Week 14 of the NFL had some wild finishes. We went from score fests to questionable calls. The Steelers were one step away from an amazing comeback while the Ravens and Patriots had unlikely comebacks. Let’s take a look.
San Francisco 19 Seattle 17 – In a big NFC divisional matchup, the San Francisco 49ers scored the go-ahead field goal with under 30 seconds to go to defeat the Seattle Seahawks. Even with this loss, Seattle still has a 2 game advantage over the 49ers while San Francisco keeps a game lead in the wild card hunt. Colin Kaepernick’s tough season continues as he went 15-29 for 175 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Frank Gore added 110 yards on 17 carries on the ground. Russell Wilson led Seattle by going 15-25 for 199 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Phil Dawson went 4-4 on his field goals to help win the game.
Cincinnati 42 Indianapolis 28 – In a potential playoff matchup, Cincinnati overwhelmed the Colts. Indianapolis was forced to be one dimensional in the air as the running game was pretty ineffective yet again. For the Bengals, Andy Dalton went 24-35 for 275 yards and 3 touchdowns while Andrew Luck went 29-46 for 326 yards and 2 touchdowns. Giovanni Bernard just missed on giving the Bengals a 100 yard rusher by ending with only 99 yards on 12 carries. With Tennessee losing, the Colts clinch the AFC South while Cincinnati maintains a 2 game lead in the AFC North.
Philadelphia 34 Detroit 20 – This game was ugly, as in ugly weather. A blizzard hit Philadelphia and snow was caked everywhere. Some would be afraid to play, but this is football and the snow is a normal aspect of the game. With lots of snow on the group and it swirling in the air, visibility was horrible, but it was fun to watch. The game started slow as the teams acclimated to the weather as a scoreless first eventually yielded to an 8-0 Lion lead. Oddly enough, only a single extra point was kicked, which was missed, and no field goals were attempted. Nick Foles finally threw his first interception of the season. He ended up 11-22 for 179 yards with a touchdown. LeSean McCoy carried the Eagles by running 29 times for 217 yards and 2 touchdowns. For the Lions, Matthew Stafford finished 10-25 for 148 yards. The star of the Lions was Jeremy Ross, who returned a punt 58 yards and a kickoff 98 yards, both for touchdowns.
Baltimore 29 Minnesota 26 – With 2:06 remaining in the 4th quarter, Minnesota led Baltimore 12-7. Over the next 2 minutes and 2 seconds, the Vikings and Ravens combined for an unprecedented 35 points. The Ravens had the last laugh as Joe Flacco connected with Marlon Brown with 0:04 left on the clock to take a 3 point lead and secure the win. Joe Flacco ended up going 28-50 for 245 yards with 3 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. Matt Cassel led Minnesota by going 17-38 for 265 yards and 2 touchdowns. Minnesota lost star running back Adrian Peterson early due to an injury, which forced the Vikings to go to the air far more. In the interim, Toby Gerhart ran well by rushing 15 times for 89 yards and a score. Baltimore improves to 7-6 and is in the thick of the wild card hunt.
Miami 34 Pittsburgh 28 – A mere few inches was the difference between a miracle finish and the end of another game. Antonio Brown received a lateral on the last play and ran all the way into the end zone, but his foot barely touched the sideline about 12 yards out which ended the play and the game. Ryan Tannehill finished for Miami by going 20-33 for 200 yards with 3 touchdowns and an interception while Ben Roethlisberger finished 23-39 for 349 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Dolphins also had Daniel Thomas, who ran 16 times for 105 yards and a touchdown. The Steelers big play threat was Antonio Brown, who caught all 5 passes sent his way for 137 yards and a touchdown.
New England 27 Cleveland 26 – After recovering an onsides kick and a questionable pass interference call, New England was able to find a way to score with seconds remaining to defeat the Browns. Cleveland had one last shot, but Billy Cundiff’s 58 yard field goal attempt fell short. Tom Brady finished 32-52 for 418 yards with 2 touchdowns and an interception. Shane Vereen caught 12 passes for 153 yards. The big note was the loss of Rob Gronkowski, who suffered a bad knee injury. For the Browns, Jason Campbell finished 29-44 for 391 yards and 3 touchdowns. Josh Gordon continues his outstanding season by catching 7 passes for 151 yards and a touchdown. His total of 774 yards sets a new NFL record for receiving yards over a 4 game span. He also set a team receiving record of 1400 yards, which he accomplished in only 11 games. Jordan Cameron also caught 9 catches for 121 yards and a touchdown.
Jacksonville 27 Houston 20 – The Gary Kubiak era is over. Despite outgaining Jacksonville 406-281, having 2 turnovers and the inability to sustain drives doomed Houston to their 11th straight loss as Jacksonville wins again. The Jags surprisingly are now 4-9 and going further and further away from the #1 draft pick. It took over a year, but Jacksonville finally won a game at home. Chad Henne went 12-27 for 117 yards and 2 touchdowns while Maurice Jones-Drew added 103 yards on 14 carries. Houston had both Matt Shaub and Case Keenum play. Shaub went 17-29 for 198 yards with a touchdown and an interception while Keenum went 16-29 for 159 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
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