Broncos vs. Chiefs 2014 final score: Denver makes statement with 29-16 win

Peyton Manning and the Broncos won big over the Chiefs in an important AFC West matchup, 29-16.

After a shaky win over the Miami Dolphins last week, the Denver Broncos wanted to make a statement on the road at one of the toughest venues in the league. And on a chilly 21-degree night in Kansas City, they did just that, when Peyton Manning and the Broncos won a critical AFC West matchup over the Kansas City Chiefs, 29-16.

They are now alone on top of the AFC West and look prepared to clinch another division crown this season, while Kansas City dropped below San Diego in the standings. Here's what we learned.

1. Denver's defense is legit.

Following a loss to the St. Louis Rams and a close win over Miami, there were questions about Denver's ability to keep other teams out of the red zone, especially after losing Aqib Talib to a hamstring injury. Those questions were answered in the first quarter when Denver kept Alex Smith and the Kansas City offense on their heels. Denver had 122 yards in the first quarter; Kansas City had negative yards with no first downs.

Despite eventually allowing touchdowns to tight end Anthony Fasano and running back Jamaal Charles later in the game, Denver defenders like DeMarcus Ware and Von Miller kept up the pressure on Smith and the Chiefs' receivers (both Ware and Miller are among the NFL's top-ten in total sacks.) The Broncos defense played well in every phase of the game, including a fumble caused by Bradley Roby on the Chiefs' last chance to get the game back in hand. Smith had under 100 yards passing well into the fourth quarter -- he was forced out of the pocket and sacked five times. Kansas City turned over the ball three times, and was never able to finish badly-needed scoring drives.

2. Kansas City's defense might have some holes.

The Chiefs have one of the best pass defenses in the NFL, but as their game against the Broncos on Sunday showed, their rush defense isn't quite so good. Running back C.J. Anderson went wild against the Chiefs, rushing for more than 150 yards for the second straight week. That vaunted pass defense couldn't slow down Manning and receivers like Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryius Thomas made big gains in the Kansas City secondary. Kansas City is in the top ten for sacks league-wide, but the rebuilt Broncos offensive line gave Manning plenty of time to check his receivers and make big passes to the outside. Kansas City was eventually able to slow down the Denver offense in the second half, but the damage was already done. The Broncos doubled the Chiefs in total yardage and in plays run, and it showed on the scoreboard.

3. How good is Denver, really?

The answer? We don't know. The Broncos looked far better against the Broncos than they did against the Dolphins, and the Chiefs are among the best in the league at home (just ask New England.) What's more, Kansas City will likely be the toughest test they'll face over the the next month. But this is still a Broncos team that looked pedestrian against the New England Patriots and Rams. Time will tell if this Broncos squad could win another AFC Championship.

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Travis Kelce makes jerkoff gesture at referee, for some reason

Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce had no words, and just one motion for what he thought of this referee's penalty call. Now we need to wonder why, because the call was against the Von Miller of the Denver Broncos for hitting Alex Smith late.

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Don't blow the whistle near Carmelo Anthony's ears, ref

Carmelo Anthony ended up getting a technical foul for having sensitive hearing.

Carmelo Anthony was all set to inbound the ball and AHHHHHH JEEEZ I'M STANDING RIGHT HERE

To be completely honest, Ken Mauer wasn't *that* close to his ear when he blew the whistle here, but apparently Melo wasn't expecting it and voiced his opinions. Mauer was nice enough not to start counting his five seconds until Melo picked up the ball again, but not nice enough to let this go completely -- he called a technical foul on Anthony the next trip down the floor, presumably because of Anthony's continued displeasure about the whistle.

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Ryan Fitzpatrick's son is an adorable human calculator

This is what happens when your dad graduated from Harvard.

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The Chiefs have less yards now than when they started playing the Broncos

They're going backwards :(

On the plus side, no turnovers yet! Here are the team's full stats through over a quarter of action:

And that's how it's 14-0 Denver.

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Joey Crawford prances 20 feet to wave off a basket

Ever since Joey didn't get cast in Swan Lake, he's tried to take NBA refereeing to the next level.

