While most people were busy wrapping gifts this week, we were putting a wrap on a wild Week 16 of the NFL season.
Before we get to the Christmas gifts the NFL has for us in Week 17 with the likes of Max Brosmer, Josh Johnson and Chris Oladokun (he’s real, we confirmed it) all starting games at quarterback Thursday, let’s cover some parting thoughts on what unfolded last week.
NFL Week 16 Winners
NFC West drama!
The Rams have been and remain the betting favorite to win the Super Bowl, per BetMGM (now at +450 odds), but they may not even win their own division.
The NFC West is the spotlight division race the rest of the way with the 12-3 Seahawks holding the edge after a thrilling (if not confusing) 38-37 overtime win over the now 11-4 Rams last Thursday, with the 11-4 49ers also surging into the picture with five straight wins.
The Rams and Seahawks have split their regular-season meetings, thanks to that deliriously dramatic finish in Seattle last week. (More on that in a moment.)
The Rams close at the Falcons this Monday and then home vs. the Cardinals and should get to 13-4. The Seahawks travel to play the Panthers on Sunday and then close at the 49ers, while San Francisco has the Bears and Seattle at home.
If the 49ers win out and the Seahawks lose to the unpredictable but punchy Panthers then it would be a three-way tie atop the division at 13-4. Let’s cross that bridge when it comes, but considering the No. 1 seed in the NFC is also on the line here this is the most compelling division race left.
As for what happened on Thursday night, wow.
The Rams led 30-14 in the fourth quarter. The Seahawks had never overcome a deficit that large in the final quarter — ever. So of course …
Rashid Shaheed returned a punt 58 yards for a touchdown, the Rams went three-and-out, Shaheed then broke off a 31-yard run on the next play from scrimmage and Sam Darnold hit AJ Barner for a 26-yard touchdown right after that and then the most bonkers 2-point conversion sequence ensued.
Darnold’s pass was deflected by Rams defensive lineman Jared Verse at the line and everyone on the field thought it was an incomplete pass. Running back Zach Charbonnet casually picked up the ball in the end zone with no purpose or urgency, but when the play was reviewed and overturned to be a backward pass that gave Charbonnet the controversial two-point conversion on a fumble recovery.
The Rams’ Harrison Mevis later missed a 48-yard field goal, the game went to overtime, Los Angeles struck first with a 41-yard touchdown pass from Matthew Stafford to Puka Nacua and yet it still wasn’t over.
Seattle drove 65 yards in nine plays for a touchdown of its own — 4 yards from Darnold to Jaxon Smith-Njigba — and then got a more conventional 2-point conversion from Darnold to tight end Eric Saubert to win it.
Overall, we got yet another candidate for craziest NFL game of the year.
Clutch Caleb Williams
So, the Bears taking QB Caleb Williams with the No. 1 overall draft pick last year seems to be working out …
After some critical reports about Williams’ preparation and attitude as a rookie emerged before the season, the second-year emerging star has silenced all doubters in leading the Bears to an 11-4 record and the top of the NFC North standings while continuing to deliver memorable late-game moments.
Like Saturday when he led the Bears to a 22-16 overtime win over the rival Packers with a walk-off 46-yard touchdown pass to DJ Moore in overtime — it might just be the best TD throw of this entire NFL season.
Overall, Williams has passed for 3,400 yards, 23 TDs and 6 INTs with 369 rushing yards and 3 scores. He has 14 passing TDs, just 2 INTs and a rushing TD while leading the Bears to seven wins in their last eight games.
Liam Coen
Whether Coen wins NFL Coach of the Year or not — it’s a tight race with the Bears’ Ben Johnson, the Patriots’ Mike Vrabel and even the 49ers’ Kyle Shanahan — he’s proven to be an incredible hire for Jacksonville.
There was reason to be skeptical. He had spent all of one season as the Buccaneers’ offensive coordinator — taking over an already-humming offense — and one season as the Rams’ OC in 2022. Between that, he was the OC at Kentucky in the college ranks for a year. This is his first head coaching job.
And, yeah, he’s been a smashing success.
Jacksonville has gone from 4-13 last year to 11-4 so far with six straight wins to earn a one-game lead in the AFC South while having already clinched its first playoff berth since 2022.
That record includes wins over potential fellow playoff teams in the Panthers, Texans, 49ers, Chargers, Colts (a longshot, but still alive) and of course the statement-making 34-20 win at the Broncos on Sunday. (Jacksonville also beat the Chiefs, contributing to Kansas City’s stunning collapse).
The Jags’ win in Denver might be the most impressive any team in the league has managed all season. It snapped the Broncos’ NFL-best 11-game winning streak and wasn’t even particularly close.
The Jaguars scored 17 straight points to pull ahead 34-17 early in the fourth quarter, while QB Trevor Lawrence delivered another gem — 23-of-36 passing for 279 yards, 3 TDs and 0 INTs, plus a rushing TD.
