Mostly NFL Notes: Talking Ben Roethlisberger, Cam Newton and a look around the league
Ben Roethlisberger became the first player since 1981 to have four straight games with 200+ passing yards in the first half, and he finished with 364 yards with a 4:0 TD:INT ratio. He now sports an 8.9 YPA mark on the year, which is higher than Tom Brady has ever posted, and Peyton Manning has beaten it just once during his career. Roethlisberger has averaged 338.4 passing yards per game, which would translate to 5,414 over a full season that would be the third highest in the history of the league...There were three turnovers in the first 2:42 of the game, and Pittsburgh already broke the NFL record for two-point conversions in a season with seven...Donte Moncrief somehow saw one target, while T.Y. Hilton got fewer receiving yards than elders Frank Gore and Andre Johnson...Check out Antonio Brown’s celebration here. The Steelers ended on a 39-0 run, and if I were ranking players rest of season, I’d have Big Ben as the No. 1 QB, Brown as the No. 1 WR with Martavis Bryant also top-10 and DeAngelo Williams as a top-five RB. This Steelers offense is a juggernaut to say the least.
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Blake Bortles was terrific, throwing for 322 yards with a 5:0 TD:INT ratio while missing Allen Hurns. Not to be outdone, Marcus Mariota got 9.2 YPA, tossing three touchdowns and rushing for 112 yards, including this 87-yard score. He ran for more yards on that play than Eli Manning has totaled during any season of his 12-year career...Nice to see T.J. Yeldon get goal-line work finally...Dorial Green-Beckham appears to have a bright future...This snap wasn’t ideal...The Titans’ win ended an 11-game home losing streak...Allen Robinson is on pace to finish with 87 catches, 1,440 yards and 15 touchdowns. He’ll be an early second round pick in drafts next year.
Russell Wilson has completed 76.7 percent of his passes while getting 10.2 YPA with an 8:0 TD:INT ratio over his last three games, adding 95 rushing yards and a score (his first of the year) during a dominant stretch...Adrian Peterson matched his season-high with four catches, although he totaled just 24 yards...Over his last four games, Doug Baldwin has averaged 108.3 receiving yards and has six touchdowns. I chalked up last week’s effort as a fluke, but Baldwin apparently needs to be treated as a top-25 WR down the stretch...Assuming Marshawn Lynch is gone, I’ll have Thomas Rawls as a top-five overall pick in 2016 drafts.
I liked his matchup, but I can’t say I saw Javorius Allen securing 12-of-13 targets for 107 receiving yards and a score. He’s an obvious upgrade over Justin Forsett, but his upcoming schedule (Sea, KC, Pit) is rough...DeVante Parker showed his potential during this nice TD catch. Crazy that he was the only Dolphins player to have more than five receiving yards against a Ravens defense that entered having allowed the third-most fantasy points to opposing wide receivers...Matt Schaub has thrown a pick-six in six of his last nine starts (and another in relief)...All 12 of Baltimore’s games this season have been decided by eight points or fewer, which is an NFL record.
Headlines of the Week: A Man Named Bud Weisser Was Arrested For Trespassing At The Budweiser Brewery...‘Adorable’ Drug Kingpin Is DEA Agent’s Daughter...Florida Woman’s Car Turned Her In For A Hit-And-Run.
The Rams haven’t scored more than 13 points in any of their past four games, and their QB situation continues to destroy Todd Gurley’s fantasy value...Jeff Fisher hasn’t won a playoff game since 2003...Fumbles remain a concern, but I’d treat David Johnson as a top-five fantasy back down the stretch.
It’s a weekly occurrence, but Odell Beckham Jr. had two more highlight catches, as this one-handed 22-yard grab might have been even more impressive than his 72-yard TD catch...Eric Decker entered with eight touchdowns over 10 games yet didn’t score during his first 100-yard performance of the season...Everyone knows about the Saints’ terrible defense, but don’t underestimate just how bad the Giants’ secondary is, as they are easily the second best matchup for quarterbacks. Fire up Ryan Tannehill in Week 14. And go pick up that Cam Newton fella for Week 15 as well.
TV Talk: I’m all in for “American Crime Story”...“Fargo’s” latest episode was yet another masterpiece, as it remains the best show on right now, although “The Leftovers” is a close second...I finally binge watched “Wet Hot American Summer,” and while it was solid, it wasn’t close to the movie, which is easily a top-10 all-time comedy for me...Here’s the newly released trailer for “Game Of Thrones.” Get pumped.
