As the trees start to turn, the games just start to mean that much more. The best time of the year is finally here, and in case you missed a piece of the action while you enjoyed your slice of pie, we have got you covered with our Thanksgiving recap.
Christmas comes early for the Packers in Detroit
The Green Bay Packers and Jordan Love got off to a hot start against the Lions. The Packers quarterback found Christian Watson for 53 yards on the very first play of the game, before Jayden Reed powered his way into the end zone for a quick 7-0 start.
The Lions scored on the following drive, but after that it was all Green Bay, as Detroit made plenty of mistakes. Jared Goff was clearly in the giving spirit and turned it over twice before the half. One of those was returned for a touchdown by Jonathon Owens and Green Bay entered the half up 17.
Detroit started the second half with a long scoring drive that, thanks to a successful two point conversion, brought the Packers lead down to nine. They subsequently failed to convert a fake punt from their own territory though, giving the Packers the ball at the 23 yard line.
Jordan Love and Christian Watson’s connection was a key factor in Green Bay’s success. They kicked the game off with a big play and connected again in the third quarter for a crucial touchdown that helped them run out 29-22 winners. It was an impressive showcase for the Packers young quarterback, and because of that they sit at 5-6. Could they potentially make some last second waves in a tight NFC playoff picture?
On the other side, the Lions failed to win on Thanksgiving for the seventh straight season. Jared Goff seemed off all game, missing open receivers on key downs more than once. I don’t think that Detroit fans should panic though. A few mistakes put them in a hole early on in this one. If they can clean things up they should get back on track.
Another chapter in a timeless rivalry
After a Commanders drive that when nowhere, Dak Prescott led the Cowboys downfield to put them on the board first. The Commanders responded with a 43-yard field goal, before both teams exchanged touchdowns. Dak found Brandin Cooks deep for the third consecutive week, before Sam Howell marched Washington downfield and put it in himself to make it 14-10 with 1:51 remaining in the first half.
This was enough time for Dak Prescott to coordinate another scoring drive for Dallas. After a rare missed extra point by Brandon Aubrey, the Cowboys entered halftime in the lead 20-10. Things slowed down a little after the break, with both offenses faltering.
Dallas stalled out, but Washington would fail to make anything of it, with a miscommunication and a wasted timeout before Brian Robinson was stuffed for a turnover on downs. It was all Dallas from that point out. Washington had two more turnovers on downs, with the Cowboys extending their lead to 38-10. DaRon Bland topped things off with a pick six to seal the win 45-10.
Dallas took care of business against Washington and showcased their dominance. The defensive talent on display was far too much for Washington to handle. DaRon Bland made history with an NFL record of five pick sixes in a single season. What a day this was for Dallas!
The wild, wild, west coast
We had an NFC West rivalry in the late window between the 49ers and Seahawks. San Francisco did not mess around and got off to a dominant start. Deebo Samuel ran it in to give them a 7-0 lead. Despite D’Wayne Eskridge giving Seattle terrific field position on the return, they would have to settle for three points.
Neither team could do much on their subsequent drives, but Christian McCaffrey managed to find the end zone early in the second quarter to put the 49ers up 14-3. San Francisco then managed to get the ball back, with Ambry Thomas intercepting a Geno Smith pass inside Seattle territory, but the Seahawks defense managed to hold them scoreless.
The 49ers kept pushing though and Seattle struggled to keep up. San Francisco entered the half up 24-3 and in full control. Despite a pick six from Jordyn Brooks and a field goal from Jason Myers, the Seahawks never really threatened to take the lead. San Francisco would go on to secure the 31-13 victory and move to 8-3.
This was a truly dominant performance from the 49ers. They showed once again why they are one of the NFC’s best, moving into the second seed after Detroit’s loss. Their defense had their way with Seattle all game, bringing down Geno a total of six times. Seattle appeared to be completely overwhelmed and could not get anything going offensively. Keep an eye on their offensive line too – that unit will limit how much noise this team will make come playoff time.