Author: rb809rb

There’s a new candidate for the catch of the year in the NFL this season.

Pittsburgh Steelers running back Kenneth Gainwell was on the ground, after he was interfered with by Detroit Lions linebacker Alex Anzalone, and somehow Aaron Rodgers’ deep pass bounced off his right hand. Gainwell kept his concentration and managed to haul the pass in. Anzalone was on the ground too and didn’t touch Gainwell down after he made the catch, so he got up and ran the final few yards into the end zone.

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What made it even more dramatic is it came with two seconds left in the first half. That tied the game 10-10.

The catch is similar to another famous catch in NFL history, when Antonio Freeman of the Green Bay Packers made a catch when he was on the ground against the Minnesota Vikings. He somehow kept the ball from hitting the turf and gathered it when it looked like an interception, then ran in for a touchdown to win the overtime game. That catch came from Rodgers’ old teammate Brett Favre.

Gainwell’s catch might not be as enduring as Freeman’s famous catch. But it was one of the craziest plays of this NFL season.

Los Angeles Clippers center Ivica Zubac will miss several weeks due to a left ankle sprain, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.

Zubac was diagnosed with a Grade 2 ankle sprain, per the report. A specific timeline for his return is not yet known.

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Zubac went down late in the first quarter of Saturday’s 103-88 win over the Los Angeles Lakers at the Intuit Dome. Zubac went up for a shot near the elbow, then came down and landed directly on LeBron James’ foot — which sent him down to the court hard. Zubac remained down as the play went the other way, and then he limped off the floor to the locker room. He didn’t return.

Zubac had five points and two rebounds in 11 minutes in the game when he went down. The 28-year-old has averaged 15.6 points and 11.1 rebounds this season, his eighth with the Clippers.

Zubac has spent his entire career in Los Angeles, after the Lakers selected him in the second round of the 2016 NBA Draft.

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[Get more Clippers news: L.A. team feed]

The win for the Clippers came amid a rough stretch for the franchise. They hold a 7-21 record entering Tuesday’s game against the Houston Rockets and have won just three games in their past 16 outings. The win for the Clippers was their first on their home court since Oct. 31. Kawhi Leonard dropped a season-high 32 points in the victory, and Lakers star Luka Dončić left the contest early due to a lower leg contusion.

The Clippers have a ways to go to get back on track this season. Losing their reliable center is going to make getting out of the current slump even more difficult for the franchise.

A drab slate of NFL games on Christmas was made worse Sunday with the news that the Kansas City Chiefs will likely be down to their third-string quarterback.

A week after Patrick Mahomes suffered a torn ACL, his backup, Gardner Minshew, is also reportedly feared to have sustained a torn ACL in Sunday’s 26-9 loss to the Tennessee Titans. Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Minshew will undergo further testing on his injured knee, but the concern in Kansas City is for an ACL tear.

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If so, the Chiefs will be down to third-string quarterback Chris Oladokun for Thursday’s Christmas Day matchup against the Denver Broncos unless they sign somebody else to start. That’s difficult news for Minshew and the Chiefs. It’s also bad news for football fans hoping to watch compelling football on Christmas.

Minshew suffered his knee injury in the first half of Sunday’s game. Oladokun, making his second NFL appearance, took over to lead a Chiefs offense that tallied just 133 yards of offense against a Titans team that won its third game of the season.

That’s not watchable football. And there’s not much promise for Thursday’s game amid a three-game Christmas slate that was already lacking punch.

NFL delivering bag of coal for Christmas

Thursday’s schedule will kick off with an NFC East matchup of the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Commanders, two teams that are already eliminated from the playoffs. Washington will play without Pro Bowl quarterback Jayden Daniels, whom the Commanders shut down amid multiple injuries in a lost season.

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The day’s second game features an eliminated Minnesota Vikings team hoping to spoil the faint playoff hopes of the Detroit Lions in what now projects as the most compelling matchup of the day. And for the nightcap, the likely Oladokun-led Chiefs will take on the AFC West-leading Denver Broncos in a matchup that does not project as anything close to competitive.

To be fair, this was a compelling matchup when the schedule was announced in May. As were the other two. Denver-Kansas City featured the juggernaut Chiefs against the up-and-coming Broncos as challengers to unseat their nine-year reign as AFC West champions.

The reality is that the 6-9 Chiefs are irrelevant regardless of who plays quarterback Sunday, and the Broncos are locked into the playoffs. A capable backup with starting experience, Minshew at least gave the Chiefs faint hope of playing spoiler to their division rivals as the Broncos seek to clinch the No. 1 seed in the AFC. But now even that storyline is a long shot.

