NFL Week 17 Recap: One word takeaways from each game
January 5, 2021
The NFL playoff picture has finally been set, with the matchups on Wild Card Weekend looking promising
The final week in the 2019-2020 NFL regular season is in the books. It certainly has been and eventful season for the NFL and it is incredible how they were able to pull it off. The issues that Covid presented certainly made this season one to remember. Due to the incredible work of NFL they were able to have a full 17 game regular season this year. Now, let’s dive into what happened in each game.
Vikings at Lions: 37 – 35
Jefferson. Justin Jefferson has been truly something else this year. Posting 133 yards against Lions brings him up to 1,400 receiving yards on the season breaking the rookie record for receiving yards. The record was previously held by Anquan Boldin with 1,377 yards. He also broke the franchise record held by Randy Moss, arguably one of the GOATs at WR. He is my favorite for OROY this year. Let’s not forget about the other players in this game, Cousins had 405 yards with 3 TDs and Marvin Jones also had a great day with 180 yards and 2 TDs of 8 catches.
Falcons at Buccaneers: 27 – 44
Vintage. Tom Brady and Antonio Brown looked like they were in their prime today. Brady throwing for 399 yards and 4 TDs looked like a game straight out of his 2007 MVP season. Brown hauled in 11 receptions for 138 yards and 2 TDs. I do really question how Tom Brady is 43 years old and still performing at an All-Pro level. Brown confuses me even more, after all the nonsense he has been through in the past 2 years it is incredible how we got vintage look at him today. The Falcons continued the tradition of losing, badly.
Jets at Patriots: 28 – 14
Odd. Despite being 16 games into the Pats season it’s still odd to see Cam Newton at QB. It is odd to see the Patriots ending their season in the regular season and not making the postseason. It’s also weird seeing Cam Newton actually have good game, throwing for 242 yards and 3 TDs (most tds in a single game this season) and rushing for 79 yards. The only thing that wasn’t weird about this game was the Jets losing, we expected that.
Dolphins at Bills: 56 -26
Scary. The Bills are a scary team. The highlight of this game was their Defense, not Josh Allen and Diggs. Their Defense put 3 TDs on the boards, Josh Norman receiving credit for one of those and Dean Marlowe for the other two. To add on, Josh Allen threw for 3 TDs 1 INT and 224 yards. The Bills are starting to look like a legitimate Super Bowl contender. This was a scary game for the Dolphins, as they miss out on the playoffs and Tua having an awful game. The Dolphins needed some Fitzmagic…….
Steelers at Browns: 22 – 24
Yes! Rejoice Browns fans, they finally made it to the playoffs! After all those years of struggling the Browns earned a playoff berth under the leadership of Baker Mayfield. Mayfield threw for only 196 yards and 1 TD but add that with Chubb’s 108 yards and 1 TD they played a solid game. This was a near pointless game for the Steelers as having home-field advantage this year is not going to make much of a difference. I doubt the Browns are going to make it far in the playoffs but it’s great that they ended their 18 year drought. Unfortunately we didn’t get Garret vs. Rudolph round 2.
Cowboys at Giants: 19 – 23
Tragic. To think that both these teams had a chance to make into the playoffs at the beginning of Sunday. Andy Dalton didn’t throw a single TD this game and was the leading rusher for the Cowboys with 48 yards. Daniel Jones had an okay outing with 229 yards 2 TD and 1 INT. The Giants almost choked the game off a silly fumble, but don’t worry Wayne Gallman was able to sit on the ball.
Ravens at Bengals: 38 – 3
Predictable. Need to win a game against the Bengals to get into the playoffs? All you need is Lamar Jackson and J.K Dobbins. The Ravens have been a run heavy offense since the beginning of last year, with Dobbins contributing 160 yards, and and Jackson contributing 97 yards to their 404 yards of rushing. It was also expected that the Bengals weren’t going to put up much of fight without Joe Burrow. At least the Bengals are going to get a better draft pick after this loss.
Jaguars at Colts: 14 – 28
Rushing. This could arguably the weirdest statline I have seen regarding the rushing yards. The Jaguars only amassed a total of 53 yards with Dare Ogunbowale leading the team with 50 yards. On the Colts side excluding one of their players they had a total 20 yards. Then there was Jonathan Taylor who rushed for 253 yards and 2 TDs! This was the key factor in this game helping the Colts clinch a playoff spot.
Titans at Texans: 41 – 38
2k. Okay, I know that’s not a word but we’re just going to go with it. Seriously though, Derrick Henry has been out of this world this season. He became only the 8th RB to eclipse 2000 yards in a single season with his 250 yards against the Texans. If Rodgers wins MVP, then Derrick Henry should be the runner-up with the kind of season he has had. As for the Texans all they had to do is not let up a a massive play, but being the Texans they did.
Cardinals at Rams: 7 – 18
Back-ups. This game showed how important a starting QB is to a team. After Kyler Murray exited in the first QB the Cardinals had to bring in Chris Streveler. Wolford and Streveler combined for 1 TD. This all important game came down to the running games and defense. The safety and pick-six by the Rams helped them knock the cardinals around the playoff-picture and secure them a spot in the playoffs.
Saints at Panthers: 33 – 7
Uneventful. Nothing really happened in this game. The Saints played much better than the Panthers and retained the 2 seed in the NFC.
Packers at Bears: 35 – 16
MVP. Once again, I know this is not one word but with his 4 TD passes Rodgers has solidified his case for MVP. Despite only having 46 yards, Davante Adams had another TD solidifying his case as the fantasy MVP. And Mitchell Trubisky made his case for team MVP with his 0 TDs and 1 INT (that was a joke).
Chargers at Chiefs: 38 – 21
Nothing. I’ve got nothing for this game. The Chiefs rested all of their main players and Justin Herbert had another solid game. This game was pointless for the Chiefs and the win for the Chargers cost them a better draft pick. On a more serious note Justin Herbert has a bright future ahead of him and the Chiefs have a real chance of going back-back.
Seahawks at 49ers: 26 – 23
Disappointing. Seattle didn’t look great in this game. Despite getting the win Wilson only threw for 181 yards and 2 TDs and not having a single receiving over 100 yards. They also didn’t have a single rusher over 50 yards two. If they continue to play this they will not do much in the playoffs. The 49ers end off a disappointing season, without most of their key players for the majority of the season. At least we got a little bit from George Kittle at the end of the season.
Raiders at Broncos: 32 – 31
Optimism. Both teams should come out of this game with a lot of optimism. Josh Jacobs and Darren Waller continued to play a high level showing promise for next year. Add Henry Ruggs onto that the Raiders could be a dangerous team next year. If Drew lock can get going, the Broncos could also show a lot of promise with Jerry Jeudy and Melvin Gordon.
SNF: Washington Football Team at Eagles: 20 – 14
Inspirational. It was truly heartwarming to see Ron Rivera and Alex Smith fight off the Eagles to win the NFC east and go to the playoffs. It was only 2 years ago, when Alex Smith was fighting for his life and tonight he fought for the Washington Football Team’s playoff berth. He threw for 162 yards and 2 TD which was enough to get it done against the Eagles. It also has been amazing to see Ron Rivera fight cancer while coaching a playoff – caliber team. We also learned that the Eagles really hate the Giants.
