Week 11 saw some very important results for the playoff standings as well as divisional tiebreakers. The Los Angeles Rams got a huge last-second win over the Seattle Seahawks 21-19, the Los Angeles Chargers got stomped 35-6 by the Jacksonville Jaguars, and the Las Vegas Raiders were thoroughly dominated by the Dallas Cowboys on Monday night 33-16.
The Rams started off the game hot with a quick 14-3 lead in the first quarter, with Matthew Stafford throwing one to Davante Adams and Kyren Williams punching one in on the ground. Later in the game, Stafford also connected with tight end Colby Parkinson for a score, which extended the lead for LA. The Rams' defense made it tough for Sam Darnold all day long, and it felt like he could do nothing right with four interceptions, which led to 14 points for LA.
Seattle was able to run the ball well, with 135 total yards and a bounce-back game from Kenneth Walker, who averaged 4.2 yards per carry with a touchdown. The Rams also ran the ball, totaling 119 yards and one score from Williams. However, on both sides, there were struggles in the pass game that were felt throughout the game. Darnold struggled with ball security in the air, and Stafford struggled to get into a good rhythm and only had 150 passing yards on 15/28.
This game had many turns, but the fact Seattle overcame adversity even though it felt the game was over shows they are here to stay, and if LA does not clean up their struggles in the pass game on offense and improve their run defense in this matchup, next time could be a different outcome.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are coming off a shootout game against the Buffalo Bills, where their defense struggled, but they did come away with two interceptions. Josh Allen was able to rush for three touchdowns and throw for 317 yards and another three scores. On the other end, Baker Mayfield struggled a bit in the air, having 173 yards, threw one touchdown, was sacked once, and threw one interception. Tampa was able to run the ball very well with an amazing performance from Sean Tucker, who had 106 yards, two touchdowns on 5.6 per carry.
This was a game where if Tampa Bay had slowed down Buffalo's offense, their ability to run the ball could have limited possessions and potentially created a different end product. However, the feel of the game and Allen being who he is did not create that benefit for the Buccaneers. Now Tampa has the ability to respond against a true Super Bowl contender.
The Rams versus the Buccaneers will first come down to which of LA's passing game on offense or Tampa Bay's pass defense can respond better to have a better week. The Rams' offense on the season averages 246.9 yards per game through the air, ranking sixth, and the Buccaneers' pass defense allows 241.6 yards per game, putting them at 27th. Puka Nacua had a decent game on Sunday with seven catches for 75 yards, and Adams struggled with only one catch, but it did result in a touchdown. If LA wants to again prove they are a dominant force in this league, they must use their strength and expose another team's weakness, which is exactly the situation they are in against Tampa Bay.
For the Buccaneers' offense, they must establish the run game, which over the course of the season has struggled, but last week in Buffalo had one of their best performances of the season. Over the last three games, the Rams have allowed 88.7 rush yards per game, which is sixth, and Tampa Bay has averaged 134.3 rush yards per game, which sets them at 12th. If they can get the ground game going, it will slow down the Rams' pass rush, which at times has been dominant with pressures and getting to the quarterback, and allow Mayfield to get in a flow and spray the ball around to keep the offense moving in a huge game for playoff implications.
The LA Chargers fly back home for a much-needed bye week after being completely dominated by the Jacksonville Jaguars. In the air, Justin Herbert struggled with 81 yards, got sacked twice, and threw one interception. The run game wasn’t much better: LA had 16 carries for 42 yards, which is an average of 2.6 yards per carry. This was a complete no-show game from the Charger offense, and the game felt like that from start to finish.
The Chargers' defense played the pass somewhat well, holding Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars to 153 yards, one touchdown, and picking him off once. However, the run defense was exploited for 192 yards on 47 carries, averaging 4.1 yards per carry, and four scores. Jacksonville knew they had the advantage up front once the game got going, and they kept going at it, which is what good teams do.
This was a disappointing game for LA as it will potentially come back to bite them in the standings for a playoff spot, as well as not gaining ground on the Denver Broncos, who are now rolling, but the Chargers beat them earlier in the season. This is not how LA wants to go into the bye; however, they are still in control of their playoff destiny. They will play the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 13, which could be a chance for them to get back on track. They need to shore up their run defense, the offensive line needs to have the right combination to block in the run game as well as give Herbert time, and all around, the Chargers must get healthy.
The Raiders started off their game strong with a 6-3 lead after the first quarter, and then it was all Dallas after that. The Cowboys' defensive line dominated the Raiders' offensive line, and with such a big deficit, Ashton Jeanty was essentially taken out of the game. Jeanty only had six carries for seven yards. Geno Smith struggled after the first quarter to sustain drives. For the game, he had 238 yards, threw one touchdown, was sacked four times, and threw one interception.
The Las Vegas defense also had a rough showing. Dak Prescott had his way with 268 passing yards and four touchdowns. Dallas was also able to run the ball for 114 yards and 3.7 yards per carry. George Pickens and CeeDee Lamb both had great performances against the Raiders' secondary, with Lamb having five catches for 66 yards and a score, and Pickens had nine catches for 144 yards and a touchdown as well.
The Cleveland Browns are also coming off a tough loss, 23-16, versus the Baltimore Ravens. Offensively, they struggled to really do anything in the pass game. They played both rookie quarterbacks, Dillion Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders. Sanders made his NFL debut and really struggled, going 4/16, with one pick, and was sacked twice. Gabriel wasn't much better, going 7/10 for 68 yards and was sacked once. They ran the ball well for a total of 106 yards on 4.2 per carry. It was a slow game, and they were playing it well until the Ravens went up late.
The defense played very well for most of the game. They had two interceptions of Lamar Jackson, one of which turned into a pick-six for Cleveland, in addition to Myles Garrett once again having a dominant performance with four sacks. However, their run defense was poor as they allowed 184 yards on 6.1 yards per carry and two scores.
In this game, sustaining drives will be critical on both sides, which will involve the rushing attack. For whoever starts at quarterback for the Browns, the run game will need to get going. Cleveland averages 98.0 yards per game on the ground, ranking 26th, and the Raiders allow 107.3 rush yards per game, ranking 15th. One of these has to give, and whichever does will determine a critical component of the game. Maxx Crosby will also have a major impact in this game, rushing the passer in obvious passing situations, but if the Browns can run it, his impact can be minimized.
On the other side, containing Garrett will be crucial if Smith and the offense want to be successful. A way to do that is to run the ball right at the Browns, and this can be done. In the last three games, the Browns have given up 162.7 yards per game, which shows some vulnerability from their defense. The Raiders, however, have struggled to run the ball mightily, where they average 52.7 yards per game over their last three. Myles Garrett is on a roll over his last three games, where he has 10.0 sacks, so the Raiders will chip him, run screens, and establish the run game, which could help a struggling Raiders offense.
Week 12 will be another week where the playoff standings will shuffle and divisional races begin to get clearer. It is time for the good teams to get hot and the pretenders fade into the background.