CHICAGO

This:

From Doug Colletti…

Since 1932, no #NFL team with a +3 turnover margin & 40min time of possession had EVER lost that game.

Teams were 48-0 until the #Bears lost today.

It’s not an overstatement to call this a historic loss.

DETROIT

QB JARED GOFF was a winner Sunday, despite 3 INTs.  And he had no problem with hearing some boos along the way.  Grant Gordon of NFL.com:

Boos rained down on Jared Goff Sunday.

It was his first game as a Detroit Lion with three interceptions. Those turnovers played a monumental role in the Lions trailing the Chicago Bears by 12 points in the fourth quarter.

However, it was Goff’s resolve that had the Lions faithful roaring.

Goff led Detroit to a resounding comeback in which the Lions scored 17 straight points to emerge from Sunday with a 31-26 victory.

“So, here’s what we know about Goff: At the very least, he’s going to be mentally tough and physically tough, and you can always count on that,” Lions head coach Dan Campbell said after the game. “You can bank on that. Today, he showed his resiliency, and when we needed those plays, he showed up in no-huddle mode.”

After a terrible start that drew the ire of the Lions faithful, Goff railed his pride, finishing the game with 236 passing yards, two touchdown passes and the aforementioned three interceptions for an ugly 68.3 passer rating.

“I get it. They’re upset, I’m upset,” Goff said of the boos. “They can be upset, and boo, it’s all right.”

Goff ended the game magnificently, going 5 for 5 for 71 yards with a 32-yard touchdown to Jameson Williams that cut the Lions’ deficit to 26-21 after the extra point with 2:59 to go.

After the Lions’ defense held the Bears to a pivotal three-and-out, Goff orchestrated the game-winning drive with 2:33 to go and 73 yards to get there. He was 4 of 6 for 35 yards before David Montgomery found pay dirt against his old squad. Goff tacked on a two-point conversion when he connected with Sam LaPorta for a 29-26 advantage.

The win put the Lions at 8-2 for the first time since 1962. So far this season, the Lions have lived up to the preseason expectations heaped upon them. With those grand hopes have come pressure not seen in some time for a franchise chasing its first NFL title since 1957.

Thus, Goff understood the negative reaction from the home crowd after he threw interceptions on each of Detroit’s first two possessions — and a third as one of four scoreless drives to begin the second half.

“I think the expectation for our team is higher than they’ve ever been, and you know, we want to win home games in front of our home fans against division opponents,” Goff said. “Today, we ultimately did that. We didn’t get there in a straight line, but we ultimately came out with the W, and again, it’s a testament to how tough and courageous we are on offense and defense.”

While Goff was hardly at his best, he persevered despite his worst.

That’s what impressed his head coach.

“I think it speaks volumes,” Campbell said. “He doesn’t have his best game, but it’s really when you needed him most. In a two-minute drive at the end of the half, that was pretty big. And then at the end of the game, down two scores, that’s when he’s at his best. In a game that he’s not playing his best game, I think that speaks volumes.

Overall, a bad day for Goff ended with another win for Detroit, which is amid its greatest start in more than 60 years, with its quarterback’s renaissance a major reason why.

“It’s a lot easier to play bad and win than it is to play bad and lose. Kind of what we did today,” he said. “We played not our best ball and not my best ball for about three and a half quarters. And find a way to make it work there at the end. It’s a sign of a good team. We’re a resilient group. We’re tough. We have a lot of courage, and we don’t back down from anything.”

Peter King:

The Detroit Lions are 16-4 in their last 20 games.

“Is that good?” quarterback Jared Goff said from downtown Detroit late Sunday afternoon.

Yes. Yes it is. The Eagles are 16-4 in their last 20. Kansas City’s 17-3. Dallas is 13-7. So, this is no small deal, Mr. Goff. But I thought Detroit’s 31-26 win over Chicago was special because Goff had his first three-interception game in four years, and he led a stirring comeback from nine points down with four minutes left. That’s what great players have to do sometimes—forget the crap and drive 148 yards in four minutes for two touchdowns to win a game you a) had no business losing but b) probably should never have won after the hole you dug.

I’ve come to really admire Goff. I thought he was toast when the Rams gave him away to Detroit. Goff, obviously, didn’t. His resilience was vital mentally and physically on Sunday. The unappreciated part of Goff’s game is he doesn’t press or worry about the things he screwed up. He compartmentalizes as well as any quarterback in football today. The good you’ve done doesn’t matter. The bad you’ve done doesn’t matter. The next play—that’s all that matters. It’s a cliché, yes. But if you watch a player live that cliché and win games, so what?

Detroit Lions, 16-4 since Halloween 2022. I mean, come on.

“Unfortunately, I was hurting us early on,” Goff said. “So late in the game, I had to just play. My number one job is to try to find a way to win the game for our team. I can’t worry about what I’d done wrong. At the end of the game, we had a chance to win. How do I get us there is basically all I was thinking.”

“The big thing for a quarterback is just thinking, ‘How do we play one good play at a time?’ I think everyone on offense had a pretty good feeling once we got to the two-minute drill that we’d be able to move the ball similar to what we did in the first half. Everything done prior to this doesn’t matter. We have a chance to win it. Gotta go fast, but we got a chance.”

That’s the great thing about Jared Goff 2.0. He always gives the Lions a chance.

DALLAS

Finally.

John Machota of The Athletic:

Hall of Fame coach Jimmy Johnson will be added to the Dallas Cowboys’ Ring of Honor on Dec. 30 when the team hosts the Detroit Lions, team owner Jerry Jones announced Sunday. Here’s what you need to know:

Jones announced Johnson would be added to the Ring of Honor in August 2021, shortly before Johnson’s induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Johnson served as head coach in Dallas from 1989 to 1993, helping the Cowboys win two Super Bowls (XXVII, XXVIII).

Johnson will be the 24th member of the Ring of Honor.

Why put Johnson in now?

Jones and Johnson took part in a 12-minute news conference following the announcement on Fox. It likely would have gone longer but the game had already been underway for several minutes.

“Frankly, it just felt right,” Jones said regarding the timing of Johnson’s induction. “Certainly there was a little awkwardness that was happening for not doing it that I guess I anticipated but I really didn’t anticipate it. I wouldn’t have wanted that to linger any longer at all.”

