The 50 Most Important Things We Learned from the NFL's Week 13

Each week, observers of the NFL gain new perspectives on the players, coaches and teams on the field.

While some lessons learned from one game are contradicted soon after, there are happenings that may prove to be a sign of what's to occur in the weeks ahead.

Let's take a look at some key observations from what has transpired so far in Week 13.

Eagles Are the Year's Greatest Disappointment

The Philadelphia Eagles have gone from the "Dream Team" widely predicted in September to contend for a Super Bowl into a "Pipe Dream Team" that on Dec. 1 fell to the cellar of the NFC East with a 4-8 record.

Philly's 31-14 Thursday night loss to the Seattle Seahawks was a clear indication that the Eagles have simply packed it in for 2011.

Marshawn Lynch Is Still a Beast

His 15-yard TD run in the first quarter in which he escaped through a pile of Eagle tacklers was a small reminder of the unbelievable tackle-breaking rush he had in last year's playoffs versus New Orleans.

Marshawn Lynch followed it up with a 40-yard run on the opening play of the second period to give the Seahawks a 14-0 edge over Philly.

Lynch didn't get off to a stellar start this season, but he now has four 100-yard rushing efforts in Seattle's past five games.

The Colts Are Still Bad

Well, I think we learned this a couple months ago.

Regardless of the final score, we all knew what the result of the Indy-New England game would be.

When your quarterback is Dan Orlovsky and you're facing the likes of Tom Brady, your chances of winning are lower than the temperature in Grand Forks, ND in January.

Bengals Not Ready for Prime Time

Cincinnati has been a nice story this season, but it's quite apparent that it can't keep up with its more talented rivals in the AFC North.

The 7-5 Bengals have dropped their three chances against Baltimore and Pittsburgh—most recently suffering a drubbing in the Steel City on Sunday afternoon.

It all started when Cincy missed a golden opportunity to take an early lead. Inside the Steeler 10, the Bengals had a TD wiped out with a false start. A field goal was not counted after a delay of game penalty. The second attempt at a kick was blocked.

Soon after, Pittsburgh scored three touchdowns in a 4:14 span to blow the game open.

Chris Johnson Is His Old Self

It took a while, but the game's highest-paid back is playing like it on a consistent basis.

After an awful start to 2011, C.J. broke out with a 130-yard effort in Week 10 and then 190 more two Sundays later.

His most recent performance saw him go for 153 yards and two TDs in a victory over the Buffalo Bills.

Chicago Is in (More) Serious Trouble

You can only lose so many key components and still survive. But when you lose your two best offensive weapons, your playoff chances become dire.

Such is the case with Chicago. A couple weeks after losing quarterback Jay Cutler with a thumb injury, running back Matt Forte left the Bears' game with Kansas City in the first quarter due to a right knee ailment that will keep him out for the foreseeable future.

Minus those two, the Bears offense suffered mightily in a 10-3 loss to the Chiefs.

When It Rains, It Pours

The Bears certainly fall under the category of teams with mounting injuries.

The same is the case with the Houston Texans. Starting quarterback Matt Schaub and backup Matt Leinart went down in successive weeks.

With third-stringer T.J. Yates in place this Sunday against Atlanta, his favorite target was hampered again. Wideout Andre Johnson limped off the field with a left hamstring injury soon after returning to action with a hurt right hamstring.

Chicago's opponent this week, the Kansas City Chiefs, weren't immune either. Their newest QB addition, Kyle Orton, had just one play before a bum finger forced him out.

Cam Newton Having an All-Time Season

It's no secret now that Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton is one of the most talented rookies to come into the league in quite some time.

As the season progresses, we are seeing him record numbers that will put him among the best in terms of first-year players.

Newton was a one-man show against Tampa, scoring four touchdowns. Three were of the rushing variety. That pushed his season total to 13, the most ever by a quarterback.

Miami Will Play the Spoiler

The Miami Dolphins are certainly not playing like a club that's well out of the playoff race.

Tony Sparano's club crushed the AFC West-leading Oakland Raiders to make it four wins in the past five contests.

With the effort they are putting forth, the Dolphins can pose trouble for any of their upcoming opponents that are trying to get into prime position for the postseason.

LeGarrette Blount Is Inconsistent

The Tampa Bay running back posted just 19 yards on the ground following two straight 100-yard efforts.

This has been Blount's story all season long. In five games, he's averaged north of five yards per carry. However, there are four contests in which he's had less than 3.5 an attempt.

Tim Tebow Can Win with His Arm Too

Tebow Time has developed a new element.

