The Week 14 edition of The List is one of those times the headline doesn’t tell the whole story. Too many things happened to list them all. We have stars being plagued by injuries, several great games, including a Game of the Year candidate, the NFL 100 expanding to include defensive backs and special teams players, Eli Manning coming back from his 10-game hiatus on the Giants sideline, Lamar Jackson is making waves on and off the field and Carolina drops one of the longest-tenured head coaches in the league. So grab your popcorn and look back at the Week 14 happenings.
WINNERS
An instant classic between the 49ers and Saints – The game was close throughout and included six lead changes, more than 700 passing yards and a wild final three minutes. Drew Brees threw three first-half touchdowns and ran for another as the Saints grabbed a 27-14 lead midway through the second quarter. The 49ers came back using a little trickery. Newly acquired receiver Emmanuel Sanders threw a 35-yard touchdown pass to running back Raheem Mostert with six minutes left, and Mostert gave San Francisco a 28-27 halftime lead with a 10-yard run.
The third quarter was lower-scoring but still close, with a Jimmy Garoppolo to George Kittle scoring pass countering two long Will Lutz field goals, as the 49ers held a 35-33 advantage. Garoppolo and Brees traded passing touchdowns, making the score 42-40 in favor of San Francisco with six minutes left in the contest. Garoppolo led his team on an 11-play drive that included a 31-yard run by rookie receiver Deebo Samuel, but stalled when Jimmy G was sacked by safety Von Bell. Robbie Gould’s 41-yard field goal gave the 49ers a five-point cushion with 2:23 remaining.
Brees had the Saints marching on the next drive. He completed five passes, with the final one going to Tre’Quan Smith, who slipped by defenders for an 18-yard score. A two-point attempt to Smith failed, but New Orleans had a 46-45 lead with just 53 seconds left. Garoppolo started slowly, with an eight-yard pass to Kittle and two incompletes, but the big play came on 4th-and-2. Jimmy G hit his tight end again, and Kittle dragged three defenders down the sidelines for 39 yards (despite Marcus Williams yanking on his facemask nearly the entire way). The play plus the penalty gave San Francisco the ball inside the New Orleans 15 yard line and the 49ers ran twice to set up Gould’s game-winning 30-yard field goal as time expired.
The game was also full of milestones. The combined 94 points are the most scored in a regular-season game between two teams that both had 10 or more wins. Brees and Garoppolo both threw for 349 yards, the third time passers both threw for at least 300 yards and equal totals, and it is also the most among equal passers in NFL history (Tom Brady and Andrew Luck both threw for 312 yards in Week 6 of the 2015 season and Michael Vick and Matthew Stafford both passed for 311 in Week 12 in 2012). Sanders is the first player in the league to have 100 yards and a touchdown receiving and also throw a scoring pass since he did it with the Broncos against the Cardinals in 2018. He is also the only player to accomplish the feat multiple times. Finally, Saints receiver Michael Thomas had 11 receptions in the game, giving him 121 so far this year, which is the most by any player in the first 13 games of a season in NFL history. Former Colts receiver Marvin Harrison holds the single-season overall record with 143 catches in 2002.
Jackson continues making his MVP case in win over Bills – While it didn’t have the same fantastic finish as the Saints-49ers game, Baltimore and Buffalo engaged in a defensive struggle. MVP candidate Lamar Jackson threw three touchdown passes and closed in on a rushing record during the game. His four-yard pass to Willie Snead with less than 10 minutes left put the Ravens up, 24-9, but Josh Allen led the Bills back. Allen found Cole Beasley with both a scoring pass and a two-point pass less than three minutes later, and Buffalo forced a punt on Baltimore’s next drive. The ensuing Buffalo possession was aided by a critical pass interference penalty on 4th-and-16, but Allen threw three straight incompletions as the Ravens hung on to clinch a playoff spot.
Jackson ran for 40 yards, giving him 1,017 for the year. He is the second quarterback to run for more than 1,000 yards in a season, and he should catch all-time leader Michael Vick (1,039) in Thursday’s game against the Jets. Jackson also has a record five games in which he has three passing touchdowns and 30 or more yards rushing (Aaron Rodgers had four in 2016).
