The NFL’s Week 16 schedule delivered entertainment on several different levels
It all began with emotional veteran retirement speech, followed by some fantastic upsets including the Carolina Panthers having their undefeated record washed down the drain.
With playoff position on the line, we witnessed backup quarterbacks outperform starters, thrilling overtime victories, and some head-scratching calls.
These are the biggest winners and losers from Week 16.
Winner: Charles Woodson and his son address the press in style
The Oakland Raiders didn’t play their sexiest game of the year, but safety Charles Woodson and the gang skimmed a win (23-20) against the San Diego Chargers in what is the veteran’s last NFL home game.
The game-clinching moment came when quarterback Philip Rivers made an incomplete pass that landed near the safety. After that play, Woodson received the Gatorade celebratory treatment and the audience went wild cheering for the Raiders.
Woodson (39) recently announced his plans to retire after the 2015 season is over. Therefore the All-Pro led his fans in a chant for the team, per Bill Williamson of ESPN.
“Let me hear it one time. Rai-ders! Rai-ders! Rai-ders!”
“Though this is my last game in the Coliseum, just know I will never leave you. Go Raiders!”
A win is a win. However, preferring more of a blowout, Woodson spoke about the Raiders seventh win of the season, via ESPN.
“I guess it had to end like that. It was a little much for me. I would have rather it had been a lopsided victory and we blew them out. That’s the way it goes sometimes.”
And making sure the whole world knows how he feels about his daddy, Woodson’s son chimed in (watch here) at his father’s press conference.
Woodson’s illustrious career spans 18 years, including seven seasons spent with the Green Bay Packers from 2006-2012. He will play his final game against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 17 and has also been selected for the 2016 Pro Bowl, which will mark his ninth since being drafted by the Raiders in 1998.
Not only was this Woodson’s last game in Oakland, it could also be the final time the Raiders play there as well with their future in flux and a possible move to Los Angeles in the works.
Loser: Chip Kelly and Eagles fail to take flight in the game that mattered most
The Philadelphia Eagles let one get away when they took a beating at home from Washington (38-24) that allowed the Redskins to clinch the NFC East.
Speaking on yet another game that didn’t flow according to plan, head coach Chip Kelly took blame, via ESPN.
“I think we’re good enough. We just have to put them in better position to make plays. It’s 100 percent on my shoulders. It’s unacceptable.”
Quarterback Sam Bradford passed for an impressive 380 yards, but it took 56 passing attempts to accomplish this task with only one touchdown to be had. And, unfortunately, the quarterback endured five sacks along the way.
Running backs Ryan Mathews and DeMarco Murray were able to rush in a couple of scores, but Murray’s fumble that was returned for a touchdown by cornerback DeAngelo Hall pretty much neutralized his efforts.
Meanwhile, with the exception of one boneheaded play (watch here) by Kirk Cousins that saw him take a knee to close the first half after a timeout, the quarterback churned out a nearly flawless performance.
After completing 31-of-46 passes for 365 yards, four touchdowns and zero interceptions, Cousins let out another rant similar to his “You like that” from a couple of months ago, via ESPN.
“How many of y’all picked us to win the division?”
Cousins’ words are more than accurate considering entering the season, most would have pegged a team not named the Washington Redskins to seize the division.
As it stands now, Kelly’s Eagles rank third overall in the NFC East, leaving the coach to all but ponder some of his very questionable, offseason personnel moves.
Winner: Falcons put the kibosh on the Panthers perfect season
Let’s just say if you bet on the Carolina Panthers to pull off a win over a suspect Atlanta Falcons, that bet didn’t pay off.
The “Dirty Birds” did just what their name stands for and got dirty against Carolina, snagging a 20-13 win against a formerly unbeaten Panthers team. Other than a fantastic rushing score by Cam Newton, the Panthers managed only two field goals while Matt Ryan and the team handed Carolina the business.
Making his one passing touchdown count, Ryan connected with Julio Jones, who evaded double coverage to haul in a spectacular 70-yard score.
Julio Jones vs. Josh Norman.
