2021 NFL: Week 15

Never quit on greatness.

There was a time earlier this season when it would have been easy to jump off the Chiefs bandwagon. Their defense looked awful, they couldn’t run the ball to save their lives and Patrick Mahomes was throwing interceptions at an alarming rate.

Everything came to a head on Oct. 24, when Kansas City was blown out 27-3 on the road against Tennessee. Pearls were being clutched. Doubters and haters had their day in the sun. People were ready to drop Mahomes out of the top tier of NFL quarterbacks, with some even saying that maybe young names like Justin Herbert were the real future of the league.

Did the ship sink? Nope, greatness always finds a way to plug holes.

Since that fateful loss to the Titans, the Chiefs haven’t lost a game, ripping off seven wins in a row, including Thursday night’s thrilling 34-28 OT victory over the Chargers. And it was Kansas City’s leading men who carried the day as Mahomes connected with star tight end Travis Kelce for a touchdown late in the fourth quarter to send the game into the extra period. And once there, the Chiefs won the toss, and a few plays later, Mahomes and Kelce hooked up again for a 34-yard touchdown to walk off with the win.

Let’s compare stats, shall we? Mahomes — who struggled somewhat at times — finished with 410 yards passing with 3 touchdowns and a 105.8 quarterback rating compared to 236 yards and a 82.8 rating for budding wonderboy Justin Herbert.

It’s a testament to the Chiefs players and the coaching staff for not panicking and working out their early-season issues. And defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo earned yet another gold star, because while the Chiefs did give up 28 points on Thursday night — the first time they’ve given up more than 17 since the winning streak began — they came up with stops on three of the five fourth downs that the Chargers went for.

I’ve said it before: An NFL season is only 17 games. But don’t kid yourself, that is still a long, long time. You can have moments where you can’t get anything right and things might even look lost. But if you stick around and keep plugging away, good things can and will happen.

Look no further than last season’s Buccaneers and this year’s Chiefs. Nobody wants to face Kansas City in the playoffs.

NFL’S TOP 10

1. Buccaneers – The defending champs are back in the top spot in these rankings and have an excellent chance at the NFC’s top seed. Look at the rest of their schedule: Saints, at Panthers, at Jets and the Panthers again. Not one of those teams is at least .500, let alone a real playoff threat. Tampa is right where they want to be.

2. Packers – Aaron Rodgers says his broken pinkie toe is getting worse, but he’s apparently going to play through it. I would take a limping Rodgers over 90 percent of the quarterbacks in the league. What’s impressive about Green Bay is they’re sitting at 10-3 despite dealing with a rash of injuries on both sides of the ball.

3. Chiefs – They have a two-game lead in the AFC West after this latest win and it seems like the other teams in the division have run out of gas. But that’s not all. With their current 10-4 record, they’re sitting atop the conference. Wow. I’m going to say it again: Greatness always finds a way.

4. Cardinals – This team was in control for the No. 1 seed in the conference before losing to the shorthanded Rams on Monday night. They also have an interesting path ahead because they haven’t lost a game on the road, but are 3-3 at home. Most teams battle in the regular season so they can have playoffs games in front of their fans. It sounds ridiculous, but maybe that’s not the best thing for them come January.

5. Patriots – They’re better defensively (according to the numbers) than the Chiefs, but they don’t have the offensive firepower of Kansas City. This isn’t to rain on the feel-good story that’s building in New England, but they do have some challenges ahead. Their next two games (at Colts, vs. Bills) are crucial if they want to compete for a playoff bye.

6. Rams – I was convinced L.A. was going to get stomped on national TV once again earlier this week, but they showed some guts and shrugged off the absence of a few key players to right the ship in Arizona. But they’re dealing with a big problem as they currently have 25 players (you read that right) on the COVID-19/Reserve list. More on that in a minute.

7. Cowboys – Did anyone else think Dallas was headed for a loss in Washington last week? Was it only me? They still can’t run the ball, but if their defense can continue to play huge with Micah Parsons (who’s already being compared to the likes of Lawrence Taylor) flying all over the field, they may not need much of a running game. At least for now. Things will change once the playoffs arrive.

8. Titans – They came off their bye week with a win over Jacksonville in the Farewell Urban Meyer Bowl (more on him in a minute), but will have to nut up because they have the Steelers (tough out), the 49ers (playing well) and the Dolphins (on a winning streak) over the next three weeks. Their two-game division lead will disappear fast if they can’t keep it together.

