NFL Football - Week Thirteen Review

There was a lot of action around the National Football League this weekend, including three Thanksgiving Day games to get it started.
The Denver Broncos, led by five touchdown passes from quarterback Peyton Manning, survived on the road against Kansas City, 35-28 as they overcame a 14-point first half deficit.

Broncos WR Eric Decker had four TD catches in big win.

Broncos' wide receiver Eric Decker, the Heftyinfo NFL Player of the Week, had four touchdown catches to go with eight catches overall for 174 yards in the win, which improved the Broncos to 10-2. Chiefs QB Alex Smith passed for 293 yards and two scores in the loss.
The red hot Carolina Panthers (9-3) won for the eight consecutive game, beating the visiting Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 27-6 as the defense limited the Bucs (3-9) to just 206 total yardage in offense while QB Cam Newton threw for a pair of touchdowns.
The Philadelphia Eagles (7-5) kept pace with the Dallas Cowboys by winning at home against Arizona, 24-21 as QB Nick Foles had three TD passes and the Philly defense forced three turnovers. The Cardinals (7-5) mounted a comeback behind three scoring passes from QB Carson Palmer before falling short.
The New England Patriots (9-3) won in comeback fashion for the second straight week as they beat the Houston Texans, 34-31 on the road, sending the Texans to their 10th straight loss. New England QB Tom Brady passed for 371 yards and two scores in the win.
San Francisco (8-4) beat down the visiting St. Louis Rams, 23-13 behind solid defense and efficient offense, which included 275 passing yards by Colin Kaepernick.
The Indianapolis Colts (8-4) won a big showdown game in the AFC South, 22-14 over the visiting Tennessee Titans (5-7) as Titans' QB Ryan Fitzpatrick was picked off three times. Colts' kicker Adam Vinatieri made five field goals to help provide the difference in the game.
The Thanksgiving Day games saw the Detroit Lions (7-5) roll past the Green Bay Packers, 40-10 as Lions' QB Matthew Stafford had three TD passes and Reggie Bush ran for 117 yards and a rushing touchdown to go with 65 receiving yards.
The Lions outgained the Packers (5-6-1) in total offense by a count of 561-126, including outgaining the Packers 241-24 in rushing yardage.
The Dallas Cowboys (7-5) overcame early mistakes and a 21-7 deficit to defeat the Oakland Raiders, 31-24 behind three rushing scores by running back DeMarco Murray and 225 passing yards and one scoring pass from QB Tony Romo.
The night cap on turkey day saw the Baltimore Ravens (6-6) hold off the visiting Pittsburgh Steelers, 22-20 as the defense stiffened on a potential game-tying two-point conversion play in the final minute.
Ravens kicker Justin Tucker kicked five field goals to help make the difference and spoil the comeback attempt by Steelers' QB Ben Roethlisberger, who threw for 257 yards and two touchdowns in the loss.

                                       Elsewhere Around The National Football League . . . . . 

Two huge receiving days were spoiled with losses as the Chicago Bears blew a ten-point lead in the final quarter, losing at Minnesota, 23-20 in OT. Bears WR  Alshon Jeffery had 249 yards on 12 catches and two TD in the loss, which included a missed 47-yard FG on SECOND DOWN in the OT session. Minnesota RB Adrian Peterson (211 yards) took over, going for 51 yards in OT and then Vikings kicker Blair Walsh made good on his 34-yard FG to win it moments later . . .  The Cleveland Browns lost a tough one late to Jacksonville, 32-28 as Jags' QB Chad Henne hit Cecil Shorts III for the game winning pass with only 40 seconds remaining. Browns WR Josh Gordon (10 catches for 261 yards and two TD) became the only player in NFL history to record two consecutive games with 200-plus yards receiving . . .  The New York Giants (5-7) won at Washington, 24-17 on the Sunday Night Football game behind two running scores by Andre Brown . . .  The Cincinnati Bengals (8-4) maintained a two-game lead in the AFC North with a 17-10 road win against the San Diego Chargers (5-7) as QB Andy Dalton hooked up with WR A.J. Green on a 21-yard scoring pass in the third quarter to break the 7-7 deadlock . . .  The Miami Dolphins (6-6) smashed the host New York Jets, 23-3 to stay even with Baltimore for the final wild card playoff spot in the AFC as QB Ryan Tannehill had two scoring passes and the Miami defense limited the Jets (5-7) to only ten first downs and 177 yards of total offense, including a meager 78 passing yards  . . .  The Atlanta Falcons (3-9) finally got a win as kicker Matt Bryant drilled a 36-yard FG in OT to beat Buffalo, 34-31. Falcons' RB Steven Jackson rushed for two touchdowns while Bills' RB C.J. Spiller scored one rushing TD and had 149 yards on 15 carries in the loss . . .  The Seattle Seahawks (11-1) blasted the visiting New Orleans Saints, 34-7 on Monday Night Football as the defense dominated, holding the powerful Saints offense to only 12 first downs and 188 total yards in offense. Seattle QB Russell Wilson passed for 310 yards and three touchdowns in the win.