Speaking to Johnson, Jones then added: “When you’re in, you’re in. You’ve always been in. It was just a question of when.”

Jones and Johnson then looked at each other and bumped fists.

“I think one reason for this year is I’m alive,” Johnson joked. “He has always told me I was going in.”

NEW YORK GIANTS

QB TOMMY DeVITO took 9 sacks Sunday, but when he did throw the ball he was gold.  Peter King has him as one of his Players of the Week:

Tommy DeVito, quarterback, N.Y. Giants. The Jersey kid was sacked nine times in his second start in the NFL Sunday, but played decisively and confidently for an undrafted player who had a pretty undistinguished career at Syracuse and Illinois. At FedEx Field, DeVito, who grew up 11 miles from MetLife Stadium, completed 18 of 26 passes for 246 yards, with three touchdown passes and no picks for a 137.7 rating. “Not a lot of people get this opportunity,” DeVito said. He’ll get more, beginning next Sunday against Bill Belichick and the Patriots.

Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com clocked Casa DeVito in Cedar Grove, New Jersey at 9 miles from MetLife Stadium:

The question was posed to New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley very clearly. What do you think of your starting quarterback living at home?

“Living at home?” Barkley asked quizzically.

When informed by ESPN that this week’s starting Giants quarterback, New Jersey native Tommy DeVito, was living at home, Barkley asked with whom.

With his parents, of course.

“For real?” Barkley said with a chuckle, unaware that DeVito was playing for the Giants while living in his childhood home in Cedar Grove, N.J., nine miles away from the team’s practice facility and stadium.

– – –

It makes sense that DeVito lives at home, given the situation. He is a rookie, an undrafted free agent, playing for his hometown team. He’s a Don Bosco Prep High School star who wasn’t even sure he would be on the roster this season after six collegiate years, the final being at the University of Illinois.

DeVito started the season on the practice squad. He was signed to the active roster last week when Taylor went on injured reserve.

“It was a no-brainer for me,” DeVito told ESPN about living with his parents. “Everything that I need is there at the house. The decision was made since this level of football is stressful for a rookie, especially from the quarterback position. There is a lot going on, a lot of meetings. So everything outside of football is handled by my family.

“I don’t have to worry about laundry, what I’m eating for dinner, chicken cutlets and all that is waiting for me when I get there. My mom still makes my bed. Everything is handled for me. Honestly, I don’t even know if I could find a place closer to here than where I live. It takes me 12 minutes to get here.”

Veteran offensive lineman Justin Pugh also had no idea DeVito was living at home. Pugh said in his 11 professional seasons he hasn’t known of a player who lived at home during the season, although there have been a few.

But he’s certainly not against such an arrangement, especially considering the work and growth he’s seen from his fellow Syracuse product.

“That is the greatest. You know what, smart!” Pugh said. “Saving his money. Genius! That’s the one thing I’d say from a financial standpoint. Your mom helping with your wash, making sure you’re up on time, no distractions, unbelievable.”

While Pugh expects an invite in the future for a Sunday meal with the offensive line, the DeVitos have already served as familial hosts. Wide receivers Jalin Hyatt, Wan’Dale Robinson and Bryce Ford-Wheaton have all been over.

Hyatt, a fellow rookie, even credits DeVito with putting him onto the good restaurants and spots in the area after moving to New Jersey in the spring.

“I’ve been over there. I love going to his spot,” Hyatt said. “He has a little hot tub in the back. The crazy thing about it is he lives, maybe, 15 minutes away. So he’s close.”

But is it nine or 11 miles?  It looks to the DB like it is nine miles as the crow flies, but 11 if you jog north to get on State Road 3 for the high-speed (at times) run down the hill to MetLife.

PHILADELPHIA

G JASON KELCE on what’s at stake tonight:

“I don’t need the Super Bowl to motivate me to beat my brother or beat Andy Reid. I’ve never beaten them in my career. I’m more motivated maybe by that. I don’t buy into Super Bowl revenge games.”

WASHINGTON

The DB wishes Peter King had provided a reminder that the Giants were 3-0 against Washington since the start of last year, prior to making this week’s Survivor Pool pick:

Dan Snyder lives. Commanders had to go commando after the loss to the Giants ended any remote playoff prayer they had. No water in the FedEx showers for Commanders and Giants. How incredibly, wonderfully, aromatically fitting.

Ron Rivera, I don’t know how you survive getting beat by Tommy DeVito at home, getting swept by the 3-8 Giants this year, and going winless against the G-Men in the last two years.

ATLANTA

It will be QB DESMOND RIDDER starting Sunday when the Falcons battle the Saints for the NFC South lead.  Or at least that’s what Ian Rapoport of NFL.com hears from his sources:

The Falcons are making a QB change and are going back to their original starter in Week 12.

Sources say Desmond Ridder, who began the season as Atlanta’s starter, is expected to resume that role on Nov. 26 against the Saints. Ridder has been the backup to Taylor Heinicke the last two games, both losses.

Ridder, just 24 years old, was evaluated for a concussion in Week 8 against the Titans. Heinicke replaced him at halftime of that game and started the following two weeks.

Ridder is 4-4 as a starter this season, with plenty of big moments. The hope is that the two-game break during which Heinicke started serves as a reboot for Ridder.

Falcons head coach Arthur Smith had said prior to this weekend’s bye that naming a QB during that week was a “little premature,” but added that he considered the hamstring injury that Heinicke suffered against the Cardinals to be a low-grade one. In short, the QB decision would be made, injury or not. Now, it’s slated to be Ridder.

The goal for Smith and Atlanta has been to name a starter and stick with him the rest of the season rather than go back and forth. Allowing Ridder to settle in should help.

Ridder’s best performance of the season came during the Falcons’ last-second win over the now-red-hot Houston Texans on Oct. 8, throwing for 329 yards with a touchdown and zero turnovers. That’s the Ridder the Falcons want to see.

Following the team’s last-second loss to the Cardinals on Nov. 12, receiver Drake London said of losing, “I don’t want this to become a habit of ours. We just need to switch some things up. That’s it.”

