NFL football: the commentary on the twelfth day

The trend continues, unstoppable. This time it is the Eagles, the only team that seemed to offer a minimum of reliability, especially in defense, to collapse in Dallas. Yet another blow to the already very few certainties of this very open NFL season. Sunday which saw the Chiefs raise their heads, the Lions take advantage of the Giants’ own goals to avoid an embarrassing defeat and the Rams emerge as the team to beat in the NFC.

eagles

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How to explain Phila’s 21-0 collapse? The beauty of 41 actual minutes without scoring, even against the Cowboys defense which has made a change since the arrival of Quinnen Williams, is unacceptable for a team aiming for a repeat in the Super Bowl. And starting strong and then fading seems to be a worrying trend for the Eagles, given that it’s not the first time it’s happened. Barkley is disappointing to some extent, especially when compared to his potential and last season. With the Giants he had a run of over 20 yards every 20.2 attempts, with Phila it was one every 92.5 runs. Significant data. Let’s be clear, if we had to choose today, we would put the champions only behind the Rams. But doubts remain.

chiefs

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For three quarters we were ready to put the final nail in the Chiefs’ coffin. Then Indy disappeared. Four straight drives without picking up a first down, with Mahomes starting to grind. The victory in overtime is the first of the season for Kansas City in games decided by a single possession. Up until then it was 0-5. Steve Spagnuolo’s blitzes put Daniel Jones under pressure and in the end it seemed like we were seeing the Chiefs of the good times again, very recent ones in fact. A win saves the season. And the Colts need to be careful. With the Jags at 7-4, the lead at the top of the AFC East is just one game. The (very strange) calendar will see them face the Jaguars twice, the Texans twice (therefore 4 intra-divisional challenges), as well as Seattle (away) and the 49ers (at home).

rams

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Test of strength, against a Tampa in free fall that also loses Baker Mayfield. The 31-7 halftime score was the largest negative margin for the Bucs since 2022. Much will depend on the health of the QB’s shoulder. Meanwhile, the one from LA is putting the MVP in his pocket Sunday after Sunday. As of today, the Rams hold the No. 1 seed in the NFC and are favorites in the six remaining games.

disastrous

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What about the Giants? The dismissal of offensive coordinator Bowen makes you smile. With the Lions (shadow of last year’s team), the fifth defeat came after having led by double figures. With 3’19” left, with first and goal from Detroit’s 4, throwing twice, including on fourth down, when a field goal would have put them up by 6 and forced Detroit to make a touchdown to overturn it, was pure madness. So the Lions made ground and converted a 59-yard kick to take the game to overtime. Where a 69-yard run by Jahmyr Gibbs on the first snap was enough to win it. The Raiders, on the other hand, were never even in the game with the Browns. Shadeur Sanders made a good debut. And here too the knockout cost the offensive coordinator, Chip Kelly, who after Oregon produced nothing but disasters. But Pete Carroll would have done well to retire like this.

pats

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It is never easy to win in the NFL and we have never seen it more than this season. So going after New England who extended their streak to 9 consecutive victories in Cincy makes you smile. But it is true that after the one against the Jets, the match against the Bengals also did not see the best version of the Patriots. Drake Maye started very badly, the offensive line, already not phenomenal, lost the rookie left tackle, the first choice Campbell to a sprained knee. Easy to lose a month. And after the next one with the Giants, the Bills and Ravens arrive. For goodness sake, not that they can win them all and close 15-2 eh…

the super bowl of the week

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In the NFC Rams all my life at the moment. On the other hand this time we say Broncos, given the problems of the Patriots and the defeat of Indy. But it’s a decent lottery.