The Detroit Lions won a game, Gardner Minshew led the Eagles to a commanding win, and Ben Roethlisberger outdueled Lamar Jackson. It is a testament to how crazy this season has been that this felt like a fairly normal weekend. Here is the good, the bad, and the ugly from Week 13.
The Good
The Lions finally win – It finally happened. After long last, this Lions team got their first win of the season. It was no fluke either. After taking the lead early in the second quarter, they held on to it until the final two minutes. Jared Goff and the offense then executed a clinical two minute drive with no timeouts left. In the context of their season, the win felt well deserved. Detroit may have been the owners of worst record in the NFL, but they are certainly not the worst team. With a game against the Jaguars on the horizon in Week 14, they will have legitimate hopes of back-to-back wins.
The return of Minshew Mania – Everyone’s favourite moustachioed quarterback made his return this weekend as he filled in for an injured Jalen Hurts. This was Minshew’s first start as an Eagle and he made a huge impression. He was absurdly accurate, logging a 90.9% adjusted completion rate. He also averaged 9.7 yards per attempt, the second most of any quarterback this weekend. His passer rating of 133.7 was the highest of any Eagles quarterback since 2018. It was also the best on the road since 2013.
Dolphins defense continues to impress – Another week gone and another excellent defensive display from Miami. This team ranked 28th in defensive EPA per play through Weeks 1-7. Since then they are 5-0 and sit second behind only the Patriots in the same metric. Some will have questions about their opponents during this period, with wins coming against the likes of Houston, Carolina, and the two New York teams. That said, they deserve real credit. This defense has given up more than 10 points just once since Week 7 and haven’t allowed a touchdown in seven quarters.
The Bad
Jaguars offensive problems persist – This is becoming a major issue for the Jaguars. Urban Meyer’s supposed offensive wizardry is nowhere to be seen. This weekend they scored just seven points against a Rams defense that had shipped 95 in their last three games. They managed less than 200 total yards of offense at a paltry 3.6 yards per play. They haven’t topped 17 points in their last six games and have failed to score more than 23 points in a game all season.
Ravens lose on two-point conversion – This is a decision that will dominate headlines for days to come. Baltimore had scored a touchdown in the dying seconds to put them a point behind the Steelers. John Harbaugh decided to go for the two-point conversion instead of settling for overtime, but the Ravens couldn’t convert when it mattered most. In reality, the decision was not the problem. This offense is still overly reliant on Lamar Jackson for any sort of production. This weekend he accounted for a ridiculous 94.4% of the team’s total yardage.
The Taysom Hill experiment – The saying goes that the definition of madness is doing the same thing over and over whilst expecting different results. Someone should tell Sean Payton. This weekend he gave Taysom Hill his first start of the season and his fifth of the last two years. Hill has always been a nice complementary option in their offense but clearly lacks the talent to be an NFL starter. That was on full display against the Cowboys as he completed just 46.3% of his passes whilst throwing four interceptions.
The Ugly
Texans shut out again – Things are predictably bleak for Houston right now. This was always going to be a difficult game, but losing 31-0 to the Colts is nothing short of an embarrassment. In their two meetings this season, the Texans scored just three points. Tyrod Taylor was benched in this one, but Davis Mills did nothing to improve this team. They finished up with just 57 net passing yards and averaged 2.8 yards per play. This marked their second shutout of the 2021 season and the sixth time they have been held under 10 points.
Panthers fire Joe Brady – The Panthers were on their bye week this weekend, but that didn’t stop them making their headlines. On Sunday they announced that they had fired their offensive coordinator Joe Brady. Brady entered the NFL with a huge amount of fanfare after helping to lead LSU to a national title and was linked with various head coaching roles last summer. After initial signs of promise, the offense has struggled this year and Brady has paid the price. How much of this has been down to the quality of quarterbacks under center is up for debate and I don’t think it will be long until we see Brady land elsewhere.
Week 13 MVP
Kenny Moore II, Indianapolis Colts – Moore was outstanding for the Colts this weekend. He was targeted six times in coverage, allowing just two catches for 17 yards with an interception and a pass breakup. He also had a forced fumble as the Colts ran out 31-0 winners.
Rookie of the week
Ernest Jones, Los Angeles Rams – Jones has been impressing as a starter for the Rams and this was his best game yet. He didn’t miss a single of his eight tackle attempts and led all rookies with six defensive stops. He also allowed just 13 yards on his seven targets for a passer rating of 39.6.
Stat of the week
126 – Adrian Peterson scored his 126th career touchdown this weekend against the 49ers. That puts him ahead of Walter Payton and puts him level with Jim Brown for the 10th most in NFL history.