That’s 10 total TDs for Lawrence in the last two games, but even more notable he has a 12/0 TD/INT ratio the last four games after ranking among the leaders in interceptions (11) prior to that point.
Enigmatic Eagles looking like the Eagles again … for now
The reigning Super Bowl champs are on the upswing again with two straight wins, a resurgent offense and a second straight NFC East championship.
Pasting the Raiders 31-0 and beating the Commanders 29-18 isn’t exactly the most dependable gauge for what to make of this team after all the ups and downs. But it’s something.
Philadelphia had lost three straight games before these last two, fans were questioning QB Jalen Hurts’ job status, egging offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo’s house and raging against head coach Nick Sirianni less than a year removed from a Super Bowl.
In those two wins, Hurts has completed 75.6% of his passes with 5 TDs and 0 INTs and rushed for 39.5 yards a game, Saquon Barkley rushed for 132 yards and a TD on 6.3 yards per carry last week for his second 100-yard outing in the last three games, and frustrated WR A.J. Brown had 9 catches for 95 yards vs. Washington and has now drawn double-digit targets in five of the last six games.
The 10-5 Eagles head to Buffalo on Sunday for a showdown with the 11-5 Bills, which could conceivably be a Super Bowl preview.
That will tell us more about this Philadelphia team, but it’s been an encouraging couple weeks for the Eagles.
Jim Harbaugh
Coach Jim Harbaugh turned 63 years old this week and is still adding to his incredible football career as the Chargers have won four straight games to clinch a playoff spot in consecutive seasons for the first time since 2008-09 while recording back-to-back 11-win seasons for the first time since 2006-07.
Michigan has fallen apart at the seams since Harbaugh went out on top with a national championship two years ago (and, sure, a 10-year show cause from the NCAA and a trail of penalties for the Wolverines on his way out, but nonetheless).
Meanwhile, he’s been an overwhelming success in his return to the NFL — just like he was in his first head-coaching job at the University of San Diego (29-6 in three seasons with back-to-back 11-win campaigns) and then at Stanford (turned the program from 4-8 to 12-1 in four seasons and built the foundation for a decade of success that followed) and then with the 49ers in his last NFL stint (44-19 in four years with three NFC championship game appearances and a Super Bowl appearance) and then at Michigan (86-25 with a 37-3 mark over his final three seasons punctuated by the national title).
He may never be welcomed back into college football, but he won’t need to be. Harbaugh is indisputably a top-5 coach in the NFL and arguably as good as there is.
Patriots, Purdy, Pittsburgh’s push and Puka Nacua fantasy owners
We’re really packing it in today for the alliterative speed round.
After the Bills ended New England’s 10-game winning streak, the Patriots responded with a 28-24 come-from-behind road win over the Ravens on Sunday. The Pats trailed 24-13 despite having knocked Baltimore QB Lamar Jackson out of the game early, but Drake Maye delivered big in the fourth quarter.
Maye connected with Kyle Williams on a 37-yard touchdown pass (followed by a successful two-point conversion) and then led a 9-play, 89-yard TD drive the next time (including a fourth-down conversion) capped by a 21-yard Rhamondre Stevenson TD run to take the lead and the game.
Maye finished with a career-high 380 passing yards and 2 TDs as the Patriots improved to 12-3 and clinched a playoff spot while maintaining a one-game lead atop the AFC East.
…
Brock Purdy spoiled Philip Rivers’ moment Monday night.
The 44-year-old Rivers turned back the clock while throwing for 277 yards, 2 TDs and 1 INT for the desperate Colts, but Purdy stole the spotlight by passing for 295 yards, a career-high 5 TDs and 1 INT in a 48-27 win as the 49ers’ offense continued its late-season surge.
San Francisco has won five straight while scoring 37 or more points in three of those wins.
…
Mike Tomlin’s streak is safe. Make it 19 straight seasons without a losing record for the longest-tenured coach in the league.
That once looked very much in jeopardy, but the Steelers have won three straight — including 29-24 at Detroit last week — to get to 9-6 and ensure a winning record. They also have a two-game lead in the AFC North over the Ravens with two games to play.
Including eight playoff wins, Tomlin now has 200 combined regular/postseason wins with Pittsburgh.
…
It would be un-American not to acknowledge last week was the fantasy football semifinals for most leagues, meaning Christmas came early for fantasy managers who had Puka Nacua in their lineups.
The Rams receiver had 12 catches for 225 yards and 2 TDs in that crazy loss to the Seahawks.
NFL Week 16 Losers
End-of-game officiating chaos
We covered the controversial 2-point conversion in the Rams-Seahawks game up top, but that one is going to be talked about for years to come.
“I’ve never seen or never been part of anything like that,” Rams coach Sean McVay said.
And yet it was nearly matched by the ending in the Steelers-Lions game on Sunday night.
With their season on the line, the Lions were down 12 midway through the fourth quarter before nearly coming all the way back to win.
