NFL Week 13 Action

Browns 31, Chiefs 28 (FINAL)
And now I'm going to leave you all. This has been tiring so I'm not going to stick around for the late games.

Browns 28, Chiefs 28 (9:41, OT)
A long run by Anderson, and the Browns can win this game now. A third upset for the day, after IND-TEN and ARI-STL.

Patriots 28, Lions 21 (2:33, 4th)
Yep. Pats lead. Somehow you knew the Lions would blow this game.

Falcons 24, Redskins 14 (0:21, 4th)
Somehow, you knew that the Redskins would miss on 4th down after that dumb playcall on 3rd down.

Titans 20, Colts 17 (0:07, 4th)
The second 60-yard game-winner of the season has just occurred. For the second straight week the Titans have lucked out in the 4th quarter.

Random Note
Games over: ARI-STL, NO-SF, NYJ-GB. SD-BUF is close to over too thanks to yet another LTTD.

Falcons 24, Redskins 14 (2:00, 4th)
Never say never: a blocked punt from the Redskins gives them a small hope for getting back in this. If time starts to run low, the smart decision is to kick the FG first and then try and recover an onside kick. But all too often teams fail to do this. Lots of interesting games, as the Chiefs-Browns is yet to be decided and will be heading to OT (something I somewhat predicted earlier).

Lions 21, Patriots 21 (8:35, 4th)
In true Lions fashion, they've allowed the Patriots to come back. Odds are probably in New England's favor now.

Falcons 24, Redskins 14 (2:40, 4th)
As the Redskins make a so-far successful last ditch effort, it begs the question--why not open up the passing game sooner?

Whoops---game over.

Chiefs 28, Browns 28 (0:35, 4th)
And with less than a minute to play, the Browns have tied the game. Roughing the passer (a rare deserved one) has given Washington new hope. And with 2:38 to play, the Colts have tied the Titans. Who would have expected so many close games?

Lions 21, Patriots 13 (13:07, 4th)
Congratulations to Jason Hanson, and his 1,500 points. And to the Lions, will they hang on for their own congratulations?

Cardinals 31, Rams 13 (8:14, 4th)
It looks safe to say that the Cardinals will pull off the upset (just as I predicted they would). Meanwhile, the Saints now have a 2-TD lead, and Alex Smith needs to be Joe Montana to pull this one out. Also, there are lots of teams that will need to get going to avert upsets, though the Colts look about to tie or take a lead.

Falcons 24, Redskins 14 (6:22, 4th)
Two observations as the Redskins need a long scoring drive right now to get back into this one. One, people are going to say that Vick is back to being a great NFL QB, even though this is an isolated event at the moment. Two, could there be a running back controversy in Washington next season? Betts has played absolutely lights-out the past couple games.

Chiefs 28, Browns 21 (~5:30, 4th)
As this game nears its conclusion, we can safely say that Trent Green is back: 21 of 25, 4 touchdowns. But this game could still go either way. Derek Anderson has replaced an injured Charlie Frye and been serviceable.

Bears 21, Vikings 6 (late 3rd)
This game is an embarrassment to quarterbacks everywhere.
(att-cmp-yds-int) Johnson 11-26-73-4, Grossman 4-14-30-3
The Bears are not going anywhere if Grossman doesn't get better soon.

Lions 18, Pats 13 (2:18, 3rd)
There's been a lot of insanity and I can't keep up with it all. A safety and FG have given the Lions an awkward 5-point lead.

Titans 17, Colts 14 (12:24, 4th)
The Titans are playing yet another team very tough. Could go either way. Young is doing pretty well, good on 65% of his passes for 2 TD's, with 65 rushing yards. Rookie of the Year perhaps? Maybe if Colston is out for much longer he will be.

Saints 17, 49ers 10 (9:02, 3rd)
Well, they overturned the fumble ruling, but the 49ers held the Saints to a field goal. They are still in the game. Meanwhile, the Bears now lead the Vikings 14-6, on a defensive score. The offense doesn't exist, but the team can still win. And Jerious Norwood just broke off a huge run for the Falcons 23rd consecutive point. Washington is falling apart at the seams.

Saints 14, 49ers 10 (10:52, 3rd)
Now that was creative. The 49ers set up for a normal kickoff, but Nedney booted the ball straight up, even pretending to track a deep kick flight through the air. The 49ers have the ball back and could take the lead, perhaps. Things change in the NFL very rapidly---like with that interception Smith just came right back and threw---and that fumble MacKenzie just did at the end of the play. Or did he never have the pick? This is a very confusing moment in a very close game.

Chargers 17, Bills 14 (8:09, 3rd)
Uh-oh Chargers, uh-oh. Tomlinson will probably take care of this but they need to be careful. The 49ers just scored on a nice 48-yard TD pass from Smith to Bryant. And the Chiefs have extended their lead to 28-14. Lots of these early games are going to go down to the wire.

Random Comment
You know, my point spreads were messed up, but if the scores hold, I'd be 8-1-1 in my predictions by 4:00.

Chargers 17, Bills 7 (11:33, 3rd)
The Bills have finally scored. Can't say the same for Tennesssee, whose drive was halted by Vince Young's second interception. Elsewhere, the Lions are ready to tie the game at 13.

Bears 7, Vikings 3 (10:58, 3rd)
The quarterbacking in this game has been horrid. The teams have thrown a combined 30 passes for just 95 combined yards, with 3 picks. All the attention is on Eli Manning, but Rex Grossman has been struggling mightly of late. He's completed 3 passes to a teammate and 2 to the opposition. The Vikings are currently in the red zone thanks to Chester Taylor.

