NFL Week 15 Review

'Twas the Sunday before Christmas, when all through the NFL, playoff hopes were stirring, except for those teams as weak as a mouse.  The points were rung up on the scoreboards with cheers, in hopes that a Super Bowl soon would be here.

The teams on Santa's nice list are preparing for their spot in the playoffs, while teams on the naughty list are preparing their vacation plans for January.

Here's a look at which teams were naughty and nice this week:

• Welcome back Vincent Jackson!  The talented diva receiver finally decided that he wanted to play this week, after a long hold out and questionable injury delayed his return.  With 112 yards and 3 TDs this week it's safe to say Jackson is ready to play.  Sadly, if he puts up big numbers and helps the Chargers to the playoffs then some poor sap will hand him a giant contract this off-season, ignoring the emptiness that was the majority of his season.
• Even sadder, at 5-9 the 49ers are still in the playoff hunt because they are only 1 game back of the division leaders of the NFC West.  All I'm asking Santa for this year is that he make it so none of the NFC West teams get to take a playoff spot!
• The Bengals were a playoff team last year and added Terrell Owens to make the offense even more explosive this year.  Instead, they've been one of the most disappointing teams in the league.  They finally broke a 10 game losing streak this week to get only their 3rd win of the season.  T.O. left the game early with an injury (torn meniscus - out for the year).  Coincidence?
• Cleveland continues to play down to their competition by losing to bad teams and only playing well against good ones.  They should petition for a harder schedule next year so they might have a chance at the playoffs.
• It appears that the Donovan McNabb era has come to an end in Washington, just weeks after agreeing to a 5 year extension.  The extension seemed crazy at the time, considering the previous week they had benched McNabb at the end of the game.  It's still unclear why they bothered to do it, considering he's no longer the future of their franchise.  At least they were creative with the contract, guaranteeing only a $3.5 million signing bonus for this year.  If they cut him before the start of next season then they don't owe him anything else.  McNabb has apparently been benched for the rest of this season, so it's hard to envision anything but a mutual parting at the end of this season.
• McNabb is having one of the worst seasons of his career statically, but he still deserves better than to be benched like this.  The Redskins traded away 2nd and 4th round draft picks to get him from the Eagles and paid him a lot of money.  They aren't making the playoffs, but they don't have a young QB on the roster to groom for the future.  No offense to Rex Grossman, who actually put up some good numbers in this week's loss, but he's not the future of the franchise.  Starting him is just another way to further embarrass McNabb, and that's not right.  This whole experiment in Washington has been another disaster to add to the list of bad decisions by their owner, "Chainsaw" Dan Snyder.
• It's been a lost season for the Cowboys, but at least they got a win over one of their most hated rivals and have a chance to pass them in the standings to avoid finishing in last in the NFC East.
• Andre Johnson didn't get a chance to punch Cortland Finnegan this time, but he did get the better of him for a TD catch in the second half.  It was the Titans that got the better of the Texans on the scoreboard though in a game that was never even close.
• A team finally managed to stop Arian Foster (league leading 1345 rushing yards this season).  Sure he only got 11 carries due to the lopsided score and his early exit with an ankle injury, but he did nothing with them, totalling only 15 yards.  He still has a slight lead for the league rushing title, but Maurice Jones-Drew (1324) is closing in fast.
• Speaking of MoJo, the reason he wasn't able to take advantage of the sub-par day by Foster to take away the league lead in rushing is because he had a poor day of his own against a terrible Colts rush defense.  MoJo typically runs wild over the division rival Colts, but was held this week to only 46 yards in the loss.  The Jaguars passing attack isn't nearly formidable enough to keep up with Manning and the Colts, so when MoJo doesn't have it going they have no chance.
• Manning's day wasn't all that spectacular, but he did manage to connect twice with Austin Collie for TDs to help get his team back at the top of the division.  So much for our hopes that the Colts might miss the playoffs.
• Collie had another excellent day before leaving with another concussion - his third of the season.  There's no way they should let him play again this year.