All this came after his representatives sent Pope Francis a personalized, signed jersey and comments about his “dark skin color with a dark football with a dark jersey” got 49ers radio analyst Tim Ryan suspended for the Saints game.
Believe it or not, there were other games – Few expected Jacoby Brissett and Jameis Winston to put together the high-scoring, competitive game we saw in Tampa on Sunday. Brissett threw for 251 yards and two scores as the Colts took a 35-21 lead late in the third quarter. Winston brought the Buccaneers back, tossing two touchdown passes over the final 16 minutes of the game, with his throw to Breshad Perriman giving Tampa Bay the lead with 3:51 left.
Winston threw for 450 yards and four scores, but also was intercepted three times, including a pick-six by Darius Leonard in the second quarter. He is the first quarterback to throw for 450 yards and three interceptions in a victory since Eli Manning did it against the Buccaneers in 2012 (more on him later). Winston also is closing in on a dubious mark. The Leonard play was Winston’s fifth interception returned for a score this season. The record is six, held by Peyton Manning in 2001 with the Colts and Rudy Bukich in 1966 with the Bears.
Another surprisingly close game was contested between two teams with nothing to play for other than draft position. You would think with a 22-21 final there would be a few touchdowns scored, but Miami got seven field goals from Jason Sanders, including a 37-yarder with 1:33 left for a 21-19 lead. He fell one short of the NFL record of eight field goals, set by Titans kicker Rob Bironas in a 38-36 win over the Texans in 2007. Sam Darnold hits tight end, Vyncint Smith, with a 37-yard pass, setting up Sam Ficken’s 44-yard kick as time expired to give the Jets the win.
The Falcons doubled up the Panthers in their first game under Perry Fewell, 40-20. Matt Ryan threw for 313 yards, becoming the tenth player to reach 50,000 yards and the second-fastest to hit the mark (186 games to the 183 it took Drew Brees). Julio Jones surpassed the 1,000-yard plateau for the sixth straight year, tying Tampa Bay’s Mike Evans for the longest active streak.
Other milestones – Denver took a surprising 38-3 lead in Houston then held on through a Texans comeback for a 38-24 victory. Second-round pick Drew Lock threw for 309 yards and three touchdowns for the Broncos, becoming the first player since 1950 to have 300 yards passing and three scores in his first start.
Adrian Peterson ran for 76 yards in Washington’s 20-15 loss to Green Bay on Sunday. A 13-yard run in the second quarter made him the sixth player to reach 14,000 for his career, joining Emmitt Smith, Walter Payton, Frank Gore, Barry Sanders, and Curtis Martin.
NFL 100 adds Gibbs, plus defensive backs and special teams – A total of 19 players were added to the list of the top 100 in NFL history last Friday night, as the league announced the best cornerbacks, safeties, kickers, punters, and returners. Here is a rundown of the selections:
Cornerbacks: Mel Blount was a four-time champion with the 1970s Steelers who had 57 career interceptions. He was the 1975 Defensive Player of the Year, a five-time Pro Bowler and a two-time All-Pro. Mike Haynes split his career between the Raiders and Patriots, amassing nine Pro Bowl and two All-Pro selections and winning a title with Oakland in Super Bowl XVIII. Dick “Night Train” Lane ranks fourth all-time with 68 interceptions, including 14 as a rookie in 1952, a record that still stands. He was a seven-time Pro Bowler and a three-time All-Pro. Willie Brown was traded to Oakland in 1967 and went to the next seven Pro Bowls (and nine overall). The five-time All-Pro also returned a pick 75 yards for a touchdown in Super Bowl XI. Darrell Green helped the Redskins win two titles while also being selected to nine Pro Bowls. His 54 interceptions include a pick in a record 19 straight seasons. Deion Sanders won back-to-back Super Bowls with the 49ers (1994) and Cowboys (’95). “Prime Time” got his start as a kick and punt returner, but finished with 53 picks, eight Pro Bowl selections and six All-Pro nods. Rod Woodson ranks third with 71 interceptions and holds the record with 12 returned for scores. The 1993 Defensive Player of the Year also was named to 11 Pro Bowls and six All-Pro teams.
