Week Ten Recap

Prayers were answered, second-chances were granted, but at this point in the season, the only dependable victories are those earned. 

The improbable last-second touchdown shocked the home crowd and nearly cost me my fantasy win. (si.com)

Cincinnati 17, Baltimore 20

Cincinnatti's prayers were answered when Andy Dalton's tipped hail mary found the open arms of AJ Green. After being held without a touchdown for three full quarters, the Bengals were able to rally and force overtime.

They received the ball first and drove to the outskirts of Mike Nugent's field-goal range, but decided the attempt too risky and went for it on 4th and short. They lost 11 yards on the play and ended up turning the ball over to Baltimore near midfield anyway. Justin Tucker booted the 46 yard game-winner, and the Bengals dropped their second straight game in overtime.

St. Louis 38, Indianapolis 8

The Rams pulled the shocker of the day by upsetting the Colts in their own stadium. They were aided by an explosive outburst from Rookie WR Tayvon Austin, who contributed three touchdowns on the day. The speedster scored on an 81-yard reception, a 57-yard reception, and a 98-yard punt return.

The sluggish Colts managed just 18 rushing yards (17 by Andrew Luck) and have been outscored 49-3 in the first half of their past two games. They only play two teams with winning records the rest of the season, but have little time to get their act together: two of their next three games are against the Titans, who now trail the Colts by just two games.

Oakland 20, New York Giants 24

In an ugly early game, Eli Manning escaped with the win over the Raiders. Both QBs threw interceptions that led to touchdowns, and special teams mistakes were huge. But the Giants made plays when they needed to, and the Raiders were unable to execute for most of the day.

Oakland's East Coast woes continued as they dropped their twelfth straight game in the time zone. (By the way, if you can spell "twelfth" on the first try, I commend you.) Their offense struggled mightily, going 2-12 on third down and gaining just 213 total yards. Without the blocked punt and the interception return, the offense would have little to show on a miserable day. And, oh yea, Terrelle Pryor's knee is only getting worse.

Look familiar? (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)

Buffalo 10, Pittsburgh 23

Dick Labeau's dominance against rookie QBs continued at home against the Bills. In his first game back from injury, EJ Manuel completed just 56% of his passes and threw an interception. The Bills struggled to get anything going on offense. Though I missed the outcome, at least I predicted the game would be ugly.

Jacksonville 29, Tennessee 27

The Jacksonville Jaguars took advantage of 4 Titan turnovers and got their first win of the season in Tennessee. Despite a lackluster performance from their offense, the Jaguars defense returned a fumble for a touchdown and forced a safety that ended up being the difference on the scorecard.

Meanwhile, Tennessee QB Jake Locker left the game on a non-contact ankle injury. (Diagnosis: Lisfranc injury, done for the season.) Backup QB Ryan Fitzpatrick was great in relief, throwing for 264 yards and two touchdowns, in addition to running one in himself. A last second TD to Delanie Walker (which was a devastating blow to my fantasy team) brought it even closer, but the Titans were unable to recover the onside kick and fell at home to the Jags.

Philadelphia 27, Green Bay 13

The Packers suffered a crippling loss at home for the second straight week. Backup QB Seneca Wallace was knocked from the game in the first quarter and replaced by Scott Tolzien, the third-string quarterback best remembered for... that time Seneca Wallace got hurt and he had to play in the game. Green Bay was able to run the ball, but could not overcome two interceptions, including one inside the 5-yard line in a critical scoring situation.

Meanwhile, Nick Foles answered the call and threw for three more touchdowns, bringing his season total up to 16 (with zero interceptions) and Green Bay became the latest victims of the New Slim Shady. (This has yet to catch on, but dammit, I'm gonna keep pushing it.) The Packers fall into second place in the division.

Not pictured: Green Bay's quarterback
(AP Photo/Mike Roemer)

Detroit 21, Chicago 19

The Bears scored a touchdown with under a minute to go, but were stopped twice on the two-point conversion attempt-- a "roughing the passer" call gave them another shot-- and they lost at home to the Lions. In his first game back from injury, Jay Cutler looked ineffective for most of the game. Eventually he was forced to leave in the 4th, and backup Josh McCown led Chicago the drive that would (almost) tie the game, and making a strong case for Chicago to reevaluate its QB hierarchy.

