Notes From NFL RedZone: Week 11
In my column from Week 8, I mentioned impressive winning streaks by some NFL division leaders — six to be exact. Three weeks later, five of those six teams — the Philadelphia Eagles, New Orleans Saints, New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers, and the Minnesota Vikings — still have not lost a game. New Orleans (8–2) and Philadelphia (9–1), one led by a veteran gunslinger, one led by a magnificent young quarterback, have each won eight consecutive games. We haven’t seen something like this since 2009 when both Indianapolis and New Orleans won 14 and 13 straight games, respectively. New England (8–2) and Minnesota (8–2) have won six consecutive games; Pittsburgh (8–2) has gone for five straight. Outside of this group, the league has a bunch of unproven paths — nine teams with a 4–6 record and four teams with a 5–5 mark. The Carolina Panthers (7–3), Detroit Lions (6–4), L.A Rams (7–3), Jacksonville Jaguars (7–3), Tennessee Titans (6–4), Kansas City Chiefs (6–4), Atlanta Falcons (6–4), and Seattle Seahawks (6–4) should make the playoffs…wait…that’s 13 teams…eight NFC…five AFC…nothing is figured out.
Seattle and Atlanta played a Monday Night thriller, the Seahawks losing (34 to 31) as Blair Walsh kicked short from 52 yards at home. But Seattle put together quick fourth quarter scoring drives to come back, like Russell Wilson and company have been doing all season. When will the opposition prepare for this? Obviously, Wilson is going to scramble when the defense pressures him, and pressure is good…maybe there’s no game plan for the Seahawks in the fourth quarter? Regardless, Seattle’s offensive line sucks.
The Cleveland Browns (0–10) will probably go without a victory this season; get me a paper bag, some dog poop, and a lighter. Since re-entering the league in 1999, the Browns are 88–210 (winning seasons in 2002 and 2007). Who is the best Cleveland quarterback over that time? Not a question we want to waste time answering; it’s not DeShone Kizer. Who is the best Cleveland head coach over that time? Another question I do not know why I am asking; it might be Hue Jackson. Regardless, the Browns might have the worst front office in professional sports’ history. Cleveland needs to hire me as General Manager. I will turn the team around by signing players who have ambition; we’ll win six games in a season.
Entering November 19, Kansas City was the only division leader to not have a winning streak, and that continued by losing a low-scoring game at the New York Giants. The L.A Rams and Minnesota were supposed to have the HOT game of the day; the Rams scored seven points, which means RedZone didn’t show a lot of that game. Washington at New Orleans ended up taking the cake, decided in overtime. Still might have faith in the Redskins yet; they’ve had a hard schedule.
It’s been said before, but Week 11 really was the craziest NFL week I have seen in a long time. RedZone damn near gave me a heart attack last Sunday. Enthralled with the NFL. Have been for most of my life. It’s my Sunday, and I love it. RedZone is Gold.
Rewind the tape. Here’s all the important stuff from last Sunday. All times are Eastern.
(1:04 p.m.): The Green Bay Packers are the first team in the red zone today. The Browns had a large kickoff return — no coverage followed. Brees was picked off on a deep throw; Brett Hundley was picked off in the end zone by the Ravens.
(1:09 p.m.): The Rams at the nine-yard line. No way the Giants should beat the Chiefs, but they can silence all the “quitting” headlines with a win at home over a first-place team. Todd Gurley has a touchdown for the Rams (leads the league with 11 scores, and he’s fifth in rushing with 791 yards). Damien Williams has a 70-yard run for the Miami Dolphins — longest run of the season for Miami, which hasn’t had much to brag about.
(1:11 p.m.): Double Box (side-to-side picture of two games at once) of Redskins-Saints and Lions-Bears lasts about 19 seconds…
(1:16 p.m.): Kizer’s first pass of the day was picked off by Jacksonville’s Telvin Smith; Jaguars have the best defense in the league. What happened over the last 12 minutes in Cleveland? RedZone cut back and the Browns had the ball at a very similar spot where the team returned the opening kickoff to start the day around midfield. There’s just no context.
(1:20 p.m.): Marcedes Lewis has his fifth touchdown for Jacksonville this season, been solid for 11 years. The Giants are picked off in the red zone. Four interceptions already today. Would watch the entire Rams-Vikings game if it was on; I live in New York. The Vikings and the Rams are cracking ribs.
(1:24 p.m.): 10 teams — Lions, Ravens, Packers, Browns, Cardinals, Texans, Vikings, Chiefs, Giants, and Dolphins — have zero points. The Jaguars and Rams have seven points each. The Ravens have intercepted Hundley for the second time — dumb throw was unnecessary.
(1:28 p.m.): Jacksonville went with a surprise onside kick, but Donald Payne was off sides; the kicker recovered, practically bouncing it to himself. We see these off-sides onside flags all the time — just wait until the ball is kicked! The kicker was going to fall on it anyway! Everything is a waste!