Safeties: Ronnie Lott was one of the hardest hitters in any era, and he won four championships with the 49ers. Lott was a 10-time Pro Bowler and a six-time All-Pro who totaled 63 regular-season interceptions and nine more in the postseason (tied for the most in NFL history). Jack Christiansen won three titles with the Lions in the 1950s. He went to five straight Pro Bowls, was a six-time All-Pro and had 46 picks in eight seasons. Ken Houston was a 12-time Pro Bowler who starred with the Redskins and Oilers in the 1970s. The two-time All-Pro had 49 career interceptions and five defensive scores in 1971. Ed Reed was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame this year. He was a nine-time Pro Bowler, a five-time All-Pro and the 2004 Defensive Player of the Year. Reed had 64 interceptions, returning them for a record 1,590 yards. Emlen Tunnell is second with 79 picks (he was first when he retired in 1961), and he had at least six in each of his first 10 seasons. The nine-time Pro Bowler and four-time All-Pro won titles with the Giants in 1956 and the Packers in 1961. Larry Wilson was one of the league’s first premier free safeties, and he utilized the “safety blitz” to his advantage. The eight-time Pro Bowler and five-time All-Pro had 52 career interceptions, including one with both hands in casts.
Kickers: Jan Stenerud was the first kicker to be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. At the time of his retirement, he ranked second with 1,699 points (now he is 17th). Stenerud made three field goals in Kansas City’s win over Minnesota in Super Bowl IV. Adam Vinatieri is a four-time champion with the Colts and Patriots, and he kicked game-winning field goals for New England in Super Bowls XXXVI and XXXVIII. He holds the record with 2,673 points and is the only player to score 1,000 points with two franchises.
Punters: Shane Lechler and Ray Guy both spent the majority of their careers with the Raiders and are tied for the NFL record at the position with seven Pro Bowl selections. Lechler is the league’s all-time leader in gross punting average (47.6 yards). The six-time All-Pro finished in the top two in punt average 12 times in 18 seasons with Oakland and Houston. Guy is the only punter in the Pro Football Hall of Fame (inducted in 2014). He was a three-time champion, a three-time All-Pro and sports a 42.4-yard career gross average.
Returners: Devin Hester holds records with the most punt (14) and total return touchdowns (19) over an 11-year career in Chicago. The four-time Po Bowler and three-time All-Pro is also the only player to return the opening kickoff of a Super Bowl for a score (Super Bowl XLI against the Colts). Billy “White Shoes” Johnson became famous for his “Funky Chicken” dance after scoring, which he did eight times on returns in his career. The three-time All-Pro was named to the NFL’s All-Decade Teams for both the 1970s and 1980s.
In addition to these 19 players, Joe Gibbs was named as one of the 10 coaches on the league’s All-Time team. Gibbs guided the Redskins to all three of their Super Bowl victories and amassed a 154-94 record and five division titles in 16 seasons. The owner of the Joe Gibbs Racing NASCAR team also won back-to-back Coach of the Year honors in 1982-83.
Two players ink extensions – Not all the news was bad in Carolina. Over the weekend, Shaq Thompson signed a four-year, $54.2 million extension that will keep the linebacker in the blue and black through the 2023 season. Thompson has played 69 games in his first five seasons and reached the 100-tackle mark for the first time this year. On Friday, the Colts and Jack Doyle agreed on a contract extension that will pay the tight end $21 million over the next three years. The 2017 Pro Bowler has 238 receptions for 2,132 yards and 18 touchdowns in seven seasons.
Best of the rest – Winston, Garoppolo, Brees, and Ryan grabbed the headlines, but several other passers starred in Week 14. Ryan Tannehill threw for 391 yards and three touchdowns in Tennessee’s 42-21 win in Oakland. Dak Prescott had 334 yards for the Cowboys, but Mitchell Trubisky outplayed him with 244 yards and three scores for the Bears last Thursday. Carson Wentz had 325 yards and two late touchdowns as the Eagles came back to defeat the Giants on Monday night. Finally, Philip Rivers threw for 314 yards and three touchdowns on his 38th birthday, leading the Chargers to a 45-10 win over the Jaguars.
