NFL Game Recaps: Week 14, 2022

NFL Game Recaps of previous weeks and seasons can be found via links at the bottom of the page.

Rams 17, Raiders 16

When Tom Brady came back from down 16-3 with five minutes remaining against the Saints on Monday night, no one was surprised. People have seen it before, as the greatest quarterback in NFL history had triumphed in even more improbable circumstances.

This, no one saw coming. Baker Mayfield didn’t even start for the Rams. John Wolford took the first snaps for just one drive for some reason, and then it was Mayfield’s turn. Throughout the night, Mayfield struggled mightily. He skipped passes to receivers and had to burn timeouts because he didn’t know the plays. Mayfield completed just three passes in the opening half. The Rams had just three points with less than four minutes remaining. They were moving on an improbable drive that was kept alive by the Raiders being offsides on a Rams punt. The Rams continued to advance the chains, thanks to the officials missing blatant holding penalties, particularly on Rob Havenstein. Eventually, Cam Akers was given a touchdown when he never broke the plane of the end zone. It’s unclear why the score wasn’t overturned, but with the Raiders being up 16-10, the blown call seemed trivial.

The Raiders went three-and-out on the ensuing drive, but a great punt down to the 2-yard line seemingly finished the game, as did an ensuing interception, which was negated by pass interference. This wasn’t the only penalty the Raiders committed, as Jerry Tillery gave the Rams 15 free yards because he slapped the ball out of Mayfield’s hands. Mayfield took advantage of this, as well as the Raiders’ press-man coverage, as he connected with Ben Skowronek for a 32-yard gain. He then found Van Jefferson in the end zone for the improbable, decisive score.

Mayfield had dreadful stats for most of the game, but finished 22-of-35 for 230 yards and a touchdown. It’s hard to take this seriously until we see more of it, but there’s no doubt that Mayfield will be receiving the best coaching he’s ever gotten in the NFL under Sean McVay.

Skowronek paced the Rams in receiving with seven catches for 89 yards, followed by Tutu Atwell (5-50) and Jefferson (2-44). Atwell drew a deep interference flag. No other Ram logged more than 12 receiving yards.

The Rams didn’t get much out of their running game, as Akers rushed for 42 yards and scored his bogus touchdown on 12 carries. He lost a fumble in the red zone during the opening half.

As for the Raiders, they have to be deflated because this loss has effectively knocked them out of playoff contention. Had they won their fourth game in a row, they would have been 6-7, putting them one game back of the Jets (assuming New York loses to Buffalo.) At 5-8, the Raiders are done, and owner Mark Davis needs to consider finding an upgrade at quarterback because Derek Carr was terrible.

Carr blew this game for the Raiders. He went just 11-of-20 for 137 yards and two interceptions. His first pick was a horrible throw under pressure in the red zone when his team was up 13-3. Had he just taken a sack, allowing his kicker to score three more points, the Raiders would have prevailed. Carr otherwise threw some miserable passes and had trouble connecting with Davante Adams.

Adams saw plenty of coverage from Jalen Ramsey, but this shouldn’t have been an issue because Ramsey had been torched many times this season. Adams caught just three passes for 71 yards, one of which was an impressive, one-handed grab for a gain of 35 yards. He was the only Raider with more than 22 receiving yards.

Josh Jacobs was the most productive Raider. He rushed for 99 yards and a touchdown on 27 carries, but injured his finger on a third-quarter run. He remained in the game after missing a handful of snaps, but it was evident that he was bothered by the injury.

Bills 20, Jets 12

There hadn’t been a scoreless first half in the NFL in three years, but this game nearly bucked that trend. This was a frustrating, defensive grinder, as neither team was able to do much of anything in the opening half. By intermission, neither team averaged more than four yards per play. Buffalo’s defense completely stymied the Jets’ offense, while the Bills couldn’t move the chains because they couldn’t block Quinnen Williams whatsoever. Williams sacked Allen twice in the initial quarter alone. Left tackle Dion Dawkins was having a nightmare of a game.

Williams, however, suffered an injury in the second quarter. He left the game permanently, and Buffalo’s offense magically became way more productive after that event. The Bills finally scored right before halftime, as Allen found Dawson Knox in the end zone to go up 7-0.

The Jets’ offense got on track in the third quarter, as Mike White came alive with some clutch third-down conversions. However, White took some huge hits and had to temporarily leave the game. During this time, Joe Flacco lost a fumble on a strip-sack to ruin a potential scoring possession. This was enough to set the Jets back, preventing them from keeping up with Buffalo on the scoreboard.