Jeremy Hill has been a huge disappointment, but he’s already matched last year’s touchdown total (nine) with four games left...Seriously, how crazy is it the Browns aren’t playing Johnny Manziel? (There’s been a report this will change)...During his last four games, Brian Hartline has averaged 10.5 targets (and has two scores), as he’s becoming a sneaky WR3.
The Falcons have lost five in a row and are somehow third in their division despite starting 5-0...Julio Jones hasn’t scored since Nov. 1 (while averaging 14.0 targets) and faces Josh Norman in two of the next three games during the fantasy playoffs...Jameis Winston has more rushing touchdowns (five) than DeMarco Murray this season. Here’s Winston’s best run of the day, which really confused Dick Stockton.
The 49ers scored a touchdown in the first quarter for the first time this year during a pick-six, but it was the offense that flashed late. Blaine Gabbert tied up the game inside two minutes in the fourth quarter with a 44-yard TD run and then hooked up with Torrey Smith for a 71-yard touchdown in overtime. The game was in OT thanks to Robbie Gould badly missing a 36-yard field goal as time expired in what was easily the worst kicking day in the history of the NFL...Jim Tomsula challenged a play in which it was abundantly clear he doesn’t understand the rules...While the Matt Forte vs. Jeremy Langford debate raged on, Ka’Deem Carey got a goal-line score.
DeAndre Hopkins was getting shut down all game before one drive, which culminated in this touchdown...Tyrod Taylor completed 11 passes yet somehow totaled four scores against a Houston defense that allowed just two touchdowns over the previous 18 quarters.
Facing the league’s worst defense, Cam Newton lived up to expectations, throwing five touchdowns and added 49 rushing yards. Ted Ginn had a big game but also dropped multiple passes, as it could’ve been much more...The Panthers have won all of their past 16 regular season games...Drew Brees has a 17:5 TD:INT ratio over six home games compared to 6:6 over five road contests...Here’s the first blocked extra point returned for two points in NFL history.
Police Blotter: Man Arrested With 51 Turtles In His Pants...Thief Who Wore “Won’t Be Caught” T-Shirt During Store Heist Gets Caught...Thief Ends Up Trapped In Crashed Porsche After Filming Himself Stealing It...Knife Found In Aaron Hernandez’s Jail Cell.
It’s clear the Kansas City backfield is going to be a committee, which is too bad, especially with home matchups against the Chargers and Browns over the next three weeks...Derek Carr threw as many interceptions (three) Sunday as he had over his previous six games combined...Facing a defense that entered having allowed the most touchdowns (11) to opposing tight ends, Travis Kelce saw three targets, and he lost a fumble on one of his two catches...Kansas City committed its first turnover since Week 6...After losing five straight games, the Chiefs have won their last six and will be favored during each of their final four contests. If an NFL draft were held today from scratch, Alex Smith would be a top-20 pick. He's really good at football.
Song Of the Week: Stone Temple Pilots – Meatplow
Melvin Gordon somehow had more rushing yards than C.J. Anderson and just one fewer yard than Ronnie Hillman during a 14-point Broncos win, although the rookie lost yet another fumble. What a disappointing performance by the Denver backs...Five of Philip Rivers’ nine interceptions this season have been returned for touchdowns, and he had another pick-six called back Sunday thanks to a shaky penalty...This Broncos defense remains incredibly legit despite the injuries.
Longread of the Week: Scott Weiland: ‘This Is My Life, A Cautionary Tale. Maybe Somebody Can Learn From It.’
A 10-point favored Patriots team that hadn’t lost back-to-back games in forever getting beat at home to an Eagles squad that seemingly quit during its last game (when they lost 45-14) has to be the season’s biggest surprise outcome. This is exasperated by the fact the 10-1 Pats were up 14-0 and then later down 35-14 to the 4-7 Eagles who had Sam Bradford throw for 120 yards and DeMarco Murray rush for 24. Football...Brandon LaFell has zero touchdowns this season so despite his situation he shouldn’t be viewed as a top-35 fantasy WR moving forward. Danny Amendola, meanwhile, should be treated as a top-12 WR, and James White is absolutely a viable flex option...Here’s Tom Brady catching a pass, and here he is throwing a 100-yard pick-six...Philadelphia signed DeMarco Murray to a $40 million deal, and they gave more carries to Kenjon Barner, who lost a fumble late in the fourth quarter. Chip Kelly is clearly terrible, but there’s a chance his 5-7 team will be tied for the division lead after Monday night.