NFL Football - Week Eleven Review

There was nothing quite like "home cooking" this weekend around the NFL as the host teams won 11 of the

13 games played. The only road teams to win Sunday were the Oakland Raiders and Arizona Cardinals. The Indianapolis Colts won on the road at Tennessee on Thursday night.
Starting in the NFC North division, the Chicago Bears (6-4) weathered the storms around the area (the game was delayed for nearly two hours as tornadoes roared throughout Illinois on Sunday afternoon) to defeat the Baltimore Ravens, 23-20 in overtime. Bears' kicker Robbie Gould drilled a 38-yard field goal in the OT to win the game.
The Detroit Lions (6-4) lost at Pittsburgh, 37-27 as the Steelers defense rose up in the second half and shut down the Lions passing tandem of  Matthew Stafford and WR  Calvin Johnson, who had 179 receiving yards and two touchdowns in the first half.
The second half was all Steelers (4-6) as they shut out Detroit after trailing 27-20 at the half. Pittsburgh QB Ben Roethlisberger, the Heftyinfo NFL Player of the Week, passed for 367 yards and four

Big Ben led the way for Steelers in win.

touchdowns to lead the charge. It was the fourth win in six games for the Steelers after a 0-4 start.
The New York Giants (4-6) won their fourth straight game with a 27-13 home victory against the reeling Green Bay Packers (5-5), who lost their third straight game without QB Aaron Rodgers, who is out with a fractured collar bone.
Jason Pierre-Paul raced 24 yards with an interception for a touchdown to ice the game for the Giants. Packers backup QB Scott Tolzien threw three interceptions in the loss.
The Minnesota Vikings were flattened in Seattle, 41-20 as Marshawn Lynch ran for two scores and also caught a TD pass to lead the way for the Seahawks, who improved to an NFL best 10-1 record.
The big game was Sunday night where the host Denver Broncos (9-1) beat the Kansas City Chiefs, 27-17 behind two TD runs by running back Monte Ball and a touchdown pass from QB Peyton Manning, who has 34 for the season. It was the first loss of the year for Kansas City (9-1), which didn't get a QB sack against the Broncos. The two teams are tied for first place in the AFC West and will meet again in just two weeks in Kansas City.
The New Orleans Saints survived at home against the San Francisco 49ers, 23-20 as Garrett Hartley kicked the game winning field goal at the buzzer. It was the third field goal in the fourth quarter for Hartley and provided the difference for the Saints, who improved to 8-2 with the win. The 49ers (6-4) lost for the second straight game and are now tied for second place with surprising Arizona in the NFC West.


                                                    Elsewhere around the league . . . . . . 

The Miami Dolphins (5-5) won a listless game against the visiting San Diego Chargers, 20-16 by holding them out of the end zone in the closing seconds . . .  Philadelphia (6-5) took over first place in the NFC East with a 24-16 home win against Washington (3-7) behind two TD runs by LeSean McCoy and a defensive stand in the final minute to stifle the Redskins comeback effort . . .  The Buffalo Bills crushed the visiting New York Jets (5-5) 37-14 as Jets' QB Geno Smith threw three picks and also fumbled while fellow rookie QB E.J. Manuel was stellar with two TD passes for the Bills (4-7) . . .  Cincinnati (7-4) won at home, 41-20 over Cleveland to open a three-game cushion in the AFC North. Bengals' QB Andy Dalton had three TD passes and the defense and special teams (blocked punt for TD) each scored as well . . .  The Arizona Cardinals (6-4) showed they are playoff contenders with another win, this time 27-14 at Jacksonville as QB Carson Palmer had two TD passes, including a 91-yard TD strike to WR Michael Floyd . . .  The Oakland Raiders (4-6) won on the road against Houston, 28-23 behind three TD passes from backup QB Matt McGloin, sending the Texans (2-8) to their eighth  consecutive loss . . .  The Indianapolis Colts (7-3) stormed back from a 21-3 first half deficit to beat the host Tennessee Titans, 30-27 behind two rushing touchdowns from Donald Brown and a scoring run by QB Andrew Luck while the defense held the Titans (4-6) to just two field goals in the second half . . . The host Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-8) won their second consecutive game by pounding the hapless Atlanta Falcons, 41-28 in blowout fashion, building a 38-6 lead in the third quarter behind three scores and 163 yards rushing by Bobby Rainey. . .  The Carolina Panthers topped the visiting New England Patriots, 24-20 on Monday Night Football behind three TD passes from Cam Newton to improve to 7-3 with their sixth consecutive win.