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Gregg Rosenthal catches up on everything you need to know as we move from week 11 to week 12.
The televised offensive revolution throughout this wild 2018 season reached its apex Monday night on a dewy night, showing late arrivals how much the NFL had changed. The victory of the Rams 54-51 on the leaders was our state of the Union.
It was the type of night the league could only dream of when it adopted a rule change after a change of rule favoring the offensive. Andy Reid and Sean McVay continued to match the university's concepts with NFL talent, abandoning so many crisp coaches' clichés like setting the race in a super-aggressive show of bravado.
It is not that defense has no place in this new world order. Anyone complaining of lack of defense on Monday night must have missed the eight sacks, seven kicks, seven turnovers and three defensive scores. Rams 'defensive tackle Aaron Donald, Chiefs defenseman Justin Houston and Rams' surprise linebacker Sams Ebukam scored more touchdowns than Todd Gurley and Kareem Hunt.
The expectations regarding the quality of the defense in this new era must however be adjusted. The few cranks moaning how was football ignoring that football has always been a matter of evolution and adaptation, that the most memorable game in NFL history is again a rout of 72-41 Giants by the Redskins in 1966.
The Rams' tight win is considered the league's third-most scoring match, a mark that may not last if NFL owners oversee defensive-minded teams competing for the field position. possession time are starting to look more intelligently at the upcoming Sean McVay and Andy Reid. In the meantime, I'm going to enjoy this season with Patrick Mahomes, Drew Brees and Jared Goff at the front of the pack because the sport's metamorphosis is invigorating, because we do not really know where he's going to go.
Before taking an updated look at the Most Valuable Player Race and a tour of the rest of the league below, let's move on to six other take-aways from Monday night's classic sneak.
Jared Goff is amazing by shaking his bad games: There were times, Monday night, despite the final score, that the Rams offense seemed shaken. Sean McVay had burned the three timeouts with 4:56 to play in the match. Four of the rams six Property in the fourth quarter (not counting their kneeling) totaled 16 yards, including three balls and one fumble. The Chiefs' rush actually disrupted Goff's pace by hitting him seven times and firing him five times, resulting in two fumbles and a handful of unusual misfires.
Still, when the Rams had the ball with 2:47 left and no timeout, touchdown, or touchdown, Goff did not have a problem, as though it was the first quarter of the season. A preparatory game, if Goff bothered to play the preparatory game. Goff's victory over Gerald Everett, who scored 40 yards, was a beauty, but I was even more impressed by the fact that Goff scored the shots 3 to 9 earlier in the training right after that Goff almost lost the match for Orlando Scandrick. . Barely 24 years old, Goff seems to have the memory of a corner halves stopped.
Sean McVay was going to swing: McVay has occasionally pulled his pedals off the accelerator pedal this season, participating in third and long games with a big lead. That's partly why I enjoyed McVay's decision to pitch the ball three times in a row over the Rams' final possession before making a refit. McVay knew that one of the first duels was winning the match, so he tried to shoot him in the same way that he called plays all night. He will live or die with his passing game. One of the passes was incomplete, allowing the Chiefs to gain time and indignation on Twitter that Gurley was not involved, but throwing the ball over there would have allowed him to accept a pot. Talking about that …
In the new NFL, running is a complementary piece: It is possible that the following two things are true: Todd Gurley is an exceptional player and Todd Gurley is not a candidate for the most valuable player. The Monday night game highlighted how the passing game is used to organize the race in the Rams and Chiefs offenses, and not the reverse. Since neither team was able to control the game for a long time, current games were not used much.
The leaders pitched the ball 14 times with Kareem Hunt in 69 offensive games. The Rams played with Gurley on 12 games out of 75. It was as if the Rams were serving the Chiefs every time they ran the ball Monday night, no matter how good Gurley is.
The leaders have enough defensive playmakers: Chiefs' fans may have a hard lesson to swallow after scoring 54 points, but Kansas City's defensive front had more playmakers than their opponent on Monday night. The same will be true most weeks. With Justin Houston in shape again – he has played several times against powerful Rams forward Andrew Whitworth – the Chiefs have formed an incredibly disturbing trio in Houston, Chris Jones and Dee Ford.
In this new NFL, the Chiefs do not need to hold their opponents under 25 years old. They just need to play a handful of games that will change the game, and they did it Monday night. Forcing two turnovers and four free-kicks against the Rams should be enough to win. The numbers and the final score were skewed because both defenses were scored and the Chiefs offense returned the ball five times, leading to 15 possessions of the Rams.
Patrick Mahomes is the new character of the NFL: Mahomes would like to have a few shots after Monday's game and he needs to work on the safety of his ball, but he was still the most electric player on a solid field. Mahomes showed all his talent, from his incredible touch and body control to his ability to see the ground as he hit Tyreek Hill for 60 yards in the air. It's scary to think how good Mahomes can be after just 12 starts, as he's already one of the most dynamic quarters in the league.