25 yards later…
Advantage Julio. #CARvsATL https://t.co/7NvppZXL6w
— NFL (@NFL) December 27, 2015
The win for the Falcons (8-7) edges them closer in their uphill fight for a Wild-Card playoff slot.
As for the Panthers, they still sit atop of the NFC and have secured a bye week. However, a huge dose of humble pie served by none other than their divisional rivals pretty much stinks, despite the team’s secure postseason status.
Loser: Safety king Ryan Tannehill and Dolphins can’t compete with Colts
There have been 14 safeties this NFL season, and four of them have been at the expense of Miami Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill.
This time around, Tannehill was sacked in the Dolphins first drive by tackle T.Y. McGill resulting in a loss of eight yards and sending the quarterback scrambling to recover the fumbled ball in the end zone.
On top of the faux pas, Tannehill and Dolphins couldn’t muster up enough offense to outplay a Colts offense that had to resort to third-string quarterback Charlie Whitehurst.
Passing for a respectable 329 yards, Tannehill failed to score a touchdown and was intercepted once. He also endured five additional momentum-busting sacks in addition to his safety.
At this point, a very well-paid and underwhelming Tannehill and the Dolphins (5-10), are just playing to finish out the season. No doubt the team will want to sweep this disappointing campaign under the mat when all is said and done.
On the other side, who would have known back in September the Colts would be down to a third-string quarterback with the Houston Texans settling in as the potential AFC South champions?
Winner: Brandon Weeden steps it up against Tennessee Titans
Brandon Weeden, whom the Dallas Cowboys discarded like stinky garbage several weeks back, helped lead the Houston Texans to a massive 34-6 victory over a miserable Zach Mettenberger-led Tennessee Titans.
https://twitter.com/TheOkiePokie/status/681205194080690176?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Completing 15-of-24 passes for 200 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions, Weeden did enough through the air to keep the offense going strong. He also added some fancy footwork and a rushing score.
In addition to Weeden’s efforts, the Texans employed a sound ground game that totaled 128 yards, mainly tallied by running backs Alfred Blue, Chris Polk and Jonathan Grimes.
Tennessee remained scoreless until the final few moments of the game when Mettenberger finally scored on a one-yard touchdown pass to Tre McBride.
The win for Weeden and the Texans makes for their eighth of the season, and the team moved one step closer to the postseason for the first time since 2012. At this point in time, the firing of Weeden from the Cowboys has certainly turned out as a blessing in disguise for the shuffled-around quarterback.
Loser: Patriots gift first overtime possession to Jets, lose the game
The New England Patriots played from behind against the New York Jets until Tom Brady connected with James White for a game-tying touchdown late in the fourth quarter.
With a fighting chance to beat the Jets in overtime, the Patriots won the coin toss. However, rather than receive the kickoff, kicker Matthew Slater shockingly elected to kick off to the Jets. After the game we found out that Slater hadn’t actually made a mistake, though, and was following the instructions of Bill Belichick (read more here).
As a belated Christmas gift from one AFC East rival team to another, the Patriots might as well have handed the Jets their win on a silver platter laced with gravy.
Needless to say, the move backfired badly.
Ryan Fitzpatrick drove his offense right down the field on a five-play, 80-yard drive and connected with Eric Decker to score a six-yard touchdown, capturing the win. The victory for the Jets (10-5) meant the world for a team that just needs to beat the Buffalo Bills in Week 17 to clinch a Wild-Card playoff berth.
Fortunately for the Patriots (12-3), the division win is in the bag, and the team has earned a bye as a result of a mostly stellar season.
Winner: The Baltimore Ravens own the Pittsburgh Steelers
Leave it to the Baltimore Ravens umpteenth-string quarterback Ryan Mallett, of all players, to foil Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh Steelers in an upset victory, 20-17, on Sunday.
It was the second win over the Steelers this year, which normally wouldn’t be shocking. However, given the fact that the Ravens only have five total wins on the season, it was the most shocking result of Week 16.
The Steelers (9-6), had been cruising towards the finish line, and coming off a tidy victory over the Denver Broncos last week most would have figured a win against a beat up Ravens was a given. Not so fast. Big Ben and Co. got the wind knocked out of their sails by a team that had only won four games up until Sunday.
