NFL Week 11 finally saw the last of the remaining undefeated teams pick up their first loss of the season, with the Kansas City Chiefs losing for the first time in nearly a full calendar year. As much credit as the Buffalo Bills deserve for defeating the Chiefs, there are several other big winners and losers from another action-packed NFL Sunday.
Winner: Jared Goff and the Detroit Lions
Just when you thought the Detroit Lions couldn’t get any better, they get their biggest win of the season, in a 46-point beatdown over the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Lions outgained the Jaguars 644 yards to 170, averaging 8.5 yards per play in the process. It was the biggest yardage differential in a single game since 1979. Simply put, the Lions are the most exciting team in football.
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Loser: Doug Pederson’s job security with the Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars weren’t expected to topple the Detroit Lions on Sunday, but they shouldn’t have lost by 46 points either. Doug Pederson already entered the week on thin ice, with rumors of his firing looming if the Jaguars suffered a big loss. Well, the Jaguars did suffer a big loss, and it shouldn’t surprise anyone if team owner Shad Khan wants to hit the reset button again.
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Winner: Taysom Hill
We haven’t seen much from Taysom Hill this season, until Sunday. Hill had attempted just two passes and hadn’t topped 60 yards from scrimmage with three touchdowns. Maybe he was just saving his energy for a breakout game against the Browns. Hill needed just seven carries to get a career-high 138 rushing yards and three touchdowns. He also hauled in eight receptions for 50 yards to cap off a dominant performance.
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Loser: New York Jets
Even though they’re not eliminated, the New York Jets entered Week 11 with the slimmest hopes of reaching the postseason. Those dreams are now dead after their second consecutive loss to fall to 3-8. The Jets would have to win all six of their remaining games, and even that’s likely not good enough to snag a playoff spot in a competitive AFC conference. The biggest question now is whether Rodgers finishes out the season, but it’s not like Tyrod Taylor is the Jets’ future QB either.
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Winner: Green Bay Packers special teams
Matt LaFleur continues to find a way, advancing to 11-0 in his Green Bay Packers career against the Chicago Bears. Yet, if it wasn’t for second-year Packers defensive lineman Karl Brooks blocking a potential game-winning field goal, Green Bay would be just a loss away from Chicago in the NFC North standings. Instead, they’re still in a strong position to snag at least a Wild Card spot.
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Loser: Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry’s NFL award campaigns
Lamar Jackson began the day as the clear favorite to win his third NFL MVP award. Meanwhile, Derrick Henry entered as a frontrunner to win Offensive Player of the Year, but gaining just 65 yards and a touchdown won’t help him create any more distance between him and Saquon Barkley. As for Jackson, he completed a season-low 48.4% of his passes for 207 yards, with a touchdown and an interception. He did add 46 rushing yards, but falling further behind the Steelers in the AFC North won’t boost his MVP candidacy, or the Ravens’ chances to win a Super Bowl.
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Winner: Mike Tomlin’s dominance over John Harbaugh
Earlier this week, Mike Tomlin made sure to pay his respects to “Mr. Jackson.” While the two-time MVP is the NFL’s best player today, he’s nothing special when the Ravens play Coach Tomlin’s Steelers. With Sunday’s win, the Ravens are now 1-8 in their past nine games against the Steelers. That’s incredible considering the Steelers haven’t had a franchise quarterback since Ben Roethlisberger retired in 2021.
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Loser: Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons signed Kirk Cousins to a $180 million contract, but they had to hope for a better start than a 6-5 record. Considering last year they were 5-6, the decision to sign Cousins and use their first-round pick on Michael Penix Jr. still looks odd, especially when their defense ranks as a bottom-tier unit. The good news is the Falcons still hold a 1.5-game lead over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for the NFC South divisional lead.
Winner: Geno Smith
Geno Smith might have just had the game-winning touchdown that saves the Seattle Seahawks’ season. Better yet, it came against their NFC West division rivals with the San Francisco 49ers falling to 5-5. While the Seahawks are just 5-5 too, this win renews hope about a playoff run, and now they have newfound confidence in their locker room leader after Smith’s game-winning drive.
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Loser: San Francisco 49ers
While the San Francisco 49ers have suffered several injuries, no one anticipated them to enter Week 12 with a 5-5 record. This is an expensive roster, one that you could argue is an ‘all-in’ approach. Yet, the results haven’t reflected a star-studded cast. With just 159 passing yards, Brock Purdy and the 49ers’ passing offense looked completely lost without George Kittle, with only Jauan Jennings topping 28 receiving yards. San Francisco needs to get back on track, before this train goes off the rails.
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Winner: Bo Nix and the Denver Broncos
Starting a rookie quarterback, it wouldn’t have been a shocker if the Broncos were the team that got embarrassed against the Falcons. But Bo Nix wasn’t having any of that talk. He instead had the best game of his young career, racking up 307 yards and four touchdowns with just five passes touching the turf all afternoon. At 6-5, the Broncos should feel confident heading into Week 12’s matchup against the Raiders, coming off their most impressive win of the season.
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Winner: Buffalo Bills
Bills Mafia has to be on Cloud Nine after a convincing victory over what was previously viewed as the NFL’s best team. The Bills showed there’s no reason to be afraid of the Chiefs, which should give them all the confidence they need to go on a Super Bowl run.
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Loser: Kansas City Chiefs
It turns out, the Kansas City Chiefs can be beaten. While their quest for an undefeated season is now over, now the Chiefs can eliminate that distraction and focus all their attention on becoming the first team in NFL history to threepeat as Super Bowl champions. The Chiefs lost to the Bills, but there was nothing here to indicate they can’t make adjustments and beat them in a potential NFL Playoff rematch.
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