NFL Week 12 takeaways: Steelers’ offense breaks open; Jaguars take charge of AFC South
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The NFL emerged from the Thanksgiving holiday with 11 games on the Week 12 Sunday lineup, including a key AFC South battle between the Jacksonville Jaguars and Houston Texans .
The Jaguars emerged victorious in a thriller that truly was a game of inches: Matt Ammendola ’s 58-yard field-goal attempt with 34 seconds remaining bounced off the crossbar, allowing Jacksonville to escape Houston with a 24-21 win.
The Texans were this close to tying the game on a 58-yard field goal. #JAXvsHOU pic.twitter.com/w5P2AAg2Nj— NFL November 26, 2023
Quarterbacks were also a talking point in the early afternoon action. The New England Patriots benched Mac Jones (again) in another loss , this time to the New York Giants . Kenny Pickett made his first start since the firing of Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Matt Canada and outdueled the Cincinnati Bengals’ Jake Browning , who was making his first career start following Joe Burrow ’s season-ending wrist injury. Desmond Ridder halted the Falcons’ three-game losing streak in his return as Atlanta’s starter, beating the New Orleans Saints 24-15.
The late-afternoon game window included the Buffalo Bills at the Philadelphia Eagles , the Kansas City Chiefs at the Las Vegas Raiders and the Cleveland Browns at the Denver Broncos .
The Athletic NFL writers Mike Jones, Ted Nguyen and Dan Pompei share their thoughts on the top headlines from Sunday.
NFL Week 12 scores: Live updates, schedule, injury report, playoff odds, standings and news
The Steelers finished with 421 yards of total offense and beat the Bengals 16-10 in their first game since Canada’s firing. Who or what impressed you the most on offense today, and why?
Jones: The biggest thing that stood out to me was the way that newly elevated play-caller Mike Sullivan produced better results with a simplified and more intentional approach. Sixteen points are nothing to write home about, but that was the Steelers’ first game with 400-plus offensive yards in 58 contests. Fifty-eight! The key: Sullivan understands that a strong and consistent rushing attack and a reliable tight end are the two best friends to a young quarterback. He also gave receivers assignments that required less thinking, which translated into being able to play faster.
But the ground game was important. With 153 team rushing yards (including 99 and a touchdown by Najee Harris ) and a nine-catch, 120-yard day for tight end Pat Freiermuth , the Steelers gave Pickett the support he needed for one of his most effective days as a pro. Pickett completed 24 of 33 passes for 278 yards, and his completion percentage of 72.7 was well above his previous season high of 68.0. His 97.8 passer rating was his second-highest of the season. The Steelers also won the time-of-possession battle 37:17 to 22:43 after converting 8-of-17 third downs for first downs.
Nguyen: Putting up 16 points against the Bengals isn’t very impressive but they could have had 4 more points if Mike Tomlin had challenged what should have been a Diontae Johnson touchdown — the drive ended in a field goal. Overall, Pickett was put in position to win. The offense stayed ahead of schedule and ran the ball well, and I liked how Freiermuth was a big part of the game plan. He was the player of the game offensively, in my opinion.
Pickett is good at throwing seam balls and Freiermuth is a big target in that area of the field. Overall, I liked how the Steelers managed their weapons and dispersed touches. It was certainly an encouraging start for the post-Canada era but there’s a lot more to prove to feel encouraged about this offense.
Pompei: The Steelers weren’t spectacular, and it wasn’t like any individual dominated. No one on this team is going to win AFC Offensive Player of the Week. But the Steelers ran the ball, sustained drives, won time of possession, converted third downs and made 22 first downs. They could have scored more points, but they scored enough to win. So, for the first time in awhile, the Steelers looked like they had an offense that was in sync. And it happened against a rival and a defensive coordinator in Lou Anarumo who knows where the soft spots are. It felt like the first game of the rest of the season for the Steelers offense.
The Jaguars’ 24-21 win over the Texans puts them solidly in the driver’s seat atop the AFC South . Now 8-3, do the Jags have the talent (and a favorable-enough schedule) to ascend to the AFC’s No. 1 seed by season’s end?
Jones: They’re in a good position in their division, but I don’t see the Jaguars as the No. 1 seed in the AFC come season’s end. Trevor Lawrence isn’t consistent enough. The Jaguars are fortunate they don’t have to face Burrow or Deshaun Watson in the next two weeks, though the Bengals and Browns both have really smart defensive coordinators capable of giving Lawrence some trouble. Then the Jags face the Baltimore Ravens , who are better both offensively and defensively. Again, Doug Pederson and his team really helped themselves with this win. But top seed? I don’t see it.