Of course, this is somewhat of a Joey Crawford signature. All he has to do is wave his arms a bit and signal the foul to the scorer's table in order to make it clear what call he's making, but instead he opts for some acrobatic -- and yes, incredibly visible -- hops, skips, and jumps to ensure people notice Joey Crawford is making a call.

And now his new shoe line has a logo!

Previously in Joey Crawford:

Icing Kevin Durant's free throw

Slapping Steph Curry's butt

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Chiefs and Broncos fans unite to support Eric Berry

Kansas City Chiefs players ensured Eric Berry was a part of their pre-game preparations. Now fans in the stands are sending their wishes to the safety.

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Patriots vs. Packers final score: 3 things we learned from Green Bay's 26-21 win

The Packers proved that they may be the best team in the NFL, after beating the Patriots in game that wasn't as close as the score indicated.

Aaron Rodgers passed for 368 yards and two touchdowns, and the Green Bay Packers racked up 478 total yards in a 26-21 win over the New England Patriots that established Green Bay as the new cream of the NFL crop.

The Packers' offense dominated the first half, gaining 347 yards to the Pats' 184. It couldn't capitalize on its best opportunities, however. Three drives stalled within the Patriots' 20-yard line, resulting in field goals where touchdowns would have been preferred. A 23-14 lead at intermission didn't feel representative of how much better Green Bay had played.

In the second half, the Packers settled for a red zone field goal again, this time in the fourth quarter, and it provided the Patriots an opportunity to take the lead. The Patriots took over possession down five points, 26-21, with 8:35 remaining in the game, and drove 35 yards to the Packers' 20-yard line thanks to three long Tom Brady third down pass completions. Green Bay's defense held late, however, sacking Tom Brady on third down and forcing a badly missed field goal.

The Packers need just one first down on their next possession to ice the game. They, of course, turned to Rodgers, who hit Randall Cobb for a 7-yard gain on third-and-4 to seal perhaps the Packers' biggest win of the season.

Three things:

1) When Aaron Rodgers is clicking, it's beautiful to watch

The sideline fade route may be Rodgers' greatest piece of performance art. He hit Davante Adams twice in stride down the left sideline for big gains to set up field goals in the first quarter. Adams didn't have to slow down one step on either play, which together made up 78 of his career-high 121 yards on the day.

The only thing holding back was a Patriots pass rush that made delivering ball impossible at times (the Pats had three sacks on Rodgers). When Rodgers has time and he is at his best, the Packers can beat anybody.

2) The Patriots could have lost by more

The Packers out gained the Patriots 478 to 320, which should have translated into more than 26 points and a five-point victory. They bogged down every time they entered the red zone, however. The four times that the Packers entered they red zone, they ultimately settled for field goals. They also missed a field goal from the Pats' 22-yard line. The Patriots, meanwhile, managed touchdowns on their first three red zone trips.

Entering Sunday's game, the Packers ranked ninth in the NFL scoring touchdowns on 63.64 percent of their red zone trips, which was just behind the Pats' 63.83 percent, so perhaps this isn't an epidemic problem for the Packers. Still, if there is anything for the Packers to take away from an otherwise good performance, it's the need for better execution near the goal line.

3) The Packers are the new kings of the mountain, not that it means anything

The NFL has shuffled through a number of "it" teams this season. The Patriots came out cold against the Packers. Before that, the Arizona Cardinals were sitting pretty with the best record in the NFL ... and have now lost two straight including a bad loss to the previously woeful Atlanta Falcons. Before the Cards, there were the Broncos, Colts, Seahawks and Bengals -- all good teams, but all with blemishes.

But let us praise the Packers for now. Rodgers is perhaps the most valuable player in the league, and on his own he makes the Packers, at their best, as good or better than anyone in the NFL.

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Tom Brady yells 'F****!' after Packers get 1st down

Just over two minutes were left on the clock, no timeouts left, third down -- then the Patriots defense allowed a first down. It might be time to count out Touchdown Tom.

