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Week 17 winners: McVay remains top-tier coach, Jackson's MVP push

Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay. Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Week 17 NFL winners: Sean McVay remains top-tier coach, Lamar Jackson's MVP push

By Adam Gretz | Last updated 12/31/23

With the Week 17 games in the books, let us take a look at some of the biggest winners from around the NFL.

Joe Flacco, QB, Cleveland Browns. The most unbelievable story in the NFL continued on Thursday as Joe Flacco, who did not even open the season on the Browns roster, led them to a playoff spot with a 37-20 win over the New York Jets.

The Browns are now 4-1 in Flacco's five starts, winning each of the past four, while he has thrown for 13 touchdowns and 1,616 yards. Thursday's win was perhaps his best showing as he threw for 309 yards and three touchdowns.

Mason Rudolph, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers. Speaking of unexpected backups exceeding expectations, the Steelers improved to 2-0 under Mason Rudolph with an impressive 30-23 win over the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday. He completed 18-of-24 passes and threw for 274 yards in the win, continuing to provide a big-play element to the Steelers offense.

He was an afterthought as a free agent this summer, returned to Pittsburgh on a one-year deal, and after being relegated to third-string duty for the first 15 weeks is giving the Steelers a chance to still make the playoffs. He has thrown for 564 yards, two touchdowns, zero interceptions and helped the Steelers score 64 total points in his two starts.

CeeDee Lamb, WR, Dallas Cowboys. Nobody has had an answer for CeeDee Lamb in recent weeks and he had another monster game on Saturday night in the Cowboys' 20-19 win over the Detroit Lions. He caught 13 passes for 227 yards and this 92-yard touchdown.

— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) December 31, 2023

He has also set the franchise record for receptions (122) and yards (1,651) in a singles season.

Lamar Jackson, QB, Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens locked up the No. 1 seed, home-field advantage in the playoffs and the bye week with a dominant 56-19 win over the Miami Dolphins. Lamar Jackson helped drive that win with 321 yards passing and five touchdowns in a performance that should lock up a second NFL MVP award for him.

Jackson put himself in the driver's seat for the award with a huge performance in San Francisco a week ago, and he emphatically added to his resume on Sunday.

Chicago Bears. Even though it is most likely going to end with another year outside of the playoffs, Bears fans have to at least be sensing some optimism for what is ahead. Quarterback Justin Fields looks like he is settling in as their franchise quarterback, the team is finishing the season strong and now they have the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.

They secured that pick on Sunday when the Carolina Panthers were 26-0 losers to the Jacksonville Jaguars, clinching the worst record in the NFL. The Panthers' pick belongs to the Bears thanks to the trade that sent the 2023 No. 1 overall pick to Carolina, which used it to select quarterback Bryce Young.

Sean McVay, HC, Los Angeles Rams. This is not the best record Sean McVay has had as head coach of the Los Angeles Rams, and it might not result in another trip to the Super Bowl, but he proved again this season that he is still one of the elite head coaches in the NFL in getting this Rams team back to the playoffs.

They officially clinched a spot on Sunday with a win over the New York Giants and successfully bouncing back from a five-win season in 2023. Expectations were low for this Rams team at the start, but they have a shot to win double-digit games for the fifth time in seven years under McVay.

Derek Carr, QB, New Orleans Saints. The start of Derek Carr's tenure in New Orleans got off to a rocky start early in the season, but he has really started to come on in recent weeks and was outstanding on Sunday in a must-win game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He completed 24-of-32 passes for 197 yard and two touchdowns to give the Saints a chance to clinch the NFC South next week.

Jonathan Gannon, HC, Arizona Cardinals. It was just one season ago that Gannon was helping the Eagles defense make a run to the Super Bowl with a performance that earned him a head coaching role with the Cardinals. On Sunday, he returned to Philadelphia and helped deliver a stunning 35-31 upset win over the Eagles.

The season has probably not gone as planned for Gannon and the Cardinals, but his four wins this season have been pretty impressive coming against Dallas, Atlanta, Pittsburgh and now Philadelphia.

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