The Weekly Assist: Concerns for NFL Top Contenders

Week 12 of the NFL has provided us with some concerns for once mighty contenders.

The Raiders, Colts, and Cowboys all got blown out this week, which doesn't bode well for their confidence moving forward as they are in the midst of battling for playoff positions. A couple games were decided by last second field goals.

The Patriots stole one from the Cardinals on a 50 yard field goal off the foot of Nick Folk. It was setup by a 15 yard penalty by Arizona linebacker, Isaiah Simmons, for a hit on Cam Newton as he was going out of bounds.

The Vikings managed to sneak away with a victory due to a missed field goal from Joey Slye of Carolina. Slye missed a 54 yard attempt as the game came to a close and Minnesota came out with the W, 28-27.

The Bills, Packers, and Saints all won to keep their division leads. The 49ers and Patriots managed to keep their playoff hopes alive with Week 12 wins.

Also congratulations to the New York Giants on moving into first place in the NFC East with their win over the Bengals they are now 4-7.

AFC East Fantasy Performer of the Week

Ryan Fitzpatrick QB Miami Dolphins - 257 passing yards and 2 TDs

AFC East Week 12 Winner

Buffalo Bills - With their 27-17 win over the Chargers, Buffalo kept pace ahead of Miami for the division lead. The combination of Fitzpatrick and Tua Tagovailoa at quarterback have been good enough to keep stacking wins and the Bills cannot afford to let their foot off the pedal the rest of the way.

AFC East Week 12 Loser

New York Jets - Last I checked the news feed Adam Gase is still their head coach. Thus, the Jets are inherently the loser of the week in the AFC East until that statement is no longer true.

AFC West Fantasy Performer of the Week

Tyreek Hill WR Kansas City Chiefs - 13 receptions, 269 yards receiving, 3 TDs

There's really not much to say about Hill's performance on Sunday. All that matters is that the Chiefs' offense looks better than it did last year when they won the Super Bowl.

AFC West Week 12 Winner

Kansas City Chiefs - The Chiefs not only won behind the stellar performances of Patrick Mahomes (462 yards and 3 TDs) and Hill against one of the better teams in the league in the Buccaneers, but every other team in the division lost Week 12. Barring a historical collapse, KC should already be printing their division champion t-shirts.

AFC West Week 12 Loser

The rest of the division - The Raiders are a team that we've seen fluctuate between a contender and an imposter all season. Now that it's getting down to the wire, Las Vegas can't afford anymore games like the blowout they endured against Atlanta this week. The Broncos played without a QB this week, and the Chargers are already looking forward to 2021.

AFC South Fantasy Performer of the Week

Derrick Henry RB Tennessee Titans - 178 rushing yards, 3 TDs, 6.6 YPC

AFC South Week 12 Winner

Deshaun Watson - The Houston QB has kept his head up during a tough season. Even though he himself has struggled most weeks in 2020, the perennial pro-bowler got a chance to show the world that he's still elite even his team needs some upgrading. On a national stage on Thanksgiving, Watson threw for over 300 yards and four touchdowns against the Lions in a route, 41-25.

AFC South Week 12 Loser

Indianapolis Colts - While the Texans may not be dead yet, the Colts had the chance this week to establish themselves as the new kings of the South. Instead they got rolled over by Tennessee and Derrick Henry ate their defense alive to the tune of 178 yards. Even though it's still a two man race for the division between the Colts and Titans, Indianapolis knows they need to keep pace with Tennessee or they'll be on the outside looking in come January.

AFC North Fantasy Performer of the Week

Nick Chubb RB Cleveland Browns - 144 rushing yards and 1 TD

AFC North Week 12 Winner

Cleveland Browns fans - Since their return in 1999, Cleveland has been subjected to some bad football. With only one playoff appearance over the past two decades there hasn't been much to cheer about. Cleveland now sits at 8-3 and Browns' fans are in a precarious position as they'll be rooting for the Steelers on Tuesday night. A Pittsburgh win over the Ravens would give the Browns some more breathing room as they sit alone in second place behind the undefeated Steelers squad.