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Tom Brady's on a leash

Sometimes I see parents riding the subway with kids on leashes. I guess it's so the kids don't run away and get lost. And I guess the Patriots are worried Tom Brady will run away and get lost:

Can't be too careful out there.

Tom's pretty good on the leash, by the way. Doesn't look like he's pulling at all. And he even brought his own towels to pick up his poops. Good dog.

(It's actually a stretchy resistance band thing. But also Tom Brady is a dog.)

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Aaron Rodgers is very excited about ice cream

Even in the midst of a cold Green Bay winter.

Of course, in real life, Aaron was excited about throwing a touchdown, and not ice cream, but real life isn't as fun as fake life.

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Watch Jordy Nelson torch Darrelle Revis on this huge touchdown catch

Jordy Nelson took a speedboat right around Revis Island and stopped off for drinks along the way.

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Click this if you want to see Rob Gronkowski's butt

There is his butt.

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Auburn DC Ellis Johnson to leave staff, per reports

The Tigers gave up 42 points per game in their four losses this season.

Following a disappointing 8-4 regular season, Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn has begun overhauling his coaching staff, and the first casualty is second-year defensive coordinator Ellis Johnson, according to FootballScoop.com:

At Auburn, per source, defensive coordinator Ellis Johnson is leaving the staff http://t.co/gkayvPt9KK

— FootballScoop Staff (@FootballScoop) November 30, 2014

Johnson prevailed over a defense that allowed 26 points per game in 2014, and against SEC opponents that number jumped to nearly 33 points per game. In Auburn's four losses, the defense allowed 42 points per game, and it's awfully hard for even Auburn's high-powered offense to keep up with that kind of pace every week.

The defense's worst performance of the year was its most recent, as Alabama torched the Tigers for 55 points and 539 yards of offense, even with three interceptions thrown by Blake Sims. The defensive meltdown wasted a 44-point day by the Auburn offense in the Iron Bowl, and it's evident that Malzahn had seen enough by then.

No details are out yet about who will fill Johnson's role for Auburn's upcoming bowl game or where Auburn will look for a long-term replacement.

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Ryan Miller saves Drew Miller breakaway, Mrs. Miller has wonderful reaction

This is a family torn in two.

The Miller family is torn in two on Sunday, or at least Mrs. Miller's sweater jacket is:

Ryan Miller is playing against his brother Drew today. So their mom is wearing this (photo via the @VanCanucks) http://pic.twitter.com/XoluZ8nhnS

— SB Nation NHL (@SBNationNHL) November 30, 2014

Drew Miller is a player on the Detroit Red Wings, while Ryan Miller is on the Vancouver Canucks. The two teams are playing each other on Sunday, so it's a Miller family reunion.

Drew has never scored a goal on Ryan before, but had a golden opportunity on Sunday with this breakaway chance:

Drew cracked a little smile after the attempt:

Ryan didn't care:

and Mrs. Miller was a mixture of wonderful emotions:

The Miller's wish for the game was Ryan to get the win and Drew to get a goal. Unfortunately they got neither, as Ryan made the save and the Red Wings won the game.

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Aaron Rodgers bloodied by cleat to the hand

Football players wear shoes with tiny knives on the bottom. Great for turf, not so great when someone's hand gets in the way:

Jamie Collins stepped on Aaron Rodgers left hand on that slide: http://pic.twitter.com/dVctmnHW1A

— Pete Blackburn (@PeteBlackburn) November 30, 2014

There was nothing intentional about Jamie Collins' step, but Aaron Rodgers' hand skin doesn't know the difference.

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Tom Brady either yells a curse word or is a dinosaur making a dinosaur noise

He is saying something not very nice here. But if you have kids you can tell him he is yawning and/or making prehistoric beast noises.

We added audio:

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The Giants lost by 1 after allowing 2 fumble recoveries for touchdowns

The Giants led 21-0. They lost 25-24. The race for the No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft is heating up!

The Giants led 21-3 at halftime. This happened on their first drive of the second half:

The Jaguars demolished Eli Manning and he fumbled the ball 10-plus yards backwards. Such things happen. But then Rashad Jennings had the opportunity to just fall on the ball in the end zone as it rested in between the legs of a fallen Jaguar ... and instead he tried to pick it up with one hand and run with it. And he lost it. And Jacksonville's J.T. Thomas picked it up for a touchdown.

