AFC stock reports: Patriots, Texans keep pace and coaching hot seats

The top of the AFC playoff picture remains the same

Following the Week 15 matchups, the AFC playoff picture remained the same. It started with the Baltimore Ravens dominating the New York Jets on Thursday Night Football 42-21. Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson threw 15 of 23 for 212 yards and five touchdowns. Rushing eight times for 86 yards, Jackson broke Michael Vick’s single-season rushing record. He also leads the league in passing touchdowns with 33 on the season breaking the Ravens franchise record.

Baltimore’s defense gave New York trouble for most of the game, leaving quarterback Sam Darnold frustrated. He was seen arguing with head coach Adam Gase on the sideline following a three and out drive late in the game. While coaches and players around the league get into arguments on the sideline, the face of backup quarterback David Fales says it all.

Following Jackson’s fifth touchdown of the night, Baltimore pulled him from the game, sending out backup Robert Griffin III to finish out the game. The outcome of the game would have likely been the same had the Jets been healthy. Missing key pieces like safety Jamal Adams, leader of the defense, showed during the loss against the Ravens. Darnold finished the night throwing 18 of 32 for 218 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 1 interception.

New England Patriots defeat Cincinnati Bengals 34-13

What started as a close matchup between the Patriots and Bengals would quickly take a turn for the worst in the second half. New England led Cincinnati 13-10 going into the half, but the Patriots defense took over the game on their own to show no mercy. Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton threw four interceptions on Sunday, including a pick-six by cornerback Stephon Gilmore in the third quarter.

The Patriots defense leads the league with 25 interceptions on the season. Cincinnati was the fourth victim to join the group of teams who threw four interceptions against Bill Belichick and company this season. Not long after Dalton returned as the starter and led the team to their first victory of the season over the Jets, he quickly reminded everyone why the franchise would likely move on from him this offseason.

This week featured another stale performance by Tom Brady and the offense who finished with 292 total yards. Brady threw 15 of 29 for 128 yards and 2 touchdowns. It was the ninth consecutive game that Brady finished with a quarterback rating under 100. The streak is the longest of his 17 season career.

Despite the mediocre performance, Brady’s 2 touchdowns helped him make ground in the record books. Making his mark with 17 seasons of 20 or more passing touchdowns, Brady surpassed Peyton Manning (16) for the most in NFL history. He moved to within one touchdown pass of the record with 538 career passing touchdowns.

Houston Texans rebound with a victory over the Tennessee Titans

The dominant streak of the Tennessee Titans took a set back on Sunday, losing to their division rival. Houston remains one of the most inconsistent teams in the NFL, making the season a roller coaster of emotions. Deshaun Watson led his team to a commanding victory over the Patriots two weeks ago. They followed that performance up with a lackluster one against the Broncos a week later, losing to Drew Lock in his first road start. Now, the team takes down one of the top teams of the past couple of months.

Tennessee snapped its four-game winning streak and will need help from the rest of the AFC to get into the playoffs. It’s only the second loss in a seven-game stretch since making the switch to Ryan Tannehill at quarterback. Both teams struggled to put points on the board during the first quarter, but Houston came out, scoring 14 points before halftime. Both touchdowns came from passes to Kenny Stills on corner routes to the back of the endzone.

Tannehill helped lead the team back into contention in the third quarter, which led to a back and forth between the two teams. Late in the game, the Titans scored only trailing 24-21 and elected to attempt an onside kick. It was unsuccessful only going seven yards before safety Justin Reid pounced on it. Tennessee’s defense forced a punt leaving the offense 28 seconds to make magic happen.

Within their own five, Tannehill took the snap only to be sacked. The clock expired before Tannehill could spike the football and stop the clock. Both offensive lines struggled throughout the game. There were three turnovers inside the one-yard line between the two.