Philly Stumble in Dallas & Patrick Rescues Kansas City – Best Moments from National Football League the Twelfth Week

Week 12 delivered an epic Cowboys comeback, or perhaps an epic Philadelphia Eagles implosion?

Playoff Patrick Mahomes showed up to rescue the Kansas City's season while the Bears keep to impress as they continue their victorious run.

Did Shedeur Sanders perform sufficiently on his first NFL outing to secure the full-time job in Cleveland?

Let's take a look at the pick of the action in the NFL.

Analysis – Dallas Rally or Philly Fail?

Dallas were down and out at twenty-one to zero down versus the defending championship winners, how exactly did they produce their equal-largest recovery in history?

Sentiment of a first home fixture since a teammate’s untimely passing may have played a part, but technically it was a mixture of Prescott’s resolve and a defence that pounced on rare errors by the Eagles.

Dak surpassed Tony Romo marks for passing yards (now thirty-four thousand three hundred seventy-eight) and game-winning drives (twenty-five) with an all-action display – his plunging touchdown personifying his energetic showing.

Philadelphia squandered a advantage of twenty-one points or more for the first time after 1999, with only their second game with several turnovers this year – the other being another bad division loss at the New York.

Along with fourteen penalties for ninety-six yards, the attacking malaise that hit Jalen Hurts after what – for him – was an explosive beginning was huge. He had only passed for 200-plus yards in four games prior to the weekend, he had over 150 in the first half by himself in Texas.

Yet from the time the Eagles went 21-0 up their offense fell apart dramatically – with four straight kicks, a missed field goal and then a turnover giving chance after opportunity to the Dallas.

Philadelphia’s defense is excellent, it really is, but an offence that's not eclipsed twenty-one points in 5 of 7 games (three losses) is now a huge concern, as the components are all there but it's just not working.

Sirianni’s approach is all about winning the big situations, the defence keeps them in it and what offence there is does just about sufficient – if it cannot even do that and now the discipline and possession security is failing, there could be trouble in the future.

Spotlight – Postseason Mahomes Appears Early to Rescue Chiefs

It wasn't as dramatic, but Kansas City's 11-point recovery in the final period against a powerful Indianapolis team was very impressive – and may have just rescued their season.

How significant was it? Well, the NFL's Next Gen Stats now give the Chiefs a 58% probability of reaching the playoffs, when a defeat on Sunday would have reduced that figure to twenty-eight percent.

No wonder the postseason form of Mahomes turned up, passing for two hundred thirty-five yards in the second half alone and guiding 3 point-scoring possessions in their last four series to win it in extra time.

Some huge passes and daring scrambles are typical for Patrick in the postseason, but currently the Chiefs are in post-season mode – at 6-5 and only 10th in the conference standings.

That was closer to the former Chiefs though, with a initial close win of the year after losing five previously – they secured eleven of them last year so, if that belief comes back, this Kansas City faithful might not be finished so soon.

Talking Point – Can Bears Be Kings of the Division?

You just can't ignore the Chicago Bears now. A victory over the Steelers, minus Aaron Rodgers, maintained them top of the division and at eight and three – holding the same record as the Eagles.

They appear threatening on both sides of the field, with a defence that leads the NFL in picks and overall takeaways and, in Williams, a young quarterback now used to securing close games.

He can still be shaky, giving away a score after a turnover in his own end zone – but he also passed for 3 scores and, with already five final period rallies this year, he knows how to get the job done.

Green Bay are in hot chase in the division after overpowering the Vikings and Detroit are in contention after overcoming the New York in overtime with a huge game from Jahmyr Gibbs.

The Bears are strangely the most consistent with eight victories in 9, but as they visit the championship winners on Thanksgiving we'll discover exactly how strong they really are.

Look Ahead – Thrilling Holiday in Store

It appears one of the best Thanksgiving line-ups for years, with each game packed with playoff consequences.

The Lions welcome the Green Bay in the traditional curtain-raiser in Detroit, prior to a rare visit back to Texas for the Chiefs, who started out life as the Dallas Texans long ago in the 1960s before relocating to Missouri.

Sunday's rally teams are each holding on to postseason hopes but have minimal margin for mistakes – so this will have a post-season atmosphere.

And how about the Ravens? An unattractive victory over the New York actually has them top of the division after starting 1-5 and looking dead and buried.

Thanksgiving and Black Friday Games (all times GMT)

  • Thursday, twenty-seven November: Green Bay Packers @ Detroit Lions (6:00 PM)
  • Thursday, twenty-seven November: Chiefs @ Dallas Cowboys (9:30 PM)
  • Friday, 28 November: Bengals @ Baltimore Ravens (01:20)
  • Friday, 28 November: Chicago Bears @ Eagles (8:00 PM)

Can Sanders Keep His Starting Role?

Cleveland Browns coach Kevin Stefanski batted away questions on whether Shedeur Sanders had performed sufficiently in his debut NFL start to keep the first-team job when Dillon Gabriel returns.

But the issue will continue to be raised as Sanders became the first Browns quarterback to secure his debut league game after Eric Zeier in 1999 – with seventeen additional first-year signal callers unsuccessful to do so since.

It came only the Raiders, and with the help of an almost feral Cleveland defense recording 10 sacks, but the Browns’ offence needs a director, a figurehead to build belief.

Moreover self-belief is something not missing in Sanders, who informed a CBS {

Victor Warren
Victor Warren

A digital strategist with over 8 years of experience in SEO and content marketing, passionate about helping businesses thrive online.