Allen was better after Williams left the game, but still didn’t perform up to his standards. He was 16-of-27 for 147 yards and a touchdown. He also scrambled 10 times for 47 yards and a touchdown. Sixteen of those rushing yards came on a third-and-15 scramble, but a third-and-2 conversion of his was negated by a Dawkins hold.

Allen’s touchdown to Knox was good enough to have the tight end lead the team in receiving with four grabs for 41 yards and the touchdown. Both Stefon Diggs (3-37) and Gabe David (3-31) were huge disappointments.

Speaking of Buffalo disappointments, James Cook barely touched the ball. He rushed four times for six yards and caught only one pass for nine yards. Apparently, the Bills didn’t get the memo that the Jets’ defensive weakness is their inability to stop pass-catching running backs, so it’s puzzling as to why Cook was barely utilized. Devin Singletary (8-39) was more involved.

The Jets had better success rushing the ball with their running back. That back was expected to be Michael Carter, who was making his return from injury. Carter, however, rushed for only five yards on as many attempts, and he lost a fumble in the second half. Instead, Zonovan Knight received the majority of the workload. He was excellent with 71 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries. He also caught two passes for six receiving yards.

White finished 27-of-44 for 268 yards. He redeemed himself from an ugly, four-interception showing versus Buffalo last week. He showed major toughness by being able to finish the game despite taking some crushing hits. His only mistake was fumbling on a strip-sack, but a teammate of his recovered. Unfortunately, White had to go to the hospital after the contest was over to get his ribs checked. That’s how hard he was hit.

Garrett Wilson once again paced the Jets in receiving with six catches for 78 yards. He finished just ahead of Elijah Moore, who also had six grabs for 60 yards.

Cowboys 27, Texans 23

No one expected this. The Cowboys were favored by 17 points entering this contest, and they even scored quickly on their opening drive. All signs pointed to Houston getting demolished.

The Cowboys led 14-7 after Tony Pollard scored a second time on a horrible tackling effort by Desmond King, but that’s when things began to flip. Dak Prescott threw an interception on a pass thrown behind Noah Brown to set up a Houston touchdown. Ezekiel Elliott was later stuffed on a fourth-and-goal at the 1-yard line, while Prescott was picked on a second occasion because his arm was hit upon release. As all of this was happening, the Texans were moving the chains efficiently. Dameon Pierce ran well, while the odd quarterback rotation of Davis Mills and Jeff Driskel completed most of their passes. Excluding a spike to stop the clock, Mills and Driskel combined for just six misfires.

The Texans had a chance to put the game away following Prescott’s second interception, but they failed to score at all inside the Dallas 5-yard line. This gave the Cowboys an opportunity to send the contest into overtime, but Prescott had bigger plans. He redeemed himself with three impressive strikes to Dalton Schultz, which seemed to set up a potential touchdown to Michael Gallup. The call was overturned by replay review, but Ezekiel Elliott found the end zone on the next play to win the game.

Prescott deserves credit for the victory, though he struggled for most of the afternoon, aside from a 52-yard bomb to Noah Brown to set up Pollard’s second touchdown. Prescott finished 24-of-39 for 284 yards, one touchdown and the two picks.

Both Dallas running backs found the end zone, as indicated previously. Pollard rushed for 42 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries, and he also caught four balls for 20 receiving yards and the second score. For some reason, Elliott continues to see more touches than Pollard, as Elliott handled the ball 15 times for 62 yards and a touchdown, and he also logged three catches for 19 receiving yards.

Thanks to his late-game heroics, Schultz led the Cowboys in receiving with six grabs for 87 yards, though he dropped a couple of passes in the second quarter. He was followed closely by Brown (4-85). CeeDee Lamb was an enormous disappointment with five catches for 33 yards.

As mentioned earlier, Mills and Driskel rotated snaps for some reason, though it worked. Mills went 16-of-21 for 175 yards and an interception, which was a heave in desperation time at the very end of the game. Driskel went 4-of-6 for 38 yards and a touchdown.

Pierce rushed for 78 yards and a touchdown, which occurred right after Dallas had an early muffed punt. However, Pierce gave back what he received later in the game when he lost a fumble deep in his own territory. Fortunately for him, the Cowboys didn’t score any points on the ensuing possession.

With Brandin Cooks and Nico Collins sidelined, Chris Moore took advantage of his opportunity with 10 catches for 124 yards. Amari Rodgers was next with four grabs for 57 yards and a score.

