Biggest Stories and Best Highlights from NFL Week 11

The NFL's Week 11 slate featured teams playing for their playoff lives in crucial midseason contests.

The AFC postseason picture was a mess entering Sunday, with eight teams within two games of the Buffalo Bills, who hold the last playoff spot with a 5-4 record. Before the Bills kicked off, the Jacksonville Jaguars and Baltimore Ravens picked up wins.

It's not much clearer in the NFC: Entering Sunday, five teams with seven or eight wins had a clear leg up on the rest of the conference. The Seattle Seahawks, who play on Monday Night Football, could only watch as the eight-win Minnesota Vikings held the Los Angeles Rams to seven points and the Detroit Lions picked up a win to stay in the race. The New Orleans Saints also came back from down 15 points against the Washington Redskins to pick up a win—and haven't lost since Week 2.

Here's a look at the biggest stories and best highlights for Week 11.

1 p.m. ET Game Recaps

The New York Giants posted a massive upset on a windy day in East Rutherford, New Jersey, as they defeated the first-place Kansas City Chiefs 12-9 in overtime. Big Blue was a 10-point underdog, per OddsShark.

The Baltimore Ravens shut out the Green Bay Packers thanks to six sacks, two fumble recoveries and three interceptions in a 23-0 win at Lambeau Field. It was the first time the Pack have been shut out at home since a 35-0 loss to the New England Patriots in 2006.

Matt Prater knocked home a 52-yard field goal with 1:35 left as the Detroit Lions overcame a 10-0 deficit to defeat the Chicago Bears 27-24 at Soldier Field. Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford threw for 299 yards and two touchdowns, and Bears running back Jordan Howard rushed for 125 yards and a score.

The Minnesota Vikings rushed for 171 yards and two touchdowns, and wide receiver Adam Thielen caught six passes for 123 yards and a score as they defeated the Los Angeles Rams 24-7 in Minneapolis. With the win, the Vikings moved to 8-2 and second place in the NFC standings.

The winless Cleveland Browns fought valiantly against the Jacksonville Jaguars, but the road side emerged victorious, 19-7, thanks in part to a late defensive touchdown from linebacker Telvin Smith. Jaguars running back Leonard Fournette rushed for 111 yards as Jacksonville moved to 7-3.

Houston Texans running back D'Onta Foreman rushed for two touchdowns and 65 yards, and wideout DeAndre Hopkins hauled in a 28-yard touchdown pass as the home team defeated the visiting Arizona Cardinals 31-21 despite 91 yards and a score from Cards wideout Larry Fitzgerald.

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Kenny Stills was the fantasy star of the day thanks to seven catches for 180 yards and a touchdown. But it wasn't enough against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who defeated the Fins 30-20 thanks in part to two touchdown throws from quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick.

In New Orleans, the Saints survived the Washington Redskins by recovering from a 15-point deficit to win in overtime. Drew Brees threw for 385 yards and two touchdowns, including 11 straight completions over his last two drives in regulation while storming back. Behind him, Mark Ingram rushed for 134 yards and a score. Alvin Kamara rushed for 42 yards and added six catches for 75 yards and a score, negating three touchdown passes by Washington's Kirk Cousins.

Larry Fitzgerald Achieves Notable Milestone

With a 20-yard touchdown catch against the Texans, Fitzgerald passed former tight end Tony Gonzalez for fifth all-time in career receiving yards:

Fitzgerald could conceivably finish top-three by the end of the season. He has 15,157 yards after Sunday's contest, and Randy Moss currently sits third with 15,292. The Cardinals have six regular-season games left.

Plays of the Day

Ravens wide receiver Mike Wallace made an unbelievable one-armed catch for a 21-yard touchdown to give his team a 12-0 lead over the Packers:

New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara made a juggling 18-yard touchdown catch and then followed that up with a successful two-point conversion against the Washington Redskins:

The two-point conversation tied the game at 31 late in the fourth quarter.

New York Giants wide receiver Roger Lewis Jr. hauled in a clutch circus catch late in overtime against the Kansas City Chiefs. Two plays later, Aldrick Rosas knocked home a 23-yard field goal to give the G-Men a big upset victory:

In the late kickoffs, one of the most notable moments came from Mexico City during an encounter between the Oakland Raiders and New England Patriots. There, the latter's Stephen Gostkowski hit a field goal from 62 yards away, besting his personal record of 58:

The other big highlight from the late games came via a defensive touchdown for the Los Angeles Chargers, as Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram teamed up for a big play: 

Bills Bench Popular Starting QB, Rookie Throws 5 INTs in First Start, Bills Bench Rookie 

The Buffalo Bills made a bold move leading up to Week 11, benching starting quarterback Tyrod Taylor despite his 64.2 completion percentage with 10 touchdowns against three interceptions and 5-4 record.

Buffalo wanted to get a glimpse of the future with fifth-round rookie Nathan Peterman, who promptly threw five interceptions on 14 attempts in the first half while the Bills fell into a 37-7 hole against the Los Angeles Chargers.

One of those interceptions by the rookie was a pick-six, something Taylor had never done in his career.

In the second half, the Bills benched Peterman and went back to Taylor, admitting the mistake. The veteran finished with 158 yards and one touchdown in the 54-24 loss. 

Notable Storylines

After coming up short late against the Jaguars, the Browns were officially eliminated from playoff contention as head coach Hue Jackson moved to 1-25 with Cleveland.

In New Orleans, Kamara made more headway in his pursuit of a Rookie of the Year award by rushing for 42 yards on eight carries and catching six passes for 75 yards and a score. He posted one of the week's top highlights with his late bobbling touchdown catch and then game-tying conversion on a two-point try.

As hinted in the intro, the Vikings defense came up huge against one of the league's highest-scoring offenses, holding the Rams to seven points. The Vikings continue to pull away in the NFC North, while the Rams fall closer to the Seahawks in the NFC West.

The New England Patriots put on a show for NFL fans in Mexico, blowing past the Oakland Raiders in 33-8 fashion on the back of three touchdown passes by Tom Brady. With the win, Patriots coach Bill Belichick moved into third place on the all-time win list, passing Tom Landry. 

Injury Report

Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins and running back Chris Thompson were hurt on the same play in the third quarter against the New Orleans Saints.

Cousins took off and scrambled to his left, and he was hurt on the tackle. He stayed in the game.

Unfortunately, a Saints player rolled into Thompson's right leg as the running back blocked for Cousins. Thompson had to be carted off the field, and per John Keim of ESPN, he also received an air cast.

Losing Thompson for any amount of time is a devastating blow to Washington. The fifth-year pro was having a breakout year and had accrued 771 yards from scrimmage and five touchdowns prior to the Saints game.

Dolphins quarterback Jay Cutler entered the concussion protocol after the second quarter of his game with the Buccaneers and was listed as questionable to return.

Backup Matt Moore replaced Cutler to start the second half.

Still to Come

The nightcap features an NFC East battle between the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys. The 8-1 Eagles are marching toward home-field advantage in the NFC playoffs for the first time since 2004, when they went to the Super Bowl.

The 5-4 Cowboys will be without suspended running back Ezekiel Elliott and injured left tackle Tyron Smith (the latter news is via Jane Slater of NFL Network).

Without those two last week, the Cowboys struggled to get anything going on offense, scoring just seven points against the Atlanta Falcons, who have been up and down all year. Dallas is at home, though Philadelphia has won its last two games by a combined 51 points.