(1:33 p.m.): Ravens-Packers and Giants-Chiefs enter second quarter. As I write this, Eli Manning runs for 20 yards, looking like his knees could buckle at any moment.
(1:38 p.m.): Carolina, Indianapolis, New York Jets, and San Francisco are on the bye this week; last bye-week of the season. Tampa Bay and Miami were supposed to not be playing, either; a hurricane had something to do with that. And the Dolphins are playing the Buccaneers right now; the loser of that game is fried.
(1:41 p.m.): Double Box with Cardinals-Texans and Rams-Vikings lasts maybe one-and-a-half minutes before Case Keenum (Minnesota) runs out of bounds and D.J. Hayden (Detroit) runs back a Bears’ fumble for a touchdown; Mitchell Trubisky flubbed the snap. Quick cut to the Vikings on the eight-yard line, down seven, and it’s a touchdown run by Latavius Murray.
(1:51 p.m.): The Redskins and Buccaneers both score on the Double Box; Washington ran, Tampa Bay threw. Been seeing a fair amount of red zone rushes today, most of which are finding payday. And the Bears score on a 15-yard sweep run by Jordan Howard, who is third in the league in rushing (841 yards); it’s his first touchdown in six games. The Browns get a touchdown from Duke Johnson. Alex Smith (Kansas City) runs for a first down, gets lifted on the tackle. Robert Woods makes a catch for the Rams (even though he has only 47 grabs in 2017, I always see him catching the ball on RedZone).
(2:08 p.m.): Opened a Clown Shoes Space Cake Double IPA. Good Lord. RedZone is better with tasty beer. QUAD BOX (four games on the screen at once) for two seconds. Remember, there’s no commercials on RedZone. The Rams are on the seven-yard line, tied 7-to-7 with the Vikings; Gurley loses three yards.
(2:13 p.m.): Green Bay is the only team being blanked as we approach halftime. The Bears and Redskins both have 17 points as highest scorers. Cooper Kupp (Rams) fumbled at the one-yard line after a catch; Vikings have the football. Ravens-Packers is the first game to reach halftime — 6 to 0, Baltimore; Justin Tucker kicked a field goal as the clock hit zeros. The first half in Green Bay took only an hour and 15 minutes of real time.
(2:18 p.m.): The Saints intercept Kirk Cousins (top 10 in most passing statistics this season, including third in passing yards with 2,796) with 1:42 left in the first half. A good amount of interceptions today. New Orleans’ pick might be overturned…waiting…overturned, but the Redskins will attempt a 51-yard field goal…flag. Ameer Abdullah (Lions) is wide open for Matthew Stafford in the end zone from five yards out — he must be a ghost. Lions take the lead. Also, the Cardinals scored a touchdown on a throw to their tight end, but couldn’t get the guys name. Did the Redskins kick that field goal?
(2:26 p.m.): It’s snowing in Cleveland. Could be trouble for Jacksonville, a team from Florida. And rookie Dede Westbrook fumbles on cue, but the ball bounces out of bounds. Brees and the Saints are moving down field in the final seconds of the first half, but Brees clocks the ball and calls timeout; no timeouts remaining. Brees is hit as the ball falls incomplete. OK, so did Washington punt the ball to arrive at this current situation? New Orleans can’t get set, have to clock the ball again; fourth down with a field goal try coming. In Miami, DeSean Jackson catches a touchdown pass to extend the Buccaneers’ lead to 13 points. Jacksonville kicker, Josh Lambo. misses wide right; first miss of the season. Mike Wallace (Baltimore) with a 21-yard touchdown catch — he squeezed the football in between two defenders. Green Bay is still scoreless.
(2:33 p.m.): Detroit is the highest scoring team so far (21 points). Tampa Bay has 20 points. Washington has 17 points. Jacksonville and Houston have 10 points. Cleveland, L.A. Rams, Minnesota, and Miami have seven points. Six of the eight games are in halftime. Catch your breath, take a firm sip.
(2:47 p.m.): The Giants still have the lead — 6 to 3 — over the Chiefs. One question: why can’t New York play like this in every game? In 2017, the team waited way too long to prove itself. DeAndre Hopkins, man. He burns Patrick Peterson for the touchdown and the lead; Hopkins is third in the league in receiving yards (879) and second overall in touchdowns (9). Jay Cutler (Miami) is being evaluated for a concussion — hit didn’t look too serious. How many concussions has Cutler had in his career? Matt Moore replaces Cutler at quarterback, making instant impact by finding Jarvis Landry on the double-A gap for, like, 40 yards. Now, Landry gets held near the end zone. At the one-yard line, Moore rolls out right, throws to Anthony Fasano, who catches the ball, but Julius Thomas is called for offensive pass interference away from the play. Bad call! Stefon Diggs (Minnesota) makes a catch down the sideline; still 7-to-7, Vikings-Rams, a game that RedZone needs to focus on. But if teams aren’t in the red zone, you’re not gonna see them!
