Philly Stumble in Texas & Patrick Saves Chiefs – Top Moments from National Football League Week 12

Week 12 provided an incredible Dallas Cowboys rally, or perhaps an massive Eagles implosion?

Playoff Patrick Mahomes showed up to salvage the Chiefs' campaign as the Chicago Bears keep to impress while they continue their winning run.

And did Sanders perform enough on his first professional start to earn the full-time job in Cleveland?

Let's take a look at the best of the week in the league.

The Breakdown – Dallas Rally or Eagles Collapse?

The Cowboys were down and out at 21-0 behind versus the defending championship champions, so how on earth did they produce their equal-largest recovery in history?

Sentiment of a first home game after a teammate’s tragic passing could have been a factor, however it was a mixture of Dak Prescott resolve and a defence that pounced on rare mistakes by the Philadelphia.

Dak surpassed Tony Romo marks for yards thrown (now 34,378) and game-winning drives (twenty-five) with an all-action performance – his plunging touchdown embodying his energetic display.

Philly squandered a lead of 21 points or more for the first time after 1999, with only their second game with several giveaways this year – the other being another disappointing division defeat at the New York.

In addition to 14 infractions for 96 yards, the attacking malaise that affected Jalen Hurts after what – for him – was an explosive start was huge. He had only thrown for over two hundred yards in four games prior to Sunday, he had over 150 in the first half by himself in Dallas.

Yet from the time Philadelphia went 21-0 up their offence fell apart spectacularly – with four consecutive punts, a missed field goal and then a fumble handing opportunity after chance to the Cowboys.

Philadelphia’s defence is brilliant, it truly is, but an offense that's not eclipsed 21 points in five of 7 games (three losses) is now a major worry, because the pieces are all there but it's just not working.

Sirianni’s approach is all about securing the big situations, the defence maintains them in it and what offense there is does barely enough – if it can't even do that and now the composure and possession security is breaking down, there may be trouble ahead.

Spotlight – Postseason Mahomes Appears Early to Rescue Chiefs

It wasn’t as extreme, but Kansas City's 11-point comeback in the fourth quarter versus a strong Colts squad was very impressive – and could have just rescued their campaign.

How big was it? Well, the league’s Next Gen Stats now assign the Kansas City a 58% probability of making the postseason, whereas a loss on the weekend would have dropped that figure to 28%.

No wonder the playoff version of Patrick Mahomes turned up, throwing for two hundred thirty-five yards in the latter half by itself and guiding 3 point-scoring possessions in their last four possessions to win it in overtime.

Some huge passes and daring runs are commonplace for Mahomes in the playoffs, but right now the Kansas City are in playoff form – at six and five and only tenth in the AFC rankings.

That was closer to the former Kansas City however, with a first close victory of the season after losing five previously – they secured eleven of them the previous season so, if that belief returns, this Chiefs Kingdom might not be done just yet.

Discussion – Are Chicago Become Rulers of the North?

You just can't overlook the Chicago Bears any longer. A win over the Steelers, without Rodgers, kept them top of the NFC North and at 8-3 – holding the same standing as the Eagles.

They appear threatening on each side of the field, with a defense that tops the NFL in picks and overall turnovers and, in Williams, a young quarterback now used to winning close games.

He can at times be inconsistent, surrendering a score after a fumble in his team’s end zone – but he additionally passed for three scores and, with already five fourth-quarter rallies this season, he understands how to get the job done.

The Green Bay Packers are in close chase in the division after overpowering the Vikings and Detroit are right there after beating the Giants in overtime with a huge game from Jahmyr Gibbs.

Chicago are strangely the most reliable with 8 wins in nine, but as they travel to the championship champs on the holiday we'll discover just how good they really are.

Look Ahead – Thrilling Holiday in Prospect

It appears among the most exciting Thanksgiving line-ups for a long time, with each game loaded with playoff consequences.

Detroit welcome the Green Bay in the classic opener in Michigan, prior to a unusual visit back to Texas for the Chiefs, who started out life as the Dallas Texans long ago in the sixties before moving to Kansas City.

The weekend’s rally kings are both clinging to postseason aspirations but have minimal margin for error – so this will have a playoff feel.

And how about the Ravens? An unattractive win over the Jets actually has them top of the division after starting one and five and appearing dead and buried.

Holiday and Black Friday Fixtures (all times GMT)

  • Thursday, 27 November: Packers @ Lions (18:00)
  • Thursday, 27 November: Chiefs @ Cowboys (9:30 PM)
  • Friday, 28 November: Bengals @ Baltimore Ravens (1:20 AM)
  • Friday, twenty-eight November: Bears @ Eagles (8:00 PM)

Will Shedeur Sanders Retain His Job?

Cleveland Browns coach Stefanski batted away inquiries on whether Sanders had done sufficiently in his first NFL start to keep the first-team position when Dillon Gabriel comes back.

But the question will continue to be asked as Sanders became the first Browns quarterback to win his debut league start since Zeier in 1999 – with seventeen additional rookie signal callers unsuccessful to do so since.

It was just the Raiders, and with the help of an almost feral Cleveland defense recording 10 sacks, but Cleveland's offence requires a leader, a figurehead to inspire confidence.

And self-belief is something not lacking in Sanders, who told a CBS {

Christopher Mejia
Christopher Mejia

A professional casino streamer with over 5 years of experience, specializing in live gaming strategies and audience engagement techniques.