Philadelphia Stumble in Dallas & Patrick Rescues Kansas City – Best Highlights from National Football League Week 12

The twelfth week delivered an epic Dallas Cowboys comeback, or perhaps an epic Philadelphia Eagles implosion?

Playoff Patrick Mahomes arrived to rescue the Chiefs' campaign as the Bears keep to surprise while they extend their victorious run.

And did Shedeur Sanders do enough on his first professional outing to earn the full-time job in Cleveland?

We’ll examine at the pick of the week in the league.

The Breakdown – Dallas Rally or Philly Fail?

The Cowboys found themselves trailing badly at twenty-one to zero down against the reigning Super Bowl champions, so how on earth did they engineer their equal-largest recovery ever?

Sentiment of a first home fixture since a teammate’s tragic passing may have been a factor, but technically it was a mixture of Dak Prescott determination and a defensive unit that pounced on uncommon errors by the Philadelphia.

Prescott surpassed Romo’s marks for yards thrown (now thirty-four thousand three hundred seventy-eight) and clutch possessions (twenty-five) with an all-action performance – his diving score personifying his all-action display.

Philadelphia wasted a lead of 21 points or more for the initial time after nineteen ninety-nine, with only their second game with multiple turnovers this year – the previous being another bad division defeat at the New York.

In addition to 14 penalties for 96 yards, the attacking struggles that affected Hurts after what – for him – was an explosive beginning was huge. He had only passed for 200-plus yards in 4 games before Sunday, he had more than 150 in the first half by himself in Dallas.

However from the time Philadelphia went 21-0 up their offense fell apart dramatically – with four straight punts, a missed field goal and then a turnover handing chance after chance to the Cowboys.

The Eagles defense is brilliant, it truly is, but an offense that's not surpassed 21 points in five of 7 games (three losses) is now a huge worry, as the components are all there but it's simply not working.

Nick Sirianni game is all about winning the big moments, the defense keeps them in it and what offense there is does barely enough – if it can't even do that and now the composure and ball protection is failing, there could be problems ahead.

In Focus – Playoff Patrick Shows Up Early to Save Chiefs

It wasn't quite as extreme, but the Chiefs’ 11-point recovery in the final period against a strong Indianapolis squad was very impressive – and may have only rescued their campaign.

How significant was it? Well, the NFL's advanced analytics now give the Kansas City a 58% chance of reaching the postseason, when a loss on the weekend would have dropped that figure to twenty-eight percent.

No wonder the playoff version of Mahomes turned up, throwing for two hundred thirty-five yards in the latter half by itself and leading three scoring drives in their last four series to seal it in overtime.

A few big throws and swashbuckling scrambles are typical for Mahomes in the postseason, but right now the Kansas City are in playoff form – at six and five and just tenth in the conference standings.

This was closer to the old Chiefs however, with a initial one-score victory of the season after dropping five already – they won 11 of them the previous season so, if that belief comes back, this Chiefs Kingdom might not be finished so soon.

Talking Point – Are Chicago Become Kings of the North?

You just can't overlook the Chicago Bears any longer. A victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, without Rodgers, kept them first of the NFC North and at eight and three – holding the identical standing as the Philadelphia.

They look dangerous on both sides of the ball, with a defence that tops the league in interceptions and overall turnovers and, in Williams, a emerging quarterback now accustomed to winning tight games.

He may at times be shaky, surrendering a score after a turnover in his own end zone – but he also threw 3 touchdowns and, with already 5 final period comebacks this season, he knows how to finish the game.

Green Bay are in hot pursuit in the NFC North after overpowering the Minnesota and the Lions are in contention after beating the Giants in extra time with a monster game from Jahmyr Gibbs.

The Bears are interestingly the most reliable with eight wins in nine, but as they travel to the Super Bowl winners on Thanksgiving we'll see exactly how good they truly are.

Look Ahead – Thrilling Thanksgiving in Store

This looks one of the best Thanksgiving line-ups for a long time, with each game packed with playoff consequences.

Detroit host the Packers in the classic opener in Michigan, prior to a rare visit return to Dallas for the Kansas City, who started out life as the Dallas Texans way back in the 1960s before relocating to Kansas City.

Sunday's comeback kings are each holding on to postseason aspirations but have minimal margin for error – so this will have a playoff atmosphere.

And how about the Ravens? An unattractive win over the New York actually has them top of the division after starting 1-5 and looking finished.

Holiday and Black Friday Fixtures (all times GMT)

  • Thursday, 27 November: Green Bay Packers @ Lions (6:00 PM)
  • Thursday, twenty-seven November: Kansas City Chiefs @ Cowboys (9:30 PM)
  • Friday, 28 November: Cincinnati Bengals @ Baltimore Ravens (1:20 AM)
  • Friday, 28 November: Bears @ Philadelphia Eagles (20:00)

Can Sanders Keep His Starting Role?

Browns coach Kevin Stefanski dismissed inquiries on whether Shedeur Sanders had done enough in his first NFL start to maintain the starting job when Dillon Gabriel comes back.

But the question will keep being raised as Shedeur became the first Browns quarterback to secure his debut league game after Zeier in 1999 – with 17 other first-year quarterbacks failing to do so afterward.

It came only the Raiders, and with the help of an almost feral Browns defense recording 10 tackles, but Cleveland's offence requires a leader, a presence to inspire confidence.

And confidence is one thing not lacking in Sanders, who told a CBS {

Christopher Hendricks
Christopher Hendricks

A lighting design specialist with over a decade of experience in smart home integration and sustainable technology.