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What should the NFL do?

And thus is the problem with scheduling standalone NFL games in late December. Matchups that look appealing on paper in May can be completely upended seven months later.

By Week 17, attrition has taken its toll across the league and changed the dynamic of most of the NFL’s rosters. And the playoff picture will have eliminated several teams from contention.

The weak Christmas slate has prompted some to float the idea of flex scheduling for Christmas. That brings its own set of issues, mainly around upending people’s holiday plans at the last minute.

Maybe it’s best if the NFL just doesn’t schedule games on Christmas.

Denver Nuggets head coach David Adelman’s ejection Saturday is going to cost him.

The NBA fined Adelman $35,000 for directing inappropriate language at game officials and for failing to leave the court in a timely manner after he was ejected in his team’s 115-101 loss to the Houston Rockets, the league announced Sunday. The ejection was the first of Adelman’s career.

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Adelman, who drew a technical foul in the first half at Ball Arena on Saturday, was arguing with officials in the fourth quarter over two questionable foul calls on Nikola Jokić. Then suddenly, after Jokić was smacked on the arm and lost the ball, Adelman erupted and sprinted at the official.

“You are f***ing terrible, man!” Adelman screamed at the official loud enough to get picked up on the broadcast. Adelman continued to follow the official, and had to be held back by his assistants. The official immediately hit Adelman with a second technical foul, which led to his automatic ejection.

Adelman said after the game that he was “confused,” and was “just looking for answers.”

“It seemed like [the official] just kept walking away farther and farther,” he said, via The Associated Press. “I thought we would talk, and it turns out they told me I had to leave. So yeah, it was a tough night for us for sure.”

Adelman is in his first full season leading the Nuggets. He took over on an interim basis at the end of last season after the franchise split with head coach Michael Malone, and was then promoted to the top job this past offseason. The 44-year-old has been on staff in Denver since the 2017-18 season.

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The Rockets led the entire second half and rolled to the win Saturday, thanks to a 31-point night from Kevin Durant. That snapped a six-game win streak for the Nuggets, who now hold a 20-7 record. Jokić had a team-high 25 points with seven rebounds and five assists. The Nuggets shot just 8-of-29 from the 3-point line.

Denver will be back in action Monday night against the Utah Jazz.

The Detroit Lions aren’t officially eliminated from playoff contention, but it’s probably only a matter of time now.

The Lions have been on a great run the past two seasons, advancing to the NFC championship game in the 2023 season and then going 15-2 last season. That run is fading fast after the Lions came up short in a 29-24 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

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Detroit struggled to pick up first downs against a shorthanded Pittsburgh defense for three quarters, then its defense couldn’t get a stop in the fourth quarter when the game was still in the balance. And when the Lions had a shot to steal a win in the final two minutes, trailing 29-24 after a missed field-goal attempt by Pittsburgh, a touchdown by Amon-Ra St. Brown was wiped out due to an offensive pass interference call against rookie Isaac TeSlaa and the offense couldn’t rebound to score after that.

On fourth-and-goal, which was the final play of the game, St. Brown caught a pass near the goal line and lateraled to quarterback Jared Goff for a touchdown, but the score didn’t stand. St. Brown was called for an offensive pass interference penalty on the play and the game was over. On the play, St. Brown ran straight into cornerback Jalen Ramsey, also extending his arm to create space, before coming back for the ball and it was called. Detroit fans will argue it shouldn’t have been called, and it wiped out what would have been a phenomenal touchdown for a Lions win.

Here’s the full sequence:

“The one where [St. Brown] caught it and we thought was a touchdown, in my opinion that’s a bad call,” Goff said, according to the Detroit Free Press. “But those happen. They have a tough job, they make calls that go our way all the time. But that one in particular, [TeSlaa] shouldn’t hang his head about.”

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The Lions fell to 8-7 with the loss. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh (9-6), who maintained its lead in the AFC North with the upset win, deserves credit. Its defense was without pass rushers T.J. Watt and Nick Herbig, and it shut down the Lions until a fourth-quarter rally. Running backs Jaylen Warren had two long touchdowns and Kenneth Gainwell had one on a phenomenal catch to give the offense what it needed.

The Steelers are a cool story this season but Sunday was about a team that had Super Bowl dreams before the season falling even further out of the NFC’s playoff picture.

Detroit needs to win out against the Minnesota Vikings and Chicago Bears, and get a lot of help to make it back to the playoffs now. The Lions haven’t shown enough consistency all season to prove they’re worth a spot.

