We have reached the end of the NFL regular season. I feel like I’ve described the last 18 weeks as “wild” so much that the word has lost all meaning. But it has been…wild untamed. See, I know synonyms.
I have thoroughly enjoyed doing this weekly recap of each team, even though I consistently posted it about 4 days late every time. Nevertheless, I always had it up before the Sunday slate of games – if I missed the Thursday nighter deadline – and I’m proud of that.
For those of you who have been reading these and commenting, I really appreciate it!
I do intend on having a playoff preview post before Saturday, so be on the lookout for that. I also need to talk about fantasy football. One thing at a time, though.
For now, here are my NFL Snapshots for Week 18.
Arizona Cardinals (4-13)
The Cardinals fired head coach Kliff Kingsbury on Monday, after signing him to a five-year extension just ten months ago. He has never had a .500 record in the second half of the season, which goes all the way back to his first year as head coach at Texas Tech in 2013. If he wants to coach in the NFL next year, I don’t think he’ll have a problem getting hired. The offensive coordinator position with the Patriots is the first that comes to mind. In other news, the Cardinals are reportedly going to include Kyler Murray in the hiring process for a new head coach. I’m not a fan of this – in any sport. Also, the team is expected to trade Deandre Hopkins in the offseason. He has a no-trade clause, so he’ll control where he goes.
Atlanta Falcons (7-10)
I think having young players like Desmond Ridder, Tyler Allgeier, Drake London, and Kyle Pitts should provide some optimism for next season. Unless they trade it, the Falcons will have the 8th pick in the draft. I’m 99% sure they’ll select a defensive player.
Baltimore Ravens (10-7)
For the last five weeks, the Ravens haven’t scored more than 17 points in a game. To their credit, the defence has been keeping them in games, but let’s be honest – the Ravens need Lamar Jackson in order to do anything in the playoffs. As of now, it doesn’t sound like he’s playing on Sunday.
Buffalo Bills (13-3)
Well, if you don’t believe in a higher power after Nyheim Hines took the opening kickoff all the way back for a touchdown – the Bills’ first kick return touchdown in 3 years and 3 months – then watch the highlights again until you do. Damar Hamlin #3, was jumping up and down, setting off alarms in the ICU, when it happened.
Carolina Panthers (7-10)
The Panthers ended the season with a 10-7 victory over the Saints. Sam Darnold finished the game with 5 completions for 43 yards, and 2 interceptions.
Chicago Bears (3-14)
Hey, remember when the Bears started the season 2-1? It feels like ages ago. Now, they hold the 1st pick in the draft.
Cincinatti Bengals (12-4)
No coin toss necessary; the Bengals will host the Ravens on wild card weekend.
Cleveland Browns (7-10)
The Browns went 3-3 with Deshaun Watson as their starting quarterback.
Dallas Cowboys (12-5)
It concerns me that the Cowboys only put up 6 points in a loss to the Commanders. Dak Prescott threw an interception in 10 of the 12 games in which he played this season. He also tied for the league lead in interceptions (15) with Davis Mills.
Detroit Lions (9-8)
I was wrong. And I knew I was wrong the moment the Lions ran through the tunnel and onto the field. I thought the Lions would be dejected if they went into the game knowing they didn’t have a shot at the playoffs. Instead, they were inspired. They went to Lambeau Field to send the Packers packing and that’s exactly what they did. Kudos to the Lions coaching staff and players for maintaining a winning attitude under those circumstances.
Denver Broncos (5-12)
The Broncos snapped a 7-game losing streak, ending the season with a win against the Chargers.
Green Bay Packers (8-9)
I don’t know if this is the end for Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay, but if it is, maybe he will find his way to Las Vegas and reunite with Davante Adams. Or maybe the Raiders can just send Adams back to the Packers. I’m sure they didn’t call “no trade-backsies”.
Houston Texans (3-13-1)
The Texans won, which means they dropped to the 2nd pick in the draft. They fired their head coach, Lovie Smith. And Brandin Cooks is looking to be traded. Go back and read my Snapshots from the weeks around the trade deadline – I was saying they should do right by Cooks and trade him to a contender.
Indianapolis Colts (4-12-1)
The Colts own the 4th pick in the NFL Draft, which means they’re either going to keep it and select a quarterback, or they’re going to trade up and select a quarterback. As a result, they’re going to invest everything into developing this quarterback for at least the next two seasons. So, he better be a franchise guy. If not, they’re going to be in this exact same spot – if not worse – in 2025.
