Week 11 saw potential contenders show their class while the entire AFC Wild Card race was thrown into a state of flux. Not sure if we can make sense of all that happened, but we’ll try our best with out Tuesday 10-spot for this week.
1. The no-call at the end of the Patriots-Panthers game was spot on.
Was there contact by Panthers linebacker Luke Kuechly in the back of the end zone on Rob Gronkowski? Absolutely. But, in my opinion, Kuechly does not hold Gronkowski (it was a faux bear hug, at best), and in addition, Gronkowski actually didn’t make an effort to reach back for the ball as it approached his vicinity – which contradicts the theory that Gronkowski was prevented from actually making an effort for the ball when he was impeded. If Gronk actually stopped, pivoted and made an effort to catch the ball – which he clearly does not do – I can see the argument to call the penalty. In the end, it allowed all of the viewers to listen to Tom Brady’s colorful remonstration to referee Clete Blakeman at the end, which made all of the ado worth it.
2. By this time next season, Cam Newton will be considered the best QB in the NFC South.
With the way the Carolina Panthers are playing, that statement could be true by the end of this season. Carolina’s 24-20 prime-time victory over New England was more than just a breakout party for Cam Newton. The stats were impressive enough: 209 passing yards (completing 19 of 28 throws), three touchdown passes, no interceptions and 62 rushing yards. More importantly, he finally won a marquee game with the nation’s eyes on him – and finally did so by leading the Panthers on a late scoring drive, capped off by a 25-yard touchdown pass to Ted Ginn with 59 seconds left. The maturation of his passing and reading of defenses is evident, and when you marry that with his running ability, it is not far-fetched to say that he, in just a matter of time, will bring more to the table than either Drew Brees or Matt Ryan.
3. Despite the loss, the Chiefs are a legit Super Bowl contender.
Kansas City did lose on the road, 27-17, to the Denver Broncos and suffered its first loss of the season, but the chances they had early on to take the lead (Anthony Sherman’s first-quarter fumble in the red zone comes to mind) and the fact that they were more than competitive in a stadium where the home team had won its previous four home games this season by an average of 22 points is no reason to continue to pick on the relative soft schedule the Chiefs have played so far.
4. Week 10 was not a good week for football fashion in the AFC North.
The Pittsburgh Steelers, undaunted by the almost universally negative reaction they received a few years back for wearing their throwback “bumble bee” uniforms, donned them once again on Sunday. What took the cake, though, in my mind, was the eye punishment some fans had to go through during the Cleveland Browns-Cincinnati Bengals game. If you think the combination of Cleveland’s brown pants plus the orange helmet-orange jerseys of Cincinnati was something you could tolerate, you have stronger intestines than most people, my friend(s).
5. Trent Richardson’s impact on the Colts for the remainder of 2013? Nothing.
That is not to say that the trade sending last year’s No. 3 overall pick from the Browns to the Colts isn’t going to yield success. It just won’t be in 2013. Donald Brown is just a better fit right now with the Colts, and he cemented that by rushing for 80 yards on 14 attempts in last Thursday’s win over the Tennessee Titans. Since the start of the 2012 season (a.k.a the Andrew Luck era), Indianapolis is 11-0 when they have at least 30 rushing attempts. Richardson’s arrival was supposed to ease the pressure off of Andrew Luck, but it might be an in-house candidate that does that job for the rest of the season.
6. The Detroit Lions reminded us they still have some “Detroit Lions” plays in them.
A fake field goal while up four points in fourth quarter, Jim Schwartz? They say you’re a genius if those plays work and a goat if they do not. Pittsburgh scoring 14 consecutive points right after that unsuccessful trick play got Schwartz fitted for a dunce cap.
7. Does a team really have to fill the No. 6 spot in the AFC at the end of the season?
Eight teams are within one game of the final playoff spot in the AFC, and the race is going to get uglier before it gets better in terms of quality separating themselves from the pack. There’s also the issue of whether the sixth seed in the AFC will finish with a winning record. Will any of the 5-5 teams (Jets, Dolphins) finish 4-2? Will any of the 4-6 teams (Raiders, Titans, Steelers, Ravens, Browns, Chargers) finish 5-1? If not, the AFC will see its first non-winning team in the playoffs since the New York Jets made the playoffs as a Wild Card all the way back in 1991.
8. Are the 2013 New York Giants going to go all Washington of last year?
Isn’t it fun to talk about the NFC East this season? Well, in this case, we focus on Big Blue and the resurgence – well, more like a mad scramble to mediocrity – that may lead to a division title after an 0-6 start. The return of running back Andre Brown – and with it, an actually passabel running game – signaled the beginning of the Giants being relevant again in the division. Along with Brown, the return to 100 percent health of defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul may play more of a role in the Giants winning the division than anything else. Dating back to last season, Pierre-Paul only has two sacks in his last 17 games, but it looks as if he is rounding back to his freakishly athletic self after off-season back surgery. If he produces more “wow” plays in the coming weeks, like his instinctive 24-yard interception return for a touchdown last week against Green Bay, the Giants have a great chance to call themselves the best of the worst in the NFC East at the end of the season.
9. We will see the Arizona Cardinals in the playoffs in 2013.
Carolina is getting all the attention in the NFC in terms of emerging as a playoff contender, and rightfully so. But lying low like a Diamondback in the Arizona desert waiting to pounce are the Arizona Cardinals, who are 6-4 after their win against Jacksonville and have a big showdown against Indianapolis this Sunday. Arizona’s next four games are winnable (Indy, at Philadelphia, St. Louis, at Tennessee), and if they win three out of their next four, they would have nine wins going into their final two games – at Seattle and at home against San Francisco. Oh, and if a playoff spot came down to a tiebreaker, Arizona defeated Carolina, 22-6, in October.
10. RIP Todd Christensen.
Todd Christensen, the five-time Pro Bowl and two-time Super Bowl winning tight end while a member of the Oakland Raiders, passed away last Wednesday from complications during liver transplant surgery. He was 57 years old. Christensen was also known for his intelligence and his breath of vocabulary while as a color commentator, and he was one of the first broadcasters I looked up as I thought about what I wanted to do as a profession many years ago.