Steelers take control early

The Steelers kept the game low scoring early, which wasn’t the best news for the Lions. Both offenses struggled to get much going. The Steelers tied the game 10-10 at the end of the first half, but they needed a miraculous catch from Gainwell to do it. Gainwell ran a deep route, was brought down on a defensive pass interference by linebacker Alex Anzalone, but when he was on the ground the ball hit his right hand. Gainwell was able to gather the pass, and since he wasn’t touched after he made the catch, he got up and ran in for a touchdown with two seconds left in the half.

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That play was most of the Steelers’ offense, but the Lions couldn’t really take advantage. The Lions were passing the ball OK but the run game was completely ineffective in the first half, and they scored just one touchdown before halftime.

The Steelers took the lead in the second half on a safety when Goff was sacked in the end zone, then went on a long drive to kick a field goal and take a 15-10 lead. The Lions hardly had the ball in the third quarter. They ran three plays in the period and the Steelers ran 25. Detroit held the ball for just 51 seconds in the quarter.

That made it impossible for the Lions to get in a rhythm on offense, which had to be the Steelers’ goal.

Lions have a shot in final quarter

The third quarter got worse for the Lions.

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The Steelers weren’t getting many big plays but the Lions couldn’t get off the field. Pittsburgh had drives of nine and 17 plays. They fumbled deep in Lions territory on the first drive but Detroit took a safety right after that. When Warren broke a 45-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, the Lions trailed 22-10.

The Lions went for it on fourth-and-2 with less than nine minutes left, and Goff hit Kalif Raymond in stride for a 27-yard touchdown. That kept the Lions alive. But Warren had another 45-yard touchdown after that.

An injured Lions defense hasn’t been good enough to give the team a chance to make the playoffs this season. But Detroit still had a chance in the final two minutes.

The Steelers had another long drive but it stalled, and Chris Boswell’s 37-yard field-goal attempt missed when it clanged off the right upright. Detroit trailed by five points and needed a touchdown to win it.

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A pass interference call on the Steelers on fourth down kept the drive alive. A tripping penalty on Pittsburgh gave the Lions 15 more yards. St. Brown picked up 24 yards on a quick screen to get the Lions to the 12-yard line. St. Brown scored a touchdown but it was called back on an offensive pass inference penalty on TeSlaa.

Detroit didn’t rally to score after that, despite what looked like a memorable touchdown on a lateral to Goff, and the Steelers escaped with a win.

The Steelers are closer to winning the AFC North after the win. And the Lions are closer to missing the postseason altogether.

When the Carolina Panthers watched Saturday night’s Bears-Packers game, it could have been a reminder of a mistake.

DJ Moore, a key part of a massive trade that the Panthers made to move to draft Bryce Young No. 1 overall, scored a game-winning touchdown for the Chicago Bears on a great catch in overtime. A big reason the Bears are 11-4 is the bounty they got in that trade. The Panthers haven’t come close to that type of breakthrough with Young. But this season has marked some progress.

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The Panthers lead the NFC South with two games to play after a huge win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday. Regardless of what happens next, this season has to already be considered a success for the Panthers.

Panthers rookie safety Lathan Ransom, who took a very costly penalty late in the Panthers’ loss to the Saints last week, had an interception with 42 seconds to go to seal the 23-20 win. The Buccaneers fell to 7-8 as their late-season swoon continues. Baker Mayfield in particular continued to struggle. He had just 145 yards passing and there was no Buccaneers receiver even close to where he was throwing on Ransom’s game-clinching interception.

It was a big game in the NFC South race, though it’s not like either team was on a streak coming in. Last week the Buccaneers blew a 14-point lead and lost to the Falcons at home, and then the Panthers blew a 10-point lead and lost to the Saints. That was a big help to the Buccaneers, who then needed to just win two of their final three games to clinch the division title. But for a team like the Panthers, which has had six straight seasons with double-digit losses, any sniff of being in the playoff hunt is a big step forward.

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The Panthers took a 23-20 lead just ahead of the two-minute warning. Young wasn’t great but he did enough to maneuver the Panthers into position to have the lead in a huge game. Earlier, Young made perhaps the biggest play of his career when, on third down, he scrambled to avoid the rush and found tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders for a touchdown to give the Panthers a 20-17 lead late in the third quarter.

The Panthers haven’t arrived, and the massive trade to the Bears still looks like it set back the franchise. But they’re getting better. There should be excitement in Carolina for being in the NFC South hunt. The division could still come down to a Week 18 rematch against Tampa Bay. But the Panthers showed Sunday they’re capable of winning — and being a surprise division champion.

Here are the rest of the winners and losers from Sunday’s action in Week 16 of the NFL season:

WINNERS

Mike Tomlin: The streak lives.

