Aaron Rodgers failed to deliver yet again as the Seahawks ended a three-game slump vs. the sinking (now 4-5-1) Packers. Rodgers' poor fourth quarter performances have been known for most of this decade, and his losses to New England and Seattle have become especially illustrative of Rodgers' fundamental weakness as a quarterback - against New England he completed just two passes in the fourth quarter while his final five drives against the Seahawks produced one field goal - lowlighted by Rodgers' pathetic claim that the ball stuck in his hands at the end.
And yet one is hard-pressed to find any significant mainstream criticism of him - the blame goes more to coach Mike McCarthy, who certainly has proven a subpar coach, but the biggest issue with the Packers is Rodgers.
A curious subplot is the rumor that the Packers want to hire Josh McDaniels as their new head coach - an unlikely scenario given McDaniels returned to New England at the last minute for a reason that would not seem to lend itself to going to Green Bay - especially given Rodgers' seeming refusal to take coaching.
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Even bigger turkeys were the results for........
- The Titans , 38-10 losers at Indianapolis and Marcus Mariota knocked out with another elbow issue; so continues Andrew Luck's career-long win streak against Tennessee and the Colts are now second in the AFC South though two games behind Houston after the Texans' second-straight escape job off a missed FGA, this one at the Redskins.
- The Falcons, losers to the Cowboys and all but done for any playoff hope.
- The Eagles, shot to pieces by the Saints putting the Super in Superdome.
- The Titans , 38-10 losers at Indianapolis and Marcus Mariota knocked out with another elbow issue; so continues Andrew Luck's career-long win streak against Tennessee and the Colts are now second in the AFC South though two games behind Houston after the Texans' second-straight escape job off a missed FGA, this one at the Redskins.
- The Falcons, losers to the Cowboys and all but done for any playoff hope.
- The Eagles, shot to pieces by the Saints putting the Super in Superdome.
- The Panthers, falling short at Detroit on a missed two-point try and thus not advancing forward as a team.
- The Chargers, losers to the slumping Broncos and thus helping Vance Joseph potentially save his job and thus failing again to advance to the next level, never reached in Philip Rivers' career; making it worse was the loss of defensive tackle Corey Liuget for the season.
- The Chargers, losers to the slumping Broncos and thus helping Vance Joseph potentially save his job and thus failing again to advance to the next level, never reached in Philip Rivers' career; making it worse was the loss of defensive tackle Corey Liuget for the season.
- The Cardinals, with another Josh Allen game falling short, this time to the going-nowhere Raiders.
- The Jaguars, up 16-0 to a Steelers team exposed by them - and then losing on a final-seconds touchdown run by Ben "Mister Interception" Roethlisberger.
- The Bengals, losing to rookie Lamar Jackson who had almost fewer passing yards (150) than rushing yards (117) - a bad sign for a quarterback.
- The Buccaneers, their quarterback controversy only getting worse in a bitter 38-35 loss at the Giants.
- The Vikings, as Kirk Cousins got exposed by the Bears.
- The Buccaneers, their quarterback controversy only getting worse in a bitter 38-35 loss at the Giants.
- The Vikings, as Kirk Cousins got exposed by the Bears.
So with that we look toward Thanksgiving weekend -
Bears over Lions - The Bears have a lot of momentum this side of New Orleans and LA and the Lions simply cannot generate enough offense or make enough stops; Matt Patricia's first year is the kind of rough initiation common throughout history.
Cowboys over Redskins - Speaking of momentum, the Cowboys now have some and the Redskins have to go forward without Alex Smith; we doubt they can.
Saints over Falcons - Atlanta in essence lost the season in the last two games.
Eagles over NY Giants - The slumping Eagles have long controlled the Giants good bad or indifferent. The Giants come in with some momentum, especially from Saquan Barkley, so expect a tighter than usual contest.
Jaguars over Bills - The Jaguars blew it and may trade loudmouth Jalen Ramsey after the season. They go to Buffalo, itself in worse shape in yet another lost season.
Browns over Bengals - Whatever momentum the Bengals had earlier this season is gone, and the Browns come in with a sense of momentum, despite the team's foolish idea to interview Condoleeza Rice for the head coach job.
Patriots over NY Jets - The loss to the Titans caused a lot of ridiculous second-guessing in New England media and fan circles, and while there is definite need for improved play all around, the Patriots have proven the best team in the league at responding to such setbacks. They get their first game against a Jets team that's in the bottom third on both sides of the ball and whose star of the future may no longer have much future.