• The Jags had a chance to make a comeback when they scored in the final two minutes to pull within 3.  They needed an on side kick to pull off the improbable win, but it didn't go according to plan. In fact, it couldn't have gone much worse, as not only did they not recover, but the Colts returned the kick 41 yards for a TD to put the game out of reach.
• Matt Cassell made a surprisingly early return from his recovery from an appendectomy to get his Chiefs one step closer to the AFC West title.
• The Bills have won 4 of their last 6 games after winning in Miami this week.  Maybe the coaching staff is hoping a strong finish will save their jobs, but it's hurting their chances for a top draft pick.
• At 7-7 the Dolphins playoff hopes are now over.  By week 17 the Patriots may have locked up the top seed already, so they probably won't even get a chance to play the spoiler role.
• The Giants 4th quarter meltdown, being called the Miracle at the Meadowlands, may cost them a shot at the division.  They played great through 3 and a half quarters, coming in with a great defensive scheme to keep Michael Vick off balance.  Leading 31-10 halfway through the 4th quarter it appeared they had the game wrapped up.  Not so fast!
• Vick got things started on a drive that only needed two plays, ending with a 65 yard TD pass to a wide open Brent Celek.  It's ok Giants defense, still a big lead, so you can still relax.
• The Giants coaching staff fails to be prepared for an on side kick.  They later claimed they warned the team about it, but they still didn't put in their hands team, which specializes in these situations.  Tom Coughlin also seemed shocked that the Eagles would try that with so much time remaining, despite the large lead.  Eagles recover, leading to another quick scoring drive that was made primarily by Vick running all over the place.  93 of his 130 rushing yards came in the 4th quarter.  The Giants couldn't stop him even when they knew it was coming, like on the TD run to end that drive.
• Eli Manning forces the Eagles to use all three of their time outs to preserve time during the Giants next drive, but it ends with a punt.  Eagles are still alive!
• Vick leads another masterful drive, mostly with his legs again, to tie the game with under two minutes to go!
• Eli and the Giants go three and out and are forced to punt with 14 seconds left.  If they punt the ball out of bounds the Eagles will probably only have time for one play to try to get into FG range to win.  Instead they inexplicably punt the ball down the middle of the field to DeSean Jackson - only the most dangerous player on the field.  Despite muffing the catch on the punt, Jackson manages to recover and dart his way down the field through a sea of helpless defenders on his way to the game winning TD.  How do you even let Jackson have a chance to touch the ball?!  Tom Coughlin ripped into his punter for the mistake, but the Giants had a long list of mistakes that led to this disaster ending.  There's plenty of blame to go around, and it starts with the coach.
• On a related note, one of his Eagle's teammates is going to kill DeSean Jackson one of these days.  Despite making another amazing play, he ended it with another bone-head decision by running along the goal line for several steps before finally crossing over into the endzone for the game winning score.  It looked like he was trying to run more time off the clock.  The problem is... time had already expired!  So what was he trying to do?  It didn't cost them because he still scored, but his foolishness is going to cost them one of these days.
• Devastating loss for the Giants.  Not sure what was more pathetic to watch, the 4th quarter meltdown, or Eli's post game press conference.
• The Lions finally snapped a 26 game road losing streak by winning a game in Tampa.  Remember back when Raheem Morris claimed his Bucs were the NFC's best team?  Yeah... the Bucs can now shamefully excuse themselves from the playoff race.
• The Panthers managed to fend off a late Cardinals rally to win the battle of terrible QBs.  Is there a more motivated player in the league to save his job than Jimmy Clausen?  He was drafted this year to be the new franchise QB but has performed terribly.  He has to win at least a couple games to avoid his team finishing with the league's worst record, in which case the Panthers will undoubtedly select a QB with the first overall pick.  Good Luck with that. 
• The Ravens stayed alive in the AFC North race with a big win over the Saints thanks to a monster performance by Ray Rice (153 rushing yards, 80 receiving yards and 2 TDs).