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The Pittsburgh Steelers won their ninth game of the season, meaning Mike Tomlin still has never had a losing season as Steelers head coach. And it was an impressive and important win Sunday.

The Steelers beat the Detroit Lions 29-24 despite being road underdogs to improve to 9-6 and maintain their lead in the AFC North. The Steelers’ defense was great for three quarters, and when the Lions rallied in the fourth quarter and had a shot to win, two offensive pass interference calls wiped out touchdowns and the Steelers held on.

There has been a lot of talk about Tomlin’s future this season, and even “Fire Tomlin” chants at one of the Steelers’ home games. But he keeps winning.

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Houston Texans, but it wasn’t pretty: The Texans have been on a roll lately, and the Las Vegas Raiders have been the worst team in the NFL for a while.

The Texans almost took a terrible loss to a moribund Raiders team Sunday. Luckily, they did just enough to win.

Las Vegas got a big game from rookie running back Ashton Jeanty, a rarity this season and unexpected against the Texans’ stellar defense. A 60-yard catch for a touchdown by Jeanty gave the Raiders a 14-13 lead, and a 51-yard touchdown run by Jeanty cut Houston’s lead to 23-21 late in the game. But the Texans put together a drive to kill the clock, with Nico Collins’ 24-yard catch sealing the 23-21 win.

The Texans got the win and that’s what matters. But their offense wasn’t great and their defense had its worst game in weeks against a terrible Raiders offense. It’s wise to give the Texans a pass for having one flat game, but it was still alarming.

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James Cook III: It was a rare day for the Buffalo Bills. They didn’t get a massive performance out of Josh Allen but won 23-20 anyway. That doesn’t happen too often.

The biggest reason the Bills won was they were playing the Cleveland Browns, but the Browns were in the game late. Instead of Allen saving the day, it was Cook who shouldered most of the offensive load. Cook had 117 rushing yards and two touchdowns.

Allen had an unusually quiet day with just 130 yards passing and no touchdowns. That’s a reason the game was close at the end, but the Bills’ defense backed up the Browns and forced a punt on fourth-and-32, then the offense got the first down it needed to kill the clock.

It’s the NFL and no wins should ever be taken for granted, but the Bills’ lukewarm performance doesn’t make it easier to buy them as the favorite to win the AFC. But in games against tougher competition, Allen will presumably be a much bigger factor. Cook, one of the NFL’s best running backs this season, will be there to help as well.

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Jim Harbaugh: Harbaugh isn’t going to get any NFL Coach of the Year votes, but maybe he should.

The Chargers have dealt with plenty of injuries, including to both star offensive tackles, but they keep winning in spite of that. The Chargers were underdogs for some reason against a Dallas Cowboys team that was officially eliminated from the playoffs Saturday, but Los Angeles got an easy 34-17 win. The Chargers are 11-4 and not out of the race for the AFC West championship.

That’s a credit to Harbaugh, one of the NFL’s best coaches, and also his defensive coordinator Jesse Minter, who has done a fantastic job all season and will be in demand this offseason for head coaching jobs. Before then, the Chargers have some work to do in the postseason.

Brian Flores: Speaking of defensive coordinators who should get some interest in head coach openings this offseason, Flores had a great day for the Minnesota Vikings in their 16-13 win over the New York Giants. The Vikings lost J.J. McCarthy to a hand injury and the offense didn’t do much with Max Brosmer in the game. It didn’t matter much because Flores’ defense was so good.

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By halftime, Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart had completed 1 of 5 passes for 2 yards, and threw an interception. He had a 0.0 passer rating at the half. That might be a statement on the Giants rookie regressing, but any quarterback will have issues against Flores’ defense. It was excellent Sunday.

The Vikings aren’t going anywhere this season, but Flores is still showing he’s one of the better defensive play-callers in the NFL.

Kellen Moore: By this time in the season, plenty of teams with double-digit losses have no chance to win. Some of it is due to talent deficiencies, injuries or both. Sometimes teams playing out the last few games of a miserable season look completely unmotivated and it shows.

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The Saints’ season has been done for a while, but they’re still playing hard. The New York Jets are one of those teams that looks like it can’t wait for the season to be over, but it’s still a good sign that the Saints beat New York 29-6 on Sunday. It’s a sign they’re buying into what Moore is selling in his first season as head coach.

After going 2-10, the Saints have won three in a row. That includes victories over the Buccaneers and Panthers. The Saints still need an infusion of talent, but they should feel pretty good they made the right coaching hire.

