Tuesday Takeaways: NFL Week 13 Reactions

Another wild week of football! We had NFL games spread out over three days this holiday weekend. This report is going to highlight some things that stood out from the past weekend. As always please comment what stood out to you from Week 13 of the NFL season! 

1. I need to give the Green Bay Packers their flowers.

I have talked about most teams so far this season, especially playoff teams, but one team that has just flown under my radar has been the Green Bay Packers. They currently sit at 9-3 and are going to be one of the scarier Wild Card teams for any opponent. Their offense is third in the league in YPG and their defense has taken the ball away from opponents the fifth most times in the NFL. They have a fairly favorable schedule to finish out the season and it would not shock me to see them finish with 12 to 13 wins!

I want to give another quick shoutout to Josh Jacobs. There has been much discourse this season about veteran running backs finding new life in new situations with Saquon Barkley, Derrick Henry, and Joe Mixon taking headlines. Jacobs has been very solid for the Packers as well, becoming a more than adequate replacement for long time Packer, Aaron Jones. After a very disappointing 2023 season it looks like the Packers faith in Jacobs this offseason has been repaid and then some.

2. Two insane TD:Receiving ratios.

This section is highlighting two players who have had really awesome seasons, in two completely different ways. Nick Westbrook-Ikhine has caught the ball only twenty times this season. He has an astounding eight touchdowns on those receptions. Eight! Nearly 50% of the time Westbrook-Ikhine catches the ball he is finding the end zone. Not only has he caught long balls, but I think he has looked like a pretty solid receiver ever since the Titans traded away DeAndre Hopkins. In games since that trade, Levis has targeted him roughly 5 times per contest. I do not think he is a franchise cornerstone at the position, but he is proving to be a good weapon that can help develop Will Levis or whoever they may bring in.

On the other hand, Trey McBride is one of the best receiving tight ends in the entire league, but he cannot find the end zone! He is third amongst tight ends in receptions and targets and trails only Brock Bowers in yards. Yet he has zero touchdowns. For being Kyler Murray's favorite weapon, you'd think they could scheme up at least a play or two to reward McBride for his elite play! That being said McBride has been fantastic this season and I expect the Cardinals to repay him with a new contract soon.

3. Maybe benching worked?

I have been quite impressed with both Anthony Richardson and Bryce Young over the last few weeks. Anthony Richardson's stat lines may not tell the whole story. His running threat is as dangerous as ever, he has had some clutch moments, and I feel like he looks just a little more poised. He still has a long way to go, but these last three weeks would have me very encouraged as a Colts fan.

Same should be said for Bryce Young. It feels like everyone gave up on the former #1 pick very quickly and that he was headed towards all time bust status. However, he has looked phenomenal over the past few weeks, putting up big time throws against a really good KC defense, and this last week he led his team down for what should have been a game winning drive with 30 seconds left (the Panthers lost but also helped their draft status, so maybe they won?). He has looked more confident in the pocket and has delivered some dimes. The biggest thing for me is the protection of the ball. He has lost no turnovers over his last three games, something that plagued him last year and earlier this year. I think the Panthers have seen enough to stick with Young for next year.

4. If not for his name he would not have a job anymore.

There is no doubt that Justin Tucker is an all time great, maybe even the greatest. But he has legitimately been horrible for Baltimore this year. He has a shockingly bad 70% conversion rate on field goals this season and has even missed two extra points. It used to be that you knew he would knock down anything in the stadium, now you get nervous for kicks under 40 yards. The Ravens have lost 5 games for by a total of 22 points. In those losses, Tucker has 22 points worth of missed kicks. He has a bad case of the yips. If his name was not Justin Tucker I think a team with championship aspirations such as the Baltimore Ravens would have cut ties a while ago. The path to the Super Bowl will almost certainly come down to kicking in at least one game, and having a kicker as unreliable as Tucker has been must be terrifying for the Ravens.

5. Fair enough, Russ.

I was admittedly skeptical of the Steelers benching Fields for Russ, but I was definitely wrong. It was the clear right choice. After a disastrous two years in Denver, we see a little bit of the HOFer that we saw for a decade in Seattle. Since his return Russell Wilson is second in the league in passing yards per game. He has shown that he can win close, grind it out games, and this past week he exploded for 414 yards and three touchdowns. Him and Pickens have developed a dangerous deep ball connection. If Russ continues to even play just ok, the Steelers are true championship contenders with their defense.