Lions 34, Vikings 23

The Lions had a 10-point lead over the Vikings in the fourth quarter of their initial meeting this year. That Week 3 contest was decided by a late Minnesota touchdown, as the Vikings stormed back as the result of Amon-Ra St. Brown and D’Andre Swift suffering injuries.

Detroit had a chance to redeem itself in this second meeting, and it had better luck with its injuries. St. Brown and Swift were able to remain on the field the entire game, which allowed Jared Goff to enjoy a brilliant performance. Goff posted some great numbers, but did his best work when milking the clock. Goff hit his receivers on third-and-9 and third-and-3 on the penultimate Detroit drive to set up a field goal, then was clutch once again at the end when he connected with Penei Sewell of all people on a third-and-7 to clinch the victory. Calling a pass to an offensive tackle was a gutsy move by Dan Campbell, as was a fake punt from deep in his own territory in the third quarter, which was successful and ultimately led to Goff’s third touchdown.

Goff’s great numbers looked like this: 27-of-39 for 330 yards and three touchdowns. He made some mistakes, like throwing a fourth-and-4 pass behind D.J. Chark, but he delivered some deep, early bombs to Jameson Williams and Chark, who haul in scores of 41 and 48 yards, respectively.

Williams was off to a great start, but saw just one more target after that, as his single catch went for 41 yards and a touchdown. Conversely, Chark had a monster game with six receptions for 94 yards and a touchdown. St. Brown was a bit of a disappointment, catching six balls for “just” 68 yards.

Swift was a real disappointment, as he carried the ball only six times for 21 yards. He caught three passes for 18 receiving yards, but dropped a ball. Jamaal Williams (16-37) also didn’t score for once.

The best fantasy performer in this game was Justin Jefferson, who had a monstrous afternoon with 11 catches for 223 yards. He didn’t score, however, as Kirk Cousins’ touchdowns went to Adam Thielen (7-65) and K.J. Osborn (5-38). T.J. Hockenson was also held scoreless, but he caught six passes for 77 yards against his former team. His one mistake was a drop along the sideline on a third down.

Speaking of Cousins, he threw for 425 yards and two touchdowns on 31-of-41 passing. Cousins often gets flak for losing big games, but he was not responsible for this defeat. Cousins didn’t have his left tackle or center, which would explain why he took four sacks.

A player who must shoulder the blame for this defeat is Dalvin Cook, who lost a fumble inside the Detroit 5-yard line in the second quarter. Cook also was stuffed on an early fourth-and-1. He was limited to 23 yards on 15 carries, though he salvaged his fantasy performance with a touchdown.

Jaguars 36, Titans 22

This may sound strange, but it once appeared as though the Titans would win this game convincingly. Jacksonville had absolutely no answer for Derrick Henry for much of the opening half. Henry rumbled for 119 yards by intermission, as he constantly plowed through Jacksonville’s helpless front seven. The Titans were up 14-7 in this game, as it seemed as though they would quite literally run away with a victory.

And then, everything changed on one play. Henry trampled through the Jaguars into the red zone, but was blasted hard by a Jacksonville defender. The ball popped into the arms of Josh Allen, which set up a touchdown drive that gave the Jaguars their first lead of the afternoon. While this turnover sparked the offense, it also did wonders for the defense. It’s unclear what happened, but Jacksonville completely clamped down on Henry the rest of the way. In fact, Henry rushed for just two yards after halftime.

While Tennessee’s offense generated nothing following halftime, Jacksonville’s scoring unit couldn’t be stopped. Trevor Lawrence was brilliant throughout the game, especially in the second half when his offensive linemen stopped disrupting drives by committing holding penalties. Lawrence closed out the game by going 14-of-18 for 171 and a touchdown in the second half alone.

Lawrence’s final numbers look like this: 30-of-42 for 368 yards and four touchdowns (three passing, one rushing). He could’ve had a much better performance had some of his offensive linemen not committed holding penalties throughout the first half. Lawrence was also robbed of a touchdown drive when Zay Jones committed a horrible drop on a third-and-3.

Jones redeemed himself with a strong game, catching eight passes for 77 yards and a touchdown, while Christian Kirk hauled in five passes for 45 yards. This all paled in comparison to what Evan Engram accomplished. Engram had the game of his life with 11 catches for 162 yards and two touchdowns.

The only Jaguar who was a huge disappointment was Travis Etienne, who mustered just 32 yards on 17 carries. He didn’t receive a single target in the passing game either.