(2:58 p.m.): The Dolphins settle for a field goal, but needed a touchdown. Every time RedZone has gone to a Double Box today, it’s short lived. Vikings’ kicker, Kai Forbath, misses a modest field goal, hitting the post. Rams-Vikings still tied at 7-to-7.
(3:17 p.m.): Entering crunch time. The Lions still have the most points of any team today (21). And the Cardinals now have 21 points. The Buccaneers still have 20 points. Ryan Grant gives the Redskins 24 points with a 40-yard touchdown catch; he was wide open and Cousins got creamed after he let go of the football. Latavius Murray breaks the 7-to-7 tie in Minnesota, breaking through the pile near the goal line. At home, the Packers are still scoreless.
(3:25 p.m.): Want to know why the NFL is crazy? The L.A. Rams, a team that has scored at will all season, has seven points. You cannot write the script.
(3:35 p.m.): Minnesota is blowing this game open. Adam Thielen, who is second in the league in receiving yards (916), takes a catch 55 yards to the house on a screen play, bolting down field off the block. The Vikings are really doing it.
(3:52 p.m.): The Giants had the game-winning interception; there’s a flag on the field, and an upcoming review. The Chiefs need a field goal to tie. Washington has 31 points at New Orleans. Travis Kelce with 32-yard reception to get Kansas City to the New York 32-yard line; 51 seconds left. Bears-Lions tied, 24 to 24, and the Lions have the ball with 1:50 remaining. Matt Prater field goal makes it 27 to 24. The Browns need a touchdown (don’t make that bet). Cut, cut, cut, this is nuts. Alex Smith jumps for the first down; 37 seconds left. Football on the 23-yard line, and De’Anthony Thomas catches to the 14-yard line. Charcandrick West, quick catch for the first down. The Bears have three timeouts. OK. Smith is running again, down to the five-yard line as Giants’ fans tear their hair out. Timeout. Short field goal try…tied at 9-to-9 in New York. The Lions get a sack. Kizer in Cleveland, looks to have fumbled, arm raised high while being sacked; the ball started coming out of his hand before he was down. The Vikings will beat the Rams. Marlon Humphrey (Ravens) intercepts Hundley. Baltimore scores. Shutout. Telvin Smith (Jaguars) falls on a fumble that went into the end zone. Oh, the Browns. Jacksonville goes to 7–3, its best season in quite some time. The Bears are in field goal range…eight seconds…Connor Barth kicks the football WAY RIGHT…Lions win third straight game. Kenny Stills (Dolphins) ties the game with a 61-yard catch from Moore, 20 to 20 with the Buccaneers. Houston intercepts the Cardinals, Texans will win. Tampa Bay has time in Miami. The Saints, down by eight to the Redskins, making yards down the field with 1:40 remaining. And Cody Fleener is down to the 15-yard line with a catch. Marching! Alvin Kamara (Saints) catch, tips the ball up mid-move, controls it, and into the end zone. New Orleans needs two points, first two-pointer attempt of the season, and Kamara takes the sweep pitch in for the score. New Orleans and Washington are tied at 31-to-31. The Saints have scored 15 unanswered points. Tampa Bay is at the 20-yard line with a minute left in the game, tied, 20 to 20, with Miami.
(4:16 p.m.): TRIPLE BOX with Dolphins-Bucs, Saints-Skins, and Chiefs-Giants. HEART ATTACK. Roger Lewis (Giants) goes baseball slide while colliding with Phillip Gaines (Chiefs), somehow catching the ball; there was a flag for interference, too. Cousins is sacked, blindsided. Looks like overtime in New Orleans. Patrick Murray (Buccaneers) kicks a short field goal — looks like a win. The Giants win, 12 to 9; tumultuous stuff. Really bad look for Kansas City.
(4:28 p.m.): The Saints and the Redskins: highest scoring game, two highest scoring teams of the day; it’s in overtime. Mark Ingram Jr. with a huge run; Saints will try to win this game with a field goal. The Rams vs. Vikings was supposed to be the blockbuster; not so. Is New Orleans the best team in the NFL? First team in league history to win eight consecutive games after starting the season 0–2.
(4:33 p.m.): Time to charge my phone, take a load off, and watch the Patriots play the Raiders in Mexico City.
(5:43 p.m.): L.A. Chargers, 37, Buffalo Bills, 7. What happened to Buffalo? Winner of Denver Broncos (3–6) vs. Cincinnati Bengals (3–6) somehow stays topical in the playoff conversation. New England has 12-straight road wins dating back to 2016. Best modern football team.
(6:35 p.m.): Compared to the 1 o’clock games, very uncontested 4 o’clock slate. But, five less games, and some teams that are outmatched.
(7:28 p.m.): Cincinnati snaps its ever-long losing streak in Denver; not sure what this means.
