NFL Game Recaps: Week 14, 2024

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

Lions 34, Packers 31

This was a radically different result than the first meeting between these teams. The Lions dominated in rainy and windy conditions back in Week 9, as “No Cookie” Jordan Love struggled through a groin injury. However, the Packers got off to another slow start, as Detroit moved the ball easily down the field on the opening drive, and then Christian Watson lost a fumble near midfield to set up another Detroit score.

The Lions were up 17-7, but that’s when the Packers got their act together. Watson redeemed himself by hauling in a deep pass to set up a Green Bay touchdown. Jared Goff then telegraphed a throw that was picked. Josh Jacobs breached the goal line on the short drive to put the Packers up 21-17.

The two teams exchanged scores, with the Lions going up 24-21, the Packers leading 28-24, and then Detroit moving ahead 31-28. The Packers trailed by a field goal with about half the fourth quarter remaining, but thanks to another big Watson reception, they moved into field goal range. Watson, however, made another blunder where an offensive pass interference penalty of his moved Green Bay too far back in the goal-to-go situation. The Packers had to settle for a field goal as a consequence, tying the game at 31.

The Lions had about three minutes to move into field goal range. They did just that on intermediate throws to Jameson Williams and Tim Patrick, followed by a 14-yard strike to Amon-Ra St. Brown. Detroit was stuck in a fourth-and-1, but eschewed the field goal to go for it. David Montgomery converted to remove all time off the clock, setting up Jake Bates’ game-winning field goal.

For the second week in a row, the Lions won by three points over a divisional opponent at home. This time, they did it on their own terms. The victory clinches playoff berth for them.

The Packers fought hard and had a chance to win at the end. Despite the series sweep, Green Bay remains a legitimate Super Bowl contender.

Vikings 42, Falcons 21

Kirk Cousins was heavily criticized for his four-interception debacle against the Chargers last week. He did his best to answer his critics to begin the game when he went 4-of-5 on an 11-play drive that concluded with a touchdown to go up 7-0.

The positive vibes didn’t last very long, however. The Vikings tied the game, and then Cousins was intercepted yet again on a late, telegraphed throw over the middle of the field. This turnover helped set up a field goal for the Vikings, but it was Atlanta’s special teams’ turn to make a mistake. A penalty allowed Minnesota’s drive to continue, and the Vikings turned that into a Justin Jefferson touchdown to put Minnesota up 14-7.

The two teams traded touchdowns, and the game was tied at 21 entering the fourth quarter. It was still anyone’s game, but Sam Darnold converted some third-and-long situations to take a 28-21 lead. Cousins didn’t have a chance to match the score because the Falcons’ inept special teams struck again. The Falcons lost a fumble on the ensuing kickoff to set up another Minnesota touchdown. Cousins was then picked while down 35-21 on a shot into the end zone to effectively clinch the victory for Minnesota.

Cousins was better in this game than he was versus the Chargers, but he continued to throw picks, so he might be benched soon. On the positive end of the spectrum, the Falcons continued to rush the passer well, accumulating four sacks.

The Vikings haven’t won by an impressive margin since the Christian Darrisaw injury. This was the first time that happened, though Cousins’ interceptions and special teams gaffes had something to do with that.

Jaguars 10, Titans 6

This game was 3-0 for what seemed like an eternity. The Titans notched a field goal on an early drive, but the score remained unchanged after that, as both teams experienced miserable quarterbacking. Mac Jones was picked on a deep shot, while Will Levis injured his shoulder on a Hail Mary attempt just prior to halftime.

Despite the injury, Levis remained in the game. He was highly ineffective after that, however, as Tennessee’s only source of offense was Tony Pollard runs. There weren’t enough of them, however, as Pollard was given 21 carries compared to Levis’ 32 attempts. There were no deep shots to Nick Westbrook-Ikhine this week.

The Jaguars took a 10-6 lead on a Tank Bigsby touchdown. Levis engineered a quality drive deep into Jacksonville territory, but some poor play-calling led to Tennessee turning the ball over on downs.

Tennessee had another poor sequence at the goal line. Earlier in the game, the Titans refused to give the ball to Pollard against Jacksonville’s poor run defense. This was another instance of horrible coaching by Brian Callahan, who has been a severe downgrade from Mike Vrabel.