The race for home team advantage in both conferences has become even more complicated: Saints fans should be disappointed with Monday's result. New Orleans have a defeat like the Rams, but the Saints have a more complicated schedule with three games to play against the winning teams, including the Steelers and two games against the Panthers. The Rams face only one team with a winning record for the rest of the trip, a Sunday night trip to Chicago.
New Orleans has the tiebreaker on the Rams, but Monday's win gives the Rams a free kick to the advantage of the field. Interestingly, the players were caught off guard during the evening dew at the Coliseum in Los Angeles, just as in the Rams' loss to the Falcons in last season's playoffs.
In the CAF, the Kansas City defeat offers hopeful Steelers, Patriots, Chargers and even Texans much more hope of being able to overtake the Chiefs in the standings. These five teams are only one game apart in the losses column. This result, in short, adds much more intrigue to the rest of the season in both conferences, especially in the AFC clashes with Steelers-Chargers, Steelers-Patriots and Chiefs-Chargers.
MVP watch
1. Drew Brees, QB, Saints of New Orleans: I thought Brees' performance against the Eagles was his best of the season and minds less fond of football, like Daniel Jeremiah of the NFL network to agree.
2. Patrick Mahomes, QB, Kansas City Chiefs: Mahomes' performance Monday night could oddly hurt his chances in the MVP race just because of the end. This is not fair, but no one has said that it would be easy to try to defeat Drew Brees in a MVP race during the best Brees season.
3. Aaron Donald, DT, Los Angeles Rams: Two bags of striptease on the biggest stage imaginable should virtually lock up the title of Defensive Player of the Year.
4. Jared Goff, QB, Los Angeles Rams: I'm not sure how a quarterback at the choice of a 10-1 team is underestimated, but it seems that Goff is underestimated.
5. Michael Thomas, WR, New Orleans Saints: 82 captures on 91 targets is one of the most amazing stats I've ever seen, especially if you watch the types of captures that Thomas makes every week.
What we know after week 11
Lamar Jackson is like no one has ever seen him: I do not know if the Ravens can still run Jackson 27 times, but watching them try this approach at the quarterback has immediately become one of my favorite scenarios of the 2018 season. In an imaginary league, it's refreshing to see such a different offense, highlighting such a unique skill set.
Most of the discussions that followed the Ravens' win over the Bengals, including some crisp comments by Marvin Lewis, focused on Jackson's ability to stay rather than on the astonishment of what he and his teammates did. In an NFL where the third and a-1 foolishly turned into a pass down, the Ravens have repeatedly turned to third and an in-five in a fall with their quarterback. It worked.
The Jackson blast is breathtaking and the offensive line has clearly had a good time. Looking at Jackson's recordings, I thought he'd be the best quarterback to enter the league since Michael Vick's and Sunday's games only confirmed that idea. It is interesting to note that Jackson also averaged 7.9 yards per attempt by throwing the ball, making key conversions in the second and 17 seconds, as well as two strikes in the third and long on the team goal mark. .
The wide receiver crew must subscribe to this approach. Michael Crabtree and John Brown combined for only two shots, while Willie Snead exploded to the coaching staff after a few races called red zone. But these are problems for staff members and Ravens fans to worry about. As an uninvited observer, I am fascinated to see what Jackson is doing against an inviting list of impending defenses, starting with the Raiders of Week 12. Everyone, with the exception of Joe Flacco , should appreciate this ride.
The Falcons lose a vintage of Matt Ryan and Julio Jones: The last heartbreaking defeat of Atlanta at home was a reminder that football is not all about the quarterback. Ryan played one of his best games in one of his best seasons and gave the Falcons a decisive advantage over the Cowboys, but the Dallas line of play has borne the brunt. Ryan and Julio have been forced to defeat a mediocre offensive line, a less cruel defense against critical time and a one-dimensional attack that does not trust the current game in crucial situations.
In a typical Cowboys game that limited the possessions – the Falcons were eight – the difference was the fall of rookie Calvin Ridley who turned into an interception. It's been this kind of year for Ryan, who has seen his defense give up a last-minute score to blow up three different matches this year. It seems doubly cruel that all these games unfold in front of the tortured faithful of Atlanta, who have to worry about a Thanksgiving trip to New Orleans and a potential visit from the Saints in Atlanta for the Super Bowl.
The saints do not need Brandon Marshall: Typing in Dez Bryant's tires was worth it, but it's harder to see where Marshall is in this Saints attack. The Sunday blast by rookie Tre "Quan Smith, who has made controversial shots reminiscent of Colston Brands, continues the growing trend to help Saints players get into the mix. Rookie fellow Keith Kirkwood, a Drew Brees favorite, has caught five catches for 78 yards in the past two weeks. Dan Arnold combined for four passes and 50 yards in that period.