• The Saints need to win in Atlanta to have a chance at the NFC South division.  Too bad Atlanta never loses at home (Matt Ryan has only lost 1 home game in his 3 year career).  They need to win at least 1 of their remaining 2 games to ensure a playoff spot.
• Meanwhile, the Falcons gave themselves a nice 2 game cushion for the division lead.  Even if they lose to the Saints next week, it should be relatively easy for them to clinch the division in week 17 against the lowly Panthers.
• The Seahawks missed a chance to capitalize on the earlier Rams loss to take control of the division.  All of the NFC West teams lost, so the standings within the division don't change.  It's now not possible for any team in the division to finish at better than 8-8, and most likely the division winner will have no more than 7 wins.
• Seahawks fans were treated to an appearance by Charlie Whitehurst, who took over for the ineffective Matt Hasselbeck.  Pretty sad when fans chant for and get excited over a guy like Whitehurst, as if he's a huge upgrade.
• Tim Tebow made his long awaited debut as a starting QB.  While he isn't likely to put up the kind of passing yards that Orton did, his throwing mechanics weren't quite as terrible as advertised.  He didn't throw much, but he did manage a few pretty good throws.  He also displayed the ability to make plays with his feet, rushing for a team high 78 yards and a TD.  He's no Mike Vick, but the kid can be a playmaker, as he showed on his impressive TD run.  It didn't translate to a win, but maybe the Denver fans can have something to be excited about.
• It didn't matter that Jason Campbell was bad because the Broncos could not stop Oakland's rushing attack.
• Oakland has very little chance at a playoff spot, and their remaining games against the Colts and Chiefs mean that they will likely finish with only 7 wins, 8 at the most.  That's still a lot better than what many people expected from them, especially the Patriots, who thought that first round pick would be better than top 15-20 when they gave up Richard Seymour.
• The Jets got back on track with a win in Pittsburgh in the battle of struggling offenses.  Marc Sanchez was still a little shaky, but his 7 yard bootleg run off a fake was a beautiful play that was a big factor in their win.  Even the cameramen were fooled on that play.  It was the first offensive TD the Jets had scored this month.  Sanchez promised his team he wouldn't lose this game and he came through.
• Despite another tough home loss, the Steelers still managed to clinch a playoff spot due to a series of tie-breakers with competing teams that also lost this week.  They also hold a tie-breaker over the Ravens, so if they can win their last two games against Carolina and Cleveland then they will still win the AFC North.
• The Packers were reeling and without QB Aaron Rodgers, who was forced to sit out with a concussion.  The Patriots were on a roll and are unbeatable at home, so they should have been able to coast to an easy victory, right?  Not exactly.  While they did get the victory in the end, it was anything but easy. 
• The Packers set the tone early by starting out the game with an on side kick, which they recovered to start a drive ending with a field goal for the early lead.
• Rookie QB Matt Flynn (251 yards, 3 TDs) outperformed Tom Brady (163 yards, 2 TDs).
• Flynn had the look of a reliable veteran up until the very end.  With time running out and no time outs remaining, Flynn had to move fast to set up a play.  He looked confused and started to panic as he hurried his team to the line.  Even as the ball was snapped it was unclear if Flynn even knew what the play was (he later said he wasn't sure if they got the 1st down or not), but there was no more time to waste.  The game ended moments later with a sack and a fumble.  You have to think that a veteran the caliber of Rodgers would have showed better late game management than the rookie did, which cost them the game.
• Tom Brady set a single season NFL record for most consecutive passes (292) without an interception.  There were several throws in this game that came close to ending that streak, as a couple of tipped passes and passes dropped by defenders could have easily resulted in a turnover.  It's only fitting that the pass that broke the record was one of those tipped passes that was a finger tip away from being intercepted.
• The Patriots played poorly on both sides of the ball.  They pressured Flynn early on, keeping him rattled, but ended up making too many mistakes which helped build his confidence.
• The big turning point was the 66 yard TD throw to James Jones.  Brandon Merriweather took a bad angle on the play, getting there late, and bowling over his own teammate.  Devin McCourty likely would have made the tackle to save the TD if the collision hadn't taken him out of the play.
