NFL Week 13 saw some ugly football as teams continued to struggle. That included the New England Patriots being shutout in a 6-0 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.
On the other end of the spectrum, Brock Purdy and the San Francisco 49ers put up a statement win in dismantling the Philadelphia Eagles on the road Sunday afternoon.
San Francisco’s win coupled with Philadelphia’s loss has things wide open in the NFC heading into Week 14. These are among the winners from NFL Week 13.
Related: NFL Week 13 power rankings
Winner: Miami Dolphins continue to roll
No one gave the Washington Commanders much of a chance against the high-flying Dolphins heading into NFL Week 13. For good reason. Washington gave up 45 points in its most-recent loss to the Dallas Cowboys and had dropped eight of 10 heading in.
From pretty much the get, Miami outclassed Washington in every possible way. That included touchdown catches of 78 and 60 yards from Tyreek Hill in the first half alone. By the time halftime hit, the Fins found themselves up 31-7 with quarterback Tua Tagovailoa also doing his thing.
Miami now finds itself at 9-3 on the season and vying for home-field advantage in the AFC Playoffs with games coming up against the hapless Tennessee Titans and New York Jets before a huge Christmas Eve affair with the Dallas Cowboys.
Loser: Russell Wilson comes up small for Denver Broncos
Wilson entered NFL Week 13 having played tremendous football during the Broncos’ five-game winning streak. That span saw him tally nine total touchdowns with zero interceptions. It had Denver in playoff positioning heading into Sunday’s game against the Houston Texans.
About that? Wilson was a mistake waiting to happen in a 22-17 loss to the Texans. The quarterback threw three interceptions, including the game-ending pick in the end zone with Denver driving for the potential win.
Denver is not talented enough to overcome the mistakes we saw from Wilson Sunday against Houston. It has the team at 6-6 on the season and on the outside looking in when it comes to the AFC Playoff race .
Related: NFL Week 14 QB rankings
Winner: Statement win for Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers
What an absolutely brilliant performance from Brock Purdy and the 49ers in a 42-19 road win over the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday. San Francisco fell down 6-0 and put up negative yards in the first quarter before turning it around big time.
Purdy led the 49ers to six consecutive touchdown-scoring drives, resulting in 450 total yards. After missing on his first four passes, Purdy completed 19-of-23 attempts for 314 yards and four touchdowns. That included hitting Deebo Samuel on two scores.
The sophomore signal caller ended up completely outplaying Jalen Hurts in a matchup between two of the top NFL MVP candidates. It came on the same field in which he suffered an elbow injury in a 31-7 loss to Philadelphia in last season’s NFC Championship Game. Yeah, Purdy and the 49ers put up a statement during NFL Week 13.
Loser: Pittsburgh Steelers anemic offense
Kenny Pickett exited Sunday’s game after 10 passes with an ankle injury that will end up requiring surgery. Mitchell Trubisky replaced him and did nothing of substance as Pittsburgh fell at home by the score of 24-10 in a game that was defined by multiple weather delays.
On the field, Mike Tomlin’s squad continued to struggle on offense after a breakout performance last week against the Cincinnati Bengals.
These Steelers tallied 18 first downs and 317 yards of offense against a Cardinals defense that entered NFL Week 13 ranked second-to-last in points allowed. It has Pittsburgh at 7-5 and facing an uncertain future without Pickett under center.
Winner: Los Angeles Rams firmly in playoff race
Stunning. That has to be the best way to describe what the Rams have done under head coach Sean McVay this season. The team finds itself at 6-6 heading into Week 14 after Sunday’s blowout 36-19 win over the Cleveland Browns. Remember, this team was expected to be in full-scale rebuild mode during the 2023 season after moving off several veterans during the spring.
About that? Sunday’s win saw Matthew Stafford complete 23-of-37 passes for 279 yards with three touchdowns and zero interceptions. Stud young running back Kyren Williams added 112 total yards and a score. Rookie wide receiver Puka Nacua crossed the 1,000-yard plateau via a 70-yard touchdown pass from Stafford.
