NFL Week 13 superlatives

Best Game - Los Angeles Chargers vs. Pittsburgh Steelers 

After the first half, the Steelers appeared ready to run away with this one. Pittsburgh scored 23 first-half points and held Los Angeles to two rushing yards.

But a botched false start penalty led to a Chargers touchdown and a missed Steelers extra point only had Pittsburgh ahead by two scores at halftime. Los Angeles pulled within eight with a touchdown and two-point conversion at the end of the third quarter and then returned a punt 73 yards for a touchdown. Another two-pointer, and the game was tied.

Philip Rivers was magnificent, throwing for 299 yards and two touchdowns. He really should be in the MVP conversation. Justin Jackson gave the Chargers a running game in the second half, rushing for 63 yards and a score. Kicker Mike Badgley hit the game-winning field as time expired.

That didn’t come without drama, though, as he actually missed his first game-winning attempt, but the referees called an offside penalty on the Steelers. Pittsburgh blocked the next attempt, but again, the refs called offsides.

The penalties made it a 29-yard chip shot, which Badgley didn’t miss on his third try. The Chargers picked up a huge win in Pittsburgh, 33-30.

Biggest Shocker - Chicago Bears vs. New York Giants

Yes, based on points spread, this wasn’t the biggest upset of the day, but to me, it was the most surprising result. Of course, it nearly was a Chicago win.

New York kicked a field goal to go ahead by 10 with 1:49 left in regulation. But the Bears answered with a field goal 36 seconds later and then recovered an onside kick.

That led to the Bears special (coming up next on our list) tying the game.

New York could have won with a touchdown in overtime, but Sterling Shepard was unable to make a diving catch in the end zone on third down. The Giants won anyway, though, with a field goal and then a defensive stop.

In the victory, Odell Beckham Jr. caught a touchdown and threw one, which was his second of the season. That score was a candidate for the best play superlative until the Bears final play of regulation.

Best Play - Chicago Bears Special 

A variation of the Philly Special made yet another appearance in Week 13, but this time, rather than on fourth down, Bears coach Matt Nagy called the play with three seconds left in regulation.

Running back Tarik Cohen, who was a major factor on the final drive, threw the game-tying score to rookie Anthony Miller.

That forced overtime, but the Bears fell in the extra session to snap their five-game winning streak. The Giants won, 30-27.

Best Defensive Performance - Alec Ogletree, New York Giants

The Giants linebacker put his team on an immediately path towards the upset with a pick-six on the second play of regulation. Ogletree then recorded another interception at the beginning of the second quarter.

In addition to the two interceptions and score, Ogletree led the Giants with 10 total tackles, including five solos and two pass defenses.

Biggest Hit - Vontaze Burfict, Cincinnati Bengals

Maybe this one should be called worst hit. Burfict, who has a history of dirt plays, lowered his head and made helmet to helmet contact to Broncos fullback Andy Janovich.

Just the sound at contact makes me cringe.

The NFL made this type of contact illegal coming into this season. In fact, officials ejected Bengals safety Shawn Williams for a similar hit in Week 1.

But while the league has continued calling ridiculous roughing the passer penalties, the NFL seems content to forget about this rule.

To the surprise of no one, Burfict left the game with a concussion. The Broncos won their third straight, beating the Bengals, 24-10.

Worst Injury - A.J. Green, Cincinnati Bengals

Cincinnati has lost four straight. Even after tough losses to Pittsburgh and Kansas City in October, the Bengals were in position to make a run for a wild card position, but the losing streak now has everyone wondering if Marvin Lewis will survive another offseason.

Making matters worse, Green left Sunday on a cart. The Bengals best player has been dealing with foot issues over the last month -- that’s a major reason why Cincinnati has struggled so much.

When Green doesn’t play or leaves with an injury this season, the Bengals are 0-4.

Best History - Arizona Cardinals winning at Lambeau Field

The Cardinals hadn’t won at Lambeau Field since 1949. With a 2-9 record, it didn’t seem likely this Arizona team would be the one to break that streak.

But behind Chase Edmunds, who rushed for 53 yards and two touchdowns on just five carries, the Cardinals held on to give the Packers their first loss at home this season.

With the victory, Arizona snaps a nine-game losing streak at Lambeau. Clearly, the Cardinals haven’t visited the Frozen Tundra very often over the years, but still, winning there for the first time in almost 70 years is a big deal.

Worst Missed Field Goal - Mason Crosby, Green Bay Packers

Green Bay tied the game with under six minutes remaining and then had a shot to force overtime, but Crosby missed a 49-yard field goal as time expired.

Arizona won, 20-17.

The miss drops the Packers to 4-7-1, which virtually eliminates Green Bay from playoff contention. Unless something unforeseen happens, the Packers will miss the postseason in back-to-back seasons for the first time during the Mike McCarthy era.

Second Coach Fired - Mike McCarthy, Green Bay Packers

And the McCarthy era came to an end immediately following the loss to Arizona. Apparently losing to a team who had only beaten the 49ers coming into Week 13 was too hard to swallow, and it cost McCarthy his job.

McCarthy finishes his tenure at Green Bay with a .618 win percentage. Since taking over the Packers in 2006, his 125 wins was second only to Bill Belichick.

But ultimately, he led Green Bay to only one Super Bowl appearance with Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers as his quarterback. It was time for a change.

Honorable Best History - Tom Brady, New England Patriots

Brady has set several records in his career, the most notable being five Super Bowl titles, but on Sunday, he recorded a new mark on the ground.

Finally, at age 41, Brady reached 1,000 yards rushing in his career.

