Tuesday, December 12, 2017

Season Ending Injury and Stunning Loss Reset the Playoff Picture in the NFC, AFC: Events that Sparked my Interest, Week 14

Week 14 had a lot of interesting moments that caught my eye. Between the blizzard in Buffalo to the AFC South race, there were a lot of things I could write about this week and it wasn’t an easy choice. But as Gameday went on, the injuries and results from must win games piled up, the Events that Sparked my Interest fell became obvious.

Eagles get an Important NFC win, but at a Huge Cost

Last week I wrote about how I thought the Philadelphia Eagles would make the playoffs, but that they were due for a loss at some point and that happened against the Seattle Seahawks. Quarterback Carson Wentz’s favorite target, tight end Zach Ertz left that game with a concussion and didn’t play on Sunday against the Los Angeles Rams. The Eagles beat the Rams in a shootout, clinching the NFC East, but it wasn’t pretty.

With 4 minutes to go in the third quart, Wentz ran for a touchdown which would be called back, but while diving into the end zone, his legs/knees got folded and while he managed to complete the drive, he headed straight for the locker room.



Yesterday it was confirmed that Wentz tore his ACL and is out for the year, adding onto the list of star players who are out for the year. So, while the Eagles have the head to head advantage against the Rams, they don’t have their quarterback. Yes, Nick Foles has proved that he can play and win in the NFL, but he is no Carson Wentz.

Foles’ play is something I’m interested in seeing the next three weeks, as the Eagles try to lock up the number one seed in what has become a mess of an NFC.


Patriots Loss Sets Stage for huge game against the Steelers in Week 15

The New England Patriots were stunningly upset by the Miami Dolphins on Monday night – putting quarterback Tom Brady’s road record against the Dolphins at 7-9 – and that created some major issues for the team when it comes to the number one seed in the AFC.

While there is virtually no way the team does not make the playoffs, the fight for the top seed in the AFC, or even a first round bye has just gotten a lot harder. Prior to the Dolphins game, they had the number two seed by virtue of the Pittsburgh Steelers owning the tie breaker. The Steelers beat the Ravens on Sunday Night, winning their division. A win against the Dolphins would have locked up the AFC East and kept pace with the Steelers, setting the stage for when the Patriots and Steelers meet in Week 15, since the winner would own the head-to-head tiebreaker, and very likely the number one seed.

But the Pats loss to the Dolphins complicates things. If they win next week, they would have the number one seed, but there would still be two games left to play. Both teams should win in Weeks 16 and 17, with the Pats playing the Buffalo Bills and New York Jets, and the Steelers taking on the Houston Texans and Cleveland Browns.

But, if the Steelers win next weekend, the Patriots would be in trouble. First off, they would be lock up the number one seed, because even if they lost out and the Patriots won out, the Steelers would still have the head to head tie breaker. But, it gets worse.

With the Jacksonville Jaguars beating the Seattle Seahawks, the Jags gained ground on the second seed. If they win out, they would be 12-4, and if the Patriots won their final two games after losing to the Steelers, the two teams would have the same record, but Jacksonville would get the seed via their better conference record.

Simply put – because the Patriots lost to the Dolphins in a stunning upset, their hopes for the number one seed in the AFC rely upon running the table, and if they lost, they would need help from the Texans, 49ers, or Titans (which brings up a host of other playoff scenarios) to have a first-round bye, something the beat-up team needs and has had annually since 2009.


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Tuesday, December 5, 2017

Eagles Come Back to Earth and my Thoughts on Case Keenum: Events that Sparked My Interest, Week 13

For the past few weeks, I've been doubtful of the Vikings and Eagles future performances, but haven't found a good place to write about them. But, the Eagles loss and Vikings win proved to be the Events that Sparked My Interest in Week 13.

Eagles Come Back to Earth

It's been my personal belief that the Philadelphia Eagles (among other teams) were going to cool off at some point before the end of the season. Further, I didn't expect their game against the Seattle Seahawks to be much of a fight, and boy was I right.

Eagles QB Carson Wentz might have thrown for 348 yards, but he only tossed one touchdown, the only one for the team.

During Seattle's third offensive possession, the Eagles committed a pair of defensive penalties, moving the ball 24 yards downfield, from the Eagles 35 to the 16, then to the 11-yard line on successive plays. This put the Hawks in prime position to score, which they did.
This was the first time the Eagles allowed a touchdown in the first quarter this season, and put the Seahawks up 10-0.

All told, this wasn't a great game for the Eagles, and while I expect them to make it to the playoffs, I don't expect them to play as well as they did during their 10-game winning streak.

Vikings Win, but How Long can Case Keenunm Keep His Performance Up?

One of the biggest surprises this season has been the play of Minnesota Vikings QB Case Keenum. Keennum, whose thrown for 2,703 yards and 16 touchdowns in 11 games. More surprising then that, he's lead the team to a 10-2 record, which has them as the number one seed in the NFC.

In the past, Keennum hasn't had a good team, let alone a weapon or two around him, so maybe his performance isn’t a fluke. Then again, maybe it is because he has weapons around him.


Regardless of why he’s playing this way, I’m not sure how long he can keep his performance up, especially if the team makes it to the playoffs.

Subscribe to my blog via email to get an update any time something is posted. Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter at @KidReporter363 for other updates about my writing and check out all my content at haydengoldberg.contently.com. Please leave your feedback in the comment section, I reply to everyone and take any and all feedback, ideas, comments, etc. under consideration.