Falcons 16, Redskins 14 (10:32, 3rd)
Trouble brewing for Washington on a very surreal interception, where Campbell was in trouble and got hit as he threw, where it was bobbled by a D-lineman and picked off. The Redskins looked terrific in the beginning of this game, but it could be unraveling as we speak.

And now the Falcons have taken the lead. It will be interesting to see if the young Campbell can recover.

Saints 14, 49ers 3 (0:43, 2nd)
Just before half, Reggie Bush scores his second touchdown, on his fifth attempt. The Saints took awhile to get their offense generated, but they seem to be on track now. Brees only has 95 yards, so even though the last few weeks made it seem possible that he could pass Marino's single-season yards record, it's looking not so good now.

Chiefs 20, Browns 14, pending review (10:08, 3rd)
This game is going much faster than any of the others. But it might be one of the last to be decided. Charlie Frye is 11 of 13 with no turnovers. If he keeps this up Cleveland has a great shot.

Colts 14, Titans 9 (0:11, 2nd)
And just like that, the lead is cut, pending review. This game is going down to the wire, unless Manning keeps throwing pick after pick. Look for adjustments, as it is doubtful that he will struggle all game.

Lions 10, Patriots 10 (1:15, 2nd)
The Patriots have now tied the game, probably putting the teams on level ground for the 2nd half. This means the Pats will have 20 minutes to get their act together and play like a division leader.

Redskins 14, Falcons 10 (2:00, 2nd)
For what it's worth, Jason Campbell reminds me a lot of Doug Williams. The straight dropback, the release, the #17 for the Redskins. And the completion percentage hovering around 50.

Chiefs 14, Browns 14 (0:19, 2nd)
The Browns have struck back right before half. Back-and-forth, back-and-forth. Meanwhile, Atlanta, after falling behind 14-0, is on its way back: 14-9 with a point-after pending. Can you believe, a TD pass from Vick?

Lions 7, Patriots 3 (5:28, 2nd)
Ouch, that hurts, losing a fumble on first down inside the 5-yard line. It's these kind of things that shatter the confidence of 2-9 teams.

Colts 14, Titans 0 (7:18, 2nd)
After a sluggish start, the Colts are cruising. Arizona has also added to their lead, and the Saints have taken a lead.

Chiefs 14, Browns 7 (9:32, 2nd)
And the Chiefs have nabbed the lead. On another note, the Packers are no longer worthy of my time, unless they make this close again.

Cardinals 7, Rams 3 (10:38, 2nd)
That failed 4th down from the one could be a momentum shift.

Lions 7, Patriots 3 (13:44, 2nd)
This game might get interesting. I doubt many thought Detroit would be close; I didn't think it would be.

Bears 7, Vikings 0 (12:20, 2nd)
Chicago strikes first, on yet another Hester highlight. This is looking to be a low scoring game as one might have expected coming in. Meanwhile, the 49ers are close to striking first against the Saints.

Jets 17, Packers 0 (12:40, 2nd)
Pennington is on fire and the Packers are in huge trouble. Pennington has been a nice surprise this year and continues against Green Bay. If Favre weren't Favre, then McCarthy would almost have to follow Gibbs and get the young QB some experience for the future.

Redskins 14, Falcons 0 (13:44, 2nd)
Vick is clearly short on that 4th down sneak attempt. If this short field results in another Skins TD, this game is already over. (Although we all know about another recent 21-0 comeback.)

Browns 7, Chiefs 7 (14:19, 2nd)
The Chiefs have come back to tie this thing. I had the Chiefs tagged to rout the Browns, but noticed that many pundits were picking the Browns to upset. Clearly I underestimated the Browns after there horrible play against Cincy.

Colts 7, Titans 0 (3:51, 1st)
Manning had been off to a rough start but not so much with that pass.

Redskins 14, Falcons 0 (2:43, 1st)
Yep, the Falcons are in major free fall. Moss is back and already making a big difference in this game. Good pass from Campbell but better catch by Moss.

Jets 10, Packers 0 (4:45, 1st)
The Jets are relying on Chad's arm and it's working very well: he's already got 108 yards and a TD. The Rams mustered a field goal, cutting Arizona's lead to 7-3.

Redskins 7, Falcons 0 (5:48, 1st)
Vick 1 of 4 for 6 yards; it's early but not looking good. Meanwhile, the Jets and Rams are in the red zone.

Jets 3, Packers 0 (7:08, 1st quarter)
Turnover as Favre fumbles. Not looking good for the Packers early. Favre must hang on to the ball if the Pack are going to win.

49ers 0, Saints 0 (12:13, 1st quarter)
Lots of incomplete passes are slowing this game down as both teams are taking their shots. It seems that all this talk about Gore has gotten Nolan to try and open up the passing game. No luck so far.

Redskins 7, Falcons 0 (6:53, 1st quarter)
Ladell Betts carried the Skins to that TD. Campbell only threw one pass, but he also broke off a nice run. Lots of early scoring today.

Also, Suisham appears to be handling the kicking duties; Novak's days are numbered.

Cardinals 7, Rams 0 (7:38, 1st quarter)
The Rams leaky run D suggested that James might break out; he's got 32 yards on 5 carries...

Browns 7, Chiefs 0 (9:46, 1st quarter)
The Browns are already on the board as Charlie Frye went 4-4, 62 yards and the TD pass. His game against Cincinnati was horrible, but he's looking good today.


In this space, while the games progress, I will write down various comments on various games.