NFL - Week Twelve Review

What a weekend in the NFL as the Thanksgiving Day games offered up some excitement, followed by some record setting performances in the Sunday games.

Bears defense celebrates another touchdown in win over Lions.

The Chicago Bears (8-3) won at Detroit on Thanksgiving Day, 23-16 as defensive back Eddie Jackson took an interception back 41 yards for a score late in the fourth quarter to help decide the outcome. The Bears defense leads the NFL in takeaways and has 20 interceptions as well.
It was the fifth straight win for the Bears and Chase Daniel filled in at quarterback for the injured Mitch Trubisky in this one.
The other Turkey Day game saw the Dallas Cowboys improve to 6-5 by downing the visiting Washington Redskins, 31-23. Dallas wide receiver Amari Cooper had two TD receptions, including a 90-yard score as he hauled in eight receptions for 180 yards.
Meanwhile, Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott also scored a rushing TD and went for his third straight game with over 100 yards rushing, gaining 121 yards on 26 carries. The Redskins (6-5) dropped their second straight game as backup QB Colt McCoy was picked off three times.
The New Orleans Saints (10-1) rolled past the visiting Atlanta Falcons, 31-17 in the Thanksgiving night cap behind four TD passes from QB Drew Brees, which gave them their tenth consecutive win. Falcons QB Matt Ryan had two TD tosses in defeat.

Chargers QB Philip Rivers had a record setting day in big win over Arizona.

The Los Angeles Chargers (8-3) routed the visiting Arizona Cardinals, 45-10 as QB Philip Rivers, the Heftyinfo NFL Player of the Week, stole the show by completing his first 25 passes and finished the game with 28-of-29 accuracy (96.6 percent) with three TD passes included. Rivers set two records (completion percentage for a single game and 25 consecutive completions to start a game) in the win.
Chargers running back Melvin Gordon scored a pair of rushing touchdowns, but left the game with a sprained knee in the third quarter. His status is listed as week to week.
The New England Patriots (8-3) toppled the host New York Jets, 27-13 as QB Tom Brady broke Peyton Manning's NFL record for most career passing yardage, which includes post-season games. Brady had two TD strikes in the win as the Pats rolled up 498 yards in total offense, including 215 rushing yards.
The Denver Broncos (5-6) surprised the Pittsburgh Steelers, 24-17 as their defense intercepted two passes and had two fumble recoveries, which made the difference as the Steelers amassed 527 total yards in offense, including a 97-yard TD pass play to WR JuJu Smith-Schuster (13 receptions for 189 yards).
Denver QB Case Keenum had two TD passes and RB Phillip Lindsay (110 rushing yards) scored the deciding touchdown on a two-yard run. The loss snapped the Steelers (7-3-1) six-game winning streak.
The Seattle Seahawks (6-5) showed their resilience as they knocked off the host Carolina Panthers, 30-27 on a 31-yard field goal by kicker Sebastian Janikowski as time ran out. Seahawks QB Russell Wilson had two TD passes and 339 yards passing in the win. Carolina QB Cam Newton also threw for two scores, but the Panthers (6-5) lost their third consecutive game.


                                               Elsewhere Around the NFL  . . . . . . .  


The Minnesota Vikings (6-4-1) put some distance between themselves and the Green Bay Packers (4-6-1) in the NFC playoff race with a 24-17 home victory on Sunday night as QB Kirk Cousins passed for three touchdowns . . .  The Baltimore Ravens (6-5) won at home, 34-17 over the Oakland Raiders as QB Lamar Jackson ran and passed for a TD to lead the way . . .  The Philadelphia Eagles (5-6) survived at home, beating the New York Giants, 25-22 on a game winning 43-yard field goal by Jake Elliott . . .  The Cleveland Browns routed the host Cincinnati Bengals, 35-20 behind four TD passes from rookie QB Baker Mayfield. Bengals QB Andy Dalton was lost for the rest of the season with a thumb injury in the loss . . .  The Indianapolis Colts (6-5) won their fifth consecutive game, 27-24 over the visiting Miami Dolphins as kicker Adam Vinatieri drilled a 32-yard field goal as time expired. Colts QB Andrew Luck had three TD passes in the win . . .  Tampa Bay rolled the visiting San Francisco 49ers, 27-9 as QB Jameis Winston returned to the starting role and had two TD passes . . . The Buffalo Bills held off the hapless Jacksonville Jaguars, 24-21 as rookie QB Josh Allen had a rushing and passing touchdown . . .  The Houston Texans (8-3) beat the Tennessee Titans, 34-17 on Monday Night Football. The win was the eight in a row for the Texans, a franchise record. Houston QB Deshaun Watson had a pair of scoring passes to WR Demaryius Thomas and running back Lamar Miller led the rushing attack (Houston gained 281 yards) with a 97-yard TD run. Titans QB Marcus Mariota was 22-for-23 passing for 303 yards and two TD passes in defeat.


WEEK TWELVE RESULTS
Chicago 23, Detroit 16
Dallas 31, Washington 23
New Orleans 31, Atlanta 17
Cleveland 35, Cincinnati 20
Buffalo 24, Jacksonville 21
Tampa Bay 27, San Francisco 9
Philadelphia 25, NY Giants 22
New England 27, NY Jets 13
Baltimore 34, Oakland 17
Seattle 30, Carolina 27
LA Chargers 45, Arizona 10
Indianapolis 27, Miami 24
Denver 24, Pittsburgh 17
Minnesota 24, Green Bay 17
Houston 34, Tennessee 17