LOSERS

Denver Broncos: The Broncos worked for 15 weeks to take over the top seed in the AFC, get control of the AFC West and also get some respect as one of the best teams in football. They might have blown it all with their first blowout loss of the season.

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The Jacksonville Jaguars came to Denver and handed the Broncos a 34-20 loss. The Jaguars continue to ascend late in the season, and Trevor Lawrence had another strong game. Lawrence had 279 yards passing and three passing touchdowns, and added another rushing TD.

The Jaguars came into the game trying to hold off the Texans for the AFC South title, and getting a win at Denver was a huge step toward that. The Jaguars also are just a game behind the Broncos for the first seed in the AFC.

The Broncos are 12-3 but can’t be comfortable anymore. The Chargers are 11-4 and right behind them in the AFC West. The road to the No. 1 seed in the AFC got tougher with the loss. Hopefully they don’t look back on Sunday as a loss that changed their season for the worse.

Jacoby Brissett: When Brissett took over as quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals, the offense looked better than it had under Kyler Murray. That has been fading lately.

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Brissett had just 203 yards and threw an interception in the final minute that was snagged on a great catch by Atlanta Falcons cornerback C.J. Henderson, which clinched the 26-19 win for the Falcons.

Everything about the Cardinals has been a difficult watch this season. They’ve lost 10 of 11 games. For a while Brissett was making plays, but like the rest of the Cardinals, he is fading fast into the offseason.

The irrelevant Kansas City Chiefs: It had been a long time since the Chiefs played a game after being eliminated from the playoffs. It was strange that their game against the Tennessee Titans meant nothing.

The Chiefs, who will miss the playoffs for the first time since the 2014 season, will have an odd finish to the season. It got even weirder in the first half when Gardner Minshew, who was replacing an injured Patrick Mahomes, left the game with a reported torn ACL. He was replaced by Chris Oladokun, who you might not have heard of before Sunday.

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Oladokun was the Steelers’ seventh-round pick out of South Dakota State in 2022. He had appeared in one NFL game, rushing once for 5 yards last season, before he got in the game Sunday. He struggled against the Titans, as should be expected, not leading any touchdown drives in the Chiefs’ listless 26-9 loss to Tennessee, who might have played its way out of contention for the first pick of the NFL Draft with its third win of the season.

Oladokun could end up getting some starts to finish the season. That would include what is becoming a depressing Christmas game against the Denver Broncos.

It’s not like it matters. The Chiefs are playing out the string to end the season. After playing so many enormous games the past few seasons, the Chiefs quickly faded into obscurity this season.

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Quinn Ewers: Even though Mike McDaniel said he went with Ewers over Tua Tagovailoa because it gave the Miami Dolphins the best chance to win, everyone knew that was nonsense. The team decided Tagovailoa was done as its quarterback and it was wise to get a look at Ewers, a seventh-round draft pick, before the season ended.

Ewers needed to play very well to become the unquestioned top option heading into the 2026 season, and it’s not like that happened Sunday. The Dolphins had a rough game and Ewers wasn’t great in a 45-21 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. He padded his stats in a blowout, throwing for 260 yards, but threw two key interceptions that helped the Bengals pull away.

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Ewers is likely to start the final two games of the season, so he still has a chance to make an impression. But his time to do so is short.

The Boston Red Sox have reportedly landed Willson Contreras

The Red Sox made a move to acquire Contreras in a deal with the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan. In exchange, right-hander Hunter Dobbins is headed to the Cardinals along with minor-league pitchers Yhoiker Fajardo and Blake Aita. The Red Sox will also receive $8 million from the Cardinals to cover part of Contreras’ remaining salary.

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Dobbins, whom the Red Sox selected in the 2021 MLB Draft, made his debut this past spring. He went 4-1 in 11 starts on the mound and carried a 4.13 ERA. The former Texas Tech standout missed the second half of the season due to a torn ACL but is expected to be ready by Opening Day.

Contreras spent the past three years with the Cardinals, and he transitioned to first base in 2025 after spending the first stretch of his career largely at catcher. The three-time All-Star held a .257 batting average with 80 RBI and a team-high 20 home runs last season, his 10th in the league.

Contreras has two years left on the five-year, $87.5 million deal he signed ahead of the 2023 campaign, and he’s owed $18 million next season. He holds a club option for the 2028 season with a $5 million buyout.

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[Get more Red Sox news: Boston team feed]

His deal included a full no-trade clause, and Contreras initially seemed committed to the Cardinals’ rebuild after the team went 78-84 last season and missed the playoffs for a third straight year. But now, Contreras will join a Red Sox team fresh off its first playoff appearance since 2021. Boston went 89-73 last season and lost in the wild-card round to the New York Yankees.

