Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson got a look at one of his potential transfer targets Sunday. If the Chicago Bears had auditioned for Johnson — not the other way around, of course — it wouldn’t have worked out.
The Bears were supposed to be competitive this season. In fact, they are embarrassing. The Bears haven’t won since Oct. 13 and were no match for the Lions on Sunday. Detroit defeated the Bears 34-17, an unlikely team with major injuries. Chicago has now lost nine games in a row.
On Sunday, there were reports from NFL media that Johnson was interested in the Bears job. While there are good reasons for him to want the job, including positives about Caleb Williams, the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft, there are also reasons for him and other candidates to be skeptical.
The Bears are a bad team. They haven’t won a Super Bowl since the 1985 season. Since 2010, they have not won a playoff game, reached the postseason only twice and won a district championship once. They’ve somehow never produced a 4,000-yard passer in a season, and that’s not just bad luck. They have done a grossly inadequate job of developing talent over the years. After last season, they made the unfortunate choice to retain head coach Matt Eberflus due to their strong performance in the second half of the year, leaving them with a wealth of coaching candidates including former Bears quarterback Jim Harbaugh. I lost my chance. Eberflus was fired after this year’s Thanksgiving loss. That’s not surprising considering the Bears make mistakes at every turn.
If Johnson comes, there will be risks. He’s a very good play-caller, but he’s never been a head coach. But he might be worth the risk. If Johnson, who should have multiple options, decides against Chicago, it will be even harder to figure out who wants the job. The Bears will have to sell Williams some of the job, but he’s not a sure thing this season. He had talent and showed it at times, but he also struggled and couldn’t break free from his habit of doing too much on every play. He’s easily the third or fourth best rookie QB this season. There’s something to do.
We’re probably also overestimating the Bears’ supporting cast this season. The offensive line is a mess. After a strong start last season, the defense was completely overrated. Chicago gave up 474 yards on Sunday, but could have allowed more if the game had been more competitive.
Johnson is leading that attack. He had a good chance to see the Bears’ flaws up close this week. The question is, is that still the preferred option for him after seeing all the effort the Bears need to finally become a competitive team?
Here are the winners and losers for Week 16 of the NFL season.
winner
Justin Jefferson: When the Minnesota Vikings were in a pinch Sunday, Jefferson bailed them out.
Jefferson had a great game, and his 39-yard touchdown prevented a come-from-behind loss and allowed Minnesota to keep pace with the Detroit Lions in the NFC North. The Seahawks took a 24-20 lead late in the fourth quarter, but Jefferson responded with a spectacular touchdown grab to regain the lead. The Vikings held the Seahawks to a 60-yard field goal attempt with about two minutes left, but time was short. The Seahawks’ last chance quickly ended with an interception by Geno Smith, and the Vikings held on for the win, 27-24.
Jefferson had 10 catches for 144 yards and two touchdowns. The Vikings have an impressive 13-2 record, and a big reason for that is having one of the best players in the world pitching.
James Cook: The Buffalo Bills were losing 14-0 to the New England Patriots when Cook made the big play that woke them up.
Cook’s 46-yard touchdown run was the first sign of life for the Bills on Sunday. Cook scored again on Josh Allen’s 4-yard touchdown catch to tie the game, and the Bills went on to win 24-21 in a game that was probably closer than they would have liked.
Cook has been a key part of the Bills’ offense since midway through last season, adding a playmaking element to the run game that takes pressure off Allen.
Allen will be key for Buffalo, but the Bills will also need more big plays and performances from Cook next month if they are to have a shot at making the playoffs.
Jayden Daniels: All precincts reported. The NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year race is officially over.
Not only will Daniels be the recipient of that award, but he will also play a key role throughout the 2024 season. He led Washington to another dramatic victory on Sunday, scoring five passing touchdowns, including one to Jamison Crowder with six seconds left in an upset 36-33 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles. Ta. The Eagles were without Jalen Hurts for much of the game, but that had little to do with Daniels playing the hottest defense in the NFL.
This is a huge accomplishment for the Lions, who are currently one game ahead of the Eagles in the race for the No. 1 seed in the NFC. The Eagles probably could have ended the game late, but DeVonta Smith took a huge third down with about two minutes left. The Eagles then made a field goal, which opened the door for Daniels’ heroics.
Daniels is having a great rookie season that we will remember for a long time. That season will likely carry over into the postseason.
Jonathan Taylor: Taylor kept the ball this time. All the way into the tunnel.
Taylor broke for a 65-yard touchdown and the Indianapolis Colts enjoyed it. Last week against Denver, Taylor dropped the ball moments before scoring, negating what would have been a touchdown. This time he ran into the tunnel with the ball, and then when he came out, his teammates tried to take it back, but he wouldn’t let it go. Then, to start the second half, Taylor broke through with a 70-yard touchdown run. Taylor threw for 218 yards and three touchdowns in a 38-30 win over the Tennessee Titans. If your fantasy team with Taylor survived last week, Taylor probably got you into the finals with Sunday’s blowout.
