NFL Week 15 - What We Learned

Written by John Edward Betancourt

As it turns out, this week in the NFL was nothing short of brutal for a lot of teams. Some that expected to win found themselves dealing with another wake up call. Some saw their playoff dreams come to an end by officially being eliminated from the tournament and others...continued to enjoy the glory of the win. Either way, it made for some downright incredible stories this week and here are the top ones from the field from Week 15.

1. The Washington Redskins have turned out to be one of the biggest surprises this season. They started out awful, everyone quickly wrote them off  and then something magical happened. QB Kirk Cousins started finding his rhythm, the defense stepped up and after all is said and done, Washington is sitting atop the NFC East, poised to actually sneak their way into the playoffs. It speaks to how bad of a player RG3 really is on the field and how much he divided this team, and my kudos to Jay Gruden for benching him and putting the right players in place because after this win against Buffalo, they look like a solid football team. Will they make the playoffs? Can't say just yet, but in the meantime, this is the best this team has looked in a long time and that's hope for the future.

2. The Dallas Cowboys clearly have a major issue when it comes to their mentality and philosophy on the field. This is a team that 100% believes that they live or die at the quarterback position and that a top tier QB is the only way they make the playoffs and well...it's a culture that needs to change. Now if you don't believe me, just look at the games this year with Romo at the helm. They played a different game on the field, there was confidence and swagger and with Romo gone, they have no fight and they keep rotating out QB's left and right. Now I'm not saying a good QB doesn't help a team's chances, it does for certain, but to believe that's the only way you make it, is wrong. If they played better defense, worked harder on the run game, who knows where they would be right now. But it's a scary prospect for the team, simply because it's clear this is an ideal that comes from the top down, and if it doesn't change soon, the Cowboys will be on the outside looking in once again come next year and if you still don't think this is a legit issue to be concerned about...well then take a look at our next item of discussion.

3. The Houston Texans continue to impress. Much like Washington, this is another squad that was left for dead, and quite frankly it looked like this team was falling to pieces when it came to unity early on in the year. But credit is due to Head Coach Bill O'Brien, he solved the rifts quickly, and made this team understand they have to win as a unit and thanks to his hard work, the Texans are now atop the AFC South. Now I made mention of Houston winning as a team whereas Dallas expects one player to do it for them and the evidence is on the field. Houston has had major Quarterback issues as well, actually having gone through as many as Dallas and guess what? They're looking at the playoffs. The defense steps up when it has to, the running game is there when needed and this is the end result and it's great to see the Texans coming together at the right time. 

4. The Denver Broncos are a team in absolute free fall right now and it's embarrassing. Actually, it's frightening because this is a team that has shown much promise at times, before absolutely making fools of themselves. A couple of great examples? Hey they beat the Patriots with a sound run game and stellar defensive play. Then they go and own the Steelers in the first half before handing the game to Pittsburgh in pathetic fashion. To top it all off, we're still talking about the same problems with this team. Piss poor offensive line play. A running game that is inconsistent. Wide Receivers and Tight Ends who can't catch the ball, and it never seems to get fixed. I hate to say it, but this is a team that should be better than this and it seems like Head Coach Gary Kubiak and his staff are afraid to make the necessary adjustments to fix these lingering issues. Either way, the Broncos destiny is in their own hands now, let's see what they do with it. 

5. So, the Carolina Panthers won again this weekend, making them a stellar 14-0, but Odell Beckham Jr. and his stupid decisions during the game completely overshadow this win. For those who missed it...OBJ decided it was time to add "Street Fighting" to his role as a Wide Receiver, constantly mixing it up, throwing punches and even using his helmet as a weapon against Panthers CB Josh Norman. As of press time, OBJ is currently suspended one game and appealing it and well, I'm shocked that the referees let this kind of behavior continue on the field without ejecting him, that the league only made it a single game suspension and that the Giants have done nothing as well. This kid was completely out of control and out of line and quite frankly an embarrassment to the game on Sunday and I really hope that the Giants do something to reign him in quick because he needs to understand this kind of behavior is not okay and quite frankly...he needs to grow up and quit being a giant baby and stupendous idiot on the field. 

---