The Contreras trade is the second between the Red Sox and Cardinals this offseason, following a deal that sent pitcher Sonny Gray to Boston. Gray also waived a no-trade clause to join the Red Sox.

Josh Allen is probably the best offensive player in football. He might be the best player in the NFL, period. Obviously, he’s the reigning MVP, and he has an outside shot to win it again for 2025. The Buffalo Bills ride or die with this Hall of Fame-tracking player.

[Upgrade to Fantasy Plus and gain your edge in player projections and much more]

But in Week 16, the semifinals of the fantasy playoffs, Allen was just another guy struggling to put up points.

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Buffalo will take the ugly 23-20 win at Cleveland, that’s for sure. No givebacks, no apologies. But Allen was a complementary piece for this one, throwing for just 130 yards and failing to account for a touchdown. He scored fewer than seven points in Yahoo standard leagues, his worst fantasy score (not counting cameo games) since 2018, his rookie year.

The poor performance had a lot of root causes. Allen obviously isn’t playing with special receiving talent — there’s no one to drag him to passing glory, no one taking the top off the defense. Dawson Knox dropped a catchable pass in the end zone. Khalil Shakir was the best of the wideouts and had just 34 yards on five targets. Keon Coleman wasn’t even active, a lost sophomore season.

Allen’s most talented offensive teammate is James Cook, and he and Allen generally can’t score at the same time. Cook rushed 16 times for 117 yards and two scores, including a 44-yard jaunt. When Cook gets rolling, it’s often at the expense of Allen’s fantasy score. Cook has a modest 32 catches for the year; that’s not Buffalo’s primary pitch.

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Allen also had a foot injury in the first half, necessitating X-rays. He was cleared to return to the game, but the Bills managed just 62 yards in the second half. This was one of those games where you huff and puff to the finish line, do just enough to win and exhale. Not everything is a Picasso — sometimes you need to draw something on the Etch-A-Sketch.

Most leads are going to stand up against the Cleveland offense, which doesn’t offer much pushback these days. Rookie back Quinshon Judkins had been in a two-month funk (coinciding with Cleveland’s cluster injuries on the offensive line), and he broke his fibula in the middle of Sunday’s game. Judkins struggled to 22 yards on eight carries, checked by a Buffalo rushing defense that’s been exposed by most other opponents. At least Judkins tacked on 5-29-0 receiving before his unfortunate injury.

Harold Fannin Jr. is the undeniable offensive star for the Browns, and he turned five touches into a pair of touchdowns (one rushing, one receiving). Imagine what he could do with a bona fide quarterback. Alas, Shedeur Sanders (two picks, 64.9 rating, 5.4 YPA) did not resemble a credible starter on Sunday.

Maybe Allen and friends will find themselves in a shootout next week against the Eagles. Then again, the Eagles don’t have much to play for, so that could also complicate the assignment.

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The Trevor Lawrence breakout continues

While Allen has been a star for a long time, this Trevor Lawrence stardom stuff is fairly new. Expectations were reopened during the summer, with Liam Coen taking over the offense and exciting WR Brian Thomas Jr. entering his second year. But Lawrence was fairly erratic for most of the first two months, leaving some to close his file for good.

Fast forward to December, where Lawrence has become one of the breakout stars of the league. He had a six-touchdown explosion last week against the Jets — en route to the rare 40-plus-point game — and he backed that up nicely with a signature game against the vaunted Broncos on Sunday. Lawrence produced four touchdowns (three passing, one rushing) and chased up to 31.16 points by the end of the day.

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Going off against a defense like Denver is a validating performance. The Jaguars seem to have the pieces in place for Lawrence to succeed — Thomas is healthy again, Brenton Strange has come back and produced, Jakobi Meyers was a smart acquisition, Travis Etienne Jr. has surprised the world. And when Lawrence doesn’t have something downfield, he’s proven to be a resourceful scrambler.

Lawrence has now beaten his projection in 10 of 11 games. The points should keep flowing next week at Indianapolis, and the Jaguars will be a difficult out in the NFL playoffs.

Other Week 16 Booms

I didn’t expect the Chargers to be an aerial circle at Dallas, and that fit the script — Justin Herbert attempted just 29 passes. But that was enough to rack up 300 passing yards and two touchdowns, and he also scrambled for 42 more yards and a third score. The Cowboys’ pass rush has been invisible for weeks — they had zero sacks for the second straight game. Omarion Hampton (16-85-1) took control of the LAC backfield, while Kimani Vidal was rarely used (5-11-0) after exiting due to a neck injury.