The Jaguars suffered a huge blow with this victory. They were in control of the No. 1 overall pick, but that’s not the case anymore.

Buccaneers 28, Raiders 13

It appeared as though the Buccaneers were going to run away with this game quite easily. They went up 14-0 before the first quarter even concluded. Baker Mayfield shredded the Raiders defense with ease, as Rachaad White, seeing more work over an injured Bucky Irving, picked up big chunks of yards both on the ground and through the air.

This was a completely different game in the second quarter, however, as it transformed into a turnover fest. It began with a Mayfield interception when K’Lavon Chaisson tipped a pass at the line of scrimmage to himself. On the very next play, Aidan O’Connell lost a fumble on a botched snap. Mayfield then lost a fumble when he was strip-sacked on the ensuing drive. This led to an O’Connell rushing touchdown and a field goal to trim the margin to 14-10. The Buccaneers appeared as though they’d widen the margin on the final drive of the first half, but Mayfield threw a horrible interception into the end zone.

The turnovers continued for the Raiders in the second half. O’Connell was intercepted in the red zone and then seemingly threw another potential pick on a reckless pass, but replay review overturned it. O’Connell then exited the game with an injury, giving way to Desmond Ridder, who couldn’t move the ball at all. The Buccaneers, meanwhile, played a much cleaner second half. White rushed in a touchdown, and then Mayfield found Jalen McMillan in the end zone to put the game out of reach for the Raiders.

This was not a pretty game by the Buccaneers, but they got the job done. With the Falcons losing, Tampa Bay moved into first place in the NFC South.

The Raiders had a chance to pull the upset until O’Connell imploded and then got injured in the second half. It might be Ridder the rest of the way, making the Raiders an automatic fade in the final four weeks of the season.

Steelers 27, Browns 14

It was apparent that this game wouldn’t go nearly as well for Jameis Winston. The opening sequence was a bad omen, with the Steelers blowing up Nick Chubb for a 5-yard loss and then sacking Jameis Winston to set up a field goal. Winston was able to strike back with an impressive 35-yard touchdown to Jerry Jeudy, but that’s the only sustained offensive success the Browns enjoyed this entire afternoon.

Cleveland had a couple of decent drives in the second quarter, but the team came away with no points because of a pair of missed field goals. Meanwhile, Winston was intercepted on a disrupted screen. Winston barely completed half of his passes against a swarming Pittsburgh defense that was boosted by the return of Alex Highsmith.

As this was happening, the Steelers were scoring plenty of points. There weren’t any completed “moon balls,” but Russell Wilson was able to spread the ball around very well, connecting with eight different receivers. Two of those – Van Jefferson and Pat Freiermuth – scored touchdowns. The touchdown to Freiermuth really blew open the game, giving Pittsburgh a 27-7 lead.

The Steelers are now 10-3, as they managed to avenge their loss to the Browns from two weeks ago. They did well to avoid the obvious look-ahead spot to Philadelphia in Week 15.

The good news for the Browns, aside from the improved draft positioning, is that Winston didn’t throw a pick-six again. There were two picks, however, as Cleveland’s offense didn’t stand much of a chance in this game.

Eagles 22, Panthers 16

The Eagles entered this game as massive favorites, but didn’t play that way in the opening half. They had some lifeless drives where Saquon Barkley inexplicably couldn’t get anything going against the worst rush defense in the NFL. Jalen Hurts also saw more pressure than usual. Philadelphia eventually got into the end zone on a Hurts “Tush Push,” but the Panthers continued to threaten a potential upset when Bryce Young generated a terrific drive, showing some amazing anticipation to find open receivers. He eventually fired a touchdown to Tommy Tremble to go up 10-7.

This touchdown seemingly awakened Philadelphia. The Eagles intercepted Young when the second-year quarterback threw off his back foot, and the Eagles scored a touchdown on the ensuing drive when Hurts found DeVonta Smith in the end zone. The Panthers, however, wouldn’t go away. They engineered another touchdown drive, thanks to Young converting a fourth-down play on a tipped pass to Adam Thielen, setting up a touchdown run by Chuba Hubbard. Carolina’s lead didn’t last very long though, with the Eagles striking back with a Grant Calcaterra touchdown.

