"The Stack" 12-4-17
Alvin Kamara had another big day with two rushing touchdowns and almost 150 total yards of offense as the Saints took down the Panthers 31-21 to take hold of the NFC South.
The Stack is back on this Monday and a blizzard is approaching the upper Midwest/Northern Plains, it seems like a good day to sit back and catch up on some football from the weekend. College football championship Saturday/College Football Playoff thoughts will come Tuesday…potentially. The blog is going to go on a bit of a hiatus soon with fewer postings, at least for a little while. We’re reacting to all of the pro action today though so let’s get right to “the stack” for today, Monday, December 4th:
Vikings 14 Falcons 9
This game wasn’t pretty. It didn’t have a lot of offensive fireworks, but it had some great defense by the Vikings and some key quarterback play by Case Keenum down the stretch. He orchestrated that 11 play 89-yard touchdown drive and then after Matt Bryant missed a field goal wide left (he was hugging the left side of the field goal post most of the game), Keenum helped the Vikings run the clock out and get the win. That’s eight in a row now and a critical loss for the Falcons whose final four games come against the division. Not easy at all.
Ravens 44 Lions 20
Finally the Ravens offense awoke. They moved the ball nearly all game long against the Lions and when they had to settle for field goals, Justin Tucker banged them through. The Lions lost Matthew Stafford with a hand injury, but they got into too big of a hole. The Ravens maintain their grasp of a wild card spot while the Lions are losing ground.
Patriots 23 Bills 3
Tyrod Taylor had a pretty miserable day passing against the Patriots and then suffered what could be a fairly significant injury. Adding injury to insult was a bit of a dirty play by Rob Gronkowski on Tre’Davious White when he hit White late. That could result in a suspension. The Patriots are playing pretty well right now.
49ers 15 Bears 14
The Jimmy Garoppolo era with the 49ers has started out pretty successful. Yes this wasn’t the cleanest game and the 49ers failed to find the endzone and settled for five field goals, but Garoppolo was able to move the 49ers down the field routinely and the 49ers defense played really well. There is a bright future for San Francisco if they sign Jimmy to a long-term deal.
Packers 26 Buccaneers 20
Had it not been for a Jameis Winston fumble returned for a touchdown and a blocked punt, the Packers would have lost this game. Brett Hundley did not play well. Fortunately Jamaal Williams ran for over 100 yards and a touchdown. The Bucs will lament their mistakes and missed opportunities. A disappointing season continues.
Jaguars 30 Colts 10
The Colts are a terrible team. The Jaguars defense made life difficult for Jacoby Brissett and the Colts and Blake Bortles came through with a couple of touchdown passes and played pretty well in leading the Jaguars to another odd week victory.
Dolphins 35 Broncos 9
This was a pretty terrible game. Giancarlo Stanton (a Marlin for now) hit a two run homerun for the Dolphins, but Nolan Arenado hit a bases loaded three-run double to give the Broncos a 3-2 lead. Then the Dolphins went to work applying plenty of pressure against Trevor Siemian getting a pick-six and getting a big day out of Kenyon Drake. Things got heated with onside kicks and then the Broncos calling a timeout with three seconds left. The Broncos are a terrible team right now. The Dolphins aren’t much better, but they were on this day.
Jets 38 Chiefs 31
Boy did the Chiefs offense start out red hot with two early touchdowns to Travis Kelce, but their defense didn’t hold up their end of the bargain. The Jets offense was able to move up and down the field at will. Darrelle Revis was a non-factor or a factor for all of the wrong reasons and even though Alex Smith and the passing game finally got going (Tyreek Hill had two long touchdown receptions), the Chiefs lost for the sixth time in the last seven games.
Titans 24 Texans 13
It was a tough game for the Titans. They got in an early 10-0 hole and saw Texans quarterback Tom Savage throw for 364 yards, but he had a costly interception late in the fourth quarter and Derrick Henry iced the game with a 75-yard touchdown run. It wasn’t pretty for the Titans, but then again most of their games have been that way this season. Keeping pace with the Jaguars in the AFC South.
Chargers 19 Browns 10
The Browns are trying. They really are. They were close in this one even though Philip Rivers had a huge day through the air. It was nice to see Josh Gordon back in uniform. He played pretty well. It just wasn’t enough for the Browns. Maybe next week. Maybe next week. The Chargers are now in a three-way tie for first in the AFC West. Pretty amazing given their 0-4 start.
Saints 31 Panthers 21
Don’t know if you know this, but this rookie running back for New Orleans is pretty good. Alvin Kamara was great once again with two rushing touchdowns and adding five catches as well. Mark Ingram also had a touchdown and the defense contained Cam Newton and company. This Saints team is pretty good and the NFC South is very competitive. It’s going to go down to the final week, potentially.
Rams 32 Cardinals 16
The Rams defense teed off on Cardinals quarterback Blaine Gabbert early getting a pick-six to go up 16-0. Though the Cardinals would make a brief comeback to cut the lead to 16-13, the Rams defense would stiffen up and their offense would do enough to double up the Cardinals and get the win.
Raiders 24 Giants 17
Geno Smith wasn’t terrible in this one…at least passing. His former head coach Rex Ryan didn’t have flattering things to say about Smith on Sunday NFL Countdown and Smith called him a coward in his postgame press conference. Two fumbles though by Smith helped the Raiders to get the win in this one on a day where they were without their top two wide receivers Amari Cooper (concussion) and Michael Crabtree (suspension). They are part of a three-way tie in the AFC West. Crazy.
Seahawks 24 Eagles 10
Despite not having Richard Sherman or Kam Chancellor, the Seahawks defense corralled the highest scoring offense in the league and held them to 10 points. The Eagles had multiple missed opportunities on offense, but made things interesting when Carson Wentz went bananas with a couple of throws to Nelson Agholor including one for a touchdown. In the end though, Russell Wilson just made too many plays and the Seahawks picked up a big win.
Pittsburgh Steelers @ Cincinnati Bengals 8:30 PM ET ESPN MNF
The Bengals have been playing better lately. Their offense and defense are starting to click. Big Ben and Antonio Brown are on a tear as of recent, but Antonio Brown has a toe injury and might not play. Le’Veon Bell may see more balls as a result. It will be close, but I think the Steelers make more plays late and hold off Andy Dalton in primetime.
Prediction: Steelers 27 Bengals 20
Coming up Tuesday: MNF reaction plus College Football Playoff thoughts