A quarterback that has been skillful only in his ability to run the football came back to top the Minnesota Vikings by making plays with his arm.

Tim Tebow completed 10 of his 15 passes for 202 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions as he notched his sixth victory in seven starts this season.

Don't Sleep on the Titans

Led by a veteran quarterback and a surging running back, the Tennessee Titans improved to 7-5 with a victory in Buffalo.

Although they're on the outside looking in in terms of the playoff race, Mike Munchak's club has to like its chances a little more considering Oakland and Cincinnati fell this week.

Bills Are Who We Thought They Were

From optimism at 5-2 to despair at 5-7.

The Buffalo Bills' latest loss in their disintegration from playoff contention came at the hands of the Tennessee Titans.

When Ryan Fitzpatrick, Fred Jackson and company got off to a fine start, many thought the Bills had turned the corner. Instead, they are back to being their mediocre selves.

Redskins Have Found Their Starting RB

Say hello to Helu.

Roy Helu, the rookie out of Nebraska, may have established his place on the Washington depth chart. Following his game last week against Seattle in which he totaled 160 scrimmage yards, Helu had 100 on the ground along with two trips to pay dirt versus the New York Jets.

The Jets Avoided a Back-Breaking Loss

Rex Ryan talks high expectations for his club, but he would have had to eat his words had the Jets fell to the Redskins.

That's because an "L" on Sunday would have made it mighty difficult for New York to claim a wild-card berth with four games remaining.

However, the Jets took the lead in the fourth quarter and then pulled away to a 34-19 victory.

AFC Home Field Is Up for Grabs

The Steelers, Ravens and Patriots are nearly at full strength with 9-3 marks and have the best chance to gain the conference's top seed.

Meanwhile, who knows what to expect from the Texans? With injuries abounding, their offense is slightly hampered. But with a solid running game, great defense and a manageable schedule, Houston has an outside chance to emerge as No. 1.

Bears Brass Needs to Call McNabb

With just two touchdowns, three interceptions, 254 yards and a 50 percent passing rate for Caleb Hanie over the course of two games, the Chicago Bears would be wise to think about bringing about a new signal-caller.

Windy City native Donovan McNabb, recently released from the Minnesota Vikings, is a free agent and is a possibility to try to revive the Bears offense.

Tony Sparano's Job May Be Safe

In early October, the Miami Dolphins head coach was a dead man walking.

While he still may be ousted at season's end, his team is making sure he doesn't go down with a whimper. The Fish have played strong for their leader even with severe shortcomings.

AFC West Is There for Denver

The Broncos' last-second victory coupled with the Raiders' disheartening loss in Miami means there is a tie atop the division.

However, red-hot Denver holds the head-to-head tiebreaker due to having a better conference record. What's more, the Broncos play three of their final four games in the Mile High air.

Tampa Bay Is Uninspiring

Despite having to start backup Josh Johnson at quarterback against Carolina, the Buccaneers shouldn't have played as lousily as they did on Sunday at home against a weaker opponent.

A 38-19 loss gives Tampa Bay six straight defeats and seven in its last eight games. Last year's 10-6 mark seems like a distant memory.

Rob Gronkowski Is Putting Up Superb Numbers

It's almost unfair to give Tom Brady another target to throw to.

But Rob Gronkowski appears to be a rising star in terms of tight ends in the NFL. On Sunday against Indianapolis, he tied the league's single-season record for the most TD receptions at that position (13).

In his first 27 games as a pro, Gronkowski has found the end zone 24 times.

Seattle Building Some Momentum

The Seahawks may look laughable at times, but a 5-7 record shows that they aren't horrid.

You have to give head coach Pete Carroll credit for doing a good job without a great deal of talent, especially at quarterback.

In spite of the poor play by signal-caller Tarvaris Jackson, Seattle has progressed over the course of the season.

Ponder Making Mistakes but Maturing

Overlooked in the Tim Tebow show was the play of the rookie from Florida State. Christian Ponder was 29-of-47 for 381 yards and two touchdowns.

The two mistakes he made, though, were costly. His first interception was returned for a Denver touchdown. The second help set up the Broncos' game-winning field goal.

Those errors can certainly be corrected. If they are, Ponder's Vikings will be victorious in a game like the one they played on Sunday in the Metrodome.

Defenders Will Never Learn to Knock It Down

The only real offense produced in the matchup between the Chiefs and Bears came at the conclusion of the first half.

Kansas City QB Tyler Palko aired out a Hail Mary. Instead of batting the ball to the ground, Chicago LB Brian Urlacher kept it up in the air. That allowed Dexter McCluster to haul it in and give the Chiefs a 7-3 edge at halftime.

