"The Stack" 12-12-16
The Giants have the Cowboys' numbers this year. They beat the Giants Sunday night 10-7 thanks in large part to a Giants defense that contained Ezekiel Elliott for the most part and force a big Dez Bryant turnover. The Cowboys have two losses this season...both to the Giants.
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Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell had himself a career day on Sunday with 236 rushing yards and three touchdowns as the Steelers beat the Bills in the snow 27-20.
Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports
The Stack is back on this Monday and the playoff races in both the AFC and NFC are going to be really fun to watch, especially in the NFC for the wild card. The Stack has reaction to all of Sunday’s week 14 NFL action plus a MNF preview so let’s get right to “the stack” for today, Monday, December 12th:
Pittsburgh 27 Buffalo 20
What a day Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell had for the Steelers. The Bills couldn’t stop him all day. Bell racked up 236 yards and three touchdowns in the snow as the Steelers held off the Bills. There are reports that Bills head coach Rex Ryan could be fired at the end of the season. Based on how the team has looked the past couple of weeks plus with Tyrod Taylor not looking like he did last year, I’d say the Bills are close to imploding.
Carolina 28 San Diego 16
It got close late, but the Panthers were in control of this one pretty much from get-go. Their defense played great. Helped that Chargers running back Melvin Gordon left the game early in this one with a hip injury. Cam wasn’t anything special, but the Panthers got a win that will help ease tension around Charlotte…at least for one week.
Cincinnati 23 Cleveland 10
The Bengals struck early and in a very empty stadium without much fanfare or atmosphere, that was enough to keep the Browns winless. Jeremy Hill had a big day on the ground. RGIII was not spectacular at quarterback for the Browns. Perhaps the weather had a little bit to do with that. Either way, the Browns are still winless.
Detroit 20 Chicago 17
Told ya on Friday this game could be one that the Lions find themselves in a game that they probably shouldn’t be in. It happened after Matthew Stafford threw a pick-six to give the Bears the lead, but Stafford and the Lions were cool, calm and collected because they have been in this position before. They drove down the field and Stafford ran in for the game-winning score. The Lions just know how to win when they trail.
Houston 22 Indianapolis 17
Well Brock Osweiler once again did not play great on the road (that interception he threw was terrible), but Andrew Luck had plenty of issues himself with a fumble and a couple of interceptions as the Colts dropped this one. Not a good loss for the Colts. Their playoff chances are close to done since the Texans swept them. Luck needed to be better and he was not. The Texans defense and running back Lamar Miller carried them.
Minnesota 25 Jacksonville 16
The Vikings actually had some firepower on offense with some long passes, but the rest of their play calling did not go nearly as good. The offensive line continues to be a joke and their goalline offense is awful. Matt Asiata cannot score or pick up a first down on a 3rd and 1 or 4th and 1 ever it seems like. However, the Vikings found a way to pick up the win over the Jaguars and stay alive in the NFC playoff discussion.
Miami 26 Arizona 23
Rain certainly played a factor in this game. It affected the kicking game and led to some turnovers (in my opinion). The Dolphins got the win on a last-second field goal (literally), but the win came at a price as Ryan Tannehill went down in the third quarter with a knee injury and it is feared that it’s a torn ACL. We’ll find out today if that is truly the case. What a big loss that would be for the Dolphins.
Washington 27 Philadelphia 22
It took a little while for Washington’s offense to get going, but once they did, the Eagles were in trouble. Despite a pick-six that gave the Eagles the lead 22-21, Washington responded with another score and forced a turnover with just seconds remaining to seal the deal. Big win for Washington as they try to stay ahead of the pack in the NFC playoff race.
Tennessee 13 Denver 10
The Titans jumped out to an early 13-0 lead and had to hang on for dear life against the Broncos. They stopped them once in the redzone early in the fourth quarter, but the Broncos kept knocking on the door. Emmanuel Sanders had 100 yards and a touchdown on eleven receptions. A fumble late killed the comeback chances. The Titans are very much alive in the AFC playoff discussion and while the Broncos may be slipping on their chances of making it back to the playoffs. They are currently the six seed.
New York Jets 23 San Francisco 17
The 49ers offense was rolling in this game early. Carlos Hyde was running it down the Jets’ throats. Matt Forte got injured for the Jets early in this contest and it just didn’t seem like they had much of a chance, but Bryce Petty led them to a fourth quarter comeback to tie the game and force overtime and Bilal Powell ran for the game-winning touchdown in overtime. There weren’t many fans in the stands to see the 49ers crap their pants in this game. The fans who didn’t show up are smart.
Green Bay 38 Seattle 10
The Packers absolutely destroyed Seattle. Aaron Rodgers was his MVP self, but he did injure his calf which caused him to leave early in the fourth. The game was well in hand at that point. Russell Wilson threw four interceptions, but his wide receivers did not help him out at all. This was not a pretty loss by the Seahawks who now are no longer the two seed. I feel like that will change though. They currently miss Earl Thomas. Rodgers carved them up.
Atlanta 42 Los Angeles 14
When you fumble the opening kickoff by having the football bounce off of your helmet and set the kicking team off at the five yard-line, it’s going to be a long day. The Rams were dreadful. Running back Todd Gurley said the offense was like middle school. Can Jeff Fisher survive this? He might not. Matt Ryan threw three touchdowns and the defense added two scores for the Falcons in this easy win.
Tampa Bay 16 New Orleans 11
Jameis Winston did not throw or run for a touchdown which is surprising. The Saints defense played well, but the Buccaneers defense played better. They kept Drew Brees and the Saints offense out of the endzone. Rain certainly aided that, but the Bucs won and they keep their position as the sixth seed in the wild card and continuing to put pressure on the Falcons for first in the NFC South. These two teams have a rematch in a couple of weeks.
New York Giants 10 Dallas 7
This was one of the more entertaining 10-7 games you’ll see. The Cowboys scored the first touchdown of the game when Terrence Williams ran wide open, but after that the Giants defense stole the show. They stuffed Ezekiel Elliott for the most part and didn’t let Dak Prescott beat them. They held Dez Bryant to one catch for ten yards and on that catch Bryant fumbled it. Eli Manning was far from perfect with one interception and two fumbles, but his touchdown pass to Odell Beckham Jr. was the deciding score. The Giants have handed the Cowboys their only two losses this season. These two teams seem destined to meet in the playoffs.
Baltimore Ravens @ New England Patriots 8:30 PM ET ESPN MNF
Excellent matchup tonight on Monday Night Football. The Ravens are trying to stay in first place in the AFC North with a win while the Patriots are just continuing to win and get homefield advantage in the AFC playoffs. Tom Brady was good last week, but he’ll need to be better I think tonight if the Patriots want to win. Joe Flacco played elite last week, but I don’t think that will continue tonight. Patriots win a close one.
Prediction: Patriots 24 Ravens 19
Coming up Tuesday: MNF preview, Heisman Trophy winner and more