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Dak Prescott was good, not great, on the other side (244 passing yards, two scores). George Pickens came back to the living after a few off weeks (7-130-1). CeeDee Lamb was less involved (6-51-0), as it’s hard to have both receivers come in at the same time. Dallas gets a favorable Washington draw next week.

The Saints backfield didn’t have an actionable right answer this week, as Taysom Hill had one of his unpredictable hybrid games (16 touches, plus a touchdown pass). But Tyler Shough was solid for another week, and the ball went where fantasy managers wanted: Chris Olave had a 10-148-2 explosion (Hill threw one of the TDs) and Juwan Johnson was useful with his 8-89-0 log. The Saints’ passing game is credible in front of Tennessee next week.

Tony Pollard (21-102-0) was effective for the third straight week, though he had to share more than usual with Tyjae Spears (18 touches, 105 yards, one touchdown). Cam Ward posted a solid 8.4 YPA and didn’t have many negative plays (no turnovers, just two sacks). Rookie WR Chimere Dike (3-40-1) will be a fun sleeper pick next year.

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It’s hard to trust the Pittsburgh passing game, given modest volume — Aaron Rodgers can throw for more than 200 yards but he never passes 300. The passing game seems to use 27 tight ends, too. But two Pittsburgh running backs came in at Detroit — Jaylen Warren (14-143-2) had two long touchdown runs and Kenneth Gainwell shone in the passing game, en route to 128 total yards, five catches and a score. The Browns defense has started to lose steam, which puts Warren and Gainwell in play for Week 16.

Comeback mode was good to Jared Goff (364 passing yards, three touchdowns) and Jahmyr Gibbs (10-66-1 receiving, nothing as a runner). But David Montgomery was scripted off the field (four touches) and Amon-Ra St. Brown (4-54-0) and Jameson Williams (5-70-0) underperformed, given they didn’t score a touchdown. The Detroit carnival is still alive with the Lions clinging to playoff hopes, even though it’s extremely unlikely they make it. Expect points to flow at Minnesota next week, while fully respecting the challenging Brian Flores defensive scheme.

If you saw Ashton Jeanty’s career game coming against the ballyhooed Houston defense, you’re a legend. Please share the winning lottery numbers. Jeanty finally got untracked on the ground (24-128-1), including a 51-yard scoring rush. And while the Raiders largely ignored him as a pass-catcher (that’s been Jeanty’s salvation of late), he added a 60-yard touchdown catch. The Raiders couldn’t finish off Houston, but at least they looked like a competitive outfit. Jeanty gets the green light next week against the Giants.

Other Week 16 Busts

After nine glorious weeks of garbage time, the Arizona offense finally crapped out. Jacoby Brissett struggled against an ordinary Falcons defense (203 passing yards, one touchdown, one pick, 6.5 YPA), and most of the key Cardinals did not produce as expected. Brissett tried to get Trey McBride going, but it didn’t work (4-27-0, eight targets). Only three passes were aimed at the enigmatic Marvin Harrison Jr., just one was complete (1-14-0). Michael Wilson had a 32-yard touchdown and a 20-yard catch but that was it, on three paltry targets. Michael Carter cobbled together 65 yards on 11 carries — not a brick but not much help, either.

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If you played Brissett or McBride or even Wilson, I get it. They’ve been so reliable. When something happens for two months in a row, you start to trust it. Sometimes you do the right thing and it just doesn’t work out. The other team gets paid, too.

The less we say about the Kansas City offense, the better. Obviously, Patrick Mahomes and Rashee Rice were not available, and Gardner Minshew was injured in the loss at Tennessee. The Chiefs managed just nine first downs and 133 total yards against one of the worst teams in football. There are no right answers here.

Denver Broncos wide receiver Pat Bryant was hospitalized after a hit in Sunday’s 34-20 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars left him immobilized on a stretcher.

Broncos head coach Sean Payton told reporters after the game that Bryant exhibited motion in his hands and legs. 9 News in Denver reported that Bryant was hospitalized for concussion-like symptoms, not neurological symptoms. Further details of Bryant’s condition weren’t clear in the immediate aftermath of the game.

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Bo Nix: ‘I feel responsible for it’

Broncos quarterback Bo Nix, meanwhile, lamented his pass that preceded the hit that left Bryant injured.

“You never want to see somebody in that situation,” Nix said at the postgame podium. “I feel responsible because I threw it. You can say it’s part of the game, but you just never want to see it. And we pray that he’s OK.”

[Get more Broncos news: Denver team feed]

Pass, hit took place after game’s outcome was settled

The injury took place in the final minute of the game with the outcome already settled. With 39 seconds remaining and the Broncos trailing by two touchdowns deep in their own territory, Nix scrambled and threw a downfield pass over the middle to Bryant.

