NFL - Week Fourteen Recap

Tampa Bay QB Tom Brady celebrates the OT win.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10-3) pulled out a big win in overtime, 33-27 against the visiting Buffalo Bills (7-6) for their fourth straight win when quarterback Tom Brady (363 passing yards) threw a 58-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Breshad Perriman. The Bucs had squandered a 24-3 halftime lead as the Bills (7-6) mounted a big comeback by scoring 17 points in the fourth quarter, including two TD passes by QB Josh Allen and a game tying 25-yard field goal with 22 seconds left in regulation.  

The San Francisco 49ers (7-6) squeaked past the host Cincinnati Bengals, 26-23 in OT as WR Brandon Aiyuk hauled in a short pass from QB Jimmy Garoppolo and tip toed the final ten yards on the sideline into the end zone for the win. The Bengals (7-6) went ahead, 23-20 in the OT on a Evan McPherson 41-yard field goal, but then the 'Niners stormed back and drove down the field for the winning score. Bengals QB Joe Burrow (348 passing yards) had two TD passes in the fourth quarter to wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase to help force the OT session.

The Thursday night game was a wild one as the host Minnesota Vikings (6-7) held on for a 36-28 win against the Pittsburgh Steelers (6-6-1), who nearly overcame a 29-0 deficit. It came down to the final play of the game, but Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger's pass to tight end Pat Freiermuth was incomplete as time ran out. Roethlisberger passed for 308 yards with three TD and one interception in the losing effort while the Vikings got 205 rushing yards from Dalvin Cook and a pair of touchdowns. In addition, Vikings QB Kirk Cousins had two TD passes and also two interceptions to help provide the winning margin.

The Cleveland Browns (7-6) held off the Baltimore Ravens, 24-22 to tighten the AFC North division standings. It was the second straight loss for Baltimore (8-5), who also lost starting QB Lamar Jackson to an ankle injury as the Browns built up a 24-3 lead, which included a 15-yard scoop and score fumble recovery for touchdown by defensive end Myles Garrett. Baltimore backup QB Tyler Huntley passed for 270 yards with one touchdown, but it wasn't enough as Browns QB Baker Mayfield had two TD passes and the Cleveland defense stopped the Ravens after a successful onside kick in the final minute.

The Dallas Cowboys (9-4) took a big step to winning the NFC East division title with a 27-20 road win at Washington (6-7) as quarterback Dak Prescott had a TD pass and defensive end Dorance Armstrong returned a fumble 37 yards for another score. Cowboys defensive star Micah Parsons had a big game with two sacks and a fumble recovery as the 'Pokes held off Washington's comeback effort in the fourth quarter (two scores) to provide the final outcome and snap the football team's four-game win streak.

The Sunday night game was action packed as the Green Bay Packers (10-3) defeated the Chicago Bears, 45-30 at Lambeau Field. The Bears (4-9) had a 27-21 halftime lead as Jakeem Grant hauled in a 46-yard TD pass from QB Justin Fields (224 passing yards with two TD and two INT) and also returned a punt 97 yards for another score. 

The Packers took a 14-10 lead in the second quarter when Rasul Douglas took back an interception 55 yards for a touchdown and then  the Packers dominated in the second half as QB Aaron Rodgers (pictured right), who had 341 passing yards and four scoring passes, threw for two scores and RB Aaron Jones added a rushing touchdown to lead the way. 

The Los Angeles Rams (9-4) got a huge win on Monday Night Football, a 30-23 road victory against the NFC West leading Arizona Cardinals (10-3), who dropped to third place in the NFC playoff standings following the setback. Rams QB Matthew Stafford had three TD passes while the defense intercepted Cards QB Kyler Murray (383 passing yards) twice (one a pick at the Rams goal line in the first half) and also had four sacks, including three by DE Aaron Donald, who got to Murray on the final play of the game to help seal the win. Arizona RB James Conner had two rushing scores in the loss.

                                                         Elsewhere Around the NFL . . . . . . . . .  

The Kansas City Chiefs improved to 9-4 with their sixth consecutive win in a 48-9 blowout against the visiting Las Vegas Raiders (6-7) as the defense forced five turnovers, including four fumble recoveries while QB Patrick Mahomes had two scoring passes . . .  The New Orleans Saints (6-7) snapped a five-game losing streak with a 30-9 thumping of the host New York Jets (3-10) as RB Alvin Kamara (120 rushing yards) scored a TD and Taysom Hill added two scoring runs while the defense had three sacks and limited the Jets to 256 total yards in offense . . .  The Los Angeles Chargers (8-5) rolled to a 37-21 home win against the New York Giants (4-9) as QB Justin Herbert had three TD passes . . .  The Atlanta Falcons (6-7) held off the host Carolina Panthers, 29-21 as linebacker Mykal Walker had a 66-yard "pick six" interception return and the Atlanta defense got three turnovers . . .  The Seattle Seahawks (5-8) buried the Houston Texans, 33-13 for a road win as QB Russell Wilson had two TD passes and RB Rashaad Penny had two long TD runs (32 and 47 yards) to go with 137 rushing yards to lead the way . . .  Denver (7-6) beat down the visiting Detroit Lions, 38-10 with RB Melvin Gordon (111 yards rushing) scoring twice on the ground while QB Teddy Bridgewater had a pair of scoring passes for the Broncos balanced offense, which gained 184 rushing yards and 174 passing yards . . .  The Tennessee Titans (9-4) smashed the hapless Jacksonville Jaguars, 20-0 for the home win as their defense intercepted rookie QB Trevor Lawrence four times while also limiting the Jaguars (2-11) to a paltry eight rushing yards in the game.

 

WEEK FOURTEEN RESULTS 

Minnesota 36, Pittsburgh 28 

New Orleans 30, N.Y. Jets 9 

Tennessee 20, Jacksonville 0 

Kansas City 48, Las Vegas 9 

Cleveland 24, Baltimore 22

Atlanta 29, Carolina 21 

Dallas 27, Washington 20 

Seattle 33, Houston 13 

L.A. Chargers 37, N.Y. Giants 21

Denver 38, Detroit 10

San Francisco 26, Cincinnati 23 (OT) 

Tampa Bay 33, Buffalo 27 (OT)

Green Bay 45, Chicago 30  

L.A. Rams 30, Arizona 23