Each week of the NFL season brings a host of new questions… and answers some old ones, too. Let’s recap what we learned in week 13… and what we’ll be wondering about in week 14 and beyond.
ANSWER: Yes, games are closer than ever
There’s a pretty good bell curve of teams’ records in the NFL: You have one team at 11-1 and three at 2-10, while the other 28 are spread across every win total in between. That’s all normal and standard. But the actual games themselves are closer than ever before. Twelve of the 15 games played so far in Week 13 have been decided by seven or fewer points, which is the highest single-week mark in NFL history, according to NFL research. Additionally, three separate teams – Minnesota, Indianapolis and Tampa Bay – all won their games in the final minute of the fourth quarter or in overtime.
Pretty tight, right? Not only that, there have been 106 games this season with a winning margin of seven or fewer points, and 92 were won by six or fewer points, both the most of their respective totals through Week 13 in NFL history. Additionally, 113 games have been decided by eight or fewer points, which puts them only second behind the 2022 season (114 games).
Put another way, you probably already know that the NFL’s parity is demonstrated by the fact that half of its playoff teams rotate every year. Now it’s clear how thin the margins between success and failure are in this competition.
QUESTION: How far can the Eagles go?
After Philadelphia stiff-armed a Ravens team that was discussed as a Super Bowl contender, it’s worth wondering just how good this Eagles team could be. Saquon Barkley is the workhorse here — the dude casually threw up another 100-plus yard rushing game on Sunday — but every element of the Eagles offense is working now.
Philadelphia is 10-2 and on a seven-game winning streak. Still ahead of Philadelphia’s schedule: the Panthers next week, the Steelers next, and then three division games to end the season. Thirteen wins aren’t outside the realm of possibility, and while that might not be enough to earn the NFC’s No. 1 seed, that total should be enough to claim a division title. And from there, who knows? The Eagles are currently lurking and chewing up the ground game, a dangerous type of team to face in January.
ANSWER: Fine, we believe in you now, Sam Darnold
Look, we’ve all been guilty of expecting the worst from Sam Darnold. Comes with the territory when you’re talking about someone who still carries the stench of Jet. (More on that in a moment.) But it might be time to admit that Darnold really isn’t going to explode… at least, not until he gets the Vikings into the postseason. Minnesota is 10-2, and only Detroit’s spectacular run (more on that later) keeps the Vikings from a home playoff game and a possible first-round bye.
On Sunday against Arizona, Darnold and the Vikings trailed 19-6 late in the third quarter and went on to win 23-22, the definition of a gutsy comeback. Darnold remains one of the league leaders in all hitting categories, and he is no longer talked about as the stopgap and liability in waiting. Like some Minnesota quarterbacks of yore — ‘sup, Kirk Cousins — he’ll have to prove himself in the postseason, but the fact he even gets a chance to do so ranks as one of the great revivals of the NFL career of the 21st. century.
QUESTION: Are the Lions officially in Super Bowl-or-bust territory?
We have a sliding scale of expectations for our NFL teams. Every time the Jaguars or Titans get through a season – a hell, a month – without setting themselves on fire, that counts as a success. But what if the Chiefs were to bounce in the first round of the playoffs? Massive underachievement, massive failures across the board.
Accordingly, it is now our duty to report that the Detroit Lions – yes, the team that set the L to “losing” – have graduated from the ranks of “just being lucky to be in the mix” and are now firmly in the “ Super Bowl or nothing” camp. At 11-1, and having absolutely outplayed their opponents, the Lions have lost every bit of their former sucker identity. They’re in that perfect place now, where we still find them charming while finding a way to defeat everyone they face. (Hell, they fired a Chicago Bears coach during the season for the first time in franchise history.) This will get annoying in 2025, but this year we can still make a case for them to succeed. But if they don’t… well, as strange as it sounds to say about a Detroit team, a playoff run that ends right before the Super Bowl would be a disappointment.
You can’t blame anyone for this but yourself, Detroit. Yes, we are as surprised as you are.
It must just burn Jets fans to death to see Darnold and Geno Smith succeed elsewhere, while at the same time watching MVPs turn into absolute dog poop as soon as they put on the green helmet of shame. On Sunday, Smith returned to MetLife Stadium, the same hellhole where he toiled for the first four years of his stellar career. The Jets trailed him and Seattle by two touchdowns, but saw the Seahawks break free and win 26-22.
The Jets have lost eight of their last nine games, and with Buffalo, the Rams and Miami down twice, New York is looking at a catastrophic season. And even then they wouldn’t be as bad as their stadium mates, who have already lost seven games. There is very little to be happy about at MetLife these days – a combined record of 5-19 – and very little hope for the near future. Anyway, at least the pitchers and catchers will report in about two months.
QUESTION: Was Anthony Richardson always the answer in Indianapolis?
We’re big all-in gamblers here, mainly because it’s not our job if a coaching conversation goes sideways. So when a coach pushes all his chips into the middle, as Indianapolis’ Shane Steichen did on Sunday, we’re all behind him. Steichen’s Colts scored with just 12 seconds left to cut the road deficit to 1 against New England… and then Steichen handed the ball to Anthony Richardson to ice the game with a two-point conversion:
That’s right, there’s confidence in your young quarterback and bricks the size of Cybertrucks. (Notable: In the exact same scenario last week at home, Washington’s Dan Quinn elected to go for the extra point… and lost the game when the kick went wide.)
The Colts are 2-1, with a loss to Detroit, since Steichen reinstalled Richardson as his starting quarterback. It’s a long road to the playoffs, and a short time to get there, but if Richardson can get the reps he so desperately needs, this season could end up being a step forward after all… and it certainly didn’t seem to be to be like that. would have been the case for Indianapolis a few weeks ago.