Up 22-16, the Eagles pinned the Panthers deep in their own territory. Young was nearly sacked in his end zone, but he escaped out of the sure safety and delivered a 31-yard pass to Xavier Legette. Young then moved the chains with a dart to Deven Thompkins, and then converted a fourth-and-7 to Thielen. Young had Legette wide open for a touchdown, but the rookie receiver dropped the ball. Young had one more chance on an ensuing fourth down. He escaped out of a sack, but his pass fell incomplete to end the game.

Congratulations are in order to the bettor who made $440,000 on his $3.1 million bet. Oh, and congratulations to Saquon Barkley, who broke the Eagles single-season rushing record.

The Panthers lost, but this was a beautiful game for them. They showed the fans that their team can compete with the best the NFL has to offer, all while preserving their draft positioning.

Dolphins 32, Jets 26

The Dolphins were in a must-win situation entering this game, especially off a blowout loss to the Packers on Thanksgiving. The good news is that they were set to battle the Jets, who have been completely futile this year.

The Jets, however, gave the Dolphins a much tougher game than they anticipated. Miami had issues in the red zone early in the game, settling for far too many field goals. The Jets, meanwhile, completed a big play on a fourth-and-4 to Garrett Wilson, setting up an Isaiah Davis touchdown run on the next play to take a 10-9 lead. The Jets continued their great offensive production throughout the afternoon, ultimately establishing a 23-15 lead entering the fourth quarter. Aaron Rodgers was unstoppable, hitting 300-plus yards for the first time all year.

Miami, down eight, answered back with a touchdown and a two-point conversion. The Jets drove down the field and kicked a field goal, but a great return by the Dolphins allowed them to move into field goal range at the end of regulation to tie the game.

The Dolphins won the coin toss in overtime. They went to Jonnu Smith for the first time all game, giving Smith the ball on a tight end screen. They ran the same play again, then picked up some more first downs to move into the red zone. Tua Tagovailoa hit Smith for the third time on the drive, this time for a touchdown to end the game.

Miami kept its season alive to improve to 6-7. The defense was dreadful, but Bradley Chubb’s return next week should help considerably.

The Jets had a great offensive performance for the first time in months, but it wasn’t enough. Now 3-10, the Jets may slack off until they play the Bills in the finale.

Saints 14, Giants 11
By Charlie Campbell – @draftcampbell

EDITOR’S NOTE: What a brutal bad beat. The Giants converted a fourth-and-10 after Drew Lock took a big sack, and then the Giants were granted a touchdown by replay review even though they were clearly not in the end zone. And if you had the -5, you lost on the two-point conversion that was a ricochet. And if that wasn’t bad enough, the Saints had a chance for a pick-six, but the stupid defender gave himself up even though the game wasn’t over.

The Saints have not been officially eliminated from the playoff race, so they are in win-out mode to have any shot at the postseason. The Giants have been eliminated, and backup quarterback Drew Lock was getting the start for New York. The Giants’ ineptitude was too much to overcome in a sloppy game, and New Orleans improved to 5-8. New York protected their draft status, falling to 2-11 and maintaining the worst record in the NFC.

The Saints struck first late in the first quarter with a long drive jumpstarted by Derek Carr throwing some beauties to Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Juwan Johnson. A few runs finished off the drive, with Kendre Miller plunging into the end zone. The Giants responded with a field goal drive and then had a punt return for a touchdown called back on a holding penalty. The Saints missed a 60-yard field goal on the final play of the half, and New Orleans maintained the 7-3 lead at halftime.

Early in the third quarter, Carr threw a bad pass up for grabs deep downfield, and the Giants’ Trey Hawkins III intercepted it. It was Hawkins’s first pick, and it snapped the Giants’ streak of 11 straight games without an interception, an NFL record. New York’s only other interception this season came in Week 1. After a Giants punt, Carr led New Orleans down the field with a 32-yard completion to Foster Moreau and then an 11-yard touchdown toss to Juwan Johnson. The Saints held a 14-3 lead entering the fourth quarter.