Jacksonville Jaguars (9-8)
The Good Place needs to come back for one special episode, just so we can see Jason Mendoza freaking out about the Jaguars making the playoffs. I am very happy for this team.
Kansas City Chiefs (14-3)
Patrick Mahomes 2021 stats: 436/658; 4839 yards, 37 TD, 13 INT; 12-5 record
Patrick Mahomes 2022 stats: 435/638; 5250 yards; 41 TD, 12 INT; 14-3 record
I’ll say this: I didn’t expect Mahomes’ numbers to be better without Tyreek Hill on the team.
Las Vegas Raiders (6-11)
Derek Carr said goodbye to the Raiders and their fans on Thursday, nine months after the team signed him to a 3-year extension.
Los Angeles Rams (5-12)
Sean McVay may be stepping away from coaching. An official decision will be coming soon. He’s only 36 years old and for the last few years, teams have been trying to find “the next Sean McVay.” That’s the type of impact he’s had.
Los Angeles Chargers (10-7)
The Chargers have dealt with injuries all season, but have gotten healthy down the stretch. They entered Week 18 locked into their playoff spot AND YET, they played their starters into the second half. Joey Bosa and Mike Williams both left with injuries. Bosa is okay, while Williams has a back injury, but will travel with the team to Jacksonville. This is a team that doesn’t play any of their regulars in the preseason and here they are playing them in a meaningless game, one week before the playoffs??
Miami Dolphins (9-8)
“Hello, Mr. Thompson.” That was a Simpsons reference. Skylar Thompson will be the Dolphins’ starting quarterback when they play the Bills in the wild card round. As if the uphill climb wasn’t steep enough, Raheem Mostert broke his thumb last week and we don’t know if he’ll play.
Minnesota Vikings (13-4)
The Vikings will host the Giants, which is a rematch of their Christmas Eve clash, where the Vikings won with a 61-yard field goal as time ran out.
New England Patriots (8-9)
I’ll give the Patriots some credit: their offence matched the Bills offence. The difference in the game was the two kick return touchdowns they gave up.
New Orleans Saints (7-10)
They brought in Jameis Winston to be the successor to Drew Brees. He was mentored for a year and was given a 2-year contract worth $28 million last offseason. He played the first 3 games of the season and that was it. The team went with Andy Dalton the rest of the way. Yes, Winston was dealing with injuries early in the season, but by Week 9 he was off the injury report. Maybe this is a case where there’s more going on than the public knows – which is probably the case most of the time – but on the surface, it leaves me with questions.
New York Giants (9-7-1)
The Giants are one win away from all of us saying, “The Vikings are who we thought they were.”
New York Jets (7-10)
There are so many teams who will be looking for a new starting quarterback next season, the NFL should turn it into a reality show.
Philadelphia Eagles (14-3)
The Eagles held on to the top seed in the NFC and earned the coveted Bye week.
Pittsburgh Steelers (9-8)
It was looking bleak for a while, but Mike Tomlin avoided a losing season once again.
San Francisco 49ers (13-4)
In 6 games with Brock Purdy at quarterback, the 49ers have scored fewer than 33 points just once.
Seattle Seahawks (9-8)
The Seahawks didn’t take the easy route to the playoffs, but they made it nonetheless.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-8)
If the Buccaneers had anyone else as their starting quarterback, I would have absolutely no faith in this team as they enter the playoffs. However, they have Tom Brady. You never doubt Tom Brady.
Tennessee Titans (7-10)
The Titans lost their last 7 games of the season, including the pivotal “loser leaves town” match against the Jaguars in Week 18.
Washington Commanders (8-8-1)
Rookie quarterback Sam Howell made his first NFL start and defeated the Dallas Cowboys. No matter what happens for the rest of his career, he’ll always have that memory and story to tell. I’m happy for him.
The Captain's Speech 
I’m fairly confident Rodgers is done in Green Bay. If he retires or is traded, the team gets a $40m cap hit; if he plays in GB another year, that number goes up to $68m after next season. And Davante is stuck in Vegas ($31m dead cap if they trade him this offseason) so Rodgers joining him there is far more likely than a Packer reunion. If he doesn’t retire, I think that’s his most likely destination.
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Ah okay, thanks for filling me in on the salary implications. What would you prefer he did? Do you want him to come back or would rather move on to Jordan Love?
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I prefer they trade him so they can get something out of it, but wouldn’t be surprised if he retires.
It’s such a weird contract. Normally the dead cap hits reduce over time, but the Packers pushed so much of his cap money down the road with every extension and restructure. Now they’ve got a mess.
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