Taylor is one of the NFL’s elite running backs, but he had a disappointing showing last week. He bounced back from that well in Week 16.
Kyren Williams: When the Los Angeles Rams want to win an ugly game, they know they have a running back who can chip away at tough yards.
Sunday wasn’t easy. The Rams’ passing game was mostly shut down against the New York Jets, so they decided it was up to Williams and the defense to win the game. It paid off, as Williams gained 122 rushing yards and a touchdown, and the defense mostly shut down the Jets in a 19-9 victory.
The Rams remain on track to win the NFC West title. A big part of their success is Williams, a true workhorse in the running back committee era. The Rams could return to Puka Nacua, Cooper Kupp and the passing game against the Cardinals on Saturday. But they can still win even with Williams carrying the load.
loser
Las Vegas Raiders, win: A win is good for a team, especially one that hasn’t experienced a win since Sept. 29. But the Raiders’ 19-14 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars could have implications in April. .
The Raiders had another big game as Brock Bowers had 11 catches for 99 yards. But who will be throwing him the ball next season? The Raiders are likely to draft a quarterback, but with Sunday’s win they may have missed out on a chance to be the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft. The New York Giants are the only two-win team left in the NFL and don’t seem to have a chance to win the rest of the season. The Raiders won, falling to 3 wins and 12 losses.
Winning for the Raiders could be a problem once the draft order is decided. That could cost them a shot at their preferred quarterback. But life will be better in the locker room this week.
San Francisco 49ers: The 49ers were eliminated from the playoffs before Sunday’s kickoff. After that, they played like a team that didn’t deserve to be in the playoffs anyway.
The 49ers fell short once again, losing 29-17 to the Miami Dolphins. This brought the team’s record to 6 wins and 9 losses, confirming a losing season for San Francisco. No one expected that to happen before the season started.
The 49ers have been without a running game due to numerous running back injuries. Brock Purdy played pretty well, but under pressure in the final two minutes he threw a crucial interception that effectively sealed the victory for Miami. Then Devon Ashen had a 50-yard touchdown run to really end the game.
The 49ers plan to regroup in the offseason. Offseason doesn’t come that early for them.
Arizona Cardinals: The Cardinals went from looking like the best team in the NFC West to being eliminated from the playoffs in an instant.
The Cardinals will be eliminated from playoff contention with two weeks remaining. Tuba Hubbard had a 28-yard run in overtime and then a 21-yard touchdown run to give the Carolina Panthers a 36-30 overtime victory over the Cardinals.
The Cardinals’ defense has played well for most of the season, but it stalled in a big way on Sunday. Kyler Murray has had an inconsistent season, unable to finish off game-winning drives when the Cardinals had the ball in overtime.
Arizona still has a promising future and showed at times this season why it should be a dangerous team. But with how the Cardinals fell apart late this season, it probably wouldn’t be a good way to go into the offseason.
All about Drew Lock and the 2024 Giants: If you’re a New York Giants fan, you’ve seen a lifetime’s worth of bad football this season.
The Giants have found new depth in this miserable season. Lock started Sunday and threw two pick-sixes. One went to Jesse Bates III when Lock made a terrible pass. The second one didn’t quite lock up, but the pass spilled over the line and was caught by Matthew Judon, who scored. The Falcons’ new quarterback, Michael Penix Jr., got off to a productive start, helped by the Giants’ terrible defense, and Atlanta won 34-7. It was a team record 10 consecutive losses for the Giants.
The only positive for the Giants this season is that their miserable football may cost them the No. 1 draft pick. Even that is a questionable gift, as there don’t seem to be any quarterback candidates worthy of the No. 1 pick this season. Only one person gets drafted there. The Giants can’t endure another season of this type of turmoil at quarterback.
Denver Broncos: The Broncos didn’t have a great week 16.
The Broncos lost on Thursday and then watched the Cincinnati Bengals defeat the Cleveland Browns 24-6. The Bengals’ defense has been an issue for most of the season, but the Browns have insisted on giving Dorian Thompson-Robinson a chance at quarterback, which solves many of Cincy’s problems. Thompson-Robinson struggled, as he does in just about every other game in the NFL, and the Bengals won.
That victory is important in the AFC wild card race. The Bengals are 7-8 and will play the 9-6 Broncos in Cincinnati on Saturday. If the Bengals win that, the pressure will be on Denver to beat the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 18. The Broncos are still safe in the wild-card spot, but the Bengals are suddenly full of life with two games remaining.