Henry was the leading rusher in this game by a long shot even though he did nothing in the second half. He ended up with 121 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries.

While Henry made a mistake on his fumble, Ryan Tannehill’s errors were far more egregious. He lost a fumble on a strip-sack, then threw an interception when he didn’t see the safety. This set up 10 Jacksonville points in the early stages of the afternoon. Thanks to some garbage time, Tannehill was able to finish 25-of-38 for 254 yards, two touchdowns and the pair of give-aways.

Tannehill’s two touchdowns went to Chig Okonkwo (6-45) and Nick Westbrook (3-23). The leading receivers were Austin Hooper (5-68) and Robert Woods (5-49).

Eagles 48, Giants 22

The Eagles have proven that they can mold their offense in any way to adjust to an opposing game plan. They continued to be versatile by attacking the Giants in different ways in the opening half. Their first drive was very methodical, as Jalen Hurts took what the Giants gave him with short passes. Philadelphia ultimately found the end zone via a Miles Sanders run to close a 14-play, 80-yard drive that featured a bit of everything. The next possession, however, was a quick strike, as Hurts heaved a bomb to DeVonta Smith on a fourth-and-7 for a 41-yard touchdown to cap off a 92-yard possession.

The Giants had no answer for the Eagles’ offense, while they had no success of their own. They were outgained in the first half, 217-93, as they averaged just 3.4 yards per play compared to Philadelphia’s figure of 6.0. In fact, the Giants’ only points in the first half occurred as a result of a blocked punt from Philadelphia’s end zone. The Giants almost scored on the play, but ended up with a touchdown anyway when Daniel Jones found Isaiah Hodgins. Otherwise, New York did nothing until garbage time.

Hurts continued his MVP campaign by going 21-of-31 for 217 yards and two touchdowns to go along with seven scrambles for 77 rushing yards and a third score. He nearly threw a third passing touchdown, but Smith could only get one foot inbounds.

Speaking of Smith, he finished second in receiving with five catches for 64 yards and a touchdown, slotting right behind Brown, who hauled in four balls for 70 yards and a score. No other Eagle logged more than 24 receiving yards.

Sanders had the best fantasy performance of all the Philadelphia skill players. He ripped through the Giants’ poor run defense for 144 yards and two touchdowns on just 17 carries. Sanders outgained Saquon Barkley by a wide margin. Barkley, who did not look like quite himself, was limited to just 28 yards on nine attempts. The narrative that the Eagles can’t stop the run is finished.

Daniel Jones had a fine fantasy performance because he was able to score on a rushing touchdown. He went 18-of-27 for 169 yards, one passing touchdown to go along with four scrambles for 26 rushing yards and the score. This was incredibly misleading, however, as Jones logged just 61 passing yards by halftime. Almost all of his production came in garbage time.

Thanks to this garbage time, Richie James led the Giants in receiving with seven catches for 61 yards and a touchdown. Darius Slayton (2-42) failed to do anything in a difficult matchup.

Ravens 16, Steelers 14

Pittsburgh supporters who wanted to see how their rookie quarterback would fare against Baltimore’s stellar defense would have to wait for the next matchup. Kenny Pickett attempted just one pass before being knocked out with a concussion on a fierce sack by Roquan Smith. Mitchell Trubisky played for nearly the entire game in relief, but gave Pittsburgh no chance to win this game because of his constant mistakes.

The Steelers had four trips into Baltimore territory that resulted in no points. One was the byproduct of a blocked field goal, while the other three possessions concluded because of Trubisky interceptions. The first two were the result of Trubisky failing to see linebackers, as Smith and Patrick Queen snatched picks. The third was a reckless shot into double coverage.

Pittsburgh ultimately scored a touchdown toward the end of the game to trim the margin from nine to two, but couldn’t get the ball back from the Ravens, who ran out the clock.

The Ravens prevailed, but the dark cloud over this victory was Tyler Huntley’s early exit. Huntley took some big shots in this game, and one he received while trying to scramble for a first down knocked him out with a concussion. This ruined a fine afternoon for Huntley, who was an efficient 8-of-12 for 88 yards to go along with 31 rushing yards. His only real mistake was bobbling the ball on a fourth-and-1 end-around attempt. Undrafted rookie Anthony Brown took over, but luckily for the Ravens, this occurred late in the game when they already had the lead. Brown went 3-of-5 for 16 yards.

Baltimore primarily moved the chains on the ground, and it did so with J.K. Dobbins. Making his return from injury, Dobbins rushed for 120 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries. He would’ve enjoyed a better performance had he not yielded so many attempts to Gus Edwards, who turned 13 rushes into 66 yards.

