What We Learned From Week 12 in the N.F.L.

Right here we go once more.

So long as Tom Brady is consuming his avocado ice cream and throwing a soccer, his crew shall be peaking heading into December.

It didn’t look as if that may be the case this yr, although, because the Buccaneers had been ravaged by accidents to their secondary — making Tampa Bay one of many worst defenses towards the move — and amongst Brady’s favourite targets, tight finish Rob Gronkowski and receiver Antonio Brown.

Losses to the Trevor Siemian-led New Orleans Saints in Week 8 and the Taylor Heinicke-led Washington Soccer Crew in Week 10 sandwiched a bye week through which the crew may need recuperated. As a substitute, in these two video games and a win over the Giants in Week 11, Tampa Bay relied on Brady’s passing to compete.

However at 44 years previous, Brady’s shot at profitable his eighth Tremendous Bowl can’t rely upon him carrying the Bucs on his shoulders. An exciting, 38-31, win over the Indianapolis Colts provided the takeaway that the soccer world expects this time of yr.

Tampa Bay wanted a jolt final yr, too.

In Week 12 of the 2020 season, the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs raced to a 27-10 lead at Tampa Bay with huge receiver Tyreek Hill dropping peace indicators and infamously telling Bucs followers “assistance is on the way in which.” The Buccaneers’ protection, nevertheless, then pressured three punts and fought to a 27-24 loss that maybe gave Tampa Bay a Tremendous Bowl recreation plan.

The Buccaneers didn’t lose once more that season.

On Sunday, the Colts additionally appeared set to rout Tampa Bay. When Indianapolis Coach Frank Reich opted to go for it on fourth-and-1 with 22 seconds left within the first half, quarterback Carson Wentz rolled proper and located T.Y. Hilton for a 4-yard landing that gave the Colts a commanding 24-14 halftime lead. Wentz crackled with 197 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions.

Brady sat on his bench, speechless.

The Colts obtained the ball to start out the second half and drove all the way in which to Tampa Bay’s 20-yard line. Then, the Bucs turned it on.

Edge rusher Shaq Barrett sacked Wentz, pressured a fumble and recovered the ball to finish that drive. Six performs later, Tampa Bay lower its deficit to three on a Leonard Fournette 4-yard landing run, his third rating of the sport.

The subsequent possession, Wentz’s deep heave to the Bucs’ 5-yard line was intercepted by cornerback Antoine Winfield Jr. In a panoramic duel, the 5-foot-9 Winfield one way or the other out-positioned and out-muscled the ball away from the 6-foot-4 huge receiver Michael Pittman Jr.

Seven performs later, operating again Ronald Jones scored on a 1-yard landing rush to provide the Bucs a 28-24 lead.

Tampa Bay’s run protection, and Reich’s play-calling, principally stored Jonathan Taylor in test. Taylor, the scorching Colts operating again who scored 5 touchdowns final week, completed with 83 yards on 16 carries, his longest for 15 yards. He by no means obtained right into a rhythm towards a protection allowed an N.F.L.-low 81 speeding yards per recreation.

Colts returner Nyheim Hines muffed a good catch on a punt early within the fourth quarter. The Buccaneers recovered the ball and had a subject aim drive to take a 31-24 lead.

And when the Colts tied the sport at 31-31, on Taylor’s solely landing rating of the day, Brady did what he’s finished 50 occasions in his profession: steered one more game-winning drive. Solely he didn’t must do an excessive amount of heavy lifting.

Brady meticulously picked away on the Colts for 4 completions on the eight-play, 75-yard drive. The important thing play got here on a jet sweep by receiver Chris Godwin. His three yards on second-and-2 stored the clock operating and, the subsequent play, Fournette blasted upfield for a 28-yard landing.

Granted, the Buccaneers (8-3) wanted to outlive a 72-yard kick return earlier than the buzzer, however Coach Bruce Arians has to like how his crew is rounding into type.

Once more.

