Patrick Mahomes and Tyreek Hill have been one of the more dominant quarterback-receiver duo in the NFL the past few years and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were reminded of that in Week 12.
At one point in the game, Hill and Mahomes had connected on seven receptions for 203 yards and two touchdowns — all in the first quarter. That’s only happened three times in the last 30 seasons.
It’s safe to say Hill has cemented his reputation as one of the fastest wideouts in the NFL with 14 touchdowns of 50-plus yards since he entered the league in 2016 — the most by any receiver in that time.
ANOTHER one
: @NFLonCBS pic.twitter.com/1QnL9QXPaG
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) November 29, 2020
Unfortunately for Tom Brady, this is the second time he’s watched Mahomes air out a 75-yard touchdown on the sidelines. Brady himself had two interceptions, increasing his total to 11 on the season to match his total from 2018.
The Buccaneers did make it interesting as they eventually got to within three points of the Chiefs, but it was Mahomes who came out victorious with 462 passing yards — the second-most of his career.
Broncos have forgettable week
No team in the NFL has felt the impact of COVID-19 like the Denver Broncos did on Sunday against the New Orleans Saints.
Without a starting quarterback, the Broncos had to turn to practice roster receiver Kendall Hinton, who hasn’t played the position since 2018. Unfortunately for Hinton, he only completed one pass for 13 yards and had two interceptions.
Denver went the entire first half without completing a pass, something the team has saw once before when Tim Tebow did the same back in 2011. Fortunately for the Broncos, they did manage to score three points, which was the same total Brady and the Bucs had back in Week 9.
The Broncos also became the first team since the 1998 San Diego Chargers to complete just one pass for 15 or fewer yards. Back in Week 3 of the ’98 season, quarterback Ryan Leaf went 1-of-15 for four yards and two interceptions against the Chiefs.
King Henry runs wild on Colts
Going up against one of the top run defences in the NFL, Derrick Henry showed the Indianapolis Colts why he is their kryptonite.
The Colts have only allowed a player to rush for 100 or more yards twice this season — it was Henry both times. This time around, he finished the game with 27 carries for 178 yards and three touchdowns
Henry now sits ahead of Dalvin Cook as the NFL’s rushing leader, and has been instrumental in the Titans’ success as of late. It shouldn’t be surprising that teammate A.J. Brown called for Henry to be put in the MVP conversation.
Henry has 100 or more rushing yards in eight straight road games, tying Chris Johnson for the second-longest stretch since the 1970 merger, trailing Barry Sanders’s record of 10 straight games.
Chinn has memorable performance
While the Carolina Panthers lost in heartbreaking fashion to the Minnesota Vikings, Jeremy Chinn had a day to remember.
The rookie safety had a career-high 13 tackles and two fumble recoveries for touchdowns on consecutive plays. It was a first in the Super Bowl era, and he was the fastest player to do so as the plays came within 10 seconds of game time.
For the Vikings, the victory almost got away from them when Chad Beebe muffed a punt at the Minnesota 14-yard line. Fortunately for Beebe, his defence bailed him out as they held Carolina to a field goal, and the Vikings marched down the field to score with the receiver hauling in a 10-yard touchdown.
Playoff picture getting interesting
There was a lot of movement in the NFL standings in Week 12, highlighted by the Titans regaining the AFC South and the New York Giants moving into top spot in the NFC East.
With the NFL extending the playoff format, more teams have a chance to earn a post-season berth, which means the next few weeks will be crucial for any team on the bubble.
The Baltimore Ravens’ game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Tuesday is a crucial one considering the Ravens (6-4) sit on the outside looking in as the eighth seed in the AFC. The Colts’ loss to the Titans opens up a chance for the Ravens (6-4) to jump back into the playoff picture as they have the tiebreaker.
Sitting behind them are the Las Vegas Raiders (6-5) who suffered a tough loss to the Atlanta Falcons while the New England Patriots (5-6) kept themselves in the conversation with a win over the Arizona Cardinals.
In the NFC, there will likely be some movement depending on what happens on Monday night between the Philadelphia Eagles and Seattle Seahawks.
The Eagles can reclaim the lead in the division with a win. With Daniel Jones expected to miss time with a hamstring injury, Philadelphia could be in a race with just the Washington Football Team from now until the end of the season, which is what we all expected ahead of the campaign.
The Chicago Bears face a crucial matchup against the Green Bay Packers as they sit behind the Cardinals, who lost their second straight game. Chicago has the tiebreaker with one more conference win so a victory over their NFC North rival would push them ahead of Arizona.
Both the Vikings and San Francisco 49ers earned big wins to stay in the playoff hunt, but face a tough road if they expect to leapfrog the Bears and Cardinals.