With the Baltimore passing offense so limited, all the receiving numbers were suppressed. Mark Andrews fantasy owners watched in agony as their prized tight end caught just two of his six targets for 17 yards. Demarcus Robinson paced the Ravens with five catches for 52 yards.

The Steelers posted better receiving numbers because Trubisky was constantly throwing from behind. Diontae Johnson led the team with six catches for 82 yards, while George Pickens was close with three grabs for 78 yards. Pat Freiermuth (3-33) hauled in the lone aerial score.

Trubisky finished 22-of-30 for 276 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions. He actually played well if the picks are ignored. That’s obviously a huge element of his performance, but the Steelers were constantly moving the chains. In fact, Pittsburgh outgained Baltimore, 329-309.

Najee Harris scored a touchdown, which was needed because he was very limited otherwise. He mustered 33 yards on 12 carries.

Bengals 23, Browns 10
By Charlie Campbell – @draftcampbell

EDITOR’S NOTE: I should have listened to people in our Discord and not bet the Browns. Whoops!

The Bengals weren’t firing on all cylinders, but they played well enough to get a win that puts them in a tie for first place with the Ravens. Cincinnati’s defense performed well, and Joe Burrow made some clutch plays to produce the necessary points.

Last week against the Texans, Deshaun Watson was rusty, as expected, and that continued versus Cincinnati, with Watson not seeing the field well, running too much, looking down at the pass rush, and making some poorly located throws. Cleveland is not in the playoff race this year, so the remaining goal for 2022 should be to get Watson back to normal and comfortable in Kevin Stefanski’s offense heading into 2023.

For most of the first half, this was a defensive battle, with a lot of punts forced in the early going. There also were some missed chances, such as the Browns missing a fourth-and-1 when Jacoby Brisset overthrew a wide-open Donovan Peoples-Jones in the end zone, and Jadeveon Clowney drawing a holding penalty took a chunk third-down conversion away from the Bengals.

Cincinnati got moving after a Browns roughing the punter penalty, another unnecessary flag took away a Clowney sack, and then Denzel Ward was called for a pass interference that gifted the Bengals 33 yards. To cap the drive, Burrow threaded a needle to Ja’Marr Chase for a short touchdown. Cleveland responded with a drive into Cincinnati territory, but the possession stalled and the Browns settled for a field goal. The Bengals started to get in rhythm when Burrow hit Trent Taylor on the run for 35 yards, and a few plays later, Samaje Perine charged into the end zone from a few yards out to give Cincinnati a 14-3 lead at halftime.

Midway through the third quarter, Bengals wideout Trent Irwin got wide open in busted coverage for a 45-yard touchdown. Cleveland finally responded with a nice drive that utilized Peoples-Jones and David Njoku (7-59-1), with Watson hitting his playmaking tight end for a 13-yard score.

After getting the ball back, Watson made a superb pass to Peoples-Jones for a nice gain, but on the next play, he threw a terrible pass, staring down his receiver and waiting too long to make the throw. That allowed Jesse Bates to jump the route for an interception.

Cincinnati gave possession right back though when Clowney tipped a pass and Deion Jones snatched the deflection for a pick. The Browns moved inside the 10, but on fourth-and-goal, Peoples-Jones couldn’t control a jump ball. The Bengals added a field goal, and Watson had another chance to start a late comeback, but he was inaccurate at targeting Amari Cooper on fourth down, which helped clinch the win for Cincinnati.

Burrow completed 18-of-33 passes for 239 yards, two touchdowns and an interception.

Joe Mixon ran for 96 yards on 14 carries.

Chase caught 10 passes for 119 yards and a touchdown. In the first quarter, Tee Higgins left the game with a hamstring injury. Tyler Boyd also went out with a hurt finger.

Watson completed 26-of-42 passes for 276 yards, a touchdown and an interception.

Surprisingly, Cleveland was not committed to the run, giving Nick Chubb only 14 carries for 34 yards while Kareem Hunt saw four carries for six yards.

Peoples-Jones (8-114) was Cleveland’s top receiver. Cooper was held to two catches for 42 yards.

Chiefs 34, Broncos 28
By Charlie Campbell – @draftcampbell

EDITOR’S NOTE: The Chiefs with yet another unimpressive victory. Had Russell Wilson not gotten hurt, Denver may have won this game.