The bruising Fournette’s physicality was an issue all recreation for the Colts, as he completed with 131 complete yards and 4 touchdowns.

Defensively, Barrett, Lavonte David, Devin White and Ndamukong Suh are all peaking once more. After such a breezy first half, Wentz was a very completely different quarterback with the Buccaneers’ relentless strain getting him off his spot within the second half. They hit Wentz seven occasions in all.

If this all sounds acquainted, it ought to. These Buccaneers are doing simply positive because the playoffs close to.

The Bengals are making the A.F.C. North title a race.

As the remainder of the A.F.C. stole the highlight in November, the Cincinnati Bengals quietly obtained more healthy. After getting thrashed by the Cleveland Browns at dwelling in Week 9, the Bengals had a bye week to heal up. The opposite three groups within the jumbled A.F.C. North confirmed their warts, whereas Cincinnati rebounded with a low-key win over the Las Vegas Raiders.

On Sunday, the Bengals completely rocked the division’s perennial bully, the Pittsburgh Steelers, 41-10, making reasonable their dream of profitable the division for the primary time since 2015.

The Bengals are good.

Each crew with a quarterback on a rookie contract needs to be able to going full Lloyd Christmas with its cash to supply a winner. But, as franchises just like the Giants proceed to show, that’s not all the time a easy proposition. The Bengals’ entrance workplace, which traditionally had botched roster builds, turned the franchise round by focusing on the appropriate skill-position gamers on the prime of the draft to encompass quarterback Joe Burrow, and spent on the appropriate gamers in free company.

After Burrow tore his left anterior cruciate ligament within the 2020 season and the crew completed 4-11-1, the Bengals spent like loopy and it’s paying off with a crew that’s peaking on the excellent time.

Up entrance, proper deal with Riley Reiff (one yr, $7.5 million) helped cease the bleeding on the offensive line. Cornerbacks Chidobe Awuzie (three years, $21.75 million) and Mike Hilton (4 years, $24 million) each injected a younger protection with wanted expertise, and defensive deal with Larry Ogunjobi (one yr, $6.2 million) has been a steal.

When it was nonetheless considerably of a recreation on Sunday, with the Bengals main, 24-3, on the finish of the primary half, the ex-Steeler Hilton undercut a Ben Roethlisberger floater and took it again for a landing.

And the crew’s prime prize in free company, defensive finish Trey Hendrickson (4 years, $60 million) successfully ended the sport eight minutes, 30 seconds into the third quarter with a sack-fumble of Roethlisberger. He’s as much as 10.5 sacks on the season.

As elegant as Burrow’s connection via the air was early this season with the 2021 draft choose Ja’Marr Chase, this Bengals offense runs finest via operating again Joe Mixon, who wore the Steelers down Sunday.

Mixon had 19 carries within the first half alone. The one different again to have that many within the final 5 years was Derrick Henry (2018). Mixon completed with 165 yards on 28 carries with two touchdowns, his fourth consecutive recreation with at the very least two scores.

What a bizarre sight it was, the Bengals convincingly, joyfully smashing the Steelers. After Mixon’s last rating, he danced along with his offensive line in some Temptations-themed choreography. The win briefly put Cincinnati (7-4) a half-game again of the Ravens, however Baltimore (8-3) stored tempo by beating the Cleveland Browns, 16-10, in prime time regardless of Lamar Jackson throwing 4 interceptions.

The Rams Have to Take Inventory

With a twister of trades within the final three years, the Los Angeles Rams went all-in on a Tremendous Bowl run this season. The crew traded draft picks so as to add cornerback Jalen Ramsey in 2019, to accumulate quarterback Matthew Stafford this summer time and to choose up edge rusher Von Miller in the course of the season, primarily balling up any property for constructing for the longer term and burning them to remain heat this winter.

Ten days after buying and selling for Miller, Los Angeles signed receiver Odell Beckham Jr., solely additional cementing the crew’s one expectation: Taking part in within the Tremendous Bowl in its dwelling stadium on the finish of this season.