With their original starter back, and a week to get rested and healthy, it all should help for the Falcons. Ridder looked solid when he stepped in for Heinicke to end last week’s game, completing 4 of 6 passes for 39 yards.

“Sometimes you need a fresh perspective,” Smith said this past week of Ridder. “That’s what I think helped him. The reset, the refocus and working on things that I thought could help him, he’s done that.”

CAROLINA

Peter King:

I think I wonder if David Tepper thinks he’s playing some version of fantasy coaching. Jay Glazer reported Sunday that, nine games into his tenure, Panthers coach Frank Reich has the “hottest seat” in the NFL. Examining the itchiest trigger finger of any owner in the NFL—and that’s saying something given the presence of Mark Davis in the league:

December 2019: Tepper, 28 games into his ownership, dismisses coach Ron Rivera.

January 2020: Tepper dismisses coach Perry Fewell after his 0-4 interim run.

October 2022: Tepper dismisses coach Matt Rhule, 11-27 in his third season.

January 2023: Tepper dismisses interim coach Steve Wilks, who was 6-6 in relief of Rhule.

November 2023: Is Tepper considering whacking his fifth coach in 47 months, barely a half-season into Reich’s four-year contract?

3. I think there’s another part to the Tepper story that would be laughable if it weren’t so laughable: He also owns Charlotte FC of Major League Soccer. The team made the playoffs this year, but, for the second year in a row, Tepper fired the head coach. That means since 2019, Tepper has fired six coaches in two sports, and may be on the verge of firing a seventh.

4. I think there’s one final part of this story I have to share: Tepper’s a Pittsburgher. He owned a 5% stake in the Steelers for nine years before he bought the Panthers, and he learned absolutely nothing from the Rooney family about owning an NFL team. Full-time coaches hired by Tepper in his five-year ownership: three. Full-time coaches hired by the Steelers in the last 54 years of Rooney ownership: three. My point is, if you hire a coach and want to fire him 10 months later, then you really didn’t vet him enough to know him—and you have no idea how much you cripple your franchise when you’re changing coaches the way you change underwear.

Unsaid here also is, and coaches talk, with Tepper’s reputation as a crazy meddler will any of the best coaches want to work for him?

Money could talk, but…

ARIZONA

Peter King on the field goal evolution:

Matt Prater rules. Jan Stenerud, the first exclusive-kicker to make the Pro Football Hall of Fame, made 66.8% of his field goals in 19 pro seasons. Prater’s now made 75.5% of his—from 50 yards and beyond.

The NFL’s all-time leader in field goal of 50 yards and longer made his 77th Sunday in Houston from 57 yards in the first half. He’s got 19 more 50-plus-yarders than any kicker in history. This might be the most impressive thing: In Prater’s last 15 games, he’s 11 of 12 from 50 yards and out.

Prater is not alone.  PK YOUNGHOE KOO of Atlanta is 82% (23-28) from 50+.  PK CHRIS BOSWELL in the swirling winds of the confluence (and elsewhere) is 80% (28-35).  PK DANIEL CARLSON of the Raiders is 78% (25-32).  There are others.

Now, Prater has been doing it longer than anyone else as his 102 50+ attempts attests (the record is 105 by Sebastian Janikowski who made 55%).

SAN FRANCISCO

QB BROCK PURDY was perfect on Sunday – at least as the NFL’s Passer Rating formula defines it.  Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com:

Roughly 30 minutes after becoming the first San Francisco 49ers quarterback in history to attempt 20 or more passes and post a perfect 158.3 passer rating in the same game, Brock Purdy had multiple thoughts.

First, Purdy was proud to etch his name in the record book and have it said along with Joe Montana, who is the only other Niners starter with at least 10 attempts to have a perfect passer rating, a feat he accomplished in 1989. Second, Purdy pointed out that just because the passer rating goes no higher doesn’t mean he believes it was a “perfect” game.

Third, Purdy deflected credit to his teammates and coaches for their hand in his performance during San Francisco’s 27-14 victory against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

“What an honor,” Purdy said. “But at the same time, I feel like there’s still some plays and stuff that I wish I had back. So, I’m not completely content with just that, but I thought it was a great game with the guys around me, the coaching and the play calling, all of it. I think that’s a testament to the team, really.”

Five minutes later, Purdy was asked if passer rating is a tool he and his fellow quarterbacks use to judge their play.

“I still don’t even really know what it means,” said Purdy, a grin creeping across his face.

What it meant for the Niners on Sunday was a second consecutive victory that moved them further away from the three-game losing streak that ruined their October and elevated them to 7-3 with a one-game lead in the NFC West division. For Purdy, it might have been his best game yet in a season where that claim has already been made on multiple occasions.

Making his 18th career start nearly a year after making his first NFL start against these same Bucs, Purdy and the offense got off to a slow start on their opening drive. But they rarely missed the rest of the way as Purdy finished 21-of-25 for 333 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions on his way to the pristine 158.3 mark.

His damage came in nearly equal doses between the halves, though in different ways. In the first half, Purdy was 14-of-17 for 164 yards and a score. In the second, he was 7-of-8 for 169 yards and two scores, including a 77-yard strike to receiver Brandon Aiyuk for a touchdown early in the third quarter.

Most of Purdy’s damage came against the Bucs’ man coverage as he threw for a career-high 210 yards and had all three touchdowns against that defensive look. Purdy now has 16 passing touchdowns when facing man, the most in the NFL this season.

Despite all those gaudy numbers, teammates have grown accustomed to Purdy’s performances.

“Perfect game? Wow,” defensive end Nick Bosa said. “I’m never surprised anymore with him. He’s as good as it gets.”

Over the past two games, Purdy has looked more like the quarterback who helped the Niners to a 5-0 start than the one who had six turnovers (including all five of his interceptions) in a three-game losing streak against the Cleveland Browns, Minnesota Vikings and Cincinnati Bengals. Purdy only truly struggled against Cleveland out of those three games but the turnovers had some outside skeptics wondering how he would respond.

Between last week against Jacksonville and Sunday against Tampa Bay, Purdy has gone 40-of-51 for an average of 314.5 passing yards with six touchdowns and no interceptions while averaging 12.3 yards per attempt.