Nguyen: Definitely. The defense carried them in the early part of their schedule and now the offense is starting to shape up. Calvin Ridley is looking like the No. 1 receiver they thought would take their offense to the next level. They still make too many self-inflicted errors from dropped passes, Lawrence putting the ball in harm’s way or just bad play-calls like the pitch to Travis Etienne before halftime. Also, left tackle Cam Robinson ’s knee injury is concerning. But playing opponents with a losing record in four of their last six games will give them some wiggle room to iron these issues out. One of the teams with a winning record they’ll play is the Browns, who lost Watson for the season. The No. 1 seed is definitely in play.
Pompei: They can be the No. 1 seed in the AFC, but probably will need a little help in the form of some losses for the Ravens, Dolphins and Chiefs. The Jags’ Sunday night game in Jacksonville against the Ravens on Dec. 17 could determine who secures home field for the playoffs. They are likely to be favored in each of their remaining games except their contest against Baltimore. And depending on what happens between now and then, Jacksonville could even be favored in that game. The Jaguars can be a better team than they’ve been, too — there is room for improvement, especially in the passing game. If Josh Allen keeps rushing the passer the way he is, the Jaguars will have a chance to beat most opponents.
Mac Jones had another rough day, throwing two interceptions in a 10-7 loss to the Giants before being benched for Bailey Zappe at halftime. Zappe didn’t play well, either, throwing his own interception. What should the Patriots do at QB for the rest of this season? Does it even matter?
Jones: Eh, does it matter? Neither quarterback is very good. The Patriots have few weapons capable of hurting a defense. I suppose Zappe is slightly better than Jones because although he’s limited, he doesn’t make as many “what was he thinking” type of throws. But this is basically the Titanic going under. It doesn’t matter who Bill Belichick starts.
Nguyen: I don’t think it matters. Zappe didn’t play much better than Jones, though he did lead the Patriots to a touchdown drive. I think you have to start Zappe and see if he can improve with more snaps. Maybe mix in some Malik Cunningham option snaps to spark the offense. Doing something unconventional and transitioning to an option offense might be the best hope for this offense. The Patriots are 2-9. The playoffs are out of the picture, so the focus should be seeing what your other young quarterbacks can do. You can’t keep Jones in with all of the horrific mental mistakes he has made.
Pompei: They don’t have a very good option, which is a primary reason they are 2-9. It feels like the Patriots can’t go back to Jones. Not now, anyway. The other players couldn’t possibly get on board with Jones. If Belichick went with Jones, he would have to risk perhaps benching him a fifth time. That being said, he needs to play the quarterback who he feels gives the Patriots the best chance. That’s probably Zappe, even if the value in making a change is mostly psychological. What’s clear is the problem is bigger than the quarterback.
The Carolina Panthers looked better against the Tennessee Titans but still lost 17-10. Was progress made Sunday in this season of growing pains, or are the Panthers (now 1-10) still stuck in neutral?
Jones: They’re basically stuck in neutral. Look at the young quarterbacks around the league who are playing well, and then look at Bryce Young . The biggest difference is Brock Purdy , C.J. Stroud and even Dorian Thompson-Robinson are running systems designed to ease pressure on them and put them in position for makeable throws that will help them settle into a rhythm and then build confidence. Frank Reich was regarded as a good offensive mind, but he still doesn’t seem to understand that the Panthers need to rely more heavily on the rushing attack and play-action to help buy Young time and keep the defense off-balance. The other problem is that the Panthers don’t have much talent across the board. When I talk to talent evaluators and coaches around the league about Carolina, they all note the Panthers coaches don’t have much with which to work. People are starting to talk about Reich’s job security, but general manager Scott Fitterer also could wind up getting fired this offseason.
Leaving the locker room, David Tepper shook his head and yelled, “F—-!”— Joe Person November 26, 2023
Nguyen: It’s hard to be encouraged when Young is forced to play this defensive style of ball. He’s getting pressured so quickly and often, he doesn’t have much of an opportunity to develop as a downfield passer. He also might be ingraining bad habits. He’s being asked to carry an offense that has no running game and no legitimate weapons. It’s an impossible task for a rookie quarterback.
Pompei: Unless they’re playing horseshoes, the way they lost matters not. Young still looks like a struggling rookie, and he isn’t getting much help from his teammates. The Panthers’ skill position players on offense are among the least talented in the league. Young might look a lot different if the Panthers had not traded DJ Moore and Christian McCaffrey . Then again, Young wouldn’t be a Panther if the team had not made those deals. The Panthers had to know this was going to be a tough year. But they need to make some progress in their remaining six games.
(Top photo of Kenny Pickett: Andy Lyons / )
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