NFL - NEWS & NOTES

Wow. The Ravens just stupidly played their way out of a victory. The clock management at the end of the game was atrocious.

 

The Bengals were luckier than the Bills because unlike the Bills, they were not the better team today. Harbaugh deserves to be fired.

 

He went back to Capt Checkdown sigh he did that quite a lot under Mike Zimmer

 

Agreed with you guys and Ed Donatell has got to go. One of the worst rated defenses in the league with ample talent.

 

Bengals survive and advance to play Bills, defeat Ravens 24-17



It took the Bengals every second of their opening-round playoff game to remove all doubt, but they were able to defeat the Ravens 24-17 and advance to the divisional round.

Cincinnati took a 24-17 lead in the fourth quarter when defensive end Sam Hubbard recovered quarterback Tyler Huntley‘s fumble on the goal line and returned it 98 yards for a touchdown. Huntley tried to go over the top of the defense but linebacker Logan Wilson jarred the ball loose and right into Hubbard’s waiting arms. While tight end Mark Andrews gave chase, he couldn’t catch up to Hubbard.


Still, the Ravens had their opportunities late, mainly because the Bengals could not do much of anything on offense.

Baltimore started its final drive with the ball at the Cincinnati 46 with 3:14 left in the contest. But down by seven and with two timeouts, the Ravens showed a curious lack of urgency as the offense continued to huddle even as the clock ticked down.

The Ravens had first-and-10 at the Cincinnati 17 with 34 seconds on the clock. But an incomplete pass and holding penalty pushed Baltimore back to second-and-20 with 22 seconds left.

After a pair of incomplete passes to Mark Andrews, quarterback Tyler Huntley tried a Hail Mary to the left side of the field as time expired. While it looked like James Proche got a couple of hands on the ball, it fell in the end zone and the Bengals punched their ticket to play the Bills next weekend.

Filling in for the injured Lamar Jackson, Huntley performed admirably in his first postseason start. He completed 17-of-29 passes for 226 yards with a pair of touchdowns and an interception while also rushing for 54 yards. Baltimore put up 364 yards of offense, going 3-of-11 on third down and accumulating 23 first downs.

While Cincinnati finished 7-of-13 on third down, the club had just 234 total yards and averaged just 4.3 yards per play. Quarterback Joe Burrow finished 23-of-32 for 209 yards with a touchdown. Burrow also had a QB sneak for a touchdown in the third quarter.

Ja’Marr Chase caught nine passes for 85 yards with a 7-yard touchdown in the first quarter.

Already playing without their starting right tackle and right guard, the Bengals lost their left tackle, Jonah Williams, to a knee injury late in the first half and he was ruled out.

That could’ve been a factor for why Cincinnati’s offense got next to nothing after Burrow scored in the third quarter, punting three times.

Fortunately for anyone pulling for the Bengals, Hubbard came through with the play of the night.

PFT

 

Saturday, January 21

AFC: 4:30 PM (ET) 4 Jacksonville at 1 Kansas City (NBC, Peacock, Universo)

NFC: 8:15 PM (ET) 6 New York Giants at 1 Philadelphia (FOX, FOX Deportes)

Sunday, January 22

AFC 3:00 PM (ET) 3 Cincinnati at 2 Buffalo (CBS, Paramount+)

NFC: 6:30 PM (ET) 4 Tampa Bay or 5 Dallas at 2 San Francisco (FOX/FOX Deportes)

 

Cousins explained the decision to throw short of the sticks, to tight end T.J. Hockenson. The Giants stopped Hockenson well short of the line to gain.

“ saw single-high [safety],” Cousins told reporters, “tried to work Justin, didn’t feel good about putting it up to Justin, and when I went to progress, I just felt like I was about to get sacked and I felt like I’ve got to put the ball in play, and I can’t go down with sack, so I thought I’d kick it out to T.J. I had thrown short of the sticks on a few occasions in the game and even going back a few weeks and just felt like just throwing it short of the sticks isn’t the end of the world. It’s just obviously tight coverage, so didn’t have the chance to pull away. But I just felt like I was going to go down and take a sack if I didn’t put it out.”

Cousins added that the deep safety shaded toward Jefferson.

“Most of the day they were moving over to Justin,” Cousins said.

Coach Kevin O’Connell took the blame for the play that was called.