Instead of two points for the Jaguars, it was seven. Jennings' notion to get the ball out of the end zone and prevent a safety from happening was admirable, but probably not the best idea.

Later, Larry Donnell tried to leap forward for a few extra yards, and:

That's a 41-yard Aaron Colvin TD, marking the first time in franchise history the Jaguars had two defensive TDs in the same game.

And of course, the game ended like this:

Giants kicker Josh Brown also missed his first field goal of the season, and when you lose by one, that stings.

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Saints vs. Steelers 2014 final score: 3 things we learned from New Orleans' 35-32 win

The final score doesn't tell an accurate story of the Saints impressive performance.

Maybe the New Orleans Saints want to win the NFC South after all. They broke out of a three-game losing skid on Sunday, riding a five-touchdown day from Drew Brees and a resurgent defensive performance to drop the Pittsburgh Steelers, 35-32, and take sole possession of the division lead.

The Saints, who are now 5-7 and hold a half-game lead over the Atlanta Falcons, manhandled one of the league's best offenses, shutting down the Steelers' formidable rushing attack and forcing Ben Roethlisberger into two interceptions and a 55 completion percentage. Pittsburgh scored just one touchdown outside of garbage time and it was immediately answered by a long Saints touchdown.

A pair of Roethlisberger touchdown passes narrowed the gap late, giving a misrepresentation of just how one-sided this game was.

Here's what we learned from the game:

1) Mark Ingram is driving the Saints' offense.

This game was a kind of a microcosm of New Orleans' offense this season. Drew Brees and the passing game, which typically gets all the hype and attention, accounted for five touchdowns. But, like he has for most of the season, Ingram was the unheralded offensive engine. The running back, who had averaged under three yards per carry in each of his last two games, broke out of his slump to post 122 yards on 23 carries. Though he didn't find the end zone, Ingram accounted for 58 yards combined on each of the Saints' first two touchdown drives, hammering the interior of the Steelers' defense and opening things up on the back end for Brees. Ingram's 31-yard romp early in the fourth quarter gave the Saints a first-and-goal and set up the kill shot, a three-yard pass from Brees to Marques Colston.

2) Kenny Stills had a career day.

Ingram wasn't the only one on the Saints offense getting it done. Stills tallied 162 yards and a touchdown on five receptions. Three times he got behind Ike Taylor for big plays, the second of which was a 69-yard touchdown in the third quarter. The play was huge for swinging momentum back to New Orleans after the Steelers scored their first touchdown of the day to pull within eight points.

With star rookie Brandin Cooks out for the season, New Orleans needs Stills to step in and pick up the slack, especially with the 31-year-old Colston on the back side of his career. On a day when Jimmy Graham didn't record a single reception, Stills stepped up and got the job done.

3) The Saints defense came to play.

New Orleans' defensive performance this season has been a bit of a roller coaster ride. After a rough start, they looked dominant in a two-game stretch against the Packers and Panthers, only to fall back into a slump. They allowed an average of 29 points in their last three games, all of which they lost.

They were back in form on Sunday. The Steelers, who came in ranked in the top seven in both points and yards, may have gained over 500 yards, but a good chunk of that came in garbage time and that stat doesn't tell the real story. The Saints were particularly dominant in run defense, holding Pittsburgh to 103 yards on the ground.

This is the way the Saints envisioned this team playing coming into the season. With a competent ground game complimenting Brees and the defense playing its best ball, New Orleans looked like a legitimate Super Bowl contender, not a struggling team three games under .500. If they can keep this momentum going, they'll easily win the pathetic NFC South and could be a dangerous team in the playoffs.

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Marvin Lewis illegally challenged a play -- and it helped the Bengals win

It looked like Marvin Lewis had made an error, but in fact, he'd helped them win a game.