“There’s always going to be critics,” running back Christian McCaffrey said. “He knows that. Everybody in here knows that, and I like when he plays a little bit edgy with a chip on his shoulder. I kind of hope the critics just keep coming because it pisses him off and he plays really well.”

For Purdy, there has been no magic cure to whatever was going on during the Niners’ three-game losing streak. Coach Kyle Shanahan said Purdy was playing “unbelievable” during the streak on film and there was no need to panic or make any major adjustments.

But Purdy did believe it was important for him to be hard on himself, play with a chip on his shoulder and remember that the league is always quick to remind that a pat on the back and a kick in the behind aren’t far from one another.

“It’s the NFL, anything can happen on any Sunday and that’s like the chip that I was talking about,” Purdy said. “So, sort of getting back to that and proving myself every drive, every play that I can be the guy for this team and I have to earn it every single week at practice, meetings, wherever it may be. That’s the mindset of what I was talking about and definitely more in tune and being detailed the last couple weeks and finding that chip again.”

Ten games into this season, whatever Purdy has used for motivation seems to be working. Through Sunday’s games, he’s first in the NFL in QBR (76.6), passer rating (109.9), yards per attempt (9.7), third in completion percentage (70.2%), tied for fifth in touchdown passes (18) and sixth in passing yards per game (266.2). His five interceptions are tied for the second fewest among starters.

Purdy’s 9.7 yards per attempt are the second-most through 10 games in NFL history among players with a minimum of 250 attempts. He sits next to Boomer Esiason in 1988 (9.8), Dan Marino in 1984 (9.7) and Aaron Rodgers in 2011 (9.6) at that rate. Esiason, Marino and Rodgers all went on to win the league’s Most Valuable Player award.

As Purdy continues to answer any and all questions about him, perhaps the better question might be what can’t he do?

“I don’t know if he can run a 4.3 [second 40-yard dash],” Shanahan said. “But anything we’ve asked him to do, he’s done at a real high level.”

It’s the 2^nd perfect game in the NFL this season.  QB JOSH ALLEN of the Bills had one in Week 4 against Miami with very similar numbers – 21-25, 320 yards, 4 TDs and the required 0 INTs.

What about C.J. STROUD when he strafed the Buccaneers for 470 yards a couple of weeks ago? He only completed 71.4% of his passes, so the rating was “only” 147.8.

Of the seven highest game ratings this year, Purdy has three of them.  Also last week at JAX (148.9) and when the 49ers blasted Dallas in Week 5 (144.4).

Doesn’t Purdy now have to be on the MVP Watch lists now?  Like in the top 5?

LOS ANGELES RAMS

WR COOPER KUPP could not finish Sunday’s win over the Seahawks. Sarah Barshop of ESPN.com:

Star wide receiver Cooper Kupp suffered an ankle injury in the second quarter of the Los Angeles Rams’ game against the Seattle Seahawks and did not return.

The injury came in the second quarter of the Rams’ 17-16 victory Sunday. Kupp was checked out on the sideline by the Rams’ medical staff before going to the locker room before halftime. He was on the sideline in the third quarter with his helmet on, but he did not return to the field and was officially ruled out at the start of the fourth quarter.

“He was going to try to come back and play,” coach Sean McVay said after the game. “He was moving around at the beginning of the second half and we were hoping that he’d be able to go, but it just didn’t quite feel good enough.”

McVay didn’t have an update on the severity of Kupp’s injury after the game.

Kupp, who missed the first four games of the season with a hamstring injury, has 23 catches for 364 yards and a touchdown in 2023. He ended the 2022 season on injured reserve after leaving a Week 10 loss with a high ankle sprain that required surgery.

And this from Goff on his exit from LA:

Down 26-14 with three minutes left at the Chicago 32-, offensive coordinator Ben Johnson called for what Goff said was a Sail Pile On concept. Three receivers to the right., running routes at different depths. Tight end Brock Wright ran a short flare pattern to the right sideline. Amon-Ra St. Brown ran an intermediate out-route to the right, drawing the corner, Jaylon Johnson with him. That left Jameson Williams all the way up the right seam with space over the safety. “I was able to drive it in there on him and finish it off,” Goff said. The Bears went three-and-out, and Goff had another long drive to win it.

“I think I’ve gotten better at not overthinking things that really don’t matter,” said Goff. Like stressing on the three picks. “Everybody in this game makes mistakes. How do you find a way to overcome them, and be the quarterback for your team that they need, and find a way to win?”

I told Goff I was impressed by something I read about him in the Sam Farmer story in the L.A. Times—asking Sean McVay for an exit meeting when the Rams traded him to Detroit in early 2021. Most guys, I thought, would harbor resentment, and not want anything to do with the coach who dumped them. “Well,” Goff said, “I wanted to … hah … We spent four years together and he traded me on a phone call. So, I did wanna talk to him face to face. You know? That was half of it. But yeah, I did want to know what I could do better and where to improve. He was honest. It was a long conversation. There was a lot that came out of it. It was good. Got some clarity. Don’t know if I got all the clarity, but I got some.”

It’s a sign of maturity, and growth. Goff’s a good guy for a young team with hunger, because that’s who he is too.

SEATTLE

A tough loss for the Seahawks also left questions about the right elbow of QB GENO SMITH.  He left the game, came back and got the Seahawks into position for a potential game-winning FG, but now is uncertain on a short week.  ESPN.com:

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith nearly had a storybook conclusion to Sunday’s game against the Rams.

After missing the majority of the fourth quarter due to a right elbow injury, Smith re-entered the game for the final drive at SoFi Stadium and had the Seahawks on the cusp of a wild win. Jason Myers’ 55-yard field goal attempt, however, sailed wide right to preserve a 17-16 win for Los Angeles.

Head coach Pete Carroll described Smith’s injury after the game as a bruise on his triceps or back of the elbow that swelled up, but Smith was able to get it loose enough to return to the game on Sunday. However, Carroll told reporters that he was not sure of Smith’s prognosis for Week 12 as the Seahawks face the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday night.

“On Thursday games, you’re worried about everybody coming back,” Carroll said.

Smith looked like his day was done after he endured a big hit from Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald toward the end of the third quarter. Smith was in clear discomfort following the play and was evaluated in the medical tent on the sideline before being deemed questionable to return.

