Tuesday Takeaways: NFL Week 11 Reactions

We have had 11 weeks of NFL football completed to this point. These are a few things that I found interesting after watching the games from this weekend! Comment below your thoughts or anything that stood out to you from this weekend!

1. Zac Taylor's seat is quite hot.

Unless the Bengals make a playoff push and probably win a playoff game, I predict Zac Taylor will be out in Cincy. I think that Zac Taylor is a good coach, but I think there is an argument that his days in Cincinnati are close to over. If you have an MVP level QB, a WR going for the triple crown, statistically the best edge rusher in the league, and are 10th place in the AFC, then there is cause to be fired. While the Bengals have made the Super Bowl once and the AFC Championship twice under Taylor, it feels like it might be time for a change. It looks like it is going to be back to back years missing out on the postseason. There have been extenuating circumstances sure, but the Bengals championship window is right now and they need to do whatever they can to capitalize. Lou Anarumo will get more public cries to be out in Cincy, but I think a full clean sweep might be better. I could be wrong. Like I said I think Taylor is a good coach, but a change sometimes is needed. With that said, the Bengals do have a favorable schedule to close the year and they have the talent to make a run. Zac Taylor needs to approach the final stages of the season like his job depends on winning every game, because it just might.

2. We are witnessing an all time rookie season.

We have talked a lot about the rookie class this year, but we have not mentioned the rookie who might just be the best of the bunch. Brock Bowers might just be the best pass catching tight end in the NFL in his first year. Right now he is on pace for 151 targets (would be rookie TE record), 119 receptions (would be rookie TE record by 33 receptions), and 1,200 yards (would be rookie TE record by nearly 200 yards). He is the best player in Las Vegas by a large margin. He leads ALL rookies in receiving yards. He leads ALL TE's in yards by a large margin. He can line up inline, in the slot, or even outside. He is a matchup nightmare for defenses. Keep in mind he is doing this all with Gardner Minshew and Aidan O'Connell throwing him the ball! If the Raiders can ever get a competent starting quarterback, the sky is the limit for Bowers.

3. The Dolphins will make a playoff push.

Miami currently sits 1.5 games behind the final Wildcard spot in the AFC. I have written before on this blog that the Dolphins are at best an average team, but I am going to slightly contradict myself. I think the Dolphins are going to go into week 18 with their playoff hopes still alive. They have won their last two games and looked pretty good in the weeks prior, losing two games by a combined score of 4. Looking ahead at their schedule they play the Patriots, two games against the Jets, and have a visit to Cleveland. That should be 4 wins. They have tougher matchups going up against the Packers, Texans, and 49ers. If they can win 2 of those games they would finish with 10 wins and a have good chance to squeeze into the playoffs. I do not necessarily think they make it, as I would predict that the Broncos and Bengals have a better chance to make the postseason, but I am very excited to see if Mike McDaniel can cook up some magic to make the race for the Wildcard an unpredictable one!

4. Insane passing usage in Cleveland. 

The Cleveland Browns as a team still stink with Jameis Winston at QB but they sure are a lot more fun to watch! Due to them not having a running game they have resorted to letting Winston sling the rock. This had led to some insane passing rates for the Browns. If you took Winston's (likely unsustainable) numbers from his three starts and paced them for a 17 game season, Winston would have 754(!) attempts for 5,463 yards and 34 touchdowns. Those are some absurd numbers. Doing the same math for the top pass catchers in Cleveland also would lead to some even more absurd and completely unbelievable receiving seasons. Cedric Tillman is on pace for 159 targets, 91 receptions, and 17 touchdowns. Jerry Jeudy would have 170 targets, 102 receptions, and 6 touchdowns. Elijah Moore would have 164 targets, 96 receptions, and 6 touchdowns. David Njoku would pace for 130 targets, 107 receptions, and 6 touchdowns. Obviously that would not sustain over a full season but those are some outrageous numbers. I do expect the Browns to continue to throw the pigskin a lot, so if you want to watch some fun, explosive, down the field passing, Cleveland might be the team for you!

5. There is insane disparity amongst the AFC.

I think the majority of NFL fans can agree that the AFC is the better conference in the NFL. I think that 5 of the 7 best teams in the NFL reside in the AFC. But funny enough, the majority of the worst teams in the NFL also reside in the AFC. If the season ended today, 6 of the top 7 picks in the draft would be AFC teams! While it does not really mean anything or have much significance to the grand scheme of things I thought that it was a very interesting note. We think of the AFC as being much superior, but the bottom of the AFC is very, very weak.