Shockingly, Pittsburgh, with its second-highest scoring offense in the NFL, fell short against Baltimore’s middling defense. The Steelers managed to gain just 303 yards in total and converted just 2-of-8 third downs.
Furthermore, Mallett passed for career-high 274 yards, one touchdown and zero interceptions in his seventh career start. The young quarterback vastly outperformed Roethlisberger, who couldn’t manage one single touchdown to offset his two disastrous interceptions.
The victory for the Ravens against their AFC North rivals obviously arrives too little, too late. However, watching the Steelers struggle against one of the NFL’s inferior teams is somewhat disturbing as they attempt to claw their way to secure a possible Wild-Card berth.
Loser: Johnny Manziel fails to line up offense at the end of the game
Still on a steep learning curve, Manziel displayed a terrible lapse of judgement when he looked to the sideline for a play rather than rushing up to the line to spike the ball in the last seconds of the game. His mistake meant the Browns didn’t get a chance to win the game in the final moments during Sunday’s 17-13 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Not being prepared at crucial moments such as this, Manziel drew criticism from Chiefs linebacker Derrick Johnson, via ESPN.
“Johnny is one of those quarterbacks you can never get comfortable with him. For a defensive guy he’s a headache. But at the end of the day, time ran out on him.”
Manziel, who rushed for nearly as many yards (108) as he passed for (136), threw one interception and didn’t score. But instead of spiking the ball, Manziel spiked his helmet in frustration after yet another Browns loss.
“I’m definitely shouldering a lot for this loss,” Manziel said, via ESPN.com. “Regardless of what our record is, where we are in the season, it (sticks) not to win, especially when our coach and the other 10 guys put us in a position to try to get us in the end zone there at the end. I just felt like I didn’t do the right thing in crunch time. I think that’s the moral of the entire story of the game.”
Next up for Manziel is a home meeting against the Pittsburgh Steelers, who surprisingly fell victim to the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. Hopefully, for his sake, he’ll finish the season on a high note.
Winner: Drew Brees was simply amazing as he gutted out a foot injury
What injury? New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees was the pillar of resilience playing through foot pain due to sustaining a torn plantar fascia last week.
Drew Brees out here on a a torn plantar fascia throwing 💣💣💣 https://t.co/bxtLGqRqIe
— New Orleans Saints (@Saints) December 27, 2015
Brees completed 25-of-36 passes for 412 yards and three touchdowns in a phenomenal performance that had everything to do with his team’s 38-27 win. Despite playing through a ridiculously painful injury, Brees had a clean game and only sustained one sack. Spreading the wealth, he connected with Brandin Cooks (above), Travaris Cadet and Michael Hoomanawanui on his trio of scores.
It was the 13th game in his career in which Brees exceeded 400 yards passing.
For anyone who was nervous about starting Brees in daily fantasy football lineups, or risking a championship with a gimpy quarterback, the veteran proved all the naysayers completely wrong in Week 16.
Loser: Seattle Seahawks fall victim (again) to the St. Louis Rams
After winning seven of their last eight games, the Seattle Seahawks (9-6) were duped at home by the St. Louis Rams (7-8), who are now enjoying a three-game winning streak. Seattle’s surprising loss marked the second time in which the Rams managed the upper-hand against their NFC West divisional opponent this year.
Quarterback Russell Wilson came hurtling back down to earth after five weeks of spectacular, interception-free play. On Sunday, the Rams had his number a few times, and Wilson passed for 289 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. He also took four sacks for a net loss of 36 yards.
In addition to a less than stellar day passing, the Seahawks accomplishing very little on the ground. Depleted at the running back position, Wilson actually led the crew in rushing yards by tallying 39 of the 60 total yards gained.
Todd Gurley once again shined for the Rams, unleashing 85 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries against Seattle’s defense.
And while the loss for the Seahawks didn’t thwart them from clinching a playoff berth, the Rams definitely exposed some areas of weakness that are going to need enhancing for the postseason.