NFL Snapshots: Week 13 (2023)

The NFL changes every single week. What was true last week, may be false this week. It’s hard to keep up.

Here’s a look at all 32 teams after Week 13.

Arizona Cardinals (3-10)
James Conner ran all over his former team for 105 yards and 2 touchdowns as the Cardinals defeated the Steelers.

Atlanta Falcons (6-6)
The Falcons couldn’t do much against the Jets defence, but they didn’t need to as they won the game with a baseball score: 13-8.

Baltimore Ravens (9-3)
Coming out of the bye, the Ravens face the Rams at home in what is expected to be a wet and windy affair.

Buffalo Bills (6-6)
Hopefully, the Bills used their bye week to digest the first twelve weeks of the season and come back with a renewed energy. No one is running away with any of the three AFC wild card positions – the Bills can take one if they want to.

Carolina Panthers (1-11)
Chuba Hubbard ran for 104 yards and 2 touchdowns, but it wasn’t enough to defeat the Buccaneers.

Chicago Bears (4-8)
The Bears almost beat the Lions on the road a few weeks ago. Now, they face them at Soldier Field. I’ve come to realize that team records go out the window when it’s a matchup between division rivals. A Bears win would not surprise me.

Cincinnati Bengals (6-6)
Jake Browning’s stat line against the Jaguars: 32-37, 354 yards, 1 touchdown. Who saw this coming? Good for him, I like seeing backup quarterbacks succeed. Maybe the Bengals can make the playoffs? This should give them hope.

Cleveland Browns (7-5)
The Browns are on their fourth quarterback of the season – Joe Flacco. I think I’ve said this before, but their defence needs to carry them if they have any of sneaking into the playoffs. They gave up 36 points to the Rams in Week 13.

Dallas Cowboys (9-3)
The Cowboys and Seahawks gave us the best Thursday Night Football game…ever? Don’t test me on that. At this point the Cowboys feel like the Chiefs of the Mahomes-Hill-Kelce era where even if they’re down by multiple scores, they’ll find a way to come back in a hurry.

Detroit Lions (9-3)
I’m worried about the Lions defence. They went up 21-0 after one quarter, but then let the Saints back in the game. Yes, they still won (by 5), but it was too close for comfort.

Denver Broncos (6-6)
Russell Wilson had gone five games without throwing an interception, before throwing three in a loss to the Texans.

Green Bay Packers (6-6)
Here come the Packers! A win over the Chiefs was their third in a row and Matt LaFleur is now 16-0 in December. There’s no way that loss column is sullied by the Giants in Week 14.

Houston Texans (7-5)
I didn’t think I’d be saying this in 2023, but the Texans are a lot of fun to watch. One reason for that is the emergence of their young players, C.J. Stroud and Tank Dell. Unfortunately, Dell’s rookie season has come to an end after he fractured his fibula in Week 13.

Indianapolis Colts (7-5)
The Colts had TWO blocked punts against the Titans. They gave up a Pick 2. And they won in overtime. One of those things rarely happen in an NFL game, let alone all. We’re in the midst of MinshewMania II, it’s official.

Jacksonville Jaguars (8-4)
The Jaguars made their first Monday Night Football appearance since 2011 and probably thought it was a dream scenario. They were at home and facing a Bengals team starting their backup quarterback. Well, the game turned into a nightmare. Christian Kirk was lost to a core muscle injured – he’ll be out for 8 weeks. And the Trevor Lawrence had his ankle stepped on by one of his linemen. He’s been diagnosed with a high ankle sprain. C.J. Beathard is the next QB up, but he has been limited in practice due to a shoulder injury. So, I’m going to take this opportunity to once again mention former CFL star, Nathan Rourke, who is the third string QB. I would love to see him get an opportunity.

Kansas City Chiefs (8-4)
The Chiefs offence used to be a microwave, which is to say it was instant. I thought this would affect them last season when Tyreek Hill left, but they won the Super Bowl. Now, we’re seeing they don’t have a guy who can get them a chunk play on demand and it’s costing them.

Las Vegas Raiders (5-7)
I hope the Raiders secondary had a good bye week because they face a returning Justin Jefferson in Week 14.