The Bengals were holding onto a slim 14-13 lead. The Buccaneers were driving with under a minute left. They'd pushed the ball into field goal range:

Then, after that play, Lewis threw a challenge flag. But wait! Coaches aren't allowed to challenge plays with under two minutes left. That's the job of the review booth. The Bengals were charged a timeout, and without getting the play they wanted reviewed. What was Marvin Lewis thinking?

In fact, it was Lewis' seemingly illegal and mindless decision that ended up saving the Bengals. Over the course of the timeout, the replay official decided to review the play, and sure enough, the Buccaneers had run the play with 12 men on the field.

Previously, this would not have worked. The NFL famously had an widely despised rule saying that if a coach challenged a play that he was not allowed to challenge, that play could not be reviewed -- even if the league's replay officials would have otherwise reviewed it. This had cost the Detroit Lions a game a few years ago. This rule was widely considered one of the league's worst, since the NFL was essentially admitting that it would overlook the actual correct call on certain plays to spite coaches for making a bad spur-of-the-moment decisions. However, this rule was overturned in 2013 -- the Jim Schwartz rule, it was called at the time.

So the refs reviewed the play and realized that instead of a 21-yard gain giving the Buccaneers the ball at the 20-yard line, they should be charged with having 12 men on the field and face 2nd-and-20 at the 46 yard line. They failed to pick up a first down and the Bengals got the 14-13 win.

Is it a bit messed-up that Lewis intentionally flouted the rules a bit to get his team a favorable situation? Perhaps. But the alternative was the Buccaneers getting a potentially game-winning play by using more people than they were allowed to use. Lewis did what he was allowed to do to ensure the play was called properly, and his team will walk away with a win because of it.

(Maybe coaches should just be allowed to call challenges whenever, so long as they have one remaining, and we can be done with this weird loophole?)

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Watch Luca Sbisa score an own goal

Nice finish, wrong net.

Power has been an overwhelming dynamic in Sunday's game between the Detroit Red Wings and Vancouver Canucks.

Joe Louis Arena lost power 30 seconds into the contest, and then three of the first four goals scored in the game came on the power play. Including this goal by Pavel Datsyuk that Luca Sbisa probably shot into his own net:

It sure looks like Sbisa is the one who finished the play.

The Red Wings lead the Canucks heading into the second intermission, 3-1.

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Bengals vs. Buccaneers final score: 3 things we learned from Cincinnati's 14-13 win

The Bengals scraped out a win by the slimmest of margins.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers gave a valiant effort by their standards, but it wasn't enough to top their second AFC North opponent this season. Andy Dalton overcame a disastrous first half for the Cincinnati Bengals, who improved to 8-3-1 with a 14-13 win.

The Buccaneers appeared to set themselves up in position to kick a game-winning field goal when Josh McCown hit Louis Murphy to put Tampa Bay near Cincinnati's 20-yard-line within the final 30 second of regulation. Referees reviewed the play and found that the Buccaneers had too many men on the field, pushing them back to the 46-yard line. McCown couldn't make magic happen again. The game ended on when the Bucs couldn't convert a long fourth-down throw.

Dalton threw three interceptions in the first half for his seventh career game with three or more picks. The Bengals couldn't get on the board until late in the first half, when Dalton capped a 64-yard drive with a 5-yard touchdown scramble. The score allowed a slow-starting Bengals squad to go into halftime down just three points, 10-7.

The Buccaneers left any offensive momentum in the locker room. They gained 150 total yards in the first half, but opened up the second half with consecutive three-and-outs and ultimately finished with just 163 yards for the game. Josh McCown was unable to involve his considerable weapons. Mike Evans and Vincent Jackson combined for just 90 yards on six catches.

Three things:

1) Welcome back Doug Martin

The former Rookie of the Year candidate hasn't done much since 2012. Injuries have rerouted what began as a promising NFL career. On Sunday, Martin looked like his former self.

Martin had more than 50 yards rushing at halftime. His production slowed way down in the second half and he had just 58 yards rushing for the game on 18 carries. Still, it was encouraging to see him run free for just a little while. Heading into the weekend, Martin had appeared in just six games this season, and rushed for 193 yards on 69 carries.