AFC North Week 12 Loser

Lamar Jackson - Jackson was placed on the Covid-19 reserve list ahead of the Ravens' Week 12 game with Pittsburgh. Additional diagnoses caused the game to be rescheduled. But Jackson will miss this important division matchup and the Ravens, as we just talked about, are at risk of giving up more ground to the Browns if they lose this week.

NFC East Fantasy Performer of the Week

Antonio Gibson RB Washington Football Team - 115 rushing yards and 3 TDs

NFC East Week 12 Winner

Jerry Jones - I know that Washington had an impressive Thanksgiving day blowout win and the Giants moved into first place in the division this week. But the real winner is Jerry Jones and the Cowboys front office because with their loss they're now positioned inside the top five in the upcoming NFL draft. This will allow them to go get a replacement for Dak Prescott and allow them to avoid signing him to the massive contract he's expected to get.

NFC East Week 12 Loser

Ezekiel Elliott - There is no doubt that Elliott can continue to be a productive, if not elite, running back in the NFL. We're just beginning to question whether that's going to be in Dallas next season. Zeke is one of the highest paid running backs in the league and the Cowboys may be resetting the roster if they're unable to come to terms with Dak Prescott in the offseason. Elliott's contract would be one that the team would be very motivated to move on from if that's the case.

NFC West Fantasy Performer of the Week

Kenyan Drake RB Arizona Cardinals - 78 rushing yards and 2 TDs

NFC West Week 12 Winner

Seattle Seahawks - Even though the Seahawks haven't played their Week 12 game yet (they play on MNF against the Eagles tonight) they are already the winners in the division from Week 12. The Niners knocked off the Rams who are Seattle's closest competition for the division, and the Cardinals lost a heartbreaker to the Patriots. Considering the Hawks have been on a bit of a slide, Russell Wilson and the gang must feel good about the rest of the divisions' misfortune this week.

NFC West Week 12 Loser

Kyler Murray - As we just mentioned the Cardinals took a hurtful loss this week. In such a tight race for the division and playoff spots this season, Murray needs to will his team to some wins. This was an opportunity to do just that, and he played poorly. Murray only managed 201 total yards passing and rushing combined, threw an interception, and had no touchdowns on the day.

NFC South Fantasy Performer of the Week

Latavius Murray RB New Orleans Saints - 124 rushing yards, 2 TDs, 6.5 YPC

NFC South Week 12 Winner

New Orleans Saints - The Saints have won two straight with Taysom Hill filling in for Drew Brees while he's out due to multiple rib fractures. They are riding an eight game win streak overall, and as the Bucs continue to struggle to perform with any level of consistency, New Orleans is beginning to run away with the division.

NFC South Week 12 Loser

Atlanta Falcons - Yes the Falcons just beat the Raiders 43-6, but that's why they're here on this list. It's largely been believed that the Falcons are far better than their record shows, and their Week 12 performance proved that to be true. One can only wonder how their season could've been different if Dan Quinn was replaced by Raheem Morris before the start of the season.

NFC North Fantasy Performer of the Week

Aaron Rodgers QB Green Bay Packers - 211 passing yards and 4 TDs

NFC North Week 12 Winner

Minnesota Vikings - With the help of the Packers, Minnesota has moved into second place in the division after a 1-5 start to the season. The Vikings will be in contention for a wild card spot the rest of the way out, and Kirk Cousins has started to give them more consistent performances. The Bears and Lions shouldn't be a threat, so the Vikings just need to keep winning to give themselves a chance.

NFC North Week 12 Loser

Matt Patricia and Bob Quinn - The Lions parted ways with coach Matt Patricia and GM Bob Quinn following the team's Thanksgiving day loss to the Texans. Detroit is 4-7 this season, but things haven't been trending in the right direction. Although it's a tough beat for Patricia and Quinn, they had plenty of chances to build around Matt Stafford and they failed.

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