Drew Lock filled in for Smith for the majority of the final frame and struggled against a tough L.A. front. Lock failed to lead Seattle to a first down in three possessions and an interception on his final pass of the day led to the Rams’ go-ahead drive.

Smith then re-entered the game with 1:31 left and quickly drove Seattle into field goal range in five plays while showing no issues with his throwing elbow. Myers’ miss, though, sealed the win for the Rams.

Smith’s elbow will be worth monitoring in the days ahead as the Seahawks face a quick turnaround.

And this from NFL Nerd:

@NerdingonNFL

The 6-4 #Seahawks next 4 games:

12 – vs #49ers

13 – at #Cowboys

14 – at #49ers

15 – vs #Eagles

The finish is at Titans, STEELERS, at Cardinals.

So, the Seahawks feel like 8-8 and a coin flip with Pittsburgh.

DENVER

Despite fines and suspension, S KAREEM JACKSON is still delivering violent hits (illegal ones if you’re a Vikings supporter).  And one such hit, produced a game-turning play for the Broncos on Sunday night.  Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com:

Vikings quarterback Josh Dobbs lost a first-quarter fumble Sunday night on a questionable hit by Denver Broncos safety Kareem Jackson, a play that marked a key turn of events in Minnesota’s eventual 21-20 loss.

Watching in real time from the sideline, Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell said he thought that Jackson — playing in his first game back following a two-game suspension for similar hits — should have been penalized after lowering his head and driving the top of his helmet into Dobbs’ chest and face mask.

One of the NFL’s health and safety spotters noted the contact and sent Dobbs to undergo a concussion check, which he passed. But the Broncos recovered the fumble at the Vikings’ 30-yard line and ultimately turned it into a 31-yard field goal from Wil Lutz.

Asked if he thought Jackson should have been flagged, O’Connell said: “On the field, it felt like that. I’ll have to go back and look at it. It tends to happen pretty fast out there, but in the moment, coming from the second level the way he did, it seemed like a pretty direct helmet-to-helmet type hit. But I’m sure [officials] saw it differently on the play. They’re officiating a fast play right there.”

Dobbs was actually a running back on the play; Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson lined up under center and pitched the ball to Dobbs in an attempt to convert a third-and-1. That means Dobbs did not merit protection afforded to quarterbacks in the pocket.

But NFL players also are prohibited from lowering their heads and making forcible contact with their helmets against opponents, a rule that is not often flagged because it is difficult for officials to see. But such hits often result in warning letters, fines and occasionally suspensions.

Jackson was suspended for three games, reduced to two on appeal, after hitting Green Bay Packers tight end Luke Musgrave when he was in a defenseless position in Week 7.

In addition to his suspension, Jackson has been fined four times this season and ejected from two games.

Joe Nelson of SI.com, presumably a neutral observer, saw it the same way as O’Connell:

Digesting the 21-20 loss to the Denver Broncos on Sunday night has been a little more difficult for Vikings Nation because meat was left on the bone, not only because of turnovers but also because the officials kept the flags in their pockets on numerous plays that could’ve been penalties on Denver.

The most glaring no-calls were violent hits, one by safety Kareem Jackson on Josh Dobbs and then another when running back Alexander Mattison was annihilated by Alex Speer Singleton.

The hit on Dobbs happened on the third play of the game. Dobbs fumbled and the Broncos recovered, resulting in a field goal and a 3-0 lead. Had a flag been thrown, Minnesota would’ve had the ball at midfield with a first down.

“No matter what, we can’t turn the football over. I do know he took a pretty good shot to the helmet on the play,” head coach Kevin O’Connell said.

Jackson got away with the nasty hit on Dobbs despite it being his first game back from a two-game suspension for an unnecessary roughness hit against the Packers. Jackson has been suspended and fined four times for five unnecessary roughness penalties this season.

Speer Singleton lowered his head and went straight into the chest of Mattison in the fourth quarter. Mattison was stood up and being dragged to the ground when Speer Singleton smashed him. It happened right in front of the side judge, a hit that appeared so obviously illegal to Mattison that he looked perplexed that a flag wasn’t thrown.

Mattison was just a week removed from suffering a concussion against the Saints.

Minnesota was facing 1st-and-20 at the Denver 48-yard line when Mattison was drilled. They wound up converting a first down despite facing 3rd-and-20 and the drive ended in a field goal.

Those weren’t the only calls that could’ve been flagged. Brandon Powell was hit late after he went out of bounds on a punt return and Dobbs’ face mask was pulled late in the fourth quarter when he was in the pocket.

It will be interesting to see what NFL Justice says.  Huge fines have been issued this year on far more innocuous, un-flagged plays.

BALTIMORE

Peter King with good stuff from QB LAMAR JACKSON on the loss of TE MARK ANDREWS last Thursday in Cincinnati:

I felt it with the Ravens. They’d won an important game, and mostly they were happy about it, but there was a bit of a pall over parts of the locker room because they’d lost one of the best players and key cogs to the team, Andrews, with a severe leg injury. “Every snap I take for the rest of the season is for Mark,” the new TE1, Isaiah Likely, said of his mentor quietly in front of his locker.I waited for a while to see Lamar Jackson to take his temperature. He showered, spent time with teammates, got a little treatment on his ankle, cooled down from the emotion of the game, then was ready to talk for a few minutes. His stuff on Andrews, and on this sport, was so good that I thought I’d present his feelings, lightly edited, so you could get the real feel of what it’s like for an important player to lose one of the people closest to him in football and in life.Said Jackson:

“I threw it to him and I saw how he got tackled. Usually, Mark bounces up. But he stayed on the ground and I’m like ‘That ain’t too good.’ Like I told the media earlier, ‘Bro, we came to the league together. That’s my brother. We’ve been like peanut butter and jelly, like bread and butter. That’s my receiver.’ It really hurt me. Like, damn.”

“I went to see him, laying there. I could see it in his face. It wasn’t too good. I didn’t like that feeling at all. It’s like, somebody just hurt my brother. And we gotta make something happen tonight, with him going down. I was ticked off. I was ticked off. I knew we couldn’t lose this game now, know what I mean?”

