Welcome to a rare Saturday edition of the Week 15 grades. The NFL was kind enough to give us some Saturday football in the form of a tripleheader consisting of Vikings-Bengals, Steelers-Colts and Broncos-Lions.
Each one of these carries a significant impact on the playoff picture, especially in the AFC as the wild card race is as tight as it's been in recent memory. The Bengals were able to keep their hopes of making it into the postseason alive in dramatic fashion, rallying to defeat the Vikings in overtime. That comeback effort required a 21-point fourth quarter and one of the best touchdowns of the season from wideout Tee Higgins.
THIS CATCH 🤯#ProBowlVote x Tee Higgins pic.twitter.com/wrZeJlZe1U
— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) December 16, 2023
We'll cover that game and the rest of the slate with our grades for all three contests below.
Cincinnati 27-24 over Minnesota (OT)
B+ | |
It wasn't perfect for Cincinnati, but the Bengals kept their playoff hopes alive after a miraculous fourth-quarter rally that featured strong play from Tee Higgins and Jake Browning down the stretch. In that final quarter, the Bengals outscored the Vikings 21-7 to force overtime, and some clutch short-yardage play by the defense helped stonewall Minnesota on third and fourth down to turn the ball over and set up a game-winning field goal. The defense was also clutch, forcing two red zone interceptions earlier in the game to keep the Vikings off the scoreboard. Browning completed passes to 11 different Bengals players in the win and while totaling three points in the first half isn't ideal, they were able to find the end zone when it counted. | |
D | |
The Vikings had some tremendous individual efforts from the likes of Ty Chandler (132 rushing yards, TD) and Jordan Addison (111 receiving yards, TD), but there were a number of head-scratching moments for this team as it dropped to .500. First off, Nick Mullens made two back-breaking interceptions in the red zone in the first half, which erased two scoring opportunities that would've created an even bigger first-half cushion for Minnesota. In overtime, head coach Kevin O'Connell inexplicably kept the ball out of Chandler's hands on back-to-back plays needing just a yard to move the chains. Instead of giving it to his back who was averaging over 5 yards per carry, O'Connell opted for a Mullens QB sneak, which he failed to convert twice in a row, which led to the defeat. While the defense played well for three quarters, 21 fourth-quarter points simply can't happen. |
Vikings-Bengals grades by Tyler Sullivan (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)
Indianapolis 30, Pittsburgh 13
D- | |
The Steelers took a 13-0 lead and had a chance to put their foot down and pretty much end the game early in the second quarter. After scoring two touchdowns in two minutes, sandwiched around a blocked punt that they recovered on the 1-yard line, they were really rolling. Instead, they let the Colts walk down the field for a touchdown drive, something they did several times more through the rest of the game despite Indy hemorrhaging skill-position players. Their offense was frankly embarrassing for most of the final three quarters of the game, and they were out-scored 30-0 over the final 44 minutes of the contest. It doesn't get much worse than that. | |
A | |
The only thing keeping this from being a perfect A+ is that the Colts lost both Zack Moss and Michael Pittman Jr. to injuries in the second quarter. Otherwise, they could hardly have done anything better. They came back from a double-digit deficit, shutting Pittsburgh out after falling behind 13-0. Gardner Minshew was terrific. Running backs Trey Sermon and Tyler Goodson carried the load. Several pass-catchers made big plays. And the defense forced three turnovers. All of that combined to keep the Colts in playoff position heading into the home stretch. |
Steelers-Colts grades by Jared Dubin (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)
Detroit 42, Denver 17
D- | |
This should give you a good idea of their night: The Broncos opened Saturday's game on offense with 1.) a fumble, 2.) a punt, 3.) a punt, 4.) a punt, 5.) a punt. Then halftime came, they pretended to flirt with a comeback, and it only got uglier. Yes, the Lions are tough at home, but this was supposed to be a winnable game for a resurgent Denver squad. Instead, Sean Payton's offense looked unprepared and undisciplined, completely unable to move the ball on the ground; and the defense was even worse, allowing Jared Goff to have his way from start to finish. The playoffs aren't totally out of reach, but this was no narrow defeat; it was a deflating kind of knockout from a much more well-rounded contender. | |
A+ | |
What could the Lions have done better, honestly? Everyone rightfully got a little skeptical of their prowess due to a recent string of tight games and turnovers, but they responded by picking apart Denver's defense, with Jared Goff spreading the ball around and effortlessly dominating the red zone by targeting Sam LaPorta and Amon-Ra St. Brown. Perhaps even better, Aaron Glenn's defense showed some real fight, getting after Russell Wilson early and completely swallowing up Denver's rushing attack. The 42-17 score shows a Lions blowout, but it was even more lopsided than that. Yes, they've still got hurdles to clear against superior foes come playoff time, but for now, this club is all the way back on track. |
Broncos-Lions grades by Cody Benjamin (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)