At this point we should just reserve a permanent spot on the list for whoever happens to play quarterback for Denver each week. This week, it was Siemian who was a disaster, completing just 19 of his 40 passes and turning the ball over three times on interceptions. He missed receivers by yards, not inches, and looks totally bereft of confidence. Unbelievable as it is, Brock Osweiler is probably Denver’s superior option at this point.
Jeff Allen, OT, Texans
Not one. Not two. But three! Allen committed three straight false starts on the Houston Texans’ final drive against the Tennessee Titans on Sunday. Down 17-13, the Texans had a legitimate chance to win the game. They had a 4th-and-4 at the Tennessee 36 and a decent opportunity to convert. But then Allen was flagged three straight times for a false start, turning it into a 4th-and-19 they couldn’t manage. Allen was playing out of position, but there’s still no excuse for that.
Missed opportunities was the story of the game for the Philadelphia Eagles’ offense. After scoring at least 31 points in a game for their past five contests, the Eagles were held to a season-low 10 points by Seattle on Sunday night. A lot of that was due to their mistakes. Carson Wentz lost a fumble at the 1-yard line, taking away a big scoring opportunity. He also threw an interception late in the game. The Eagles went for it on fourth down twice in the second half when down by 14 points, and they failed to convert either one. All the magic they had during their 9-game winning streak seemed to run out.
Ted Ginn Jr., WR, Saints
Ginn can typically be relied upon as a significant part of Drew Brees’s gameplan, but it just didn’t happen for him on Sunday against the Carolina Panthers. Ginn only had two catches for 27 yards, and he wasn’t targeted all that much either. The Saints won, so it wasn’t a huge issue in the grand scheme of thing, but the Panthers limited his involvement and forced Brees and the Saints to look elsewhere to move the offense.
A matchup against the San Francisco 49ers should have had Howard salivating, but he was instead left licking his wounds. He was given only 13 carries, got only 38 yards out of them, and he was more or less a non-factor in a San Francisco victory. That’s two bad games in a row for him. He was not at all helped by the fact that Chicago simply did not have the chance to get too many plays off. This will go down as a missed opportunity for Howard.
Even as the Titans keep winning, Mariota has become somewhat of an underwhelming presence stat-wise. He only attempted 23 passes on Sunday against the Houston Texans, completing 15 of them for a modest 150 yards and one touchdown. His rushing ability was good for 23 yards and a touchdown, but it was the first time since Week 10 he’d managed a double-digit yardage tally. Mariota has the ability to be more explosive than this, and we’re simply not seeing it right now.
The NFL’s attempts to stop the kneeling — from their perspective, anyway
It’s clear that the NFL — likely in an effort to appease frustrated sponsors — still wants to find a way to discourage or stop players from kneeling during the national anthem. Perhaps they thought they were close to a breakthrough with their social justice fund. If they did, they were disappointed Sunday when numerous players, including seven Philadelphia Eagles, continued to kneel during the national anthem. It’s an open question whether there’s anything the NFL can do at this point.