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Bryant got his hands on the ball, but Jaguars safety Montaric Brown was lurking behind him. As Bryant attempted to catch the ball, Brown delivered a violent but clean hit to Bryant’s shoulder.

Officials initially threw penalty flags but picked them up. Brown made clean contact with Bryant’s torso and shoulder and did not hit him in the head or neck area.

Bryant remained down on the field after the hit for several minutes while receiving attention from medical trainers. Nix was visibly upset.

Jaguars players on the field took a knee, and Broncos players surrounded their teammate as he was immobilized on a stretcher and eventually placed on a cart.

When play resumed, the Broncos ran one more offensive play and let the play clock expire from there.

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Bryant, 23, is a rookie who joined the Broncos as a third-round selection in April’s NFL Draft. He’s carved out a role in Denver’s offense as the Broncos have taken control of the No. 1 seed in the AFC.

In 13 games prior to Sunday’s, Bryant logged 22 catches for 305 yards and a touchdown. He tallied five catches for 42 yards against the Jaguars.

Despite the loss, the Broncos maintain control of the path to the No. 1 seed in the AFC with a 12-3 record. It was unclear after the game when or if Bryant would be able to return to the playing field this season.

Some NFL fans love a magnificent fingertip-catch, toe-tap touchdown. Some live for an earthshaking, runaway-freight-train power run. And still others thrive on the crucial, bone-rattling defensive stop, robbing the offense of its momentum and its soul.

Me? I love ref conferences. Can’t get enough of ‘em! And man, am I getting all I can stand this season!

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Week 16 brought us the usual round of Is that a catch? and Is that pass interference? that we now accept, every week of the season. But two calls in particular — calls that will have a significant impact on playoff positioning for teams up and down the standings — are going to linger long after this week is over.

First, way back on Thursday night, Seattle scored the strangest two-point conversion in NFL history. Sam Darnold’s pass-that-was-a-lateral rebounded off a helmet and a few sets of hands before settling to wait for Zach Charbonnet to pick it up and notch the most casual points ever scored:

Sunday’s afternoon slate ended with a truly bizarre and heavily ref-influenced final sequence in Pittsburgh’s desperation hang-on against Detroit. The Lions and Steelers were engaged in what amounted to a three-way battle with the referees, with both teams catching yellow flags that seesawed the game back and forth in a nausea-inducing whiplash.

The Lions took over with 2:05 remaining in the game, and over the course of the next 125 seconds, officials called five different penalties, plus an official review of a catch. Detroit actually scored would-be game-winning touchdowns two different times, and both were nullified by offensive pass interference penalties. Here’s one:

Here’s the other, which ended the game:

That was the penalty that required a full officials’ conclave, plus a parsing of the rule book so thorough it required furious Detroit fans to accept the fact that, yes, you just saw another touchdown scored, but no, it didn’t really happen. Sorry. Get home safe, folks.

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There’s always a point in any ref discussion — and, yes, there are so many this year — when the crowd loses its patience. You can feel it even more than you can hear it, a deep, rumbling boooooo that echoes around the stadium as the officials huddle together like they’re plotting a bank heist. I’m not an NFL official, and presumably neither are you, but I think we can all agree on this: The league has to do all it can to avoid getting to that point.

It’s pretty simple: When you need multiple sentences to explain the penalty, either the rulebook or its interpretation is the problem.

The NFL and officials are in a tough spot here. The objective, obviously, is to be as fair to each team and its fans, rendering a sound judgment with as much information available, as possible. The problem is that technology has advanced to the point that we can tell if a ball wobbles a tenth of an inch for a tenth of a second. Slow down the film enough, and everything short of a kneeldown is a debatable play.

But analysis takes time, and nobody wants their precious time at the stadium taken up by watching a homeowners’ association meeting on the field. The endless conferences, discussions and Calls To New York don’t just kill the momentum of the game, they kill its spirit, too. How many times have you seen your team pull off a massive play — a thrilling catch, a breakaway run, a key sack — and then held your breath, waiting for that inevitable flash of yellow across the score bug signaling a flag on the play?

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Maybe the observational technology is too good. Maybe the officials are just (understandably) overwhelmed by navigating the intricacies of the rulebook in high-stress moments. Maybe the rules are too delicate and precious, and we need a swing back in the no-blood, no-foul direction. Maybe too many people are getting involved in the regulatory process. Maybe it’s a combination of all of these.

Definitely, though, something’s got to change. Because the NFL can’t let its momentum keep getting halted by storms of yellow flags.