(Image credit Raj Mehta/USA Today Sports)
Written by: Nicholas Mullick
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicholas-mullick-354076184/
Week 12 of the NFL Season has concluded and there were a few upsets this week that resulted in people being eliminated in survivor. Let's dive into how I did, giving my top 5 options that I gave to pick in Survivor and a trap game to avoid choosing for Week 12 of the NFL season.
Week 12 Top 5 Survivor Options
Week 12 Record (3-2)
Overall Record (44-16)
1. Chicago Bears at Detroit Lions
I am not surprised at all that the Bears won this game close. Add this game to the long list that shows that the Lions are cursed. Especially when Santos made that game-winning field goal. But this game made me wonder and left me with more questions than answers. Will the Detroit Lions get a win this season? Can Dan Campbell's playcalling get better for the Lions? How are the Detroit Lions still mathematically not eliminated from the playoffs yet? Has anyone seen RB Khalil Herbert on the Bears? What will the Bears do if RB Tarik Cohen returns this season? Why Is Matt Nagy still the head coach for the Chicago Bears? These are questions that I came out with once the game is over. But the Lions are true winners trying to secure that 1st overall pick.
2. New England Patriots vs Tennessee Titans
I hate to say it but the New England Patriots are back. Man, they were fantastic in this game. I will admit I was wrong about WR Kendrick Bourne. I stated during my worst contracts in every AFC team that Kendrick Bourne was the worst contract currently on the team. Boy did he once again prove me wrong in this game as Kendrick scored two touchdowns and had 5 catches for 61 receiving yards. Kendrick Bourne has proved me wrong and I got to say he is starting to be my favorite player on this team. Mac Jones has been the best rookie QB in this draft class. This game proved it as he had 310 passing yards and threw for two touchdowns. What this game proved is that the Injuries have derailed the momentum of the Tennessee Titans. They better hope that they get healthier sooner rather than later. When healthy the Titans are one of the best teams in the AFC. AJ Brown was recently on IR so he will be out for 3 weeks which is a huge loss for this offense.
3. Philadelphia Eagles at New York Giants
Now this game was an upset. I was completely shocked to see that the New York Giants defeated the Philadelphia Eagles. Were the Eagles taking notes from Mike Tomlin on How to play down to competition? Boy were they doing that in this game. Jalen Hurts was awful in this game throwing 3 interceptions in this game with 129 passing yards. Not to mention he had 77 rushing yards as well. The Eagles lost this game due to how bad their offense was in this game. By the way How about the great Jalen Reagor, the 1st round pick they took in the 2020 NFL Draft. How bad was he in this game dropping two easy touchdowns in this game? What was GM Howie Roseman thinking when he decided to draft WR Jalen Reagor over WR Justin Jefferson in this draft? My goodness, Reagor has been a complete flop of a selection. The Giants played hard but they did not look the best in this game either including on offense. Daniel Jones was alright but I don't think he is the Long term answer for this team. Look I love Saqoun Barkley but my patience is running thin on him due to how inconsistent and injury-prone he has been since becoming a New York Giant. Ever since his rookie season, Saqoun has not been the player he was. I would be shocked if GM Dave Gettleman will keep his job with the Giants at the end of the season. But overall the Giants defense won them this game.
4. Houston Texans vs New York Jets
I guess the risk was not worth the reward at all if you took the Houston Texans in survivor. The Jets surprised me in this game as they looked like they gave up in the middle of the second quarter. But they battled back and shouted out to the running back core as they were good in this game. I have concerns about Zach Wilson but the Jets defense played better in the second half of this game. I got, to be honest, I don't know who is the worst head coach in their first year. David Culley has not been that good and I am still shocked they hired him over other candidates. Saleh has been a disappointment as well. I am not going to answer who is better as that would be biased as I cover the New York Jets but I don’t know who had a worse rookie coaching season. The Jets may have won the battle but the Texans win in the long run as they will get leverage via tiebreaker in the final draft capital battle for the 2022 NFL Draft. So who truly won here in the long term.
5. Baltimore Ravens vs Cleveland Browns
I don’t know what to think of the AFC North Division anymore. The Bengals and Ravens are inconsistent, the Browns are injured right now and the Steelers are incompetent as they consistently play down to competition (Remind me why Mike Tomlin is still the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers again?). I have no clue who will win this division now but it is anyone’s for the taking. Lamar Jackson in this game was awful as he threw 4 interceptions in this game. The Ravens were trying to give the Browns to win this game and the Browns failed to take that offer. I got to ask whatever happened to utilize the running game. Did the Browns forget they have Kareem Hunt and Nick Chubb on their roster? Both teams deserved to lose this game but the Ravens were the better and healthier team. The AFC North is going to go down to the wire this season and I have no confidence in any team in this season for the playoffs.
Trap Survivor Pick: Dallas Cowboys vs Las Vegas Raiders
The 2021 NFL Season may be a Dark one for the Las Vegas Raiders but I did not say that the season was over for the Raiders. Games like this showcase how good Derek Carr is. He had 373 passing yards and a receiving touchdown. Josh Jacobs was excellent as well and DeSean Jackson may be on a decline but he proved he has plenty in the tank. Hunter Renfrow is an excellent player as well. Want to know the impressive part for the Raiders they did not have TE Darren Waller for a majority of this game as he left due to a knee injury. For the Cowboys again I wish I can have confidence in Dallas if they had a competent coach. Jason Garett was there for way too long and Mike McCarthey has been awful since he was hired by the team. Now the Cowboys did not have Ceedee Lamb or Amari Cooper in this game but what happened to the running game. Ezekiel Elliot is on a decline but Mike McCarthey has mishandled the running game. In my opinion, I think Tony Pollard has been an excellent player and could overtake Elliot in the future. Excellent performance by the Las Vegas Raiders.