Among rushers, Joe Mixon led the way with 146 yards for Cincinnati, but Cleveland’s Nick Chubb ran for 106 in his team’s victory. Derrick Henry bowled his way to 103 yards and two touchdowns in Tennessee’s win. Aaron Jones ran for 134 yards in Green Bay’s win over Washington and Austin Ekeler had 101 yards rushing and 112 receiving for the Chargers.
Emmanuel Sanders was the top receiver with 157 yards and Michael Thomas had 134 in the 49ers-Saints slugfest. Rookie Darius Slayton caught five passes for 154 yards and two scores but the Giants fell on Monday night. A. J. Brown had 153 yards for the Titans and DeAndre Hopkins had seven receptions for 120 yards, but the Texans lost at home to the Broncos.
LOSERS
Panthers fire longtime coach Rivera – Ron Rivera, a former Super Bowl champion as a linebacker with the Bears in the 1980s and coach in Carolina since 2011, was fired by new Panthers owner David Tepper last Tuesday. Rivera, seen as a defensive guru as a coordinator with Chicago and San Diego, replaced John Fox as Carolina’s head coach. The Panthers won three straight NFC South titles, including a 7-8-1 mark in 2014, followed by a 15-1 season in 2015 that resulted in a trip to Super Bowl 50 (which the Panthers lost to the Broncos).
Carolina went 7-9 in 2018 and were 5-6 this year when Tepper made the change, saying he wants to start the search for a new coach right away and is “not going to disrespect” Rivera by interviewing candidates while he is still the coach. Tepper’s search could depend on what other teams let go of coaches at season’s end, but will mainly focus on offensive-minded options. In the meantime, Perry Fewell, a former defensive coordinator with the Bills (2006-09) and Giants (2010-14), as well as an interim head coach with Buffalo in 2009, will lead the Panthers for the rest of this season.
Two players cut from other teams – Rivera was not the only questionable release in the NFL over the past week. Two players got cut rather unceremoniously. Cleveland dropped reserve defensive end, Chris Smith, last Tuesday. His stat line of one tackle and one pass defended in nine games doesn’t suggest any issues, but Smith’s background might change your mind. His girlfriend, Petara Cordero, died in a car accident in September, just a few weeks after giving birth to the couple’s child. What makes the release even more bothersome was what head coach Freddie Kitchens said after Cordero’s death: “Chris is important to this locker room. Everything he’s going through we feel.”
Well, apparently, he is not as important as Odell Beckham Jr., a self-important prima donna who talked his way out of New York and is apparently trying to do the same in Cleveland. He also must not be as important as Kareem Hunt, a player whose arrival was celebrated despite being dropped by Kansas City and suspended eight games by the league for a domestic violence issue and then lied about it to his boss (Chiefs CEO Clark Hunt). If anyone needs a reason why the Browns are going in the wrong direction (once again), look no further than this move.
As for the other move, we get it. Despite kicking THREE field goals of more than 60 yards, Brett Maher deserved to be cut. I mean, he did miss TEN field goals this season. However, I have two points to make on this. First, is he really the ONLY issue with the Cowboys? You have a head coach that has won two playoff games in nine full seasons. Dallas has not reached the NFC Championship Game since 1995 (24 years). The team has all kinds of talent on both sides of the ball and yet consistently underperforms. Why is the only person who is taking heat for this the KICKER???!!! As for my other point…the Cowboys played on Thursday night and they waited to cut Maher until Monday after he visited sick kids at a local hospital with his teammates. Do you mean to tell me they didn’t know on Friday that they were going to waive him? Don’t let him show up for a team-sponsored event if you have no intention of keeping him on the team.
Patriots up to their old tricks? – New England is facing more “Spygate” criticism after a team weekly video segment following an advance scout turned into the NFL confiscating a videotape. The Patriots will face the Bengals this coming week and a Cincinnati official saw the film crew in the press box (credentialed by the Browns) and notified the league. The video includes direct footage of Cincinnati’s sideline for nearly eight minutes, which the team claims was simply a “mistake,” although when confronted by Bengals security, the cameraman asked if they could simply delete the footage (nothing guilty about that at all, right?).