:I could have done a better job in the moment,” O’Connell told reporters. “He knew it was fourth down, and he just didn’t want to — he wanted to make sure he put the ball in play. I’ve got to go back. I was watching some of the routes down the field to kind of materialize, and the pocket may or may not have been collapsing on him, and he just wanted to make sure he gave somebody a chance, and they made a play. Had some double coverage to Justin on that drive, and trying to have K.J. [Osborne] come to life, trying to have Adam [Thielen] come to life. We’ll take a long hard look at it. Our two-minute offense has been pretty darn good all season helping us, and in the end we didn’t get it done on that drive, and it did feel rather abrupt the way it happened.”

Obviously, O’Connell didn’t envision the ball being thrown short of the sticks.

“The intent as a playcaller is you’re not going to call a primary concept where somebody is short of the sticks to gain, especially on fourth down,” O’Connell said. “If it’s third down and you can catch, convert and make it a fourth and two or three, that’s OK. But yeah, looking back on it, I maybe could have just been a little bit more, ‘Hey, this is kind of where you want the ball to go.’ But I want Kirk to be able to play. I want him to be free out there to make good decisions. He did all night long. Moved our team. Stood in there, getting the ball out of his hand in rhythm. It just so happens that that down — we just didn’t get enough on the play regardless. In the end I look at as it’s as much on me in that play call, even though we had eligibles with a chance down the field. Maybe. There’s always a play that could be better for your guys out there, and that one will stick with me.”

 

All season long Ed Donatell defense was very confusing middle of the field was always open for the deep pass it was VERY CONFUSING!

 

Ravens were moving the ball decently easy at that point plan was to score and leave very little to zero time on the clock and head to overtime. Sure because they didnt score they will get slammed butnhad the scored and Burrow takes the bengals to a field goal for the win with 45 seconds they get slammed for that too.

 

If Jacksonville beats the Chiefs and the Eagles beat the Giants, the NFL is really going to regret putting the AFC Championship game on during prime time instead of the NFC Championship game with the Eagles vs 49ers, Dallas or Brady.

Edit: Apparently it's preset BC network rights alternate the championship in primetime.

 

Well it wouldn't have been that yesterday the way the pass catchers were playing. What was it like 4 or 5 drops in the 1st half? As was proven by the scoreline, they had no kind of margin for that. You have a backups backup in there it means everybody else needs to turn up, particularly your best players on that side of the ball. Way too many errors. Waddle had a piss poor game.

 

The way it works is, you get your points first, then you worry about the opponents points. Because if you don't get your points it doesn't matter.

The fact the Bengals weren't using their own TOs there proves the point. They were happy to run the clock cos they knew just inside the 20 is no sure thing at all.

The Ravens were a FD too early in their thinking. Harbaugh screwed it up at the end.

 

Possibly, but it could have been just as easily on the high side if the ball was being placed differently.

All things equal - I’m confident in the idea that the Dolphins get out the gate much quicker with Tua under center.

 

In my opinion, there is a difference in the way a ball thrown at you 'feels', by different QB's. I noticed that even as a kid in the sandlots and even growing up playing baseball. Im not making excuses for all the drops and there were a ton of them, but just maybe if Tua was under center, some of those balls would have been caught, based simply on familiarity. Its possible Skylers ball felt different or the 'touch' was different, i guess. But, as stated, you need those passes caught if you wanna move the chains and score points.

Im leaning towards there being more success in not only the passing game, but the complete offense if Tua was in there.

 

Tom Brady loves playing America's Team.


The G.O.A.T. is 7-0 in his career against Dallas, the most wins without a loss by any quarterback versus the Cowboys (Joe Montana is the only other at 5-0). But Brady has never faced Dallas in the postseason.


Meanwhile, the Cowboys are looking to snap their streak of playoff road futility. Jerry Jones' club has lost eight consecutive road postseason games. Their last win as a visitor came in 1992. The Cowboys are 4-11 in the playoffs since 1996, the third-worst record in NFL -- only the Lions (0-5) and the Commanders (2-6) have worse records. Dallas has lost each of their last three playoff games as a wild-card team -- 1999 (at Minnesota), 2003 (at Carolina), 2006 (at Seattle).


The Bucs and Cowboys tussled way back in Week 1, a 19-3 Tampa win in which Dak Prescott broke his right thumb, causing him to miss the next five games.


The Bucs navigated a roller-coaster season, falling to 3-5 at Halloween and stumbling to an 8-9 record, Brady's first-ever losing season. But it was enough to secure a division title in the weak NFC South. Tampa needed some extraordinary comebacks to earn several wins while getting scorched by contenders. But Brady saw his connection with Mike Evans come to life down the stretch, and the use of up-tempo has served Tampa well.


