The Patriots put up 50, while the Bengals clinched the AFC North and the Bills clinched a playoff spot. Here’s what to know from Week 17 in the NFL.
Week 17 of the 2021 NFL season featured blowouts by the Bears and Patriots, a three-touchdown game by Bengals rookie Ja’Marr Chase that fueled an AFC North-clinching win over the Chiefs and a comeback by the Bucs during which Antonio Brown took off his uniform and left the field during the third quarter. Yes, you read that correctly. Elsewhere in the 1 p.m. ET games, the Titans clinched the AFC South title, the Rams came back to beat the Ravens, the Bills used a stellar second half to stop the Falcons, the Raiders upset the Colts and the Eagles topped Washington, boosting their NFC playoff hopes. Our NFL Nation reporters react with their takeaways and lingering questions. Plus, they each look at the bigger picture with their current team confidence rating — a 0-10 grade of how they feel about a team’s outlook coming out of the week. Let’s get to it. Jump to a matchup: KC-CIN| LAR-BAL| ATL-BUF LV-IND| MIA-TEN| TB-NYJ JAX-NE| PHI-WSH| NYG-CHI What to know: There’s no question Cincinnati’s offensive showing in a last-second win against the Chiefs was the best of the Bengals’ season. This was not the decimated Baltimore defense the Bengals rolled against as quarterback Joe Burrow threw for a franchise-record 525 yards. No, Kansas City was in form and playing like one of the best defenses in the NFL. And when Cincinnati needed points to avoid a blowout, it delivered, highlighted by 266 receiving yards and three touchdowns from Ja’Marr Chase. After several inconsistent weeks throughout the season, Cincinnati’s offense is living up to the preseason hype of being one of the most potent in the NFL. — Ben Baby What’s the biggest difference with the offense? It has to be Burrow. The second-year quarterback has been masterful the past couple of weeks and made several big-time throws against Kansas City. And just as importantly, he was able to evade pressure or make small gains to keep drives rolling. The No.1 pick in the 2020 draft has been as transformational as advertised. — Baby Baby’s confidence rating (0-10): 7.5, up from 7.2. The most complete offensive showing of the season against a very solid Kansas City defense raises the ceiling for this team. Next game: at Browns (Sunday,1 p.m. ET) What to know: It’s difficult to trust the Chiefs defensively. After playing so well during most of their eight-game winning streak, a lot of old problems resurfaced. They missed tackles, committed penalties and broke down in coverage like they hadn’t since early in the season. Kansas City won’t see many opponents with the firepower of the Bengals, but all it takes is one bad game in the playoffs to ruin a season. — Adam Teicher Has the AFC’s No.1 playoff seed slipped away? It certainly looks that way. The Chiefs need to not only beat the Broncos next week but have the Titans lose to the Texans. They should take care of their business, but expecting Tennessee to lose to Houston is too much to ask. The loss to the Bengals isn’t to blame. It’s the way the Chiefs played for much of the season’s first half. — Teicher Teicher’s confidence rating (0-10): 8.9, down from 9.6. The Chiefs are still formidable, but the play of their defense against the Bengals is a big concern. Next game: at Broncos (Sunday,4:25 p.m. ET) What to know: Like Week 10 at Washington and Week 15 against the Saints, in which the Bucs were favored to win by 10-plus points, they played down to their opponent and looked flat. Without Shaq Barrett and Jason Pierre-Paul, the Buccaneers’ defense couldn’t pressure Jets quarterback Zach Wilson. There were numerous coverage busts and players out of their gaps. Despite all that, the Bucs overcame the loss of receiver Antonio Brown and came back from a 14-point deficit — with quarterback Tom Brady hitting receiver Cyril Grayson for the winning 33-yard touchdown pass with 22 seconds to go. — Jenna Laine Did the Bucs do the right thing by cutting Brown? Brown inexplicably removed his jersey and pads, threw his undershirt and gloves into the stands, ran across the field shirtless and went to the locker room in the third quarter and did not return. He said last week that he « wasn’t about drama, » but he created yet another spectacle, just like the fake vaccine card. There’s no denying how remarkably talented Brown is and his impact on the team after a 101-yard performance last week. But with the playoffs looming, it seems the Bucs are better off without him. — Laine Laine’s confidence rating (0-10): 7.5, no change from last week. The Bucs have an issue playing down to the level of the opposition, and this may have been their ugliest win of the season… but it’s a win. Next game: vs. Panthers (Sunday,1 p.m. ET) With the Buccaneers and Jets lining up on the field, Antonio Brown rips off his jersey, throws