Here are 10 NFL observations, vents and things I learned, or should have known, from Week 12:
10. Don’t try to make the Cincinnati Bengals work on your betting card. Jeremy Hill is not an above average talent and Andy Dalton is a red-headed Brady Quinn when he’s without weapons like he is now. There is good news for Bengals fans, though. Dalton’s string of choking a first-round playoff game will end at five.
9. Could you imagine being in a coma since January then waking up to see Donald Trump elected president and the Dallas Cowboys enter December with only one loss. I’m not sure which is more amazing. I would vote Dak Prescott rookie of the year and Ezekiel Elliott MVP.
8. How and why is Gus Bradley still employed as a head coach?
7. I once thought Cardinals wide receivers Michael Floyd, John Brown and J.J. Nelson were good. They aren’t. Tom Brady is 39 and playing like he’s 29. Drew Brees is 37 and playing like he’s 27. Carson Palmer is 36 and playing like he’s 76. Palmer has been sacked 28 times and turned the ball over 14 times in his last seven starts. He should be cast in that senior citizen health commercial where the poor person has fallen down and is screaming, “Help, I can’t get up.”
6. The Falcons put up 38 points and 360 yards against the Cardinals with Julio Jones contributing just 35 of those yards. That’s a very impressive display from the Falcons and shows how versatile their offense is. I rate Jones as one of the top three wide receivers alongside Antonio Brown and Odell Beckham Jr. But the Steelers and Giants would be very ineffective if Brown and Beckham Jr. were held down. Not so with the Falcons and Jones.
5. There isn’t a worse starting quarterback in the NFL right now than Brock Osweiler. Gosh I hate watching this guy play.
4. Love to see Jeff Fisher and Gregg Williams get their comeuppance by the Saints, who scored 49 points and put up 550 yards against the Rams. LA’s defense, of course, is much better than that. But the poorly-coached Rams were constantly fooled and then gave up. Fisher and Williams teach dirty football. Williams should have been banned for life from the NFL for spearheading Bountygate. Sean Payton got his revenge. Fisher turned on Williams during the game just like criminals do. When the Rams get serious about winning they will usher these two Neanderthals out the door.
3. Finally we’ll have a week without the Browns. Cleveland is on a bye this week. The Browns return in Week 14 to host Cincinnati. I expect Robert Griffin III to be Cleveland’s starting quarterback then – and for the Browns to get their first and only win of 2016. Remember, you read it here first.
2. Don’t laugh but Colin Kaepernick has been playing better than at least 11 other starting quarterbacks. He’s better right now than Carson Palmer, Joe Flacco, Andy Dalton, Brock Osweiler, Blake Bortles, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Sam Bradford.
1. Kudos to Gary Kubiak for giving his kicker, Brandon McManus, a chance to kick a game-winning 62-yard field goal rather than punt and play for the tie against the Chiefs. Yes it would have been a monster kick, but this was in the high altitude of Denver and there was no wind. Unfortunately for Kubiak and the Broncos, McManus missed and the Chiefs took advantage of the excellent field position to kick their own game-winning field goal at the gun. But, hey, at least Kubiak took a shot at winning the game. He didn’t play to tie or lose like so many NFL coaches.