The Cowboys generated two separate four-game win streaks, running to their second straight 12-5 season under Mike McCarthy. Behind strong defensive performances, Dallas went 4-1 with Prescott on the shelf. Upon the starter's return, the Cowboys authored several blowout wins, including against the Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings. But McCarthy's club enters the postseason laying an egg in Washington in Week 18. Can they wipe that bad taste out of their mouths with a road win in Tampa?


The Buccaneers are one of four teams ever to make the playoffs with a losing record (excluding strike-shortened seasons). Two of the previous three won a home game in the Wild Card Round (Seahawks in 2010; Panthers in 2014). Can Brady and the Bucs make it three of four?


Here are five things to watch for when the Cowboys visit the Buccaneers on Monday during Super Wild Card Weekend:

1. Cowboys pass rush versus Brady's quick game. TB12 has navigated offensive line issues, exacerbated by injuries, by getting the ball out lightning-quick to avoid hits. Brady, who set single-season records for completions (490) and attempts (733), had a 55.3 quick pass percentage in 2022, the highest in the league, per Next Gen Stats. His 2,547 passing yards on quick passes were the most in the NFL, and 17 TDs were the second most. At 45, Brady wants to avoid hits like the plague. Getting the ball out immediately is his best strategy behind a banged-up O-line. Monday, he'll face a Cowboys defense that can menace the passer with Micah Parsons and Demarcus Lawrence wreaking havoc. Dallas generated a 13.5 QB pressure percentage on quick passes, second-best in the NFL. The Cowboys' pass rush will be Sunday's biggest key. Dallas led the NFL in QB pressures at 35.0 in 2022. Parsons could destroy the Bucs' game plan with his uncanny ability to win immediately and live in the backfield. If center Ryan Jensen can return from a season-long knee injury -- the Pro Bowler was activated from IR on Monday morning -- it would be a big boon for a Bucs offensive line that continues to battle through injuries that have led to a wobbly offense.
2. Will Dak Prescott's turnover deluge continue? Prescott tied for the NFL lead with 15 interceptions in 12 games played. His five missed games were the most by a player to lead the NFL in INTs in league history. Prescott's 3.8 percent INT rate was the highest by a QB to make the postseason since Peyton Manning's 5.1 in 2015. In recent weeks, many of his turnovers have simply been awful decisions, particularly in Week 18, showing signs of pressing. But when he's right, Prescott is capable of dicing up defenses. His 23 pass TDs since returning from injury in Week 7 are tied for second-most. The Cowboys lead the NFL in scoring offense (32.4 PPG) and third-down conversion percentage (52.3) since Prescott returned (second with 78.6 red-zone TD percentage). The key for Dallas will be keeping Bucs pass rushers at bay. Prescott has struggled under pressure, completing just 49.5 percent of his passes with five TDs and eight INTs for a 52.5 passer rating. Tampa's 25.1 pressure rate is the sixth-lowest in the NFL. If the Cowboys give Prescott time and he avoids turnovers, Dallas' offense could roll.
3. Bucs pass attack versus suspect Cowboys secondary. Injuries left the Cowboys secondary weak down the stretch. With offenses able to take advantage of corners, Dallas allowed 10 more points per game and generated 2.8 fewer sacks per game over its last five contests than its first 12 -- despite playing backup QBs in three straight games to end the season. The Cowboys desperately need their D-line to win quickly to help cover the secondary. If Brady has time, it could portend to big games from Evans, Chris Godwin and even Julio Jones. Facing Dallas' defense could keep the Bucs' deep passing attack surging. In the past two games, Brady earned a 64.3 completion percentage and 17.6 yards per attempt with four touchdowns, no interceptions and a 147.3 passer rating on downfield passes (42.6 completion percent, 8.8 YPA, 2-6 TD-INT ratio, 64.1 passer rating in Weeks 1-16). The Brady-Evans connection struggled with chemistry most of the season but found its stride in recent weeks. Evans produced five receptions, 176 yards, and a career-high three touchdowns on downfield passes from Brady in Week 17 versus Carolina (he didn't play in Week 18). Can they pick up where they left off in the postseason?
4. Will CeeDee Lamb have a playoff breakout? In last year's quick postseason exit, Lamb caught just one pass for 21 yards on five targets despite playing 60 snaps. That won't happen again. The Cowboys' clear go-to-target generated career highs with 107 catches for 1,359 yards and nine TDs this season. Lamb's ability to put defensive backs in a mixer and win at every level makes him one of the most dangerous weapons on the football field. The Cowboys' offense needs the third-year pro to have a big game Monday. He generated 34.7 percent of Dallas' receiving yards in 2022, the fourth-highest in the NFL. Expect to see McCarthy and offensive coordinator Kellen Moore deploy Lamb from the slot liberally against the Bucs. Lamb led the NFL with 826 receiving yards aligned in the slot in 2022. Meanwhile, the Tampa defense struggled to defend players lined up inside, allowing a 73.1 completion percentage (last in the NFL), 1,475 passing yards (29th), 10 passing TDs (T-28th), and a 109.2 passer rating (30th) to players aligned in the slot. The matchup makes Lamb a prime candidate for a blowup performance.
5. Which run game will find a playoff gear? Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard shared carries in 2022, with Elliott generating 876 rushing yards and 12 TDs on 231 carries, while Pollard netted 1,007 yards and nine scores on 193 carries. Pollard not only represented the more efficient back, but his increased snaps offered more big-play potential than the plodding Elliott. Zeke averaged 2.7 yards per carry since Week 15 and has not surpassed the 100-yard rushing mark since Week 5, 2021 (28 games, including playoffs). Facing a middling Bucs defense, will the Cowboys continue to feed him, or will we see Pollard get more touches in space? For Tampa, the Bucs need "Playoff Lenny" to return. Leonard Fournette has scored six TDs in five playoff games with Tampa, earning his famous moniker during the Super Bowl run. Tampa's run game struggled most of the season, generating a league-worst 76.9 rushing yards per game -- second fewest by a playoff team in NFL history. But in Week 1, Fournette earned a season-high 127 rush yards against Dallas -- his only game over the 100-yard mark. All these weeks later, the Buccaneers offense would be much more potent with Fournette and Rachaad White churning out yards.

