The Ravens Stole Christmas

The Ravens wrapped up a Christmas of football with a big win against the San Francisco 49ers, and they stole the Niners’ Christmas. There were more than enough games to go around the last few days. We’ll do a little rapid-fire NFL, dig into some NBA action, and then run you through today’s college bowl games. All in 5 minutes, so let’s get moving!

NFL Rapid Fire

🏈 Taylor Heinicke started for the Falcons this week, which proved to be a good move. Heinicke didn’t have a spectacular day as he completed 23 of 33 passes for 229 yards, 1 TD, and, most importantly, zero INTs. Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier combined for 177 rushing yards on the day. Falcons beat the Colts 29-10, and Atlanta’s playoff hopes remain alive.

🏈 Bryce Young had one of his better rookie games as a CarolinaPanther but the Green Bay Packers would prevail after kicking the game winning field goal with 19 seconds left in the 4th quarter. The Packers' rushing attack was efficient this week, with Aaron Jones getting 127 yards on 21 carries.

🏈 No star QB or RB for the Cleveland Browns? No problem! The Browns offense had a day against the Houston Texans. The connection between Joe Flacco and Amari Cooper was like Santa w/ Rudolph, an unstoppable force. Flacco threw for 368 yards, 3 TDS, and 2 INTs while he was 27/42. Cooper caught 11 of those passes for 265 yards and 2 TDs. Browns won 36-22

🏈 The Detroit Lions squeaked out a 30-24 road win against the Minnesota Vikings and secured Detroit’s first division title since 1993. Jared Goff was 30/40 for 257 yards and 1 TD, and Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery split the workload in the run for the game and combined for 135 rushing yards and 3 TDs. The Lions defense also had four picks.

🏈 The New York Jets had a 27-7 lead over the Washington Commanders, and the Jets almost blew it. New York would get a late field goal to secure the W 30-28.

🏈Geno Smith made his return as the Seahawks starting QB, and while Derrick Henry was the offensive creator for the Titans, Geno made it known in the 2nd half that it would take more than just Derrick Henry to take down Seattle. Geno threw two touchdown passes in the 2nd half to help the Seahawks stay in play9off contention with a 20-17 win

🏈📉 Trevor Lawrence has been declining all year for the Jags, and he left the matchup against the Bucs with a shoulder injury. On the flip side, Baker Mayfield's performance has been 📈 week after week for the Bucs. Tampa dismantled Jacksonville 30-12 thanks to Baker Mayfield going 26/35 for 284 and 2 TDs. Mike Evans caught 7 of Baker’s passes for 86 yards and 2 TDs.

🏈The Bears run game was the highlight of the day, as four players combined for 250 yards and 2 TDs. The Bears beat up the Cardinals 27-16, although the Bears did have D.J. Moore looking like he was a little banged up, and TE Cole Kmet left the game with a knee injury.

🏈 This was a highly anticipated game of the weekend, and the Dolphins got a big 22-20 win that could potentially help them lock up the AFC 1 seed. The Cowboys’ defense stepped up this week and kept a highly potent Dolphins offense to just one TD and five field goals. It was just a matter of timing, with Miami getting the ball last and knocking down a 29-yard field goal with no time remaining.

🏈 The Patriots pulled off a Christmas miracle, getting a 26-23 win in Denver. The Patriots played their best offense this season in one quarter when they scored two touchdowns and then got a fumble return score on the ensuing kickoff. It a 20 point 3rd quarter and that was the difference maker even with Denver scoring 16 in the 4th in an attempt to come from behind.

🏈 The Las Vegas Raider defense has bought into Antonio Pierce, and it’s working. The Raiders were all over the Patrick Mahomes on Christmas and got the 20-14 win. The Raiders have a shot at getting into the playoffs now, and it’s looking like a Chiefs’ repeat is way less likely to happen.

🏈Tommy DeVito must’ve snuck in a few of the fishes before the game against the Philadelphia Eagles, as DeVito couldn’t spark the offense, so the Giants moved down the depth chart to Tyrod Taylor. The Eagles had a 20-3 lead at halftime, and although the Giants would go on a 15-0 run in the 3rd quarter, the Eagles found a way to close this game out with 13 points in the 4th. Jalen Hurts had an okay game throwing for 301 yards, 1 TD, and 1 INT, but the Eagles rushing attack would gather 170 yards on the ground and 2 TDs.

🏈The weekend's final game was one of the biggest of the year between two Super Bowl contenders. The Baltimore Ravens played Grinch in San Francisco as they stole Christmas from the 49ers. The Ravens had five interceptions, including four on MVP candidate Brock Purdy. Purdy was under pressure all day, and some passes were deflected. It was the right place at the right time; others were just bad decisions. Lamar Jackson was the star of the show for the Ravens as he made plays on his feet, opened 2nd options for the offense, and completed 23 of 35 passes for 252 yards and 2 TDs. If the Ravens can continue to show up for big games like this, they’ll be tough to beat in the playoffs.

NBA On Christmas

🏀 The New York Knicks snapped their losing streak to the Milwaukee Bucks and snapped Milwaukee’s 7-game NBA win streak. The Knicks got the 129-122 win, and it was all thanks to Jalen Brunson, who dropped 38 points.

🏀 The Denver Nuggets hosted the Golden State Warriors, and the Nuggets got a 120-114 win. Jamal Murray was the star of the night with 28 points, but the impressive stat came from Nikola Jokic. Jokic was a perfect 18-18 from the free throw line. Andrew Wiggins led the Warriors with 22 points.

🏀 The Boston Celtics traveled to LA to face the Lakers, and the Celtics came out on top despite Anthony Davis’ big scoring night. This was a close game for the first 32 minutes, and the Celtics started to pull away with about 2 minutes left in the 3rd quarter. The Lakers were down 9 heading into the 4th and struggled to close the gap the rest of the game. Kristaps Porzingis led the Celts with 28, and Jayson Tatum scored 25. Boston also had double digits from the rest of the starters. Anthony Davis finished with 40 for the Lakers

🏀 The Philadelphia 76ers started slow in a matchup against the Miami Heat, and without Joel Embiid, they struggled most of the game. Tobias Harris scored 27 for the Sixers, but it wasn’t enough as they fell to the Heat 119-113.

🏀Things are not going well for the Phoenix Suns, and they are under .500 after suffering a loss to the Dallas Mavericks last night. We’re not going to focus on the record and the fact that KD only scored 16 last night. What we are going to focus on is Luka Doncic’s 50-burger that he dropped, along with his 50 assists. Luka was 8-16 from the 3-point land and a perfect 12-12 at the free-throw line. Luka also added 15 assists in the 128-114 win.

College Football

Bowl games start to heat up this week all the way until New Year’s Day. Of course, the one struggle with bowl games now is the fact that players sit out as they prepare for NFL workouts. We’ve got three games tonight for you to check out.

🏈Bowling Green vs. Minnesota in The Quick Lane Bowl @ 2 pm ET on ESPN

🏈Texas State vs. Rice in the SERVPRO First Responder Bowl @ 5:30 pm ET on ESPN

🏈 Kansas vs UNLV in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl @ 9 pm ET on ESPN

We’ll be a little college football-heavy the next few days, but we don’t have much college action left, so we’re going to savor every bit.

See you tomorrow!

-The Daily Breakroom