“We know what type of game we’re playing. It’s a physical contact sport. Anything can happen. Practice, game. Two guys go at Mark. Three sometimes. The dynamic he had on the game was huge. Guys in this room saw a superstar go down and it’s like, ‘Okay, my time to step up.’ Not just tight end group, but the whole offense. All of them. That’s our brother. The whole locker room, a brotherhood. Defense, special teams, offense. I believe everybody was like, ‘We gotta put points on the board. It’s not going down like this. No matter what go on throughout the game just put points on the board.’”

You say anything to him at halftime, or after the game?

“I texted him. I really didn’t say nothing to him at halftime. I didn’t go back there [to the trainers’ room]. I was here and just telling everyone to stay locked in. There’s two more quarters left. Seen what happened to us Sunday [a late loss to Cleveland] and I know how it sounds, but we gotta stay locked in. But I texted him. I told him, ‘Bro, we love you brother. I love you. I’m pissed off. I’m very pissed off about that situation.’ We’re gonna have to do it without him. It’s hard to say that though. That’s hard to text that especially to Mark. I can’t even describe just seeing him before the game …”

Pause.

“He wanted this game. Every game, not just this game. Each and every game I see him and I see in his eyes like how much he loves the game. I just love having him with me. Just coming to him, throwing to him, it’s so great. A comfortable feeling. I’m still pissed off. Really pissed off. We got so much love for him.”

“But we’re still chasing February. We will finish this season strong. I’ll step up. We’ll all step up. I’ll talk to the guys a lot more, even though I’ve been doing it all season. I still feel like we got the guys to do it even though our brother went down. We got guys who’re gonna step up in this locker room. We still got a determination because we came so far with him. We gotta come out with that same determination. I can promise we will. We just gotta fight each and every game. We will fight. Yes sir.”

And this on the “hip-drop” tackle:

I think I expect the NFL to move aggressively to erase the hip-drop tackle this off-season. I’ve learned a few things about it since the Mark Andrews injury Thursday night. I watched a video put out by the National Rugby League, which has banned the tackling technique in its league. The NFL has worked with the National Rugby League to identify and try to figure out how common the technique is, and whether it can be eliminated. The NRL identified three parts of the tackle—grab the ballcarrier, rotate the ballcarrier, and land with the body weight on the leg or ankle. All must be present to qualify as a hip-drop tackle. The NFL doesn’t think this is a common technique. The league has found it to occur approximately once per game, so maybe 300 times a season. The big question is intent. I don’t think defensive players, from the examples I’ve seen, have the time to calculate how to twist the player around and land full body weight on the leg or legs of a ballcarrier. I’ve watched the Logan Wilson tackle of Andrews, and I don’t think he did intentionally landed on Andrews’ leg. It all happened so fast. Even Andrews’ teammates didn’t seem eager for a rules change. “We play a tackling sport,” Baltimore linebacker Patrick Queen said. “I don’t think a hip-drop tackle is that bad of a thing. How else do you want us to tackle? Just let the guy run past you?” A suggestion: The NFL begins its serious deliberations on rules changes each February at the Scouting Combine. This winter, bring two defensive coordinators and two defensive players (including Wilson), plus two offensive coaches and two offensive players to the Competition Committee meetings in Indy. Show video of the offending hits. Hash it out. Have a thoughtful debate on whether it’s possible to legislate these tackles out of the game.

CLEVELAND

The Browns are putting a Super Bowl-winning QB, JOE FLACCO, on their practice squad – for now.

Joe Flacco is back in the AFC North.

PFT has confirmed that former Ravens quarterback, and Super Bowl XLVII MVP, will sign with the Browns’ practice squad on Monday.

He worked out on Friday. Per a league source, the Browns regarded the session as “very impressive” (as evidenced by the fact that they gave him a job).

Flacco, 38, has been interested in playing this year. Until last week, he had not drawn any significant interest. The Bengals showed no interest after learning on Friday that Joe Burrow would miss the rest of the season.

The Browns currently have Dorian Thomson-Robinson as the starter and P.J. Walker as the backup. Last Wednesday, the Browns announced that starter Deshaun Watson is out for the rest of the year with knee and shoulder injuries.

A first-round pick in 2008, Flacco has played for the Ravens, Broncos, Jets, and Eagles.

MIAMI

WR TYREEK HILL is over 1,200 receiving yards after just 10 games.

Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill is playing the game like few pass catchers ever had.

With today’s 146-yard performance against the Raiders, Hill now has 1,222 yards through 10 games this season. He’s the first player in 62 years to reach the 1,200-yard mark within his team’s first 10 games.

The last player to do it was Charlie Hennigan, who had 1,245 yards in the first 10 games of the 1961 season. Others who have done it are Raymond Berry with 1,264 yards in the first 10 games of 1960, Elroy “Crazylegs” Hirsch with 1,268 yards in 1951 and Don Hutson with 1,204 yards in 1942.

Hill is on pace to finish this season with 2,077 yards in 17 games. The NFL record for receiving yards in a season is 1,964, set by Calvin Johnson in 2012. Hill has a good chance of setting a new NFL record.

Hill is averaging 122.2 receiving yards per game.  To beat Johnson’s record of 1,964, he “only” needs to average 106.1 yards per game.

To reach 2,000? The number is 111. 1 receiving yards per game the rest of the way.

NEW YORK JETS

Which Jets QB will get the honor of starting against the Dolphins in the historic Black Friday game?  Charean Williams of ProFootballTalk.com reports that Coach Robert Saleh would not just say “Zach Wilson” after the loss in Buffalo.

For the first time this season, Jets coach Robert Saleh was non-committal on Zach Wilson.

Saleh would not say Wilson will start Friday against the Dolphins.

“We’re going to watch the tape, and we’ll make a decision tomorrow,” Saleh said, via video from the team.

Wilson was 7-of-15 for 81 yards with a touchdown and an interception before Tim Boyle replaced him with 2:17 left in the third quarter, with the Jets trailing the Bills 29-6.

“It was 29-6, and like I told Zach on the sidelines, it’s not just him,” Saleh said of benching Wilson. “It’s easy to point the finger at the quarterback, but it’s pretty easy to see missed protections. You’ve got dropped balls. You’ve got missed routes. Now, obviously he’s got to get better. There’s things he could have done a lot better, but it’s everyone right now.”

