The 15-Play Drive

15 thoughts on week-14 in the NFL...

1. Until further notice, Cowboys defensive coordinator Rob Ryan (a.k.a the Geico caveman) must demand not to be shown on television. With the amount of face time he receives, you'd think his defense is among the NFL's elite...instead, they're an embarrassment. Trailing by 12 in the 4th quarter Sunday night, the Giants put together 80 and 53-yard touchdown drives that took a combined 3-minutes and 53-seconds off the clock...or about the time it probably takes Ryan to devour an entire turkey. In the process, Dallas went from essentially locking up the NFC East to falling out of 1st place.

2. As much credit as Eli Manning deserves for the Giants comeback, they don't beat the Cowboys without the play of defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul. He led the team with 8-tackles, registered 2-sacks, forced a fumble and blocked the game tying field goal to seal the victory. Somebody tell Osi Umenyiora to take the rest of the season off...the more playing time Pierre-Paul gets, the better off the Giants will be.

3. You could see the horns growing out of running back Marion Barber's helmet in Denver Sunday, because he was absolutely the goat in the Bears overtime loss to the Broncos. With under 2-minutes to go in the 4th quarter, Chicago up by 3 and Denver out of timeouts, Barber inexcusably ran out of bounds on 2nd down to stop the clock. His gaffe not only allowed the Broncos to get the ball back, but gave them enough time to drive for a game tying field goal. Then in OT, with Chicago already in Robbie Gould field goal range, Barber lost a fumble at the Denver 33-yard line. The Broncos got a 51-yard Matt Prater field goal on the ensuing possession to win it 13-10, and send the Bears to their third straight loss. This wasn't Tebow magic...I'll call it Barber's blunders.

4. Once again Tim Tebow was Clark Kent for the first 3-quarters, and Superman afterwards. The Broncos QB has been performing that way for 8-games now...

Tebow in quarters 1 through 3: 38.7% 4.7-yards per attempt 5-TD's 1-INT

Tebow in the 4th quarter and OT: 60.9% 8.9-yards per attempt 6-TD's 1-INT

He's also thrown for over 200-more yards in the 4th quarter and OT then he has in the first 3-quarters this season. The trick for the Broncos is to find a way to get more Man of Steel out of him, and less mild mannered reporter.

5. If there were any doubts about the Texans ability to succeed with a third string rookie quarterback under center, and I'm sure there were, they can be put to rest for now. T.J. Yates proved Sunday he can handle the role of leading man. With Houston trailing Cincinnati 19-10 in the 4th quarter, Yates directed an 88-yard drive that resulted in a field goal. Then facing a 6-point deficit with 2:33 to go, Yates marched the Texans 80-yards in 13-plays, hooking up with wide receiver Kevin Walter for a 6-yard TD with just 2-seconds remaining. When asked about Yates performance, Walter told me and Steve Torre on the Sunday Drive: "Nothing rattles him...He's very poised in the pocket and confident...I'm proud of him big time."

6. Is it just me, or did Yates have more friends and family in the stands than there were actual Bengals fans at Paul Brown Stadium?

7. I understand the officials aren't going to be perfect, but how about just being competent. How they missed Lions linebacker DeAndre Levy grabbing and twisting the facemask of Vikings QB Joe Webb on the game's final play Sunday I'll never know.

8. Head referee Jeff Triplette also gets a major thumbs down for his ridiculous personal foul call on London Fletcher. The Redskins linebacker hit a scrambling Tom Brady with a shoulder to the chest just as Brady began slide. Triplette threw the flag, claiming Fletcher used a forearm to the head. Get your eyes checked Jeff, or get a new job...that was an awful call.

9. Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski is a monster...there's just no other way to put it. He's too fast for linebackers or safeties, and too big for cornerbacks. Sunday, Gronkowski set a new single season record for the most TD receptions by a tight end, as he caught his 14th and 15th of the year. He finished with 6-catches for 160-yards, often dragging multiple Redskins defenders with him or breaking tackles along the way. Gronkowski has quickly become the most dangerous weapon in the Patriots passing game, and yes that includes Wes Welker.

10. The Todd Collins award of the week goes to Raiders QB Carson Palmer. In Oakland's 46-16 defeat at Green Bay, Palmer completed 24 of 42-passes for 245-yards with 1-touchdown and 4-interceptions. He's now been picked off a staggering 13-times in just 7-games. I know it's the holiday season, but Palmer is in far too giving a mood.

11. I'm not a big fan of the NFL's overemphasis on player safety, because I think the teeth have somewhat been taken out of the game, but Steelers linebacker James Harrison absolutely deserved his 1-game suspension. Harrison has been a repeat offender, and clearly delivered a helmet to helmet hit on Browns QB Colt McCoy. Smarten up James...your bank account and teammates with thank you.

12. Anybody else think there was no way in hell Ben Roethlisberger was coming back after suffering that left ankle injury? That was a gutty performance by Big Ben, although I'm not sure he really needed to be out there.

13. Throw the ball Jake Locker! The Titans rookie QB came off the bench and made some nice plays Sunday. However, on 3rd and goal at the Saints 5-yard line, and his team down 22-17, Locker took a sack on the game's final play. Even if nobody is open, you have to throw it there and hope for the best.

14. The Buccaneers have a self destruct button, and they're not afraid to use it. Tampa Bay built a 14-nothing lead in Jacksonville Sunday, then decided it was time to blow it up. Over the next 14-minutes, Tampa had a fumbled punt returned for a TD, allowed a 77-yard touchdown drive, fumbled in their own end zone for another Jaguars score, and were intercepted, which eventually led to Jacksonville's 4th touchdown of the quarter. That's the kind of epic meltdown that can get a coach on thin ice fired.

15. You want Jekyll and Hyde for week-14...I give you the Falcons. They were sleep walking through the first half in Carolina, and fell behind 23-7. Then turned the tables in the final two quarters, outscoring the Panthers 24-0 to pull out a 31-23 win. So how did they do it? Atlanta QB Matt Ryan joined me and Steve Torre on the Sunday Drive, and said of the comeback: "Everybody stuck together...We talked alot about trying to chip our way back into the game...We started off really well in the 2nd half, and that really helped out."