Matt Stafford and the Lions rose into sole possession of first place with the win and simultaneous Green Bay loss. He connected with Calvin Johnson for two scores, giving Megatron the record for most receiving touchdowns in franchise history.

Seattle 33, Atlanta 10

Atlanta's misery continued in a home loss to a Seattle team that is firing on all cylinders. Russell Wilson completed 73% of his passes and threw for two touchdowns, while Lynch contributed 145 on the ground and a score of his own.

The Seattle defense held Atlanta to 226 total yards on the day. Stephen Jackson managed just 11 yards on 9 carries and was out-rushed by the hardly mobile Matt Ryan. The return of Roddy White was just as irrelevant as his presence has been all season, and he contributed one catch in the loss.

Carolina 10, San Francisco 9

Kaep wondering where his mighty wings went
(Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images)

Cam Newton and the Panthers escaped with the win in San Francisco and made a statement to the league in the process. The Panthers defense smothered the 49ers, holding the offense to 151 total yards and sacking Kaepernick six times. The 49ers converted just 2 of 13 third downs and only entered the red zone once on the day. They settled for a field goal and would not score again.

Meanwhile the Panthers, at 6-3, are now tied with the 49ers, but surpass them in the wildcard standings with the head-to-head victory. If the season ended today, last year's NFC champs would enter as the lowest seed. After the loss at home coming off their bye-week, the 49ers should take nothing for granted.

Denver 28, San Diego 20

At this point, Manning's stat-line of 330 and 4 TDs seems about average. The Chargers rallied from down 28-6, but were unable to surpass the highest scoring offense in the league.

With 28 points, Denver's offense fell two points short of what would have been an NFL record. Instead, their streak of 30+ point games ended at 8, tied with the 2007 Patriots and Kurt Warner and the "Greatest Show on Turf". Both of those teams went on to make the Superbowl-- the Rams won their appearance but Brady/Belichick fell short of perfection (David Tyree!!).

Houston 24, Arizona 27

Houston dropped its seventh straight game on Sunday in Arizona. It's hard to believe that this team was a Super Bowl favorite by many when the season opened. The Texans were again hampered without Arian Foster, but this will not change any time this year: the RB will undergo season-ending back surgery soon. I hope you did not buy any of his stock. 

Meanwhile the Cardinals have quietly assembled a winning record. At 5-4, with five beatable teams upcoming, they increase their playoff stock dramatically over the next few weeks. Currently they are just one game back of a wildcard berth. They will need to stockpile as many wins as they can-- their final two games are in Seattle and home against the 49ers. 

Dallas 17, New Orleans 49

*Sunday Night*
Drew Brees started the game 3-5 on the opening drive before stalling around midfield. He then went on to complete 19 consecutive passes on the way to four first-half touchdowns, and the Saints routed the Cowboys in the Superdome. He would finish with 392 yards and 4 touchdowns.

Just another day at the office (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

The Cowboys were down big from the start and tried to pay catch-up for most of the game, but Romo could not keep pace with the former Super Bowl MVP. Brees and the Saints' offense moved at will for the entire game, racking up a franchise record 625 total yards of offense and setting an NFL record with 40 first downs.

The Dallas defense lost starting linebacker Sean Lee to a hamstring injury, but wasn't exactly steadfast when the defensive captain was present, either. However, Dallas will need to find a way to win without him if they hope to make the playoffs; their division lead has vanished and they are now tied with the streaking Eagles at 5-5.

Washington 27, Minnesota 34

*Thursday Night*
The Vikings earned their first victory at home this season by holding on to defeat Washington. The 'Skins lead grew to 13 when they managed a FG on the opening drive of the second half, but they would not score again, and the Vikings rallied to score 20 unanswered points to close the win. Washington falls to 3-6.

A strong performance from QB Christian Ponder was soured when he left the game with a dislocated shoulder. Ponder's recent strong play has led to him emerging as the leader of Minnesota's three-headed QB monster, but after the setback it is back to the drawing board for the Vikings. The good news: its not like they have anything left to lose.

Miami x, Tampa Bay y

*Monday Night*
The Miami Jonathan Martin's traveled to across the state to face the winless Buccaneers. There were some good plays, by both teams, but ultimately, the win by the Florida team was largely ignored and discarded in favor of the looming decisions on the Incognito scandal.