleak and dark future for these teams and their fans. As Bono sings in the Christmas classic “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”: “Thank God it’s them instead of you.”
ANSWER: The Chiefs are beyond infuriating
Some teams are good overall. Some teams have ridiculous luck. Only one team in the NFL (in fact, perhaps all of professional sports) is both good. and lucky to have a championship winning title. The Kansas City Chiefs are the most infuriating team in sports, not because they win, but because of how they win: with good fortune based on talent, with a skill that always seems to benefit from a good dose of good fortune .
Once again, an AFC West team had Kansas City on the ropes in the final seconds of the game, and once again, the Chiefs escaped. This time, the opponent was the Los Angeles Chargers, and this time, luck came in the form of a fluke with no time left on the clock Sunday night:
Obviously, the Chiefs are headed to the playoffs. And probably the AFC championship, of course. And if they’re down 14 points in the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl, someone somewhere is going to think, “Now we’ve got them.” And they will be so, so wrong.
QUESTION: Is there hope in Carolina?
Watching a losing team bounce back is like watching a baby take its first steps. It is not advisable to invest too much hope in the company, because it will probably end in catastrophe. And you definitely don’t want to be caught staring, because that will ruin the whole effort. But anyway there is slow but steady progress.
Yes, the Panthers only have three wins on the season. But their last three losses have been by one possession, all against playoff contenders: Kansas City, Tampa Bay (in overtime) and, on Sunday, Philadelphia. One key reason: the emergence of Bryce Young. (After all, you can’t really call this a revival if there wasn’t a revival in the first place.) Hell, the Panthers almost beat the Eagles, only to have Xavier Legette drop a potential go-ahead touchdown pass in the final game. minute. And that pass came at the end of a 97-yard road drive, the kind of test that makes many more experienced quarterbacks cringe.
It’s a long road to even get to the surface for Young and the Panthers. But at least now they are swimming in the right direction.
ANSWER: Russell Wilson is a magician
In a league where most careers are inexorably descending, it’s nice to see someone reverse that trend and move to the right. Russell Wilson has revitalized a career that most thought was dead, and if it weren’t for Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield, he would be the Comeback Player of the Year. He’s not lighting up fantasy stats (he only threw for 158 yards in Sunday’s win over Cleveland) but he’s doing exactly what he needs to to lead Pittsburgh to victory after victory. He threw for two touchdowns on Sunday and posted his final hype video shortly after:
The Steelers got Wilson for a measly $1.2 million (minimum being a very relative term) this season, but it will cost a lot more to bring him back next year. Back in October, that seemed unlikely, but Wilson has magically conjured up an incredible second act.
QUESTION: How far can the Rams go?
Trying to pick a winner in the NFC West right now is like trying to find true love at a Christmas party. Maybe you’ll do it right and sail happily until New Year’s Day, but more likely you’ll do it wrong and have a messy breakup right before the holiday.
The hot commodity right now is the Rams, who just punched the mighty Buffalo in the face on national television. Matthew Stafford threw for 320 yards and two touchdowns, Puka Nacua accounted for 162 of those yards and one of the touchdowns. Sean McVay showed why he remains one of the most inventive and inventive minds in the game… and Sean McDermott showed why there will always be concerns about the Bills unless and until they hoist a Lombardi Trophy.
Los Angeles is currently one game out of first place in the NFC West, but in good position to make the playoffs. Would you like to face this team in January?
ANSWER: The AFC South must be relegated
At one point on Sunday, every game that started early went to halftime except Jaguars-Titans. It was a peculiar form of torture for NFL fans, being forced to watch AFC South football, and it brought back memories of pre-Prime Video Thursday Night Football games. (It’s amazing how a billion dollars a year can buy Lions-Packers and Rams-49ers games, right?) The Jaguars won 10-6, an ugly game whose first (and only) touchdown wasn’t scored until late in the year. the fourth quarter.
At this point, just close the division and send these two teams to the SEC. On the plus side, both the Titans and Jaguars would have a good shot at making the College Football Playoff. The strength of his agenda, at the very least, would be incomparable.