It’s that time again! Actually, it’s a little past the time, but with Thanksgiving and everything , I didn’t get it in on the usual day. So we’ve got a little bit of overlap with the three Turkey Day games and the brand spankin’ new Black Friday contest. It only seems right to have this week be a little fat, after all. Let’s get right to it. We didn’t see any huge upsets this past week. But there were a few mildly surprising results. I don’t think Cleveland over Pittsburgh really counts. Yes, both teams were 6-3 coming in, and the Steelers won the previous match-up at the (former) Ketchup-Plex in Week 2, but Pittsburgh is winning with smoke and mirrors, kind of like Minnesota and the Giants did last year. Speaking of the Vikings, I expected a win over the suddenly decent Broncos, but Denver pulled out the late victory on a Russel Wilson to Courtland Sutton TD pass with a minute to go. The Broncos are somehow 5-5 after that awful start, and Wilson is playing like he’s still in Seattle. They’re still sporting a -51 point differential, but that includes that garish 70-20 Miami scoreline. In their other nine games, they’re a somewhat respectable 5-4 with a -1 differential. I doubt they’ll catch the Chiefs for the division title, but a wildcard spot isn’t out of the question.

Others who can be found in Slightly-Unexpected-Outcome-Land include Washington and their 31-19 loss to the aforementioned Giants. Not because the Commanders are good (they’re not), but because N.Y. is bad (and they are). The gap between the good (Philly and Dallas) and the bad (the G-men and the Breadsticks) is, um…vast. Ron Rivera probably won’t last the year unless they go on some kind of run here. Jack Del Rio was gently and lovingly placed under the proverbial bus after a Thanksgiving bloodbath against the Cowboys, but Washington had already cut out the defense’s legs by trading their two best players, defensive ends Montez Sweat and Chase Young, on October 31st. Not sure Del Rio was the problem, but Rivera has to be seen to be doing something, I guess. Historically, the Giants have been very patient with coaches and Brian Daboll win Coach of the Year last season, so he’s probably safe for at least one more go around.

The last residents of Who-won?-ville are the participants in the Rams-Seahawks battle, in which L.A. eked out a 17-16 victory. It looks like the old Geno Smith is returning after a magical (and improbable) 2022. Smith had never played like that before, and his numbers are looking far more pedestrian this year. I don’t think the Rams are going anywhere this year, but they have four very winnable games left (Arizona, Washington, the Saints, and the Giants). They’ll probably have to steal a win against one of the tougher remaining opponents Cleveland, Baltimore, or the 49ers) on top of sweeping the other four, which would leave them at 9-8. Not impossible, but certainly unlikely. Seattle has every chance to get in the playoffs, but they’re tasked with a gauntlet of Dallas, S.F., and the Eagles in their next three games. Won’t be easy, and Geno will have to pick it up. We’ll talk about Detroit’s two most recent NFC North adventures next week.