With time ticking away in the fourth quarter, the Giants went down the field with Malik Nabers grabbing a 22-yard gain to set up a short touchdown run for Tyrone Tracy. Nabers caught a deflected pass for a two-point conversion to make it 14-11. With just over four minutes remaining, Carr injured his head and left arm while trying to run for a first down. The Giants had another chance to tie with just over three minutes remaining, but Demario Davis intercepted Lock on a fourth-down pass. The Giants defense got a stop and forced a punt, so Lock had one more chance with just over a minute remaining. On a fourth-and-10, Lock took off on a 25-yard run to the Saints 35. Lock then connected with Nabers for 23 yards. New York set up a short chip-shot field goal to force overtime, but Saints breakout tackle Bryan Breese blocked the field goal to clinch the win for New Orleans.

Seahawks 30, Cardinals 18
By Charlie Campbell – @draftcampbell

EDITOR’S NOTE: What happened to Kyler Murray during the bye? He was unstoppable heading into the week off, but he’s been dreadful since. This was an easy revenge game for him, yet he was awful against Seattle.

The Seahawks grabbed firm control over the NFC West with a road win in Arizona. Improving to 8-5 also has Seattle currently in place to be the third seed in the NFC. This was a crushing loss for the Cardinals, losing both games this season to Seattle and dropping Arizona to 6-7. Kyler Murray threw two painful interceptions in the first half, and those turnovers let Seattle take firm control of the game. The Cardinals are vastly improved but still need more work on their roster to become true threats in the NFC.

The Cardinals took the opening possession across midfield, and then Murray threw a beautiful deep ball to Michael Wilson for a 42-yard touchdown. Seattle responded with a nice drive from Geno Smith, but it came up short in the red zone, and they settled for a field goal to make it 7-3. On the ensuing possession, Murray threw a poor pass that Ernest Jones IV easily intercepted to set up the Seahawks offense at the Cardinals’ 19-yard line. The next play, Smith threw a strike into the end zone to Jaxon Smith-Njigba for a 10-7 lead. Murray made another ill-advised throw, and Coby Bryant picked this one off with a return to the Cardinals 46. Just a few plays later, Zach Charbonnet had a short touchdown run to put Seattle up 17-7. Arizona responded with a field goal drive. Late in the second quarter, Charbonnet exploded up the middle of the Arizona defense and rumbled for a 51-yard touchdown run to go up 24-10 at the half.

In the third quarter, the Seahawks added a field goal to go up 27-10. Arizona’s offense finally got moving late in the third quarter, with James Conner producing some yardage on the ground and catching a shovel pass on third-and-goal for a touchdown. Murray ran in a two-point conversion to make it 27-18 entering the fourth quarter. After a Seahawks punt, Arizona drove into Seattle territory but missed a 40-yard field goal to keep it a two-score game with seven minutes remaining. Seattle took advantage to produce a drive that ran a lot of clock and produced a field goal.

Rams 44, Bills 42

Coming off a crazy snow game against the 49ers, the Bills were in danger of being unfocused against the Rams. It was clear instantly that their defense wasn’t going to play up to their ability, as they allowed a touchdown and a field goal on Los Angeles’ first two possessions. The special teams had a gaffe after that, with the Bills having a blocked field goal returned for a touchdown.

Suddenly down 17-7, the Bills engineered a touchdown drive, but it wasn’t enough because the Rams continued to score. The Bills couldn’t do anything to stop the Matthew Stafford to Puka Nacua connection. Kyren Williams was the hammer at the goal line, as he and Nacua both scored twice. Los Angeles eventually established a 24-14 halftime lead and a 38-21 advantage entering the fourth quarter.

Josh Allen wouldn’t go quietly, however. He attempted to lead a fierce comeback, becoming the first player in NFL history to throw for three touchdowns and rush for three touchdowns in a single game. Down nine, he tried to sneak into the end zone for his third touchdown, but had to waste a timeout. This ended up being a huge mistake. Allen scored on the next play, but the lost timeout prevented the Bills from retaining possession. Time expired just as the Rams’ ensuing punt hit the turf.

Had Allen completed the comeback, he would have locked up the MVP award. He’s still the front-runner for MVP, but this loss hurts the Bills’ chances of landing the No. 1 overall pick.

The Rams looked great in this game, and based on this result, it’s fair to wonder how they lost to the Dolphins at home in a recent Monday night game. Los Angeles will soon battle Seattle for a contest that could decide the NFC West.