Pittsburgh Has Emerging WRs

The Steelers may be getting old overall, but their wide receiving corps is young.

Two of Mike Wallace's three catches on Sunday against Cincinnati resulted in touchdowns. For 2011, the third-year player out of Ole Miss has scored eight times.

Complementing him nicely is Antonio Brown, in his second pro season since parting from Central Michigan. Brown totaled 67 receiving yards on two grabs in his game versus the Bengals.

T.J. Yates Managed the Game

The first University of North Carolina product to start in the NFL at quarterback wound up notching a "W" on Sunday at home against the Atlanta Falcons.

It wasn't an eye-popping performance (12-of-25 for 188 yards, one TD), but Yates limited his mistakes and put his ballclub in a position to win the contest.

He also knew he could rely on the rushing ability of Arian Foster and Ben Tate.

Reggie Bush Has Found a Home

After looking lost in the first few games of his tenure with Miami, Reggie Bush is in his element.

Since Oct. 30, Bush has totaled 100 scrimmage yards three times (at New York, at Kansas City, vs. Oakland) and scored five rushing touchdowns. 

Prior to Oct. 30, he had zero of each.

Limiting the Raiders Run Game Is Key

While Reggie Bush had 100 yards on the ground against Oakland, it was Michael Bush that failed to gain much forward progress.

The Raiders tailback could only muster 18 yards on 10 carries. Miami's limiting of the run forced Carson Palmer to beat them with his arm...and he couldn't. The Dolphins held him to less than 50 percent passing and took an interception back for six points.

LeSean McCoy Is the Best RB in the NFL

Despite all the turmoil in Philadelphia, the lone bright spot is its running back.

For an offense that prides itself on the passing attack, it's surprising that the leading rusher in the NFL is a member of the Eagles.

LeSean McCoy has 1,134 yards and 12 touchdowns on the ground and has proven to be the only consistent player Philly has right now.

NFC Picture Much Clearer Than AFC

While there is no spot settled in the AFC, the NFC already knows two of its participants in the postseason.

The Packers and Niners locked up spots on Sunday and are likely to waltz into the playoffs as the top two seeds. New Orleans is likely to clinch soon as well.

Washington Needs a QB

It's certainly not the Redskins' only problem, but it's their biggest concern.

Rex Grossman's bad performances outweigh his good ones, and that should be reason enough for the Redskins to eye one of the prized prospects coming out of college for next year's NFL draft.

Matt Barkley, Robert Griffin III and Andrew Luck all have tremendous upside. Too bad other pro teams will be hawking after them as well.

Monday Night an Unsatisfying End

Each Sunday, fans are guaranteed to have an exciting finish. In Week 13, we got several.

Unfortunately, the Monday night matchup between the Chargers and Jaguars lacks any playoff juice. Thus, we're trying to find out what else is on TV.

Houston's Defense Confused Matt Ryan

The Houston Texans may have some injuries, but they continue to produce stellar outings on the defensive side of the ball.

Wade Phillips' group limited Falcons running back Michael Turner to just 44 yards on the ground. More importantly, they forced quarterback Matt Ryan into two key interceptions as the Texans edged Atlanta, 17-10.

Steve Spagnuolo's Job May Be in Jeopardy

Having no Sam Bradford hasn't helped, but even a healthy starting quarterback wouldn't make this Rams team much better than 2-10.

St. Louis showed some promise last year, nearly qualifying for the playoffs, but a disheartening 2011 may spell the end of the road for a head coach in his third season with the club.

58 Seconds Is Too Much Time

When the Giants tied the score at 35 apiece with just under a minute to go in regulation, it seemed almost obvious that Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers would respond with a game-winning score.

After all, a precedent has been set, as Rodgers is having an incredible 2011 season.

Those predictions came true when No. 12 led the Packers down the field with quick precision and his team remained unbeaten.

Drew Brees Would Be the MVP If...

It weren't for Aaron Rodgers.

Brees is putting up insane numbers and is leading a balanced offense to a 9-3 record.

Besides Peyton Manning, no player may be integral to his team's success than the Saints quarterback.

Brees on the Way to Two Passing Records

A majority of the talk is that Drew Brees is on pace to surpass Dan Marino's mark for most passing yards in a single season.

There is another (more prestigious) record that he is approaching, and that is 47 consecutive regular-season games with at least one TD pass. Johnny Unitas has held this achievement for nearly half a century.

Brees would have to wait until next year in order to streak past the legendary Baltimore Colt.