9. Ravens – The Ringer had an interesting article on Baltimore’s struggles under offensive coordinator Greg Roman. When you combine coaching problems with Lamar Jackson’s injury issues, it’s hard to feel optimistic going into this week’s game against the Packers. But hey, they’re still 8-5 and clearly the best team in their division.

10. Chargers – They needed that win on Thursday night and fell short. There’s nothing wrong with losing to an elite team that has found its footing again. The good news is they’ve got the Texans, Broncos and Raiders left on their schedule. Barring some unforeseen development, they should be in good shape to reach the postseason.

WHAT’S THE CHATTER

It’s decision time: COVID cases are piling up around the league. While the Rams are setting the pace with 25 players on their reserve list, the Browns have 22 players out. Washington has 21. The Bears are also in double-digits with 13. After several people called for the NFL to postpone this week’s entire slate of games, the league made a move on Friday. The Raiders-Browns matchup was moved to Monday. Seahawks-Rams and Washington-Eagles are now scheduled for Tuesday. The infected players  — assuming a majority who tested positive are vaccinated — could still suit up and be on the field if they have two negative tests before gameday. In the meantime, the NFL has reverted back to last season’s stringent COVID guidelines with widespread masking, social distancing and no visitors allowed on road trips, among other rules.

So long, screwy: It’s hard to believe that Urban Meyer couldn’t even make it through one season — ONE! — in the NFL. It’s even harder to believe that Meyer lived up to pretty much everything his doubters said about him when he got hired. That he’s a control freak. That he can’t handle losing. That he doesn’t treat players with respect. He hit all three. He made head-scratching roster decisions, abused his assistant coaches, embarrassed himself with a young woman at an Ohio bar, kicked his kicker in the leg and was just an all-around bad guy. Unreal. And what’s worse (and if I’m being honest, kind of amusing) is that nobody is defending him today. Jags owner Shad Khan wanted this to work and would have given Urban a few seasons to build something in Jacksonville. All he had to do was not get in his own way. And apparently, that was too much for him. Yeesh.

Things moving forward: Remember Deshaun Watson? Out of sight, out of mind, right? Well, the criminal investigation into the quarterback is continuing with news coming out that a grand jury probe should be concluded by late January. What’s more, a judge reportedly signed search warrants for Watson’s social media accounts. I imagine that Watson won’t be near an NFL field anytime soon. Although, that’s really the least of his problems right now.

Good luck: It’s playoff time for fantasy football and judging by the text chain I’ve got going in one of my leagues, the people are pretty upset. Waiver wires are being scoured for practice squad players and the calls and screams are growing for Roger Goodell to do something. I can’t wait to see a team with Davis Mills at quarterback win a fantasy championship. You know it’s coming.

APPOINTMENT VIEWING FOR WEEK 15

Patriots at Colts: Saturday NFL football! I love this time of year, when the college game steps aside and lets the pros own both weekend days. And this is a great game between two playoff teams. By the way, New England has only four players on its COVID-19/Reserve list. How is that possible? Something tells me Bill Belichick is up to something. I’m not accusing, I’m just sayin’.

Titans at Steelers: Pittsburgh is ripe to lose this game and have its playoff hopes dashed. But I’ve seen this movie before. Just when you think they’re out, they pull themselves back in. Look for the Steelers to grab a win here.

Bengals at Broncos: Both teams don’t have a postseason spot at the moment, but they’re right in the mix. This should be a fun one to watch.

Falcons at 49ers: People make fun of Jimmy Garappolo, but when he’s healthy, the man can play. San Francisco will be a team nobody wants to face in January.

Packers at Ravens: On paper, this should be a cakewalk for Green Bay. But Baltimore gets this one at home. That has to count for something.

Saints at Buccaneers: Not a particularly great division matchup, but it’s a Sunday night game, so it should hold the nation’s attention, at least for a half.

Raiders at Browns: What was supposed to be a Saturday game has turned into a Monday night affair.Las Vegas has pretty much bottomed out, but it’s worth watching this matchup to see if the duct tape holding Baker Mayfield’s body together will fall apart. This poor guy. He’s in a contract year and has been absolutely battered with injuries.

Washington at Eagles: Two teams with identical 6-7 records and yet, the Football Team currently holds the last NFC wild-card spot while Philly is just outside the bubble. And it’s Tuesday football!

Seahawks at Rams: L.A. has almost half of its 53-man roster on the COVID list. If things continue this way, how will they be able to field a team on Tuesday? Is Eric Dickerson available to play?