A 4-yard TD pass from Jared Goff to Jahmyr Gibbs with 4:11 left cut the Steelers’ lead to 29-24, Pittsburgh then missed a 37-yard field goal with just over 2 minutes remaining, and Detroit drove all the way down the field to the 1 before getting thwarted every which way.
First, a quick TD pass to Amon-Ra St. Brown was negated by an offensive pass interference penalty for a pick-play block, then the Lions got flagged for a false start, and finally on fourth-and-goal from the 9 they looked to potentially have a dramatic game-winner as St. Brown caught the ball outside the goal line, was denied, but tossed it back to Goff who dove into the end zone.
Total confusion ensued as to whether the lateral back to Goff was legit (St. Brown’s forward progress had been well stopped by that point) and what the flag on the field was for …
Well, the lateral was fine and the touchdown would have counted, but St. Brown was flagged for offensive pass interference for pushing off a defender to get open.
To make matters worse, the official announced the ruling to the crowd by first saying “The ruling on the field is a touchdown” as the Lions fans roared in response. Only for the rest of the explanation to follow: “However, pass interference on 14 on the offense. By rule … the game is over. There is no touchdown.”
Good grief, man.
Baker, Bowles and the Bucs
This is not an alliteration speed round — the Bucs are just plain bad.
After starting 5-1 (and 6-2), Tampa Bay has lost six out of seven games, and yet still isn’t out of the NFC South hunt even after losing a pivotal division clash to the Panthers last week (23-20). The Buccaneers are still just a game back with two to play — including a rematch with Carolina.
But this is not a good football team. Not at this point of the season.
Baker Mayfield threw an ugly interception to end it and now has thrown for 7 TDs and 6 INTs in the last six games. He’s been held under 200 passing yards in five of them, including a meager 145 vs. the Panthers.
Tampa Bay closes the season vs. the Dolphins and that second game with Carolina, while the Panthers have a challenge vs. the Seahawks this week, so the playoffs remain on the table. But what a second-half collapse this has been for the Bucs.
John Harbaugh
Unlike his brother Jim, these are not fun times for John Harbaugh, with mounting questions as to whether his 18-year tenure as Ravens head coach (second-longest in the league) is nearing an end.
Baltimore’s playoff odds took a devastating blow with that loss to the Patriots as they trail the Steelers by two games in the AFC North with two to play (and no shot at a wildcard berth).
And more drama is brewing as a Baltimore Sun column reported a growing rift between Harbaugh and star QB Lamar Jackson, who exited that loss early with a back contusion. Harbaugh denounced the report and stated his relationship with Jackson is strong.
But it wouldn’t surprise anyone at this point if one is not back next season — more likely Harbaugh.
Lamar Jackson, Jordan Love, TreVeyon Henderson fantasy owners
Again, it’s the fantasy playoffs, and fantasy managers counting on these three premium players were dealt a stinging blow as all exited early last week.
Jackson was 7 of 10 for 101 yards, 7 rushing yards and 0 TDs.
Love (concussion) was 8 of 13 for 77 yards, 7 rushing yards and 0 TDs.
And Henderson (concussion) had 3 rushing yards, 1 catch for 9 yards and 0 TDs.
Ouch.
Third-string QBs
The drop-off from NFL starting QB to backups is often steep on its own, but when it gets down to the third-stringers things can really get rough (unless it’s somehow Jameis Winston stashed at the bottom of the depth chart, like the Giants had).
The Jets have lost two straight games by a combined 51 points with undrafted rookie and third-stringer Brady Cook, who passed for 188 yards, 0 TD and 1 INT in a 29-6 loss to the Saints last week.
The Chiefs were forced to turn to third-string Chris Oladokun, a seventh-round pick of the Steelers in 2022 who has been on and off Kansas City’s practice squad since then. He got his first action Sunday in taking over for injured backup Gardner Minshew mid-game, passing for 111 yards, 0 TDs, 0 INTs and taking 4 sacks in a 26-9 loss to the lowly Titans.
Both will continue to start this week along with a couple other third-stringers as well-traveled veteran Josh Johnson takes over for the Commanders with backup Marcus Mariota and starter Jayden Daniels both sidelined now, and undrafted rookie third-stringer Max Brosmer is back in for the Vikings with J.J. McCarthy out again (and backup Carson Wentz done for the season).
TV broadcasters with Christmas games
Speaking of which, that leaves the NFL’s Christmas Day slate with this.
Dak Prescott and the 6-8 Cowboys vs. Johnson and the 4-11 Commanders with both teams already eliminated from the playoffs.
The 8-7 Lions in desperation mode vs. Brosmer and the 7-8 Vikings.
And the 12-3 Broncos looking to bounce back from a loss against Oladokun and the depleted 6-9 Chiefs.
Editor's Pick
NFL Week 16 Power Rankings: Rams Holding Steady