In this week’s game, New England fell to Kansas City, but the game was not without controversy. A third-quarter fumble by Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce was ruled down by contact after Stephon Gilmore picked up the ball and had a clear path to the end zone. Early in the fourth, the Patriots were driving when Tom Brady found rookie N’Keal Harry, who worked his way into the end zone…except not one, but two officials did not see the full play and ruled Harry out of bounds, despite replay clearly showing that was not the case (New England did not have a challenge after Bill Belichick had to use one on the fumble, which was overturned).
Instead, the Patriots settled for a field goal and a late drive stalled on the five-yard-line, giving the Chiefs a 23-16 road win, which clinched a playoff spot. The loss is the first at home by the Brady and Julian Edelman combination in games they have both played (now 42-1 since 2009). Also, Kelce had 66 receiving yards, giving him 6,225 in his first seven seasons. He moved past Antonio Gates (6,223) into second and trails just Jimmy Graham (6,280) on the all-time list.
Eli returns, but Giants falter late - Monday night’s contest was a tale of two halves for Eli Manning. Making his first start since Week 2, Manning threw for 179 and two touchdowns to rookie Darius Slayton as the Giants took a 17-3 lead at the half. Philadelphia shut down Manning in the second half and crept back into the game. Manning had just 24 passing yards after halftime and the Eagles scored on a Boston Scott run late in the third quarter and a Carson Wentz pass to tight end Zach Ertz with 1:53 left in regulation to tie the score.
Philadelphia won the overtime coin toss, then marched 75 yards over eight plays in 4:50. The drive culminated with another Wentz-to-Ertz scoring pass, giving the Eagles a 23-17 win and moving them into a first-place tie with the Cowboys atop the NFC East.
Injury list mounting – Before the season, the Jets signed former Ravens linebacker C.J. Mosley to a record-setting five-year, $85-million contract that included $43 million guaranteed. Fast forward to this week and the Jets placed Mosley on injured reserve due to groin and abdominal issues. Mosley started just two games this season, totaling nine tackles and returning an interception for a touchdown.
After rumors of being cut over the past few weeks, Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri instead will be placed on injured reserve. He suffered an ankle injury that will require season-ending surgery. Giants quarterback Daniel Jones has a high ankle sprain that will possibly end his season. He could miss up to four weeks, which will give Eli Manning a few more starts in the meantime.
Seahawks running back Rashaad Penny suffered a knee injury on Sunday night that head coach Pete Carroll said was a “significant” sprained ACL that will end his season. Falcons wide receiver Calvin Ridley will miss the rest of 2019 with an abdominal injury and Atlanta cornerback Desmond Trufant will be out after breaking his forearm. Raiders rookie running back Josh Jacobs was inactive against the Titans due to a shoulder injury and he will have an MRI this week.
Other injuries include: Redskins running back Derrius Guice (MCL sprain) and linebacker Ryan Kerrigan (calf), Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston (small fracture in hand) and receiver Mike Evans (hamstring), Saints tight end Jared Cook (head), Dolphins receivers DeVante Parker and Albert Wilson (concussions), 49ers defensive end Dee Ford (hamstring), Jets tight end Ryan Griffin and running back Bilal Powell (ankle) and defensive lineman Quinnen Williams (neck), Ravens tight end Mark Andrews (knee), Jaguars receiver D.J. Chark (ankle) and Titans safety Kenny Vaccaro (concussion).
Lions fined for reporting of Stafford’s injury - Much like the Steelers with Ben Roethlisberger earlier this season, the Lions said their quarterback was practicing on a “limited basis” leading up to their Nov. 10 game against the Bears. While head coach Matt Patricia and general manager Bob Quinn said Stafford was still questionable to play on the morning of the game, despite having two fractured vertebrae in his back, the quarterback himself said he was told on Saturday that he would not be playing. The $110,000 fine levied by the NFL was split between Patricia ($25,000), Quinn ($10,000) and the organization in general ($75,000).