Lions Missed Suh in the Lineup

It might not have mattered for the Lions to have Ndamukong Suh in the lineup for their matchup with the New Orleans Saints, but his presence may have brought an intimidation factor when facing a highly touted offense.

They'll have to cope without him for one more game, against the Vikings next Sunday afternoon.

Harbaugh Leading One of the Top Turnarounds

There's no doubt he's the Coach of the Year. With each passing victory, Jim Harbaugh is orchestrating a fantastic transformation in San Francisco. 

The 49ers have gone from a lifeless 6-10 team in 2010 to a legit Super Bowl contender in 2011.

San Francisco Can't Afford a Letdown

The San Francisco 49ers are the first team to clinch their division. That's no surprise considering the overall ineptitude of the NFC West.

However, they can't afford to just take it easy. A first-round bye awaits them if they can win three of their final four games.

Tom Coughlin Reckless with Challenges

I'm not sure who Tom Coughlin is getting advice from when it comes to challenging referee calls.

Two of his red-flag tosses against the Packers were curious at best. The latter, which came in the third quarter, was a play that occurred right in front of him.

The refs aren't the only ones that are blind.

Determining What's a Catch Is Still Confusing

The most controversial play of the Packers-Giants encounter came in the third quarter.

Green Bay wideout Greg Jennings hauled in a catch as he tiptoed just prior to the out-of-bounds line in the back of the end zone. However, the ball was knocked from his grip after a couple steps. It was ruled a touchdown on the field, and review upheld the original call.

In watching the play and understanding past instances, I had no idea which way the officials would go.

No Letdown for Baltimore

In 2011, the Ravens have been a team that plays down to their opponent. They've beaten Pittsburgh, Houston, San Francisco and the New York Jets. 

Conversely, Baltimore has been defeated by Jacksonville and Seattle. Therefore, the Cleveland Browns appeared to be a typical trap game.

Not so fast. The Ravens jumped on their foe quickly and made it look rather easy in a 24-10 decision.

Utilize Ray Rice

It seems as if when Ray Rice is on his game, the Ravens offense is as well.

The Rutgers product went for 204 yards rushing and one touchdown on 29 carries as Baltimore prevailed 24-10 over Cleveland.

When the season gets later and cold weather asks for more of a ground attack, it helps to have a guy like Rice on your side.

The Packers Have an Opportunistic Defense

OK, giving up 35 points doesn't reflect praise towards a defense.

However, the Packers have the ability to make plays that can make the difference. This occurred at MetLife Stadium when Green Bay forced two key turnovers.

The first came early in the second quarter, when linebacker Clay Matthews intercepted an Eli Manning pass and returned it 38 yards to the end zone.

Later in the period, Matthews forced a fumble on Manning. The Packers recovered and prevented the Giants from tacking on points prior to halftime.

Both plays proved key in a game decided by just three points.

Colt McCoy Needs to Be More Accurate

It's hard for any quarterback to do well against the stifling Ravens defense. Colt McCoy felt the wrath, going 17-of-35 for 192 yards, one TD and one INT.

But McCoy has had this happen against most opponents lately. 

He has thrown for more than 200 yards in just two of the past six games. In addition, his completion percentage has been under 50 percent on five occasions.

Coaches Shouldn't Ice Their Own Kicker

It's usually the other way around.

A head coach will call a timeout just prior to the opposing kicker attempting a key field goal.

With Dallas and Arizona tied at 13 late in the fourth quarter, Cowboys kicker Dan Bailey was set to try from 48. His head coach Jason Garrett then called the timeout just prior to the snap.

Bailey missed after the timeout, which sent the game into overtime.

Cowboys Missed a Golden Opportunity

The overtime session didn't go much better for the Cowboys.

On their first possession of overtime, the Cardinals won it on a 52-yard screen pass from Kevin Kolb to LaRod Stephens-Howling.

Dallas fell in a game that it should have won. The Cowboys would have pulled away by a two-game margin on the New York Giants in the NFC East if they had prevailed.

New Orleans Is No. 2 Team

Unlike in college football, we're hoping for a rematch in the NFC title game.

The season opener provided the most exciting contest of the year. By the looks of how the Packers and Saints are playing, we may get our wish.

New Orleans, like Green Bay, has a potent offense with a somewhat susceptible defense. However, both teams are so good at putting points on the board that it almost doesn't matter.

Packers Cleared Their Last Hurdle

With the 38-35 win in the Meadowlands, the Green Bay Packers are on their way to a 16-0 regular season.

The Giants were their real last test...and they passed it.

A target is always placed on the defending world champion. Just imagine how large it will be if the Packers go into the playoffs undefeated.