The best part of the NFL season is now quickly approaching. Teams are fighting for divisional titles and wild-card berths, and we’re sure to be in for an exciting final few weeks of the regular season.
Before we jump head-first into the race to the playoffs, let’s recap week thirteen’s action.
Recapping the Top Match-ups to Watch
Minnesota QB Christian Ponder vs. Green Bay’s Secondary
The 23-14 score in Green Bay’s win over the Vikings wasn’t too terribly lopsided, but unfortunately for Minnesota that had nothing to do with their quarterback’s performance. After a promising start to the season, Christian Ponder continues to regress, and his current performance has to give the franchise some serious doubts about whether or not he is someone who can lead their team for years to come.
Ponder made quick decisions, but unfortunately more often than not those decisions were either dump offs (which have become nearly his entire repertoire). When Ponder did try to stretch the field, his passes were typically inaccurate at best and intercepted at worst.
At the end of the game, Green Bay had to have mixed feelings about their secondary. After giving Casey Heyward the start, the rookie and the rest of the secondary kept Minnesota’s wide recievers from catching a pass until late in the fourth quarter. But it’s hard to discern whether that was a function of strong defensive play or Ponder’s failure to throw accurate passes. The Packers will have a much tougher test next week as they try to slow down Calvin Johnson.
Chicago WR Brandon Marshal vs. Seattle DBs Richard Sherman and Brandon Browner
Maybe it was the added pressure that Richard Sherman and Brandon Browner felt with their impending suspensions, or maybe the Jay Cutler–Brandon Marshall connection really is just that good. Regardless of what triggered it, Marshall absolutely dominated this match up, and it wasn’t really even competitive.
Browner was primarily given the responsibility of covering Marshall, but neither he nor Sherman had an answer for the wide receiver. Marshall accounted for well over half of Cutler’s passing totals, racking up 165 yards on ten catches.
Although both corners played poorly, you can’t lay all the blame for Marshall’s monster day at their feet. Credit is also due to Chicago’s coaching staff. They played Marshall in the slot more than they had all season long, and Seattle didn’t handle it well at all. Marshall was consistently able to find the soft spot in Seattle’s defense and the Seahawks were never really able to adjust to that wrinkle.
San Francisco OT Anthony Davis vs. St Louis DE Chris Long
Much like Brandon Marshall, San Francisco’s Anthony Davis had a very solid game but his 49ers weren’t able to secure a victory against a lesser opponent. For the second time this year, St. Louis was able to stifle and confuse San Francisco, but none of that is the fault of Davis.
Chris Long was rendered irrelevant in this game, recording only one hurry, one tackle, and no sacks. For the most part Davis and the 49ers were able to keep Colin Kaepernick free from pressure, with the exception of struggles at guard. The young quarterback was only hurried a handful of times, but when he was under duress he didn’t play well. The 49ers will need to continue to keep the pocket clean to maximize their post season success.
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Rookie Watch
Seattle QB Russell Wilson
Russell Wilson isn’t putting up the same sort of flashy numbers that his fellow rookie Robert Griffin III is, but we shouldn’t let that take away from the season Seattle’s signal caller is having. In yet another week, Wilson led his offense to some late game heroics and got a win. This time around, however, Wilson led his team on two game winning drives.
The first came late in the fourth quarter. Wilson took the Seahawks down the field and completed a touchdown pass to Golden Tate to give Seattle to lead with only 32 seconds left in the game. It was an impressive drive that should have earned a victory then. However Seattle’s usually strong defense continued to struggle against the Bears’ passing attack and gave up a game tying field goal to send the game into overtime.
So, Wilson did what Wilson does best. Wilson ran for 28 yards, completed all three of his pass attempts, and threw a touchdown pass to Sidney Rice on their first drive in overtime to win the game for a second time. As is becoming he usual, Wilson didn’t ever look like the moment was too big for him. He made good decisions – passing when the defense allowed, and using his athleticism when he needed to.
All in all, Wilson put together one of his best performances of the year. He had nearly 400 yards of total offense, earning him the distinction of being named the NFC offensive player of the week. The win inched Seattle closer to a wild card berth, and provided even more evidence that Wilson can be the franchise quarterback Seattle has so desperately needed.
Jacksonville WR Justin Blackmon and Buffalo CB Stephon Gilmore
Buffalo showed a great deal of faith in Stephon Gilmore by having him shadow Justin Blackmon for pretty much the entire game, and that show of faith was greatly rewarded. Gilmore was the clear winner in this pairing of top ten picks. Blackmon was held to just one catch for nine yards, and made very little impact in the game overall.
Gilmore on the other hand eliminated Blackmon, who should be the Jaguars’ best option at receiver. Gilmore’s day was pretty close to perfect – along with Blackmon’s catch he allowed one other completion, and he was also called for an iffy pass interference penalty. Still, this was a landslide win for Gilmore and it has to leave the Bills feeling good.
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Scouting Notes from Across the League
Mario Williams didn’t look like a wise investment for the first part of the season, but his play has drastically improved over the last several weeks. That has coincided with the improvement of defensive tackle Kyle Williams. Super Mario has recorded a sack in three straight games, and it’s made the whole defensive line look better.
How did Jason Babin keep Brandon Graham on the sidelines in Philadelphia? In limited action against the Cowboys, the pass rusher recorded two sacks, two hurries, and hit Tony Romo twice more. It was a breakout performance, and much like Bryce Brown, Graham will be someone for Eagles fans to watch over the end of a dismal season.
Luke Kuechly was thought of as one of the safer picks in the draft, but the rookie linebacker is having a very rough transition to the NFL. He’s struggled in pass coverage all year long, and while he’s provides good run defense, that doesn’t offset the liability he is in coverage.
The Bengals’ defensive line is pretty young and very good. He still doesn’t get much press, but Geno Atkins is one of the best defensive tackles in the league. However, the Bengal that really shined brightly this week was Carlos Dunlap. Dunlap recorded five hurries, two sacks, and two forced fumbles. He is a key part to a defense that has a chance to be very, very good over the next several seasons.
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