Raiders over Ravens - The Raiders ground out a needed win over the hapless Cardinals and now they get another rookie quarterback and Lamar Jackson. His debut was decent and led the Ravens to a win over a Bengals team they've struggled against. But having just 150 yards in the air and 117 rushing is not a good balance for a quarterback. The Raiders have had recent successes against the Ravens even though they're not in much shape for any contention.
Buccanners over Forty-Niners - Nick Mullens presently leads the Niners in yards per pass and his superb effort in his debut hasn't been forgotten. The Niners travel across country to a schizophrenic Bucs team that's 3-7, dead last in points allowed, eighth in scoring, and can't get any positive momentum out of either of the two quarterbacks involved. Jameis Winston remains a weaker quarterback than Ryan Fitzpatrick, yet against the Giants threw for 199 yards and two scores replacing Fitzpatrick after he threw three picks. The Bucs in putting up 35 points last week may have some momentum going into this one.
Panthers over Seahawks - Losing at Detroit on a missed two-point try is the kind of galling loss no team accepts, and the Panthers get a Seahawks team that's been better on the road than it has been over the years but isn't all that good this season overall.
Chargers over Cardinals - San Diego is no doubt red-faced at losing to the Broncos, and the hapless Cardinals come to LA still unable to establish any momentum.
Dolphins over Colts - Andrew Luck is unbeaten to the Tennessee Titans after last week's massacre but his record against AFC East teams is dismal, and the Dolphins have shown enough to be considered a 10-6 team.
Steelers over Broncos - A much-needed Denver win last week won't be enough against a Steelers team that's not as good as advertised but is still stronger than most.
Vikings over Packers - It's another road game which means Green Bay is in trouble, plus the Vikings are coming off a bad loss to the Bears, which means they'll want to smash the next opponent.
Jaguars over Bills - The Jaguars blew it and may trade loudmouth Jalen Ramsey after the season. They go to Buffalo, itself in worse shape in yet another lost season.
Browns over Bengals - Whatever momentum the Bengals had earlier this season is gone, and the Browns come in with a sense of momentum, despite the team's foolish idea to interview Condoleeza Rice for the head coach job.
Patriots over NY Jets - The loss to the Titans caused a lot of ridiculous second-guessing in New England media and fan circles, and while there is definite need for improved play all around, the Patriots have proven the best team in the league at responding to such setbacks. They get their first game against a Jets team that's in the bottom third on both sides of the ball and whose star of the future may no longer have much future.
Raiders over Ravens - The Raiders ground out a needed win over the hapless Cardinals and now they get another rookie quarterback and Lamar Jackson. His debut was decent and led the Ravens to a win over a Bengals team they've struggled against. But having just 150 yards in the air and 117 rushing is not a good balance for a quarterback. The Raiders have had recent successes against the Ravens even though they're not in much shape for any contention.
Buccanners over Forty-Niners - Nick Mullens presently leads the Niners in yards per pass and his superb effort in his debut hasn't been forgotten. The Niners travel across country to a schizophrenic Bucs team that's 3-7, dead last in points allowed, eighth in scoring, and can't get any positive momentum out of either of the two quarterbacks involved. Jameis Winston remains a weaker quarterback than Ryan Fitzpatrick, yet against the Giants threw for 199 yards and two scores replacing Fitzpatrick after he threw three picks. The Bucs in putting up 35 points last week may have some momentum going into this one.
Panthers over Seahawks - Losing at Detroit on a missed two-point try is the kind of galling loss no team accepts, and the Panthers get a Seahawks team that's been better on the road than it has been over the years but isn't all that good this season overall.
Chargers over Cardinals - San Diego is no doubt red-faced at losing to the Broncos, and the hapless Cardinals come to LA still unable to establish any momentum.
Dolphins over Colts - Andrew Luck is unbeaten to the Tennessee Titans after last week's massacre but his record against AFC East teams is dismal, and the Dolphins have shown enough to be considered a 10-6 team.
Steelers over Broncos - A much-needed Denver win last week won't be enough against a Steelers team that's not as good as advertised but is still stronger than most.
Vikings over Packers - It's another road game which means Green Bay is in trouble, plus the Vikings are coming off a bad loss to the Bears, which means they'll want to smash the next opponent.
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.
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