It looked the Chiefs were on their way to a massive blowout when they were up 27-0 close to halftime, but the Broncos came alive to make a game of things. Kansas City held on, but Denver would have had a better chance to pull off the comeback had Russell Wilson not left the game in the second half with a concussion. Wilson and the Denver offense were finally starting to play well when he was injured.

The Chiefs took the opening drive down the field for a field goal, and on their second position, they got moving with a 38-yard completion to Travis Kelce (4-71) that produced another field goal for them. Early in the second quarter, Patrick Mahomes made an amazing trick play when he ran to the flat while holding the ball like a running back. As he fought off a tackle, Mahomes lofted the ball like he was tossing a grenade, and it floated over a defender into the arms of running back Jerick McKinnon, who took off down the sideline for a 56-yard touchdown. It was a unique and crazy trick pass. Shortly later, McKinnon scored again on a screen pass from about 10 yards. On the ensuing Broncos possession, a fourth-and-1 pass by Wilson was picked off by Willie Gay around midfield. Gay then coasted down the field for a touchdown to make the score 27-0.

After Denver’s Josey Jewell intercepted Mathomes, the Denver offense finally made some plays, with Wilson lofting in a touchdown to Jerry Jeudy from 20 yards. Patrick Surtain II made a phenomenal pick to give the Broncos another opportunity. Wilson finally started using his legs, taking off for a few good runs, and a pass to Kendall Hinton created a first-and-goal. Wilson then found Jeudy wide open in the end zone for another touchdown, and that cut the Kansas City lead to 27-14 at halftime.

In the second minute of the open the third quarter, the Chiefs sent a blitz, but Wilson found Marlon Mack on a short dumpoff. Kansas City was caught without numbers, allowing Mack to race down the middle of the field for a 66-yard touchdown. Late in the third quarter, the Chiefs broke out of their funk with a conversion to Kelce, a screen to McKinnon, before finding JuJu Smith-Schuster (9-74-1) in the back of the end zone for a touchdown. That put Kansas City up 34-21 entering the fourth quarter.

Jeudy drew a pass interference from Trent McDuffie that gifted the Broncos 46 yards, taking them to the Kansas City 15. Two holding penalties knocked Denver backward, but Wilson converted a third-and-11 with a run of about 13 yards. On the play, however, he landed hard on his head, which knocked him out of the game with the concussion. On fourth-and-goal, Jeudy ran a great route and Brett Rypien connected with him for a score to make it 34-28.

With just under six minutes remaining, Jewell intercepted Mahomes again and returned the pick close to midfield. Kansas City’s Chris Jones soon hit Rypien as he threw, causing the ball to flutter like a punt and be intercepted. Mahomes hit a deep out, and the Kansas City backs ran for a few first downs to drain the rest of the clock.

Mahomes was 28-of-42 for 352 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions.

Isiah Pacheco (13-70) combined with McKinnon (6-22 rushing, 7-112-2) to lead the Kansas City backfield, and McKinnon was also the team’s leading receiver.

Wilson was 23-of-36 for 247 yards with three touchdowns and an interception. Wilson led the Broncos in rushing with 57 yards on four carries.

Latavius Murray (8-32) was a non-factor for the Broncos.

Jeudy caught eight passes for 73 yards and three touchdowns.

49ers 35, Buccaneers 7

Brock Purdy made the first start of his career against Tom Brady. While this seemed like a lopsided quarterback matchup, it was anything but that. In fact, the Purdy-led 49ers dominated Brady and the Buccaneers from start to finish.

Purdy did a terrific job despite his inexperience. He was deadly accurate on almost every throw, misfiring just five times. He made a great throw to Christian McCaffrey for his first touchdown, prompting the San Francisco crowd to chant, “Pur-dy! Pur-dy! Pur-dy!” The onslaught continued, with Purdy making only one mistake when he threw an interception as a result of not seeing the defender. However, this play was negated by a hold, so Purdy was able to remain turnover-free during the afternoon.

Brady, meanwhile, had a rough time in this game. He appeared to throw a deep touchdown to Mike Evans in the early going, but that play was nullified by a Donovan Smith hold. Brady struggled otherwise. He underthrew Evans in the end zone on a later fourth down, and he was intercepted twice in the second half. He had no chance behind his injury-ravaged offensive line versus San Francisco’s amazing pass rush.

Brady went 34-of-55 for 253 yards, one touchdown and two picks. The first interception occurred because Brady had his jersey being pulled as he released the pass. The second occurred in desperation time. Don’t be fooled by Brady’s total passing yards either; he had just 78 yards at halftime, as most of his production came in garbage time.