NFL.com

 

Cowboys kicker has missed all four XP attempts. It won't matter

 

What, no faith in one of those "patented" Brady 4th quarter comeback storybook endings?

 

5th times the charm

 

Noah left his hands on the bench

 

Monday Night Football: Dak Prescott throws four TDs as Cowboys overpower Tom Brady, Bucs



Dak Prescott threw for 305 yards and four touchdowns as he and the Cowboys slayed all demons with a 31-14 win in Tampa on Monday night.

The Cowboys beat Tom Brady for the first time in franchise history after seven losses in what could be Brady’s final game with the Bucs. They won a playoff game for the first time since 2018 and only the second in Prescott’s seven seasons and won on the road in the postseason for the first time since 1992.


With the win, the Cowboys advance to play the 49ers on Sunday in Santa Clara, with the NFC East getting three teams into the final four. The Giants will play at Philadelphia on Saturday.

It was all fun and games for Dallas aside from Brett Maher‘s kicking problems.

Maher missed four extra points, setting a modern-era NFL record for misses before making his fifth attempt. He also missed his only PAT try in Week 18.

On Monday, he missed the first two wide right, the third wide left and the fourth off the top of the right upright.

Cowboys scouts likely were busy lining up kickers for tryouts at The Star on Tuesday.

That was one of the few things that didn’t go their way against the Bucs. Injury concerns to left tackle Jason Peters (hip) and defensive back Jayron Kearse (knee) were the only other issues after a butt kicking of Brady and the Bucs.

Prescott completed 25 of 33 passes, with touchdowns of 22 and 11 yards to Dalton Schultz, 2 yards to Michael Gallup and 18 to CeeDee Lamb. He also ran for a 1-yard touchdown on fourth down. His touchdown throw to Lamb also came on fourth down.

Schultz caught seven passes for 95 yards and Lamb four for 68.

Brady went one-and-done in the postseason for only the second time in 12 years, with the last time coming in 2019 in his final game with the Patriots. Speculation is ripe that this is Brady’s final game with the Bucs, with the only question whether Brady plays with another team next season.

He threw his first red zone interception in his Bucs’ career, with Kearse picking him in the end zone with the Bucs on the 5-yard line and trailing only 6-0. That’s as close as they came to making it a game.

The Cowboys pulled away, scoring early and often, taking an 18-0 lead into the locker room at halftime and were up 24-0 before the Bucs scored for the first time.

Brady finished 35-of-66 for 351 yards with two touchdowns and the interception.

PFT