It only took him 578 attempts. The Patriots future Hall of Fame quarterback has averaged a whopping 1.7 yards per rushing attempt in his career.

Biggest Celebration Failure - Minnesota Vikings

The Vikings stayed close to the Patriots for nearly three quarters, but New England pulled away in the final 16 minutes to win, 24-10.

Maybe the Vikings poor touchdown celebration after their first score foreshadowed the ending. Adam Thielen hauled in the touchdown reception, and it appears as though he wanted to set up “monkey in the middle” with himself as the monkey.

But he doesn’t seem to realize the monkey is supposed to be on the opposite side of the ball.

Clearly, the Vikings need to work more at practice on their celebrations. Maybe if Thielen spent less time jawing with opposing coaches, he could nail down his celebration roll.

First Playoff Spot Clinched - Los Angeles Rams

The Rams weren’t exactly sharp coming out of their bye. And yet, they still scored 30 points and won by 14, beating the Lions, 30-16.

Todd Gurley ruled the day, going for 132 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Robert Woods led the Rams with 67 receiving yards and a score.

With the victory, the Rams clinched the first playoff spot in the NFL.

Best Fat Man Touchdowns - Taylor Decker, Detroit Lions & Akiem Spencer, Chicago Bears

The Lions pulled with a field goal of the Rams late in the third quarter after Matthew Stafford found …. Taylor Decker?

Yep, Decker was one of two big guys to score touchdowns on Sunday. For the Bears, defensive lineman Akiem Hicks did his best “Fridge” impression, rushing for a one-yard score.

Best Pick-Six - Bobby Wagner, Seattle Seahawks

There were four pick-six’s Sunday afternoon, and all of them were pretty impressive. Houston’s Zach Cunningham nearly took home this superlative, but Wagner’s late pick-six just beat him.

Wagner needed some oxygen after this 98-yard interception return. That was the final score in Seattle’s 43-16 thrashing of the 49ers.

Longest Winning Streak - Houston Texans

Boy, this Texans team is on fire. Winners of nine straight, Houston owns the longest winning streak in the NFL. On Sunday, the Texans beat the Browns, 29-13.

And they’ve dominated their last two opponents at home, outscoring the Titans and Browns, by 33 total points. While the defense is as healthy as it’s been in years, Deshaun Watson is healthy again and playing at a high level too.

Maybe the Chiefs, Patriots and Steelers are the AFC favorites, but the Chargers deserve to be in the conversation and so do the Texans.

Most Players with a Completed Pass - Baltimore Ravens

The Ravens have quietly steadied themselves with three straight wins and all of the sudden, Baltimore is within half a game of the AFC North lead.

Lamar Jackson started his third straight game, and while he is far from a polished passer, he gives the Ravens an added dimension in the running game. Against the Falcons, Jackson rushed for 75 yards.

He briefly left to be evaluated for a concussion, so Robert Griffin III played a little and completed two passes. Punter Sam Koch also completed a 21-yard pass on a fake punt for a first down. Jackson went 12 of 21 with 125 passing yards.

The Ravens beat the Falcons, 26-16.

Top Waiver Wire Addition - Damien Williams, Kansas City Chiefs

If Chargers running back Justin Jackson is still available, he’s the addition to make. Other than that, owners should take advantage of the sudden open job at running back for the Chiefs.

Spencer Ware is going to be the starter moving forward, and he’s the safest bet in fantasy. But change-of-pace back Damien Williams may possess the highest upside. He rushed for 38 yards on just five carries and also caught two passes.

Williams should be added in every deep league. By the way, the Chiefs kept rolling, beating the Raiders, 40-33, in Week 13.

Worst Quarterback Play - Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers

Four weeks ago this Thursday, the Panthers and Steelers faced off in what was expected to be a classic showdown. The game was a blowout, and it seems as though neither team has played well since then.

Newton certainly didn’t play well Sunday, as he threw four interceptions versus the lowly Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense. Two of them came in the fourth quarter.

The 2015 MVP finished 28 of 41 with 300 passing yards and two touchdowns to go with the four interceptions. Tampa Bay won, 24-17.

After losing four straight, the Panthers have fallen to 6-6.

Worst Drop - Charles Clay, Buffalo Bills

I didn’t think the Bills and three-game winning streak would be in the same sentence this season, but Buffalo was a late-touchdown drive away from the first three-game winning streak of the Josh Allen era.

The rookie quarterback scrambled around to give the Bills a chance on fourth-and-11 late in the game. On the final meaningful play, he found a wide open Charles Clay in the end zone.

However, the veteran tight end dropped the pass, and the Bills lost to the Miami Dolphins, 21-17.

Biggest Snoozer - Indianapolis Colts vs. Jacksonville Jaguars

This isn’t to take away from the Jaguars win to finally end a long losing streak. But man, this one was boring. 

These two teams averaged 238 offensive yards and scored zero touchdowns. The Jaguars won, 6-0.

After two turnovers to start the game, the Colts and Jaguars combined for 12 punts. That’s not good.

With Cody Kessler at quarterback moving forward, Jacksonville will have to play defense like this in order to win anymore games.

Biggest Roller Coaster Performers - Tennessee Titans

Are the Titans good? Are they bad? Nobody can figure it out, as they continue to be the most up-and-down team in the league.

On Sunday, they struggled early at home against the Jets, falling behind 16-0. But the Titans scored a touchdown to cut into the lead just before halftime and then tallied 20 second-half points to win, 26-22.

The Titans are the last team to have beaten the Patriots and Cowboys. However, Tennessee has also lost to Miami, Buffalo and Indianapolis, none of whom are above .500.

Yep, Tennessee is probably right where it should be at 6-6.