Purdy finished 16-of-21 for 185 yards and three touchdowns (two passing, one rushing). Aside from the overturned pick, the one criticism of Purdy was some questionable time management on a drive prior to halftime, but this was to be expected from a quarterback making his first start.

The 49ers had a nice win, but there was a dark cloud over this victory, which was Deebo Samuel’s injury in the first half. Samuel (4-43), who scored a rushing touchdown to begin the game, fumbled and had to be carted off the field. The good news is that Samuel injured his ankle rather than his knee, so there’s a chance he could return in the playoffs.

Thanks to Samuel’s injury, Brandon Aiyuk led the 49ers in receiving with two catches for 57 yards and a touchdown. George Kittle didn’t receive a bump, as he caught four balls for 28 yards.

The top fantasy producer was McCaffrey, who scored twice. He rushed for 119 yards on 14 carries and caught two passes for 34 receiving yards.

It was no surprise to see the Buccaneers get very little from their rushing attack because the 49ers defend running backs better than any other team in the NFL. Rachaad White gained 56 yards on 13 carries, while Leonard Fournette was limited to 13 yards on four attempts.

Chris Godwin led the Buccaneers in receiving with five catches for 54 yards, followed by Evans (4-44), who obviously could’ve enjoyed a much better game had his deep touchdown not been negated by a penalty.

Panthers 30, Seahawks 24

The Seahawks have struggled heading into this game, nearly losing to the Rams and going down to the Raiders in a home overtime defeat. They had a chance to right the ship in another matchup against a sub-.500 team, and yet they disappointed once again.

Geno Smith is almost certain to be the NFL Comeback Player of the Year, but perhaps his magical 2022 season is turning into a pumpkin. Smith had some great moments in this game, but made way too many mistakes; the same sort of errors that plagued him earlier in his career. Smith threw two interceptions in the opening half, and that number easily could have been three had a defender not dropped a deep attempt of Smith’s. As for the interceptions that stood, Smith didn’t see Jaycee Horn on the first, while the second was a horrible heave off his back foot.

These turnovers allowed the Panthers to establish leads of 17-0 and 20-7. Smith eventually got his act together and began producing scoring drives, but Carolina’s relentless pressure and the lack of a running game prevented the comeback from being fully completed.

Smith finished 21-of-36 for 264 yards, three touchdowns and the two interceptions. I mentioned a potential third pick in the opening half, but Smith could have been intercepted on another occasion when Horn was able to get one foot inbounds after catching one of Smith’s passes.

Both D.K. Metcalf and Tyler Lockett caught five passes and one touchdown for 71 and 60 yards, respectively. However, neither led the team in receiving. That was Marquise Goodwin, who also secured five receptions, but for 91 yards and a score.

As mentioned, the Seahawks had no running game to speak of because Kenneth Walker was sidelined. Travis Homer did little with his opportunity, mustering just 26 yards on nine carries.

Remarkably, the Panthers had four different players who outgained Homer. D’Onta Foreman and Chuba Hubbard each had 74 rushing yards on 21 and 14 carries, respectively. Hubbard scored a touchdown, as did Raheem Blackshear (4-32). Sam Darnold scrambled for 30 yards on four runs.

Speaking of Darnold, he had an efficient game, going 14-of-20 for 120 yards and a touchdown. He would have posted better numbers had he not underthrown a wide-open D.J. Moore.

Moore, meanwhile, failed to log a single catch on three targets. Carolina’s receiving corps was led by Laviska Shenault (4-31). Shi Smith (2-17) caught Darnold’s sole touchdown. Terrace Marshall caught one pass for 18 yards, but he’s worth mentioning because he made a ridiculous catch in between his legs.

Chargers 23, Dolphins 17

This was billed as a potential high-scoring battle between the fifth- and sixth-overall picks from the 2020 NFL Draft. Miami’s offense had been explosive since Tua Tagovailoa returned from injury, while Justin Herbert was attempting to rebound from a loss to the Raiders the previous week.

Based on how these teams played, one could have easily assumed that Herbert was the hot quarterback, while Tagovailoa needed to bounce back from a disappointing defeat. Tagovailoa was dreadful for most of this game, particularly in the first half, as he completed just three passes by halftime. Despite the return of Terron Armstead to the lineup, Miami couldn’t pass protect for Tagovailoa whatsoever. Miami scored just 10 real points, as seven came via a fumble scooped up by Tyreek Hill where he used his superior speed to go the distance.

