Some great games and some others over the weekend, a stretch when it seemed there was football every night (although maybe that Bengals-Texans eyesore shouldn't count). My major takeaway is that for every argument against resting players for meaningless games because of the fear of them coming out flat in the playoffs, you have the counter-argument of losing your quarterback to a broken fibula. You can bet those injuries will factor into Week 17 -- and maybe tonight.
Dolphins at Bills: Rex Ryan has lost some excruciating games in his career. This was one of them, and it affected a lot of AFC playoff hopefuls. Bills drove down to take the lead, but a play near the goal line where Tyrod Taylor was driven out of bounds to stop the clock (probably should have kept running, forward progress) ended up giving the Dolphins enough time to get into field goal range to force overtime and win. Ryan waited too long, I guess, in trying to ice the kicker. And here we are: Dolphins in the playoffs, a good Ravens team out. Nice game for Jay Ajayi. Bills presumably rebuilding some in the offseason.
Falcons at Panthers: Kudos to Panthers for making a game of things, but Falcons roll onward. If they can steal the No. 2 seed in the NFC, that will be huge for them. And it means they'll have to play starters throughout next week, nice for fantasy teams. Disappointing game for Taylor Gabriel, but I'm not kicking myself too much for starting him. Too hot to risk sitting down.
Washington at Bears: Ground games did well, as expected, but both starting running backs failed to score while nobody backups did. Washington wins, but I know they need some help to get in the playoffs. I think they could win a game if they do, but defensively they're not up there with the best teams. Bears didn't play as bad as they seemed to be this year, I guess credit to John Fox.
Chargers at Browns: So I benched Isaiah Crowell for Jeremy Hill, which turned out to be a really awful decision. Last week I benched Hill for Crowell, and that turned out to be a really awful decision. So what should I have done? Started Hill twice? Started Crowell twice? Either move would have gained me 20 points and some money in this FFPC bracket I'm in. Instead I need to sweat out Jason Witten tonight, hoping he helps me stay in the money. Fantasy football is tough. As for this game, it's a fitting capper to a season where San Diego lost a lot of games it should have won. Josh Lambo can take a lot of the blame for this one with a couple of misses.
Vikings at Packers: This story about the Vikings defensive players holding a mutiny against the coaching staff is as bizarre as stories get. I kind of thought Mike Zimmer had done a nice job with the team, given its obvious offensive deficiencies. Anyway, it was a nice gift for Aaron Rodgers and the Packers, who seem awfully likely to roll into the playoffs. And nice for those of us who had either Rodgers or Nelson. Adam Thielen! Wow.
Titans at Jaguars: Jaguars interim coach Marrone making claim to full-time job. Why couldn't he get Blake Bortles playing like this a little sooner, though? Titans couldn't have gone far in playoffs with that pass defense, but a rough end to their playoff chances. And the Mariota injury is kind of mean, with the punishment we all get of having to watch the Texans get smoked in the playoffs, probably by Kansas City again.
Jets at Patriots: The Jets quit playing, and I'll quit talking about them. Going be tough for anyone to go into Foxborough and win. Pittsburgh is the only team with a ghost of a chance, and that seems unlikely, too.
Colts at Raiders: A shame for Derek Carr, who's had a great season. "Feels like we lost," said Bruce Irvin afterward, indeed. I almost cut DeAndre Washington in dynasty, glad I kept him around to have this big game. Amari Cooper in the Pro Bowl, Michael Crabtree not. Cooper more yards, but Crabtree seemed more consistent all year. Colts say no whole scale changes. We'll see. Team should be better -- roster should be too.
49ers at Rams: Hey, we ranked Carson Wentz ahead of Jared Goff. Goff looks like he needs a lot of work. Niners do a nice job of costing themselves the No. 1 overall pick, most likely. Carlos Hyde out for next week with a knee injury. Not a great game for Todd Gurley, though a serviceable fantasy one.
Bucs at Saints: Bucs are apparently still alive for a playoff spot, though not really. They were better than expected this year and have some nice pieces for the future. Need another receiver and to figure out running back. Doug Martin being a healthy scratch for Jacquizz Rodgers one of the weirder down the stretch stories.
Cardinals at Seahawks: Exciting game, and certainly a blow to those who believed the Seahawks are going back to the Super Bowl. Tough to bet against Russell Wilson and the offense when it is on its game, but the defense is banged-up and clearly not the same group. I don't think they'll be any picnic for the Giants or whoever goes up there in Week 18, but going into Dallas or Atlanta, not as certain. Thomas Rawls hurt again, shocker.
Bengals at Texans: The less said about this game the better, though the story that Bengals ownership stepped in to make A.J. Green inactive is an interesting one. Did they tell Randy Bullock to miss the game-winning field goal, too? Houston probably will hold starters out next week, what's the point.
Ravens at Steelers: Great game. Thrilling for those who like great football, who had big stars going in the game, and enjoy a seat on the edge of the fierce Steelers-Ravens rivalry. Distracting for those who hadn't eaten Christmas dinner yet, but worth it. Had Bell going and the way he was cutting through Baltimore early -- but not putting up big fantasy numbers -- was disappointing. And then he scored 2 TDs in a few minutes, the second a really impressive one; guy is great. And then Antonio Brown topped it. Solid game for Joe Flacco, too, who could have had a little more help from Dennis Pitta on a should-have-been touchdown. Harsh end to the season for the Ravens, who exceeded expectations and I suspect most agree are better than Miami (since they crushed them a few weeks back).
Broncos at Kansas City: Maybe it's just me, but I'm not entirely sold on Gary Kubiak being a good head coach. Yes he won a Super Bowl, fair play to him, and he gets a nice grace period. But whenever I watch the Broncos I see curious offensive choices and approaches that just don't look wise. Yeah, easy for me to say. Anyway, Denver's offensive line is bad and they're using Justin Forsett of all people in the backfield, so no surprise the team faded. And a lousy defensive effort, too. ... Travis Kelce factored into a lot of Super Bowl outcomes. What a game. Another big play touchdown for Tyreek Hill, too.
Monday, Monday: So I expect the Cowboys to play this one to win but I think it's fair to be a little worried. Certainly if any key starter suffers any kind of injury and leaves the field, they're not coming back. The game actually does mean something to Detroit, which can be a wildcard even if they lose against the Packers next week. But I'll call it Dallas 23, Detroit 17.