Philly Falter in Dallas & Patrick Rescues Kansas City – Top Highlights from NFL Week 12

The twelfth week provided an incredible Cowboys rally, or perhaps an massive Eagles collapse?

Postseason Patrick Mahomes arrived to rescue the Chiefs' season while the Chicago Bears keep to surprise while they extend their victorious run.

Did Sanders do sufficiently on his first NFL outing to secure the starting job in Cleveland?

We’ll examine at the pick of the week in the league.

Analysis – Cowboys Comeback or Philly Fail?

The Cowboys found themselves down and out at twenty-one to zero behind against the defending Super Bowl champions, how exactly did they engineer their joint-best recovery in history?

Sentiment of a first home fixture since a teammate’s untimely death could have been a factor, however it was a combination of Dak Prescott resolve and a defensive unit that cashed in on uncommon mistakes by the Eagles.

Dak eclipsed Tony Romo marks for passing yards (now 34,378) and game-winning possessions (25) with an all-action performance – his diving touchdown personifying his all-action showing.

Philadelphia squandered a lead of 21 points or more for the initial time since nineteen ninety-nine, with just their second game with multiple giveaways this season – the other being another bad division defeat at the Giants.

In addition to 14 penalties for ninety-six yards, the attacking malaise that hit Hurts after what – for him – was an fast start was huge. He had only thrown for 200-plus yards in four games before Sunday, he had more than 150 in the first half alone in Dallas.

Yet from the time the Eagles went twenty-one to zero up their offense fell apart dramatically – with four straight kicks, a missed field goal and then a turnover handing chance after chance to the Dallas.

Philadelphia’s defense is brilliant, it truly is, but an offence that's not eclipsed twenty-one points in 5 of seven games (three losses) is now a huge worry, because the components are all there but it's simply not working.

Sirianni’s approach is all about winning the key situations, the defence keeps them in it and what offence there is does barely sufficient – if it cannot even do that and now the composure and possession security is breaking down, there could be problems in the future.

In Focus – Postseason Mahomes Appears Early to Save Chiefs

It wasn’t as dramatic, but Kansas City's 11-point comeback in the final period against a powerful Colts squad was very notable – and may have just rescued their season.

How big was it? Indeed, the NFL's advanced analytics now give the Kansas City a 58% chance of reaching the postseason, whereas a loss on the weekend would have dropped that number to 28%.

No wonder the postseason form of Patrick Mahomes arrived, passing for two hundred thirty-five yards in the second half alone and leading three point-scoring possessions in their last 4 possessions to seal it in extra time.

Some huge throws and swashbuckling runs are typical for Patrick in the playoffs, but currently the Kansas City are in post-season form – at six and five and just tenth in the AFC standings.

This was closer to the old Kansas City however, with a initial close win of the year after dropping five previously – they secured eleven of them last year so, if that confidence returns, this Chiefs Kingdom may not be finished just yet.

Discussion – Can Bears Become Kings of the North?

You can no longer overlook the Chicago Bears any longer. A win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, minus Aaron Rodgers, maintained them top of the division and at 8-3 – holding the same standing as the Eagles.

They appear threatening on each side of the field, with a defence that leads the league in interceptions and total turnovers and, in Caleb Williams, a young player now used to securing close games.

He can at times be shaky, surrendering a touchdown after a fumble in his own goal area – but he additionally threw three touchdowns and, with already 5 final period comebacks this year, he knows how to get the job done.

The Green Bay Packers are in close pursuit in the NFC North after overpowering the Vikings and the Lions are right there after overcoming the New York in overtime with a monster game from Jahmyr Gibbs.

The Bears are interestingly the most reliable with eight victories in nine, but as they travel to the Super Bowl champs on the holiday we'll see just how strong they really are.

Look Ahead – Thrilling Holiday in Prospect

It appears one of the most exciting Thanksgiving line-ups for years, with every game loaded with playoff consequences.

The Lions host the Green Bay in the classic opener in Detroit, before a unusual visit back to Dallas for the Kansas City, who started out life as the Texans way back in the sixties before moving to Missouri.

Sunday's rally kings are each holding on to postseason aspirations but have minimal room for mistakes – so this will have a playoff feel.

What about the Baltimore Ravens? An ugly win over the Jets actually has them top of the division after beginning one and five and appearing dead and buried.

Holiday and Shopping Day Fixtures (all times GMT)

  • Thursday, 27 November: Green Bay Packers @ Lions (6:00 PM)
  • Thursday, 27 November: Chiefs @ Cowboys (21:30)
  • Friday, twenty-eight November: Cincinnati Bengals @ Ravens (01:20)
  • Friday, 28 November: Chicago Bears @ Philadelphia Eagles (8:00 PM)

Will Shedeur Sanders Retain His Starting Role?

Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski batted away inquiries on whether Sanders had performed sufficiently in his first professional start to maintain the starting position when Dillon Gabriel comes back.

But the question will keep being raised as Sanders became the first Cleveland signal-caller to win his debut league start since Zeier in 1999 – with 17 additional first-year quarterbacks failing to do so since.

It came just the Raiders, and with the assistance of an almost aggressive Browns defence recording 10 sacks, but Cleveland's offense requires a director, a presence to build confidence.

And confidence is one thing not lacking in Sanders, who informed a CBS {

Becky Thompson
Becky Thompson

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