By virtue of this win, the Rams are vying for one of the final playoff spots in the NFC. They have also now won three consecutive heading into a big Week 14 matchup with the Baltimore Ravens.
Related: Los Angeles Rams dominate Browns, dismantle NFL’s top defense
Loser: Philadelphia Eagles come up small
The defending NFC champions heard a whole bunch of trash talk come from San Francisco heading into Sunday’s rematch. They didn’t necessarily respond. Instead, this was more business as usual for a team that entered NFL Week 13 with a league-best 10-1 record.
After dominating in the first quarter, the Eagles got a taste of their own medicine throughout the remainder of the game. That included their defense giving up touchdowns on six consecutive scoring drives. Jalen Hurts was vastly outplayed by Brock Purdy in what was an ugly 42-19 home loss.
After leading four consecutive second-half comebacks for the Eagles, the magic dried up for Hurts and Co. Now heading into Week 14 against the red-hot Dallas Cowboys, home-field advantage could be up in the air heading down the stretch. Failing to compete against one of the NFL’s best simply was not a good look for the Eagles.
Winner: Atlanta Falcons defense steps up
Your first-place Atlanta Falcons. Arthur Smith’s squad moved to 6-6 by virtue of yet another ugly win over the hapless New York Jets on Sunday. The final score of 13-8 was indicative of just how ugly it was as Atlanta came out on top for a second consecutive game.
As Desmond Ridder (12-of-27 passing, 121 yards) and Atlanta’s offense struggled, the team’s defense came up big time. That included a huge interception from safety Jessie Bates for the second consecutive week.
Atlanta is not going to be mistaken for a championship contender. But by virtue of this win and the New Orleans Saints’ ugly loss, these Falcons find themselves in first place in the disastrous NFC South heading into Week 14. This is all that matters.
Related: NFL Week 13 defense rankings
Loser: Ron Rivera, Washington Commanders embarrassed
One now has to wonder whether Rivera will last beyond Washington’s Week 14 bye. After firing defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio, this unit was an absolute embarrassment Sunday against Miami. It gave up north of 150 receiving yards to Tyreek Hill in the first half alone.
When all was said and done, Washington fell by the score of 45-15 as its home crowd witnessed yet another disaster class of a performance. This represented the Commanders ninth loss in their past 11 games. They have also given up 105 points over the past three outings. Josh Harris likely will not stand by Rivera as the new owner continues to see this embarrassment on display on a weekly basis. It will be a major talking point over the next couple days. That’s for sure.
Related: NFL Playoff and Super Bowl predictions
Winner: Indianapolis Colts continue to find a way
Shane Steichen joins DeMeco Ryans as a top NFL Head Coach of the Year candidate in his first season with the Colts. What he’s done with a talent-stricken roster is absolutely insane. That’s especially true after star quarterback Anthony Richardson went down with a season-ending injury just four games into the campaign.
It has not always been pretty. Sunday’s overtime win over the Tennessee Titans was a prime example of this. It took two big special teams plays for the Colts to come out on top. Meanwhile, Michael Pittman Jr. ended it in the final stanza with a walk-off touchdown.
The end result was another narrow win and a 7-5 record on the season. Indianapolis is firmly in the AFC Playoff picture heading into Week 14. It’s one of the top stories in the NFL this season.
Loser: Rock bottom for Bill Belichick, New England Patriots
Zero points. A shutout. A 6-0 loss and a 2-10 record on the season. For the second time this season, New England failed to score a point. It came at home against the Los Angeles Chargers with Bailey Zappe replacing an ineffective Mac Jones at quarterback.
Zappe went on to complete 13-of-25 passes for 141 yards in another futile effort from a Patriots quarterback. New England has now scored all of 13 points over its past three games, leading to this post-game quote from Belichick.
“I just told you what I thought about the game. We moved the ball, didn’t make enough plays to score. We got into scoring range and weren’t able to convert those into points,” Belichick said in a testy back-and-forth with reporters.
This season couldn’t end soon enough for Belichick and the Patriots. Whether he’s also playing out his final handful of games with the Pats remains to be seen. But this is embarrassing for owner Robert Kraft and Co.