Herbert, conversely, was incredibly sharp against a Miami defense that was supposed to be improved by the acquisition of Bradley Chubb. It’s not quite clear where Chubb was in this game, but he and the Miami front seven barely bothered Herbert, who torched Miami’s secondary mercilessly. The Dolphins could not get off the field, as the Chargers won the time of possession by 19-and-a-half minutes.

Herbert finished 39-of-51 for 367 yards and a touchdown. This was the first time he had Keenan Allen and Mike Williams on the field for the entire game, and the results showed. It was still disappointing to see the Chargers score only 23 points, though they were stuffed at the 1-yard line on an early, long drive.

Tagovailoa, conversely, failed to complete half of his passes, going 10-of-28 for 145 yards and a touchdown. Almost all of Tagovailoa’s passes were way off the mark, and his final numbers would have looked far worse if you remove a 60-yard touchdown bomb he threw to Hill.

Speaking of Hill, he led the Dolphins with four catches for 81 yards and a touchdown. He outgained all other Miami players by a mile, as Jaylen Waddle (2-31) was nowhere to be seen for three quarters. In fact, the NBC announcers even wondered if he was playing.

Two Charger receivers outgained Hill, and you can probably guess which ones. Williams began the game by making a great adjustment on his first catch, and he ultimately caught six passes for 116 yards and a touchdown. Allen reeled in 12 of his 14 targets for 92 yards.

Austin Ekeler didn’t do much on the ground – 15 carries, 45 yards – though he scored a touchdown. He was a much bigger factor in the passing game, catching eight passes for 59 receiving yards.

The Dolphins didn’t get anything out of their rushing attack either. Jeff Wilson Jr. (4-26) left the game with a hip injury, while Raheem Mostert (11-37) failed to take advantage of the opportunity to play more snaps.

Patriots 27, Cardinals 13

This game was decided on the third play from scrimmage. Kyler Murray scrambled into New England territory, but tripped awkwardly despite not being contacted. He was carted into the locker room and diagnosed with an ACL injury. He’ll have an MRI on Tuesday, but the expectation is that he suffered a tear.

Colt McCoy stepped in for Murray and did well initially. He moved the chains well and even had the Cardinals leading at halftime, 13-10. The lead would have been 16-7 had Kliff Kingsbury managed the clock and game situation correctly, but poor coaching was a running theme for Arizona in this game. The Cardinals were flagged for four procedural penalties and had some miserable play-calling from their head coach. DeAndre Hopkins was also to blame for a mental blunder, as he lost a fumble that was scooped and scored for a touchdown. This helped the Patriots go up two scores, which was an insurmountable lead for an Arizona team using its backup quarterback.

McCoy finished 27-of-40 for 246 yards and an interception, which occurred when he was hit upon release. McCoy was sharp early, but played worse as the evening progressed. He threw behind some receivers and missed an open Marquise Brown on a fourth down. Then again, his offensive line didn’t do him any favors by allowing him to be sacked on six occasions. Murray could have nullified the New England pass rush, but McCoy was just a sitting duck in the pocket.

Hopkins led the Cardinals with seven catches and 79 yards, but his lost fumble effectively decided the game. Marquise Brown’s stats paled in comparison (4-34), but he drew two interference flags, including one deep downfield. Rookie tight end Trey McBride caught three balls for 28 yards, including a 15-yard reception in which he was absolutely blasted as he caught the pass.

James Conner was the best fantasy player in Arizona’s offense by a long shot. He rumbled for 85 yards and a touchdown on just 15 carries, and he also caught six passes for 29 receiving yards. Conner was the leading rusher in this game because Rhamondre Stevenson injured his ankle. He left the game and then returned, only to exit permanently shortly later. Stevenson was able to carry the ball thrice for eight yards, and he also dropped a pass. He gave way to Pierre Strong (5-70) and Kevin Harris (8-26), both of whom scored touchdowns.

Mac Jones was able to capitalize on the running game by performing well, especially when blitzed. He went 24-of-35 for 235 yards and an interception, which occurred because his arm was hit as he let go of the ball. Jones spent some time yelling at the sideline again because the Patriots had issues relaying plays to him, but Jones downplayed the situation in a post-game interview.

Jones didn’t have the services of DeVante Parker either, as Parker was knocked out with an early concussion. Hunter Henry led the Patriots in receiving with three grabs for 70 yards, followed by Kendrick Bourne (5-47) and Nelson Agholor (5-32).

For more thoughts, check out my updated NFL Power Rankings, which will be posted Tuesday morning.

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