2023 NFL season, Week 16: What We Learned from Christmas tripleheader

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• READ: Raiders hang on to playoff hopes, move up to No. 11 in AFC
• READ: Pierce's Raiders end losing streak against rivals 'by any means necessary'
• READ: Chiefs' Mahomes remains confident if 'we clean it up'

Coral Smith's takeaways:

1. Raiders defense keys win in Kansas City. Last week, the Las Vegas defense had two defensive touchdowns, playing a key role in a 63-point effort against the Chargers. And the Raiders D put up an arguably more impressive performance this week against the Chiefs, almost single-handedly winning the game for the Raiders while keeping Patrick Mahomes and Co. in check. They held the Chiefs offense to negative yardage through the first quarter, and though they then gave up a touchdown, they quickly recovered. On the Chiefs’ first offensive play following their touchdown, Mahomes and Pacheco bobbled a handoff after a direct snap to the RB, and defensive tackle Bilal Nichols scooped up the ball for six points. And on the Chiefs’ very next play from scrimmage, cornerback Jack Jones jumped in front of the receiver for his second pick-six in as many weeks. Two defensive touchdowns and 14 points in the span of a few seconds, and the Raiders never looked back. The Raiders are the first team with multiple defensive touchdowns in consecutive games since the 2012 Bears did it, and their five total defensive TDs this year are the most for a Raiders squad since 2000 (also had five). While the offense wasn’t able to build much on the lead, it was enough to take down their division rivals, keeping Las Vegas’ playoff hopes alive.
2. Chiefs get off to historically bad start and can’t recover. Kansas City opened up Monday’s game with back-to-back three-and-out drives, and the Chiefs did not get a first down without a penalty until their fourth possession of the day. Drops by pass-catchers, pressure on Mahomes, and ineffective runs led to the Chiefs finishing the first quarter with -18 yards, the worst first quarter by a team since the Bears had -20 in Week 15, 2004, and the fewest by a team in any quarter since the Chiefs themselves had -19 in Week 14, 2011. They finally got something going with a 74-yard touchdown drive that ended with a trick play run by Pacheco, but the Chiefs couldn’t build on it, and more of the mistakes seen from the offense all season meant they fell behind and couldn’t climb out of the hole. A second trick play attempt led to Pacheco fumbling a handoff to Mahomes for a Vegas scoop-and-score, and the next offensive play Mahomes had his 14th interception of the year, a career-high. Add on a missed field goal and multiple failed fourth-down attempts (including one in the red zone), and it was not a very merry Christmas in Kansas City.
3. RB White continues to shine as starter. It’s a good thing the Raiders defense found the end zone a couple of times, because the Raiders offense was not nearly as successful at putting points on the board. Aidan O’Connell led an 87-yard drive early in the game, but had to settle for a field goal, and the Raiders offense would only score one more field goal in the game. With O’Connell struggling and consistently under pressure -- he did not have a completion through the second and third quarters -- Las Vegas heavily leaned on running back Zamir White, who another start with Josh Jacobs still injured. White came through when necessary, accounting for all 25 yards on the Raiders’ second field-goal drive and exploding for 43-yard and 15-yard rushes on the Raiders’ final fourth quarter drive that helped seal the win. He finished with 145 yards on 22 rush attempts.

Next Gen Stat of the game: Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby generated eight pressures on 55 pass rushes (14.5%) against the Chiefs, tying his season-high for pressures in a game this season (Week 14 vs. the Vikings).

NFL Research: Raiders defensive end Malcolm Koonce is the first player ever to sack Patrick Mahomes three-plus times in a game. The previous high was 2.5 for Miami's Jerome Baker in 2020.

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• READ: Eagles hold tight to NFC No. 2 seed after win
• READ: Hurts runs to history as Eagles snap losing streak
• READ: Daboll mum on starting QB after DeVito's benching

Coral Smith's takeaways:

1. Eagles hang on to end losing streak. The Eagles offense got off to a hot start against the Giants, quickly building a 20-3 lead going into halftime. But as has been the story for many of Philadelphia’s games this season, things started to get away from the Eagles, and the Giants closed the gap in the second half to just a two-point deficit, threatening to hand their division rivals a fourth-straight defeat. After scoring on four of their five first-half drives, the Eagles had their three third-quarter possessions result in a fumble on the opening kickoff, a punt and an interception returned for a touchdown. But with one quarter to play, the Eagles just managed to pull out the win. Philly scored on all three of its fourth-quarter drives, starting with a touchdown at the end of a 75-yard march down the field, keyed by a 32-yard throw from a scrambling Jalen Hurts to A.J. Brown on third-and-20. Though they added on to the lead twice more with a pair of field goals, it kept the door open for the Giants, who kept within a score and had a chance at a game-winning drive before their Hail Mary attempt was intercepted. Despite it looking like a familiar story at some points, Philly escaped another potential defeat on Monday.
2. Is the DeVito craze over? Tommy DeVito certainly has his moments as the Giants’ starter, but the last two weeks it seems like things have come crashing down to earth. For the second straight game, the rookie couldn’t get anything going on offense, as New York only had 101 yards in the first half, with a good portion coming on a single 41-yard possession which still only ended in a field goal from 52 yards out. A second promising drive was only extended by an Eagles penalty and multiple fourth-down conversions by Saquon Barkley, and the Giants went into the locker room having scored only three first-half points against an Eagles defense that had allowed an average of over 31 points per game the last three weeks. Head coach Brian Daboll decided it was time for a change, bringing in Tyrod Taylor after the break. Taylor didn’t make a huge impression for most of the half, but he did find Darius Slayton for a 69-yard completion that brought the Giants within a score of the lead with less than six minutes left, and gave the Giants a chance to extend the game with a Hail Mary, though it fell short. It might be enough for the Giants to consider a QB change with two games left.
3. Mistakes almost take down PHI again. There’s only two games left for the Eagles against the Cardinals and Giants again before they start postseason play, and Philly is still in contention for the No. 1 seed and the NFC East crown. But the mental miscues and on-field mistakes on Monday almost sunk them, and the way this win came about is not going to close the door on discussion over whether the Eagles are in playoff football mode. As has been the case in many games this year, simple mistakes by the Eagles turned the tide, with the Giants scoring two of their three touchdowns off turnovers. First it was the second-half kickoff, which Boston Scott fumbled and Isaiah Simmons recovered for the Giants. New York scored three plays later. And then it was a pass attempt by Hurts intended for Dallas Goedert, but with a slip by the tight end it instead fell into the arms of Adoree' Jackson, who ran it 76 yards back for a pick-six, closing the Eagles’ advantage to just two points at that point. This game shouldn’t have been as close as it was, once again raising doubts about the readiness of these Eagles with the playoffs quickly approaching.

Next Gen stat of the game: Adoree' Jackson reached a top speed of 20.92 mph on his 76-yard pick-six, the third-fastest speed on a pick-six this season, and the fastest play by a Giants ball carrier this season.

NFL Research: With his 1-yard rushing touchdown in the first quarter, Jalen Hurts set a new NFL record for most rushing touchdowns by a quarterback in a season, with 15. He passes Cam Newton, who had 14 in 2011.

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• READ: Shanahan confident Purdy will bounce back from injury, four INTs

Grant Gordon's takeaways:

1. Ravens defense soars to impressive victory. Among a galaxy of MVP-caliber stars, it was the Ravens defense as a whole that shined brightest in Baltimore’s statement-making Christmas triumph. The Ravens, who had five takeaways, terrorized 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy, picking him off four times and perhaps delivering a death blow to the second-year standout’s MVP candidacy. This was an emphatic win by Baltimore and a sterling performance by its defense. Kyle Hamilton continued his ascent to becoming one of the NFL’s elite safeties, stealing a Purdy toss into the end zone on the Niners’ first drive and setting the tone. Hamilton, who had two INTs but suffered a knee injury late in the game, and Marlon Humphrey were sensational and so too was a pass rush that piled up 27 QB pressures and recorded four sacks. Entering a harrowing holiday, the 49ers were the No. 2 scoring offense. Boasting the No. 1 defense in points allowed, the Ravens took this one away from the Niners and turned in a resounding showing. 
2. Lamar emerges atop MVP conversation. The AFC’s top team facing the NFC’s elite was hardly the only marquee headline leading into Monday night’s game, as MVP candidates Lamar Jackson, Christian McCaffrey and Purdy shared the field. Purdy had a nightmarish four-INT evening, McCaffrey was excellent in the shadow of a loss and it was Jackson who emerged standing tall. Jackson has for so long put up eye-popping numbers, but 2023 has been different. Jackson, who had 252 passing yards, a pair of TD throws and a team-high 45 rushing yards, has piloted the AFC’s top team to a 12-3 record, making dazzling plays with his arm and legs, alike. They haven’t added up to overwhelming statistical bliss, but they’ve dropped jaws just the same and now the best player on the NFL’s best team has concluded Week 16 as the MVP frontrunner. 
3. Niners must regroup once again. In the topsy-turvy season that has played out in 2023, the 49ers have been dominators far more than they’ve been question marks. On Monday night and Tuesday morning, they’re likely to have their downfall written after their six-game winning streak -- all via double-digit victories -- ended. The Ravens made a statement, bullying the bullies and leaving the 49ers to lick their wounds and regroup with two games remaining in the regular season. They’ve done it before, though. Having run roughshod to a 5-0 start, the Niners dropped three straight before the aforementioned half-dozen one-sided wins. Purdy was often criticized for his turnover woes. Questions lingered as to why such Super Bowl favorites couldn’t get back on the right track. Those same quandaries are now left to be answered. With wins by the Cleveland Browns and Detroit Lions on Sunday, the Ravens could not clinch an AFC North title, nor could the 49ers capture the NFC’s top seed on Monday. This was a non-title heavyweight fight that the 49ers lost badly. The season wasn’t lost, though. They’ll just need to regroup once again. 

Next Gen stat of the game. Niners quarterbacks Brock Purdy (32 dropbacks) and Sam Darnold (14) were pressured on 47.1% and 64.7% of their dropbacks, respectively, by the Ravens. 

NFL Research: The Ravens have scored 20-plus points in nine consecutive games – the longest active streak in the NFL – and are 12-1 this season when scoring 20-plus points. 

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