Cowboys Knock Off ‘Skins, Saints Defense Roars, Ans Bears Tame Lions
Hello and good evening! Here’s hoping you enjoyed a very Happy Thanksgiving with your family, friends and loved ones.
The NFL Thanksgiving Day tradition continued on with three divisional matchups all having significant importance to the NFC playoff picture.
We were treated to a fun game in Detroit, a NFC East clash in Dallas, and a showcase for what many believe is the best team in the NFL in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
Defense, Daniel Deliver For Bears In Detroit
The Chicago Bears were hopeful that a ailing Mitchell Trubisky would be ready to go for this Thursday’s game vs the Detroit Lions.
When Chicago ruled Trubisky out with a shoulder injury, confidence didn’t wane as Matt Nagy showed complete faith in long-time backup quarterback Chase Daniel, who was set for just his third career start.
The 32-year-old would make good on his opportunity and the Chicago Bears came up with another fourth quarter defensive touchdown squeaked by the Detroit Lions for their fifth consecutive victory.
Chicago Bears’ safety Eddie Jackson scored a touchdown on a interception return for the second consecutive week, leading a chorus for the second straight week as he was mobbed by much of the Chicago Bears bench as well as the defense on the field.
Prince Amukumara and the Bears defense turned up the heat late on Matthew Stafford and the Lions. Photo by John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune
Chase Daniel was steady for the NFC-North leading Bears, throwing for 230 passing yards and two touchdowns.
Daniel helped the Bears offense answer the Detroit Lions on multiple occasions, first with a touchdown throw in the second quarter and then a touchdown throw in the fourth quarter, both giving Chicago the lead.
After Matthew Stafford led Detroit to a 16-16 tie in the fourth quarter, the Chicago Bears defense once again impacted the game with Jackson’s pick-six and then Kyle Fuller’s game-sealing interception down in the red zone on Detroit’s final possession.
After losing consecutive games to the Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots, the Chicago Bears are in position to run away with the NFC North with five games remaining.
The Chicago Bears (8-3) will visit the New York Giants next Sunday at MetLife Stadium looking to make it six straight victories.
Cooper’s Huge Day Leads Cowboys To NFC East Lead
The road to the top of the division wasn’t the road best traveled, but after yet another victory, this time over their divisional rivals from the Nation’s Capitol, the Dallas Cowboys have arrived.
The Dallas Cowboys beat the Washington Redskins 31-23 on Thursday afternoon at the AT&T Stadium to take the division lead atop the NFC East.
Amari Cooper had a electric performance in just his fourth game with the Dallas Cowboys. He finished the game with receiving yards and two touchdowns, scoring on a 40-yarder and then a 90-yarder in the third quarter as Dallas soon turned a 13-10 deficit into what looked like a wipeout at 31-13 early in the fourth quarter.
Dak Prescott would finish with 289 passing yards and three total touchdowns, including a sensational 5-yard touchdown run in which he covered 34 total yards while escaping a sack on the play before flipping into the end zone for the score.
Trailing 31-13 in the fourth quarter, Colt McCoy and the Washington Redskins would fight back against the Cowboys, answering with a quick strike after Dallas went up 18 while their defense would get a stop on 4th and inches on the next possession.
The Redskins comeback bid, however, would hir a snag after Colt McCoy was intercepted by Xavier Woods with 4:26 remaining in the game on a bad throw into tight coverage that was deflected by standout cornerback Chidobe Awuzie.
Dallas’ offensive line struggled to protect Prescott in the first half, allowing four sacks on the Cowboys quarterback in what was a low-scoring affair in the first half.
That would change completely in the second half as the Cowboys offensive line kept Washington’s pass rush at Bay, allowing Prescott to picked them apart.
Ezekiel Elliot was also strong on the ground, finishing with 121 rushing yards and a touchdown. It’s his third consecutive game with 100 rushing yards.
Dallas’ defense shutdown Washington’s run game, which allowed Rod Marinelli’s defensive unit to get after Colt McCoy, intercepting him three times and sacking him three times.
Washington fought on valiantly after losing their starting quarterback Alex Smith to a devastating leg injury just four days prior. Jay Gruden’s team offensively has been snake bitten by injuries, and now with losses in three out of their past four games, have questions that need to be answered as their grasp on the division has slipped away.
Meanwhile, the Dallas Cowboys will look to keep up their momentum and stay on track in the NFC East race as they host the New Orleans Saints next Thursday night.
Brees, Saints Stay Hot; Win 10th Straight
It didn’t start well for Drew Brees. On the Saints second offensive possession he threw just his second interception of the season, and on the following drive he bobbled a snap, falling to his knees as he corralled it.
The funny thing about the latter is what happened after that: A Saints first down.
The New Orleans Saints offense ran into some highs and lows, but a strong performance by the defense more than helped as they cruised to a convincing 31-17 win over the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday night at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
Drew Brees threw for 171 passing yards and four touchdowns as the Saints won their 10th consecutive game.
The Saints defense anchored this victory for New Orleans, creating a season-high four turnovers. Three denied the Falcons of coming away with any points on the board in New Orleans territory while one that allowed New Orleans’ offense to ice the game.
Continuing a strong stretch of defense over their past three games, the Saints have created nine turnovers and have 13 sacks over their past three games.
For what it’s worth, the Falcons defense actually played well on Thursday night, holding New Orleans to 312 total yards and Drew Brees to a season-low 171 passing yards. The issue was that their offense couldn’t solve the puzzle that has suddenly become the New Orleans Saints defense, led by Cameron Jordan.
The Saints pass rush was terrifying, and on most of Matt Ryan’s drop backs he was under duress and either sacked or forced into an errant throw.
Ryan finished the game with 383 passing yards and two touchdowns, but those numbers were offset by a pair of turnovers that altered the complexion of the game.
The New Orleans Saints (10-1) just keep on churning along as they look unstoppable even when they aren’t on their A-game.
The team yielded yards and the offense looked human after scoring 45+ over their past three games, but it was clear that the Saints were the better football team as they continue their domination of the NFL.
The Saints 10th straight win is also their seventh by at least 10 points this season.
They will look to extend their streak to 11 when they visit the Dallas Cowboys next Thursday night at AT&T Stadium in Dallas.
What are your thoughts on today’s NFL Thanksgiving action? Leave your comments below!