Wilson did not complete a pass to a wide receiver in the third quarter, going 2-for-3 for 14 yards before being benched.

The Bills outgained the Jets 393 to 155 in the game.

“I don’t think anyone did anything today — players, coach, schemes. It was obviously not good enough. None of it was good enough,” Saleh said.

Besides Boyle, the Jets have quarterback Trevor Siemian on the practice squad. Siemian has played 35 games with 30 starts in his career.

Boyle has played 18 games, including Sunday, with three starts. He went 7-of-14 for 33 yards with an interception in a little more than a quarter against the Bills.

Wilson became the team’s starter when Aaron Rodgers tore his Achilles in the season opener. Rodgers hopes to return next month.

Peter King is no fan of ZACH WILSON, but he also takes a look at OC Nathaniel Hackett:

Numbers Game

The 2023 season of the 4-6 New York Jets continues to slide toward irrelevancy, and it basically will be over with a loss to Miami on Friday. But the last seven games could be exceedingly important for the future of Jets offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, whose reputation has been severely tarnished in the last 15 months.

Hackett’s imaginative coaching techniques earned him raves in Green Bay, and he was a favorite of Aaron Rodgers there. The Packers’ high-powered offense certainly helped him get the Denver head coaching job in 2022. Though he was fired in Denver after an abysmal 4-11 start, the Jets were happy to take him to run their offense in 2023—and to help Rodgers pick the Jets as his landing spot when he wanted out of Green Bay. Of course, Hackett’s grand plan with the Jets was wrecked four snaps into this season when Rodgers went down with a torn Achilles.

But that’s the thing about coaches—the best ones figure a way to make do when disaster befalls the team. Granted, quarterback Zach Wilson’s performance has been terrible. But this is two straight years of terrible quarterback play, in 2022 by Russell Wilson and this year by Zach Wilson under Hackett. There are reasons galore, but it reflects poorly on Hackett—particularly with Russell Wilson playing much better under Sean Payton in Denver this year.

Tracking the offensive numbers in Denver and in New York with Hackett in charge over the past two years, with this year’s numbers through the first 10 weeks:

In 24 games ahead of Sunday, Hackett’s teams had averaged 15.7 points per game. In addition, in total yards, Denver was 25th under Hackett in 2022 and the Jets are 29th this year, while each team was last in the league in third-down conversions under Hackett.

The Giants and Brian Daboll are not dead with QB TOMMY DeVITO.

The Vikings move the ball with QB JOSH DOBBS.

It can be done.  Especially because there are weapons elsewhere in the offense.

– – –

This, also from King, on the possibility of a trade for WR DAVANTE ADAMS:

I think if, as Adam Schefter reported Sunday, the Jets will renew efforts to try to deal for Davante Adams in the 2024 off-season, there are a few things to remember:

The Jets are already without their second-round pick in 2024 from the Aaron Rodgers trade.

If the value for Adams in the 2022 trade from Green Bay to Vegas was first- and second-round picks, you’d think the value in 2024 would be less, but what exactly? My guess is a first-round pick, or two second-round picks. The Jets will argue that Adams’ value shouldn’t be that much because he turns 32 during the season next year and will be playing his 11th year.

Vegas will have the leverage, I think, because the Raiders will know Rodgers wants Adams badly, and the Jets will be all-in for 2024 and ’25. If the Jets give their first-rounder next year, it’d mean no picks till somewhere around 75 overall in 2024—and the Jets will have offensive-line holes to fill next year. Or would it be enough for the Jets to trade one of their good defensive pieces plus a third-rounder for Adams? Stay tuned.

THIS AND THAT

BROADCAST NEWS

Using the Burrow-less Bengals as an example, Peter King talks flexing with the NFL’s scheduler in chief:

Never in their history have the Bengals been such TV darlings in the back half of a season. Thursday night Amazon Prime in Week 11, Monday night on ESPN in Week 13, a possible move to a Saturday national game in Week 15 (there is a five-game pool of games, three of which will move from Sunday to national windows all day Saturday), a Saturday NBC game in Week 16, a CBS Sunday doubleheader game in Week 17. That’s a possible five national games out of the final eight—and Burrow, as it turns out, was around for 25 minutes of one before getting knocked out for the season.

On Friday, the league’s VP of broadcast planning and a prime schedule-maker, Mike North, talked to me about the Bengals and flex-scheduling. You can hear North in full, on Black Friday football and the Bengals and flex-scheduling, on The Peter King Podcast, which will drop at 3 p.m. Tuesday.

“That’s the point of flexible scheduling,” North said. “We’ll see what happens. There’s still a lot of football to be played. You know that the Bengals aren’t going to shut it down. There’s no question losing a guy like Burrow hurts. That’s one of the risks that the scheduling team faces every year in April and May when we’re putting this puzzle together. Which of these games do you deploy early in the season because you’re worried that they might not hold up if you save them for too late? And which of these games do you feel pretty good about saving for December when you’ve got to figure these teams are going to be playing for something? Three or four Bengals games on national television in December sure seems to imply that the scheduling team thought Cincy was going to be there. I don’t think there’s going be a rush to judgment. If you’re hovering around .500 in December, you’re in it … Let’s see what happens over the next couple of weeks before we write them off.”

A couple of points. The NFL is always loathe to move a Mahomes game from a national window, and as of today, I think the league would want Mahomes to stay in a national doubleheader window on New Year’s Eve—unless the Bengals are firmly out of it. But this is an easy fix if need be. CBS also has Miami-Baltimore on Dec. 31, in the early window. CBS easily could trade the Mahomes game for the Tua-Lamar game, pushing a game with some major playoff stakes into the big late-window national game.

I also mentioned the Week 15 Saturday flexibility. The NFL will play Saturday games on Dec. 16 at 1 p.m. ET, 4:30 p.m. ET and 8:15 p.m. ET. Three of five candidate games from Sunday’s slate will move to those three Saturday slots: Minnesota-Cincinnati, Denver-Detroit, Pittsburgh-Indianapolis, Chicago-Cleveland, Atlanta-Carolina. The best game is likely to be in the night window.

Well, we would say Atlanta-Carolina is going to Sunday.

Denver-Detroit will be on Saturday.