49ers 38, Bears 13

The 49ers had been dreadful in two blowout losses leading up to this game. They were missing lots of personnel once again, but they came out guns blazing in this game. They showed great energy, and they scored a very early touchdown on some perfect Brock Purdy passing. Before long, it was 21-0 in favor of the 49ers, who had done something in this contest that they hadn’t done all year, which was convert at a high rate in the red zone.

The Bears, meanwhile, displayed no signs of life. They had just four net yards of offense by intermission. They finally began moving the ball in the second half and looked like they had a chance when they scored a touchdown to trim the margin to 24-6 and then retained possession. However, Caleb Williams lost a fumble to allow the 49ers to take over and then score again to put this lopsided game out of reach.

The 49ers suddenly look like they have a chance to reach the playoffs. They’re going to get some of their injured players back soon, so they’ll be even better than they were in this very impressive performance.

Chicago’s interim head coach had a chance to audition for the real gig. It’s safe to say that the Bears will be going in a different direction following this debacle.

Chiefs 19, Chargers 17

It doesn’t matter who they play, or whether or not the opposition is missing all of its receivers, or if the opposing quarterback gets injured during the midway point of the game, or if Kansas City establishes a big lead. The Chiefs will always find a way to win by one to three points.

The Chiefs went up 13-0 in this game. They dominated the opening half in all facets except red zone offense. The score could have been a much wider margin, but the Chiefs kicked too many field goals. Still, the Chargers had nothing going on offensively. With Ladd McConkey sidelined, Justin Herbert had no one to throw to, and then Herbert injured his ankle. Taylor Heinicke had to enter the game. Despite Kansas City playing nothing but close games, this seemed like a sure blowout.

And then, the second half happened. The Chargers found their running game against Kansas City’s usually stout ground defense, making life easier for Herbert, who returned from injury. Herbert was able to connect often with Joshua Palmer and Stone Smartt, who replaced the injured Will Dissly. Before long, the Chargers established a 14-13 lead.

The Chiefs stormed back with a great drive, but faltered in the red zone again when Trey Smith committed a personal foul. DeAndre Hopkins dropped a pass near the goal line, but the Chiefs took the lead back with a field goal. Herbert answered by getting out of a second-and-long situation by driving the field, but the Chargers also stalled over midfield. They took a 17-16 lead, leaving way too much time for the Chiefs. Patrick Mahomes naturally drove down the field, hitting Travis Kelce on a key third down that allowed the team to kneel down and kick the decisive 31-yard field goal.

The Chiefs won the division with this victory. They’re 12-1, but look very unconvincing. Remember though that they also struggled down the stretch last year before winning the Super Bowl.

The Chargers fought hard to erase a 13-0 deficit, but they came up short once again. They can at least know that they can go toe to toe with the defending champions.

Bengals 27, Cowboys 20
“We needed a break.” Those were the words from Joe Burrow following this victory. The Bengals certainly got one at the end, which resulted in them prevailing for the fifth time this year.

This was a 20-20 game for a chunk of the fourth quarter. Andrei Iosivas lost a fumble near midfield, and Dallas recovered to set up a short field. However, replay review ruled that Iosvias didn’t have two feet down after bobbling the ball, declaring that the pass was incomplete. However, this was not the break that Burrow referenced, which occurred on the ensuing drive. Dallas’ defense came up with a big stop, forcing a Cincinnati punt. The Cowboys blocked the punt, but the ball inexplicably rolled forward beyond the line of scrimmage. The Cowboys touched the ball initially, while Cincinnati recovered. By rule, this meant that the Bengals would retain possession even though Dallas blocked the punt.

Burrow didn’t waste any time making the most of his second chance. He fired a touchdown pass to Ja’Marr Chase, who put together a monstrous performance in this game. The Bengals, who looked to relinquish possession to the Cowboys in favorable field position, ended up with a seven-point lead with a minute remaining. Cooper Rush responded by hitting CeeDee Lamb for a 15-yard pass, but a sack two plays later effectively ended the game.

The Bengals are now 5-8. They’re three back of the final wild card spot, but there are three teams that are 8-5, so it’s possible that one of those teams could completely implode. Cincinnati’s chances of making the postseason are very slim, but still possible.

Conversely, this was a huge blow for the Cowboys, who are also three games back of the seventh spot. Unlike the Bengals, the Cowboys can only catch one team – the Redskins – though they do play that team in Week 18.

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

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