it into the crowd and leaves the field. What to know: Rookie quarterback Zach Wilson did a lot of growing up in his best overall performance of the year, but he learned a hard lesson that many of his peers have experienced over the past two decades: You’ve got to play 60 great minutes to beat Bucs quarterback Tom Brady. Wilson & Co. went cold, going scoreless on their final four possessions and blowing a 14-point lead. Until then, Wilson provided the best evidence yet that he can become a legitimate franchise quarterback. Facing the defending Super Bowl champs, Wilson (18-for-32,224 yards) threw one touchdown and directed four long scoring drives. Here’s the wild part: The offense entered the game without five starters and lost two more, including running back Michael Carter, in the game. Undaunted, Wilson played interception-free ball for the fourth straight game. It was good enough to quiet some skeptics, but not good enough to win. — Rich Cimini How did the Jets blow a 14-point lead against Tom Brady? The Jets took a 24-10 lead in the third quarter, their biggest lead of the season, and they collapsed in crunch time. Coach Robert Saleh’s fourth-down decision with 2:17 left proved costly. On a fourth-and-2 from the Bucs’ 7, Saleh went for the win instead of a field goal that would’ve given them a seven-point lead. The playcall was terrible — a QB sneak that was stuffed. Who tries a QB sneak on fourth-and-2? Saleh probably wanted to make a statement with his bold call, but he should’ve played it safe, considering the Bucs had no timeouts remaining. Naturally, Brady went 93 yards for the game-winning touchdown afterward. — Cimini Cimini’s confidence rating (0-10): 5, up from 4. The Jets lost in crushing fashion, but they played well for 59 minutes — pretty damn impressive considering they were down 10 starters due to injuries and COVID-19. Next game: at Bills (Sunday,1 p.m. ET) What to know: As ugly and frustrating as this season has been — this game was a microcosm of said season with the quick start and a 13-3 first-half lead before falling behind — the Raiders’ improbable march to the playoffs remained on track with their last-second 23-20 win at Indianapolis, their fifth walk-off win of the season. Beating the rival Los Angeles Chargers at home next week is all it takes. We’ve been here before. Remember the 2011 finale, when the Raiders fell in Oakland to the Chargers and Hue Jackson melted down? Stay tuned. — Paul Gutierrez Are the Raiders winning because of Derek Carr, or in spite of him? Um, yes. Look, I have said for years now Carr is not the problem, per se, but wondered if he is the answer, and if you have to ask that question, you might actually have a problem. Again, it was the 29th fourth-quarter comeback win of Carr’s eight-year career. A victory necessitated, in part, because of his two bad interceptions. Such is life with Carr. — Gutierrez Gutierrez’s confidence rating (0-10): 7, up from 6. Let’s move this up a tick because, really, after blowing an early lead and surviving, confidence is growing with their third straight nail-biting win. Next game: vs. Chargers (Sunday,4:25 p.m. ET) What to know: The Colts’ road to the playoffs now goes through a place where they haven’t won since Andrew Luck was in just his third season in the NFL: Jacksonville. Yes, the Jaguars have been to the playoffs only once since 2008 and are leading the race to grab the No.1 overall pick in the 2022 draft. But for some reason, the Colts have not won in Jacksonville — or the Jaguars’ second home, London — since 2014. The Colts went into Sunday simply needing to win to lock up their third playoff spot in four seasons under coach Frank Reich. Now they have to handle their business against the Jaguars and potentially need other scenarios to happen in the AFC. — Mike Wells Can the Colts get to and win in the playoffs with Carson Wentz being inconsistent? That question will linger with Wentz, especially as teams continue to aim to slow down running back Jonathan Taylor. With the exception of his fourth-quarter performance against Arizona in Week 16, Wentz has not put the Colts on his back to deliver a win this season. — Wells Wells’ confidence rating (0-10): 6.2, down from 7.5. The Colts blew their opportunity to wrap up a playoff spot on their own field. They only have themselves to blame. Next game: at Jaguars (Sunday,1 p.m. ET) What to know: For a second consecutive game, the Rams overcame three turnovers produced by quarterback Matthew Stafford to come away with a win. Despite his woes that continued into the third quarter, Stafford led his 42nd career game-winning drive by finding Odell Beckham Jr. for a 7-yard touchdown with just over a minute to play. The Rams have 12 wins and will close out the regular season next Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers, who have beaten the Rams in each of their past five meetings.