Los Angeles Chargers (5-7)
The Chargers defeated the Patriots, 6-0. That’s all I’m going to say.

Los Angeles Rams (6-6)
The Rams are healthy and have won three in a row. Earlier, I mentioned wet and windy conditions in Baltimore. I expect the Rams to combat this by running the ball a lot and throwing short slants to Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua – so, basically, what they normally do.

Miami Dolphins (9-3)
De’Von Achane is ridiculous. He has 56 rushing attempts in his NFL and is averaging 9.5 yards per carry. The only way to slow him down might be with a pile of quicksand, and even then, he’ll probably get 15 yards.

Minnesota Vikings (6-6)
The Vikings have decided to stick with Justin Dobbs at quarterback, as Justin Jefferson returns from injury. I’m sure they wanted to see what that connection was like before switching quarterbacks again.

New England Patriots (2-10)
The Patriots have held their opponents to 10 or fewer points in their last three games. They are 0-3 in those games.

New Orleans Saints (5-7)
The Saints have lost three games in a row, but face the Panthers in Week 14, so…they’ll get back in the win column.

New York Giants (4-8)
I’m setting the over/under at 6.5 Italian tropes mentioned during the Giants-Packers Monday Night Football game. I’m now seeing Tommy DeVito referred to as Tommy Cutlets. This is fantastic.

New York Jets (4-8)
The Jets had no choice but to see what their other quarterbacks could do. I agree. However, the leash on Tim Boyle should’ve been two quarters of football before turning to their next option, Trevor Siemen, who should’ve also had two quarters to audition. That should’ve been done two weeks ago against the Dolphins. That should’ve been the trial game; they weren’t going to win anyway. Instead, they let Boyle start two games even though he didn’t show any signs of being better than Zach Wilson. Now, Boyle has been released and it’s back to Wilson. The Week 13 game against the Falcons was winnable and their best option at QB was on the bench. Actually, not even. He was the emergency QB.

I know Zach Wilson hasn’t been good this year. And I know being 5-7 instead of 4-8 isn’t a big deal, especially when the Jets aren’t going to make the playoffs, regardless. But at least it would’ve kept their hopes alive for one more week and the “Rodgers might come back and save us!” story could’ve continued. Now, it’s all over.

Philadelphia Eagles (10-2)
The Eagles hung in there for a little bit, but then the 49ers walked right over them. It didn’t surprise me, only because the 49ers have probably been thinking about this game since last year’s NFC Championship, just like the Eagles had been thinking about their rematch with the Chiefs after the Super Bowl. If anything, this loss is a wakeup call to the Eagles that they have many things to work on before the rubber match in a potential playoff clash.

I saw a photo of two Eagles fans outside the team’s practice facility at 7:30AM holding up a sign that said, “RUN THE BALL.” They’re right. Run it.

Pittsburgh Steelers (7-5)
The Steelers lost the game and they also lost Kenny Pickett, who suffered a high ankle sprain. He had surgery on Monday to accelerate the recovery process. For now, it’s the Mitchell Trubisky show.

San Francisco 49ers (9-3)
Deebo Samuel had said that last year’s NFC Championship game wouldn’t have been close if Brock Purdy were healthy. He, and the team, backed that up with a 24-point win over the Eagles. If we’re looking at the Eagles and 49ers like it’s a wrestling rivalry, then the 49ers absolutely had to win that game in convincing fashion. This sets up Chapter 3 of their story where no one knows what’s going to happen. Classic storytelling.

Seattle Seahawks (6-6)
For a second, it looked like the Seahawks may actually pull out the victory over the Cowboys, but they couldn’t get it done. They’ve lost three games in a row and get the 49ers next.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5-7)
For the tenth season in a row, Mike Evans eclipsed 1000 yards. Some of his quarterbacks have been: Josh McCown, Jameis Winston, Ryan Fitzpatrick, and Tom Brady.

Tennessee Titans (4-8)
The Titans returned an interception on a two-point conversion for two points of their own. The rare, Pick 2! Where were you when?

Washington Commanders (4-9)
The Commanders have finally reached their bye week.