Week 13 of the NFL had a lot of see-saw games. In most of the highlighted games, the winning team had to come from behind to win. In some cases, the winning score came in the final seconds or even in overtime.
Denver 35 Kansas City 28 – Round 2 was as exciting as Round 1 as Denver came back from 14 points down to win at Arrowhead. Both quarterbacks ended up with solid days despite Peyton Manning throwing 2 early interceptions. Manning finished 22-35 for 403 yards with 5 touchdowns and 2 interceptions while Alex Smith had a solid day for the Chiefs. Smith ended up going 26-42 for 293 yards with 2 touchdowns and an interception. Denver had a shot in the arm with Montee Ball running the ball. Ball ran 13 times for 117 yards in his most complete game of his short career. As usual, Demaryius Thomas had a good game for Denver, but it was Eric Decker who stole the show by catching 8 passes for 174 yards and a team record 4 touchdowns. Denver now not only has the game lead on Kansas City, but has swept the season series.
New England 34 Houston 31 – New England scored the last 6 points of the game off a pair of 53 yard field goals to give Houston their 10th straight loss. The worst part of the losing streak is that 7 of the 10 were games decided by 7 points or less. Tom Brady went 29-41 for 371 yards with 2 touchdowns and an interception. Case Keenum struggled for Houston, going 15-30 for 272 yards and an interception. Ben Tate helped the Texans by gaining 102 yards and 3 touchdowns on 22 carries. Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri went 5-5 on his field goals with 4 of them being from 40-49 yards out.
Indianapolis 22 Tennessee 14 – It wasn’t pretty, but Andrew Luck and the Colts found a way to win yet again. The Colts struggled offensively against a tough Titans defense, being outgained 347-264, but by winning the turnover battle 4-1, they were able to take advantage of good field position and convert it into points. Andrew Luck went 17-32 for 200 yards and an interception while Ryan Fitzpatrick went 21-37 for 201 yards with a touchdown and 3 interceptions along with a fumble lost.
Philadelphia 24 Arizona 21 – Nick Foles continues his tear as the Eagles defeat the surging Cardinals. Foles finished 21-34 for 237 yards with 3 touchdowns. He now has 19 touchdowns and 0 interceptions on the season. Carson Palmer went 24-41 for 302 yards with 3 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. Palmer also lost a fumble. It looked like Foles was going to have his first interception thrown, but a penalty on the defense allows his impressive stat line to continue.
Minnesota 23 Chicago 20(OT) – Matt Cassel brought Minnesota back from 10 points down in the 4th quarter to defeat Chicago in overtime. Blair Walsh hit the seemingly game winner in overtime only to have a 15 yard penalty force the Vikings back in which he missed his next attempt of 57 yards. The Bears then marched down the field only to see Robbie Gould miss a 47 yard attempt. The Vikings then marched back the other way where Walsh had another chance from 34 yards and this time, he made it to give Minnesota the win. Both offenses were on fire as Minnesota outgained Chicago 496-480. Christian Ponder started the game for Minnesota, but Matt Cassel took over in the 2nd half and was far more effective. Cassel went 20-33 for 243 yards with a touchdown and an interception while Ponder went 3-8 for 40 yards. For the Bears, Josh McCown went 23-36 for 355 yards and 2 touchdowns. Both running attacks were effective as Adrian Peterson ran 35 times for 211 yards for Minnesota and Matt Forte ran 23 times for 120 yards. Alshon Jeffrey also had an amazing game for the Bears by catching 12 passes for 249 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Atlanta 34 Buffalo 31 (OT) – The Toronto project isn’t looking so good. What was supposed to be a home game started to look more like a road game as the Rogers Centre was loaded with Falcons fans. Those fans got a great game as Atlanta scored the tying touchdown in the last 1:30 and kicked the winning field goal in overtime to snap a 5 game losing streak. Matt Ryan went 28-47 for 311 yards with a touchdown for Atlanta while Stephen Jackson added a paid of touchdowns on the ground. EJ Manuel went 18-32 for 210 yards with a touchdown while CJ Spiller ran for 149 yards and a score on 15 carries.
Jacksonville 31 Cleveland 28 – Jacksonville may have found what stride they can as the Jaguars scored in the last minute to beat the Browns. The key play in this one was a fumble by Cleveland that was recovered in the end zone for a safety. That forced Cleveland to not be able to play for the field goal on the final drive. Cleveland ended up outgaining Jacksonville 439-314, but 3 Brandon Weedon turnovers along with the safety neutralized the advantage. Chad Henne went 22-40 for 195 yards with 2 touchdowns and an interception for the Jags. Brandon Weedon went 24-40 for 370 yards with 3 touchdowns and 2 interceptions along with a fumble lost. Josh Gordon made NFL history by catching 10 passes for 261 yards and 2 touchdowns. Gordon is the first receiver in the NFL to have back-to-back 200 yard receiving games.
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