After that?  Interesting.

HEAD COACHING CANDIDATES

A list from Mike Jones of The Athletic of coaches who will be getting interviews for open 2024 head coaching jobs:

A number of NFL head coaches are on the hot seat as the regular season enters the stretch run. The pressure on Brandon Staley and Ron Rivera certainly is mounting after the Los Angeles Chargers (4-6) and Washington Commanders (4-7) each slid further away from the playoff conversation after losing winnable games Sunday. And the same can be said for Frank Reich, whose Carolina Panthers (1-9) continue to flounder and got blown out by the Dallas Cowboys.

Over the final seven weeks, owners and team presidents of struggling teams will assess their situations while monitoring the work of the top offensive and defensive coordinators, as well as a few college head coaches. If those teams decide to make a change, they will then form lists of desired candidates to interview.

This year’s crop of head coaching talent is expected to feature a number of familiar names. Some, like Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores, have prior head coaching experience. Others, like the Detroit Lions’ Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn, are looking to turn impressive bodies of work as coordinators into promotions.

Here’s a rundown of the top potential candidates on teams’ radars, listed in alphabetical order.

Lou Anarumo, defensive coordinator, Cincinnati Bengals

The 57-year-old Anarumo directs a defense that was among the league’s stingiest in points allowed in 2021 and 2022, and he is one of the few defensive minds who knows how to beat the Kansas City Chiefs.

Eric Bieniemy, offensive coordinator, Washington Commanders

Bieniemy left Andy Reid and the Chiefs, who all touted him as a future head coach, to prove he could run his own offense. Now with the Commanders, he turned second-year pro Sam Howell into the NFL’s passing yardage leader at the season’s midpoint. Howell did deliver a stinker Sunday, throwing three interceptions, and the Commanders’ seesaw season of disappointment under Rivera continued. However, front-office members around the league still hold Bieniemy in high regard as an offensive mind and leader.

Ejiro Evero, defensive coordinator, Carolina Panthers

People around the league began singing Evero’s praises last season for his work as defensive coordinator in Denver. He joined Reich in Charlotte this offseason but is expected to receive head coaching interest in the coming months.

Brian Flores, defensive coordinator, Minnesota Vikings

The former Miami Dolphins head coach is in his first season as leader of the Vikings defense. Directing the most aggressive squad in the league, Flores’ Vikings have steadily improved after a slow start and held foes to fewer than 20 points in five of their last eight games (they gave up 21 in Sunday night’s loss to the Broncos). As a result, Minnesota is 6-5 and in the NFC playoff hunt.

Aaron Glenn, defensive coordinator, Detroit Lions

The former All-Pro defensive back has long been viewed as a future head coach and interviewed for positions last season. With the Lions ranking among the best teams in the NFC this season, Glenn will again draw interest.

Jim Harbaugh, head coach, University of Michigan

The former NFL quarterback and San Francisco 49ers head coach had interest in the Vikings job in 2022 but never received an offer and remained at his alma mater. Several NFL teams are expected to pursue him this offseason, and it’s believed Harbaugh has interest in at least a couple of those potential openings.

Ben Johnson, offensive coordinator, Detroit Lions

The 37-year-old Johnson turned heads last season when, as a rookie play-caller, he helped the Lions’ offense develop into a top-five unit. Johnson withdrew his name from consideration from head-coaching opportunities last offseason to remain with the Lions and now his offense is even better. The Lions are 8-2 after Sunday’s comeback victory over the Bears and his phone will most certainly ring again this offseason.

Brian Johnson, offensive coordinator, Philadelphia Eagles

The former Utah quarterback helped Jalen Hurts develop into a top-flight QB while serving as his Eagles position coach. Now in his first season as offensive coordinator, Johnson has Philly’s offense ranked among the top three in the league in yards and points.

Kellen Moore, offensive coordinator, L.A. Chargers

Moore drew head coaching interest while offensive coordinator of the Cowboys. This offseason he joined the Chargers, who continue to struggle in late-game situations, placing Staley’s job security in doubt. Moore, however, remains an intriguing potential head coaching candidate in the eyes of the NFL’s highest-ranking talent evaluators.

Raheem Morris, defensive coordinator, L.A. Rams

The former Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach, Atlanta Falcons interim head coach and longtime defensive coordinator helped the Rams win the Super Bowl to cap the 2021 season and has drawn interest from teams in recent years. He’s expected to again interview for positions this offseason.

Antonio Pierce, interim head coach, Las Vegas Raiders

The former Pro Bowl linebacker and nine-year veteran guided the Raiders to back-to-back wins after taking over for the fired Josh McDaniels. They lost 20-13 to the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, but Pierce has a shot at the permanent head coaching job if the Raiders can finish strong in the final weeks.

Dan Quinn, defensive coordinator, Dallas Cowboys

Quinn was the Falcons’ head coach for five-plus seasons, with one Super Bowl appearance. His Cowboys units have ranked among the best in the league the last three seasons and this year rank top five in yards, points and third downs.

Steve Wilks, defensive coordinator, San Francisco 49ers

The longtime coordinator is regarded as one of the best defensive minds in the game, and many believed he deserved the Panthers’ head coaching job after turning that team around as the interim last season. A deep playoff run for the 49ers could translate into a head coaching job for Wilks.

Bonus: Bobby Slowik, offensive coordinator, Houston Texans

He’s in just his first season as a play-caller, so it may be a bit premature, but Slowik will receive some consideration for head coaching positions this hiring cycle. Everybody is looking for the next bright offensive mind, and the 36-year-old Slowik — the latest impressive Mike Shanahan/Kyle Shanahan disciple — fits the bill because of his success with C.J. Stroud and the surprisingly competitive Texans. He’s also the son of former NFL defensive coordinator Bob Slowik. Bobby Slowik likely will have to wait at least another cycle to actually land a head coaching gig, but Kyle Shanahan’s former right-hand man in San Francisco following Mike McDaniel’s departure is coming.

As an owner, how can you interview Flores if you know he will sue you for millions if he doesn’t get the job?  Heck, history says he will sue you even if you hire him, when the time comes to part ways.  Will he sue you if you don’t interview him, too?  Would he sign a waiver not to sue you in order to get an interview?  Would such a waiver be binding?