"The Stack" 11-20-17

Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

Saints rookie running back Alvin Kamara made a juggling catch that made Washington defenders freeze for a moment, allowing Kamara to get in the endzone to tie the game. The Saints wound up winning 34-31 in overtime.

The Stack is back on this Monday and there were more than a handful of statements that were made by teams in yesterday’s games. Some were good (Vikings and Saints come to mind) and some were not (like starting Nathan Peterman, Bills head coach Sean McDermott). Let’s get to all of the reaction and more in “the stack” for today, Monday, November 20th:

Buccaneers 30 Dolphins 20

The Bucs had this game well in hand only to see the Dolphins come storming back to tie the game late in the fourth quarter. The Bucs put together a nice drive at the end to kick the game winning field goal and then in a sequence important to some, they recovered a fumble in the endzone for a touchdown as the Dolphins were lateraling on the kickoff and couldn’t do anything. Another disappointing game by the Dolphins.

Lions 27 Bears 24

The Detroit Lions simply don’t like putting bad teams away. They spotted the Bears a quick ten points and then Matthew Stafford started to get going with two touchdown passes. Tarik Cohen found the endzone to tie the game in the fourth, but Matt Prater said that that was enough and gave the Lions a 27-24 lead. A missed field goal by the Bears on the next drive and the Lions would escape Chicago with a victory. Not impressed at all. The Bears lost the game and lost Leonard Floyd, perhaps their best defensive player for an extended period of time with a knee injury.

Jaguars 19 Browns 7

It’s not the 40 plus points that Teshaun Gipson was hoping for, but the Jaguars defense made life miserable for DeShone Kizer and the Browns offense and even though the Jaguars offense wasn’t great, they did enough to help lift the team to a win and first place in the AFC South…for now.

Ravens 23 Packers 0

Man, Mike McCarthy. You sure like to be stubborn don’t you? Brett Hundley just doesn’t look the part as Packers starting quarterback. Two interceptions on the first two possessions and three interceptions overall as the Packers got shut out. That Ravens defense is really good however. Still, the Packers season seems to be pretty much done.

Texans 31 Cardinals 21

Larry Fitzgerald and the Arizona Cardinals looked like they were doing pretty well in this one and might get the victory with Blaine Gabbert at the helm, but a bad fourth down call in their own territory and their inability to stop Texans rookie running back D’Onta Foreman (who subsequently left the game with an injury after scoring two touchdowns) did not help lead to a victory. Both of these teams will not be in the playoffs though.

Vikings 24 Rams 7

After an opening touchdown drive by the Rams, the vaunted Vikings defense rose up to the challenge and made life difficult for the Rams offense going forward. Latavius Murray had two rushing touchdowns and Case Keenum played another solid game hooking up with Adam Thielen six times for 123 yards and a touchdown. This Vikings team is really good. The Rams are good as well, but they aren’t at the Vikings’ level quite yet.

Saints 34 Washington 31

For three quarters, it looked like Washington was going to be able to pull out a victory. They were playing really well. Kirk Cousins had thrown three touchdowns. Then Drew Brees said, okay, let’s turn the clock back and start throwing it. Brees was magnificent in the fourth quarter with two touchdowns and Washington failed to make plays down the stretch. A field goal in overtime would seal the game and the win for the Saints who have now won eight in a row. Pretty amazing.

Giants 12 Chiefs 9

It looks like that emotional meeting earlier this week worked for the Giants. A field goal fest broke out at MetLife Stadium and it was the Giants prevailing in overtime against the Chiefs. The Chiefs offense does not look like they did at the beginning of the season. They had turnovers and for an Andy Reid coached team, they looked flat coming out of the bye which is rare, because Reid’s teams were 16-2 coming out of the bye in his coaching career. Not a good loss at all for the Chiefs.

Chargers 54 Bills 24

Hopefully this game is the end of the Nathan Peterman era in Buffalo. He threw five interceptions….IN THE FIRST HALF! Looks like Sean McDermott out-thought himself by benching Tyrod Taylor during the week. That’s not a good look for McDermott in the eyes of the team. They have to start Taylor going forward. He gives them the best chance to win. Doubt they’ll win very many games the rest of the season. Boy the Chargers looked good. They are going to make a run.

Bengals 20 Broncos 17

The Broncos are an absolute trainwreck right now. Andy Dalton was very good throwing for three touchdowns and the Bengals defense did enough against a bad Broncos offense to get the win. Neither of these teams will make the playoffs, but at least the Bengals keep showing signs of life.

Patriots 33 Raiders 8

So Jack Del Rio, do you maybe want to re-think about getting your team acclimated with playing that far above sea level? The Raiders looked all out of sorts as Tom Brady and the Patriots threw all over them. The Raiders clearly have issues and it will take a miracle for these two teams to meet again this season. The Patriots are really good. The Raiders right now are not.

Eagles 37 Cowboys 9

The Eagles offense struggled after the first drive of the game for the remainder of the first half. The second half was a complete shift with the Eagles running it all over the Cowboys. Dak Prescott is just not that good without Ezekiel Elliott, plain and simple. The Eagles though are the best team in the NFC, maybe the NFL. Believe in this team.

Atlanta Falcons @ Seattle Seahawks 8:30 PM ET ESPN MNF

The Falcons finally played well on both sides of the football last week and now their offense goes against a Seahawks defense without Richard Sherman and Kam Chancellor. Life is going to be difficult for the Seahawks defense. Still though, in that loud environment, I think the Seahawks can get the job done at home.

Prediction: Seahawks 27 Falcons 23

Coming up Tuesday: MNF reaction plus other top stories in sports