Martin doesn't look like his old self just yet, but he may still be a quality contributor to a Buccaneers squad that is (kinda, sorta) starting to look like a functional football team.

2) The Bucs are not the worst team in the NFC South right now

In the Man's-Man world of the NFL, we aren't supposed to appreciate moral victories, but in the grand scheme of this season Sunday was a good day for Tampa Bay. The Bucs hung around with a much better team, and got contributions from non-obvious names like, say, Charles Sims in the passing game.

Yeah they still lost, but at least the Buccaneers aren't the Carolina Panthers, who lost 31-13 to the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday. Tampa Bay should be salivating about a Dec. 14 bout on the road against their division rival.

3) Seriously, what's your deal Andy Dalton

After throwing three interceptions in the first half, Dalton bounced back for a good second half, going 12-for-16 for 114 yards, one score and several big third-down throws. The game was a microcosm of why Dalton is perhaps the most maddening starting quarterback in the NFL.

It has been said before, but this feels likes a Bengals team that will only go as far as Dalton allows it. The defense and offensive skill players did their part. It was only when Dalton stopped making mistakes that the Bengals were able to pull away.

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Here are some Vikings cuddling on the sideline

There's a winter chill in the Minnesota air. And love:

<3 Charles Johnson <3 Greg Jennings <3

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Johnny Manziel replaces Brian Hoyer as Browns QB

The first-round draft pick gets his first significant action of the season.

The Cleveland Browns have made a switch at the quarterback position. The team has benched Brian Hoyer in favor of rookie Johnny Manziel in the fourth quarter against the Buffalo Bills after Hoyer struggled throughout the game. He has thrown for just 192 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions. The Browns, who are 7-4 and in a tight race in the AFC North, needed a jump-start on offense to keep pace with the other teams in the division.

Some thought Hoyer wouldn't last this long, considering the team used a first-round draft pick to grab the Heisman winner. When Hoyer and Manziel put up similar numbers throughout the preseason, many thought the Browns would just go with the more electric Manziel to see what he could do. But Hoyer didn't appear to do anything to "lose" the starting job, since the early lead was his as the veteran.

Loud fans and the media rallied behind Manziel, but Hoyer was playing very well at points. His outing against the Pittsburgh Steelers was decent, as he completed 18 of 30 passes for 222 yards and a touchdown while being sacked three times. Against the New Orleans Saints, his stat-line didn't look much better at 24 completions off of 40 attempts for 204 yards and a touchdown. Nonetheless, that game was one of his best, as he made several fantastic throws on the final scoring drive to give the Browns the lead and their first win of the season. But Manziel is the guy now, so what do we know about him?

Manziel completed seven of 11 passes for 63 yards in his first preseason game, seven of 16 passes for 65 yards and a touchdown in his second, 10 of 15 passes for 85 yards in his third and six of 17 passes for 83 yards and a touchdown in his fourth. Those are solid numbers, and it's also worth noting he ran the ball a lot, and usually with some success. There's a lot to work with there, but as to whether or not he'll be an immediate upgrade ... only time will tell.

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Hey, look, Sean Payton is mad at Rob Ryan

We knew Rob Ryan was probably on his way out of New Orleans. Here is an illustration of that.

PREVIOUSLY IN RECENT ROB RYAN ANGER:

a whole lot of cussin'

more cussin'

more Sean Payton anger

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Kenny Stills mocks Steelers fans with TD celebration

Kenny Stills' Terrible Towel is invisible, but it gets the Steelers-teasin' job done:

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Raiders player blows up Raiders punt returner

That's so Raiders.

Ray-Ray Armstrong realized juuuuuuuuuust an instant too late that he was about to viciously tackle T.J Carrie on this punt return.

You can tell he was trying to slow his momentum and avoid making the tackle, but it ends up looking like he just intentionally pelvic thrusted his teammate to the floor:

Punt returns are hard, man! It's a lot of people sprinting in different directions! We know his was an accident! But still, it is the Raiders, and it is very much the Raiders, so we will make fun of the Raiders for being the Raiders.

Hey, maybe it's an AFC West thing.

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