After the Rams misplaced to the Inexperienced Bay Packers, 36-28, Sunday, taking their third consecutive loss, Common Supervisor Les Snead and Coach Sean McVay should be questioning what occurs subsequent.

Stafford’s highlights Sunday had been rendered null with one backbreaking miscue — a pick-six on the finish of the third quarter. With the Rams trailing, 30-17, Stafford’s move was intercepted by cornerback Rasul Douglas, who returned it 33 yards for a landing, and the Rams had been by no means capable of catch up.

As in his 12 seasons with the Detroit Lions, Stafford offered hope earlier than reverting to creating the errors which have outlined his profession within the absence of a signature postseason win. He threw for 302 yards and three touchdowns, however the hole between Inexperienced Bay and Los Angeles nonetheless remained painfully apparent Sunday.

The Rams’ 2020 season ended with a loss to the Packers at Lambeau Subject within the divisional playoff spherical and, if something, it was Inexperienced Bay’s offense that has improved since, because of the emergence of the second-year operating again A.J. Dillon. Dillon, a second-round choose within the 2020 draft, completed with 90 hard-earned complete yards and a landing. Aaron Rodgers was environment friendly once more in throwing for 307 yards on 28 of 45 passing with a pair of scores.

Dolphins 33, Panthers 10: Cam Newton’s second begin with the Panthers (5-7) couldn’t have gone any worse after his 1-yard landing run tied it, 7-7, within the first quarter. By the fourth, Newton had a 5.8 passer score whereas finishing solely 5 of 21 passes, and the Panthers benched him for P.J. Walker, who promptly threw a choose. Miami’s protection held Carolina to 198 complete yards, and Tua Tagovailoa threw for 230 yards and a landing because the Dolphins (5-7) gained their fourth straight.

49ers 34, Vikings 26: Don’t look now however the San Francisco 49ers (6-5) are wholesome and, at the very least on offense, wanting just like the crew that steamrollered its approach to an N.F.C. Championship two seasons in the past. Elijah Mitchell and Deebo Samuel mixed for 199 speeding yards and three touchdowns. The Vikings not solely dropped to 5-6 but additionally noticed their star operating again, Dalvin Prepare dinner, carted off with a shoulder damage.

Broncos 28, Chargers 13: The Denver Broncos blistered the Chargers with a gradual weight-reduction plan of Melvin Gordon (83 yards) and Javonte Williams (54 yards and a landing) on the bottom with quarterback Teddy Bridgewater making an attempt solely 18 passes. Defensively, rookie Patrick Surtain Jr. had two picks and took one in every of them again for a landing. Is it time to take the 6-5 Broncos critically? Probably.

Patriots 36, Titans 13: On the opening drive of the second half, Mac Jones threw a foul ball deep in Titans (8-4) territory that ought to’ve been intercepted and returned for a landing. The ball was dropped, the Patriots kicked a subject aim to go up, 19-13, and the rout was on. The Patriots (8-4) rolled to their sixth straight win to arrange a large A.F.C. East showdown at Buffalo subsequent Monday evening.

Jets 21, Texans 14: The rookie quarterback Zach Wilson dodgeball-tossed an interception off operating again Ty Johnson’s again. That blooper apart, Wilson put his crew forward of the Texans (2-9) within the third quarter with a nifty lower inside on a 4-yard landing run because the Jets (3-8) scored the sport’s last 18 factors.

Giants 13, Eagles 7: A lot for any constructing momentum in Philadelphia. The Eagles (5-7) ran for 208 yards and nonetheless misplaced to the Giants (5-7) as a result of quarterback Jalen Hurts threw three interceptions.

Falcons 21, Jaguars 14: Cordarrelle Patterson’s profession renaissance continues. The longtime receiver/returner rushed for 108 yards on 16 carries with two touchdowns because the Falcons (5-6) put down the Jaguars (2-9).