• The play of the game may have been Dan Connolly's 71 yard kick-off return - the longest return by an offensive lineman in NFL history.  The play was equal parts surprising, exciting and hilarious.
• I don't typically like to complain about the refs (except during the game when I'm yelling at my TV) but it seemed like they were awfully trigger happy with the flags in this game knowing Commissioner Roger Goodell was in attendance.
• McCourty was flagged for unnecessary roughness for a helmet to helmet hit that seemed very boarderline.  I'm all in favor of protecting the players, especially when it comes to head injuries, but there was nothing vicious about this hit.  Yes, the helmets did touch, but McCourty didn't lead with his helmet and the initial contact came with his shoulder.  The receiver tucked his head on contact causing unintentional contact with their helmets.  The rule is in place to prevent players from using their helmet as a weapon or from launching themselves like a missile at a defenseless receiver.  Neither of those things happened on this play.  I'm not sure how else McCourty could have made that tackle, as he seemed to do everything fundamentally right.  If Goodell wasn't watching they probably don't throw a flag there.
• Vince Wilfork was called for a costly facemak penalty that helped extend a drive that ended in a TD.  While he did clearly grab the runners facemask, it was only because he was blatantly being held.  Wilfork tried to plead this case to the refs, who claimed they didn't see that part.  Yet the announcers saw it happen and on replay it was pretty clear, so I'm not sure how they  missed it.
• An interception late in the game that would have pretty much clinched the victory for the Pats was overturned due to an illegal hands to the face penalty.  Once again, they were right to call the penalty, as Tully Banta-Cain got his hand up under the player's facemask and drove him back, which is illegal.  However, they failed to notice that the player also had a firm grasp on Banta-Cain's facemask, which should have resulted in off-setting penalties. 
•  The Chicago Bears became the first team in the league to clinch their division this season after blowing out the Vikings on Monday night.  Who outside of Chicago would have picked that to happen before the season started?
• Adrian Peterson was a surprise late scratch from the game with a knee injury.  I'm not sure how much he would have helped the Vikings anyway, but there are a lot of angry Fantasy Football owners out there this morning.
• One week after seeing his vaunted consecutive games streak snapped, Brett Favre rose from the grave to start the game for the Vikings.  He didn't last long before leaving with another injury, this time a concussion. 
• Here's a question - why even bother to let him play?  Granted the Vikings are short on options at QB, but last week should have been an end to a career that's already gone on too long.  Why let him play hurt when your team is already eliminated from playoff contention?  Now with a head injury involved there is no way they should let him play next week.  There is also no way that he will be ruled out until just before kick-off, so we'll have to suffer through a week of
  will-he-or-won't-he play drama.... again.
• Conspiracy Theory: The NFL is still investigating claims that Favre sent some racy cell phone pictures to Jenn Sterger.  The issue is still pending a decision from the Commissioner as to whether to punish Favre for violating the league's personal conduct policy, which he says should come before the end of the season.  Well Mr. Goodell, the season is almost over.  If Favre retires after the season then there's really nothing you can do to punish him.  But wait... what if the punishment has already been dealt?  What if Goodell suspended Favre, but in order to save him the embarrassment of the whole situation by making it public, he instead kept the information a secret.  Favre's punishment is to have his streak snapped, but he was allowed to blame it on his various injuries rather than to call it a suspension.  Kind of like when David Stern asked Michael Jordon to go play baseball for a little while.  That's not to downplay the severity of his injuries, but Favre has played through worse before.  If it was up to him, and his ego, he'd want to play to keep his streak intact.  So maybe it wasn't up to him.  Just a theory.
• Is it a coincidence that Jenn Sterger's last name spelled backwards is REGRETS? 
• The playoff picture is starting to take shape, but it's far from complete.  Only one team (Bears) has clinched their division and only 3 other teams (Pats, Falcons, Steelers) have clinched a playoff spot.  Several divisions will likely come down to the final week before settling on division winners and wild cards.
• Merry Christmas!