Seeing Marshall finally making his appearance in a playoff team would be a good story to crown an underrated career, but I'm not quite convinced that he'll still be there to be on the list of playoffs of the playoffs. saints.
The crime of the Vikings is worse than a year ago: Minnesota recorded the fifth most effective NFL attack last season, according to Football Outsiders. they were 14th this season before No show on Sunday night in Chicago. I would say that Kirk Cousins offered them a quarter-game superior to what Case Keenum had provided last year, but almost everything else on the Vikings' offensive went a long way: the offensive line game, the racing game and the game calls.
Mike Zimmer's formula only works if he has a real elite defense and that side of the ball has also stepped back this season. Sunday night, the match between the Vikings and the Packers involves two teams who are always looking for their way and who lack the time to do it.
Things we do not know after week 11
The future of Alex Smith: I do not remember another No. 1 pick in the overall standings that felt like an underdog, but that's what Smith became after the ugly early career in San Francisco. It took most analysts and fans a bad rookie season to abandon it. He struggled through five years more in San Francisco thereafter, until the arrival of Jim Harbaugh, who survived a shoulder operation that forced him to miss 2008 and keep his job against men like Trent Dilfer, Troy Smith and Shaun Hill.
This is not an obituary for Smith's career, but it's hard not to feel it after the terrible leg injury that he suffered against the Texans. The Redskins owe $ 15 million to Smith guaranteed next season, but his contract could force an unfortunate early decision on his future. Smith's salary for 2020 is guaranteed when he is on the list on the fifth day of the season in March. Washington may therefore have to make a long-term decision about its future while it is still at the beginning of its recovery process.
Meanwhile, the team will attempt to play in the playoffs under Colt McCoy, with the new signing of Mark Sanchez to assist him. Jay Gruden has kept McCoy on training for five consecutive seasons for a time like this and there is every reason to believe that McCoy will come out well. He looked lively and decisive after replacing Smith on Sunday. That's the rest of the Redskins offensive – from the damn offensive line to the most delusional group – that's a bigger concern. (Although I still do not count the Redskins in a deeply imperfect division.)
If the Bears really have the best defense of the NFL: The smarter football writers than me say that the Bears have the best defense in the league by far. Some analyzes such as DVOA also ranked them No. 1. The biggest question is whether the "best defense of the NFL" is the nickname of any team, since every "best defense of the NFL" has been exposed little time after receiving the seal of the last two years. (Do you remember the "first scorer's defense" in Tennessee before she's cut off on Sunday?)
The Bears have faced one of the easiest Offense Offenses and this will not change in the next two weeks against Lions and Giants. The Chicago group was only solid, not spectacular, facing a leading attack like the Patriots. This group, which ranges from Akiem Hicks and Khalil Mack to a group of linebackers underestimated by Eddie Jackson's hard work in security, has leaders at all levels. But I can not wait to see how the Bears defense will manage the Rams in the 14th week as this is the kind of first offensive that Chicago will have to face to win a Super Bowl this year. The great crimes of this season are historic. The best defenses, like the one in Chicago, stay a few steps behind.
If the caution of Jason Garrett will cost a place in the playoffs at Cowboys: The Cowboys seemed a bit too happy to play overtime in Atlanta before Falcons coach Dan Quinn saved them a bit by using a timeout with a time remaining at 1:38 and then placing three defenders on a third and five of the total 30 meters of Dallas. line that Dak Prescott has expertly converted. Garrett also looked a little too happy to play for an investment in the final seconds of over 40 yards with a struggling kicker.
Brett Maher's winning kick barely made it through, so no one questions Garrett's process, which looks terribly like how the Cowboys have lost close games in the last nine seasons.
If Texans have enough offense: The Texans have won seven straight games without the benefit of an improvement. The 320 yards and an offensive touchdown Sunday in Washington were typical. It's a team that has been opportunistic in turning turnovers into points, but not moving the ball consistently. The blocking of the team is undoubtedly better than his ability to protect Deshaun Watson.
Getting rookie receiver Keke Coutee in the game was a big game against the Redskins after missing the previous two games due to a thigh injury, but the commercial acquisition Demaryius Thomas n & # 39; It had no hold and was only targeted once. The Texans have faced only two teams that currently have a winning record (New England and Washington) and will not face another this season, so they can certainly continue to win. But Bill O & # 39; Brien certainly wants to see his team progress, and this was not the case for a team that won two games in overtime and two more after his opponents missed a winning shot.
Follow Gregg Rosenthal on Twitter @greggrosenthal.
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