The NFL Roundup 2018: Week 14 – What We Learned

Written by John Edward Betancourt

​Another week in the NFL is in the books, and it just so happened to be a week filled with surprises. Because there were upsets abound as every team out there battled for their playoff lives and well, thanks to these intense games and moments, the playoff picture is still a tad murky. But, more importantly, those incredible on the field moments brought forth incredible stories and lessons and let’s not waste any more time today and get down to discussing what we learned from Week 14 in the NFL.
 
Derrick Henry reminded everyone that a good run game can accomplish wonders.
It’s rare in this day and age to see a player just outright take over a game and terrify a defense, but that’s precisely what Derrick Henry did on Thursday Night Football. Because his incredible 238 yard, four touchdown performance against the Jaguars put the fear of God into Jacksonville’s defense, to the point where they were visibly broken when he carried the rock and well, not only was this a performance for the ages, but it really served as a fine reminder that the run game is still an important thing to have in this pass happy league because everyone’s expecting the QB to throw it and hopefully more teams turn their running backs loose in the weeks to come to try and replicate what was an outright amazing night from #22. 
 
Nobody plays the spoiler quite like the Miami Dolphins.
There’s a lot of things I think football fans can agree upon when it comes to the Miami Dolphins. They’re in dire need of a franchise QB, they need some playmakers on defense and no one knows if Adam Gase is indeed the answer at head coach. Oh, and we can also agree upon the fact that when they pull off the upset, they do it in style because oh my, did they embarrass the Patriots, again, on Sunday. I mean come on, you beat the defending AFC Champions on a freakin’ lateral? That has to sting for New England, but more importantly, it wasn’t just a trick play that got them there. They hung with the Pats all game long and forced New England’s coaching staff to make some dubious decisions and well, good for them because this was a well-deserved win, one that was fun to watch.
 
The Kansas City Chiefs simply do not quit.
If there’s one thing I truly enjoy in football, it’s a team that doesn’t quit. Because a team that is filled with fight, is just a blast to watch since they will do whatever it takes to get the win and well, that sums up the 2018 Kansas City Chiefs right now. Because they’ve faced some incredible adversity this year, and come close to losing some important games, only to fight back at the appropriate moment and seal the victory and once again, they pulled off an incredible feat against Baltimore on Sunday. Because with their backs against the wall, they scored exactly when they needed to and secured an all-important win and really the lesson here, is that the only way to beat this team, is to match their intensity for sixty or more minutes and if you let up for even a second, they will make you pay.
 
The Los Angeles Rams are human after all.
For some time now, it seemed as though the Rams were an unstoppable force of nature, since regardless of the odds and the challenges put in front of them, they found a way to win. But on Sunday Night, they came crashing down to earth in epic fashion since their high-powered offense was only able to put six points on the board against a powerhouse Bears defense and well, this just proves they are human after all, and that, there is a formula to beating them. Because the Bears did the impossible, and shut down the vaunted Rams run game, forcing Jared Goff to beat them in the air and well, that had its own share of failures as well since Chicago was prepared for that, since they blanketed the receiving corps and confused #16 to the tune of four turnovers. Either way, this was an impressive win on Chicago’s part and a fine lesson for the Rams when it comes to adversity because going forward, they need to figure out how to adjust to defenses that have figured them out.
 
Kirk Cousins is starting to look like a free agent bust.
A lot of big-time contracts were signed by free agent quarterbacks in the offseason and the headliner signing came out of Minnesota when they signed Kirk Cousins to a fully guaranteed deal worth $84 million. The thinking at the time was that a change of scenery and better weapons would finally vault Cousins into an elite level of play and well, so far that’s not been the case. The Vikings have been no better under Cousins this year, in fact, they’ve taken a step back and his Monday Night performance in Seattle was abysmal at best and while his numbers aren’t awful, Minnesota’s record speaks to the fact that he is not leading this team right now and he’s not making the offense any better, making him look like one hell of a bust and well, whether the team likes it or not, all they can do is hope that he gets better, because they’re stuck with him for the next three years.   

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