In a weekend headlined by quarterbacks, Matthew Stafford continues to show out in a rampant Los Angeles offense as the Rams emerge from a tight NFC West scrap, but Jameis Winston reminded us why, even in defeat, he is a must-watch signal caller.

Dak Prescott broke Tony Romo’s record as the leading Dallas Cowboys QB and Patrick Mahomes again showed that he cannot be underestimated as two struggling giants showed signs of life in comeback wins. Talking of struggling Giants, however, even Winston’s one-man show could not prevent Big Blue from capsizing in Detroit, with DC Shane Bowen shown the door as a result, just hours after an inept offensive performances from the Las Vegas Raiders cost Chip Kelly his highest-paid coordinator gig alongside Pete Carroll.

Here are the highlights from Week 12 of the 2025 NFL season…

WEEK 12 SCORES
(to Monday 24th November)

Thursday

(7-4) Buffalo Bills 19 @ 23 Houston Texans (6-5)

Sunday:

(8-3) Indianapolis Colts 20 @ 23 Kansas City Chiefs (6-5) OT

(8-3) Seattle Seahawks 30 @ 24 Tennessee Titans (1-10)

(4-7) Minnesota Vikings 6 @ 23 Green Bay Packers (7-3-1)

(2-9) New York Jets 10 @ 23 Baltimore Ravens (6-5)

(2-10) New York Giants 27 @ 34 Detroit Lions (7-4) OT

(6-5) Pittsburgh Steelers 28 @ 31 Chicago Bears (8-3)

(10-2) New England Patriots 26 @ 20 Cincinnati Bengals (3-8)

(3-8) Cleveland Browns 24 @ 10 Las Vegas Raiders (2-9)

(7-4) Jacksonville Jaguars 27 @ 24 Arizona Cardinals (3-8)

(8-3) Philadelphia Eagles 21 @ 24 Dallas Cowboys (5-5-1)

(4-7) Atlanta Falcons 24 @ 10 New Orleans Saints (2-9)

(6-5) Tampa Bay Buccaneers 7 @ 34 Los Angeles Rams (9-2)

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GAME OF THE WEEK

Indianapolis Colts 20 @ Kansas City Chiefs 23 OT

As Ric Flair used to say, ‘to be the man, you have to beat the man’. Well, the Indianapolis Colts had fixings of being the man in the AFC, only to miss their chance to take that mantle.

Leading 20-9 in the fourth quarter at Arrowhead, the Colts failed to land a telling blow against the Lazarus-like Kansas City Chiefs. A fumble by Kareem Hunt to start proceedings in the final period should have been enough, but the Colts’ incredibly efficient offensive unit instead went three-and-out on their final four possessions. Over that 12-play stint, head coach Shane Steichen put the ball in Jonathan Taylor’s hands just three times, with Daniel Jones missing six of the nine passing attempts asked of him. Meanwhile, Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs’ offense exploded, totaling 289 yards and scoring 14 points in the fourth quarter and overtime to pull off a crucial win.

A special assist has to go to Steve Spagnuolo, who dialled up a heady mix of his patented zone blitzes to stifle Jones, the Colts’ quarterback being pressured on 35 percent of his dropbacks after the half-time interval.

It was the type of win that changes how you feel about the Chiefs going forward. Now at 6-5, and still on the playoff bubble, it’s a timely reminder that this team has the quarterback, coaching chops and big-game nous to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. Until they are beaten, they will always be the man in the AFC.

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MVP OF THE WEEK

Matthew Stafford (QB, Los Angeles Rams)

Now 12 weeks into the season, we’ve seen enough evidence. The MVP award is Matthew Stafford’s to lose.

The wily veteran shows no signs of slowing down at the ripe old age of 37, even after countless preseason reports on his chronic back problems. Stafford scythed through a tough Tampa Bay defense, slinging side-arm passes, laser-accurate line drives into tight windows and no-look tosses. The reverse angle shot of the Rams’ second touchdown, a 10-yard pass to Colby Parkinson, was simply beautiful. The former Lion stared down his trusted red zone receiver Davante Adams, before turning his arm across his body and flicking a dot to his backup tight end.

Stafford is part of a complete team. L.A. has the league’s best point differential (+127), have a top-ten rushing attack by EPA, and a top five rush and pass defense by the same metric. They put it all together against a solid, but ailing, Bucs squad. Baker Mayfield was sacked and picked off twice in the first half and, after he left the game with a shoulder injury, Teddy Bridgewater was also brought down twice in the pocket.

That should not take anything away from Stafford’s brilliance. He is authoring his best season as a pro, when so many people had assumed this would be his last campaign. With 30 passing touchdowns and just two picks on the season, he has the team record, personal stats and highlight plays to be a worthy frontrunner for the top gong come season’s end.

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Winners: Jameis Winston fans

There are very few sportspeople that make me feel unbridled joy, regardless of if they perform well or stink up the joint. Casting my mind back across three decades of tireless consumption of sport, both in person and through a screen, I can’t recall a name that does it quite like Jameis Winston.

The silly interview moments, eating the ‘dub’ in the background of post-game celebrations, uncorking 60-yard rainbows on one drive before following them up with a dunderhead turnover on the next. This man is box office.

This given Sunday, the G-men’s visit to Detroit could well have been Winston’s magnum opus. His afternoon started with a double pass touchdown lob to a streaking Wan’Dale Robinson, followed by an up-and-down performance that demonstrated both his preternatural arm talent and propensity for sailing open receivers. Then, with 12 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, and the Giants leading by three, it happened. Winston took the snap on the Lions’ 34-yard line, faked a handoff to Tyrone Tracy, before tossing the ball to a looping Gunner Olszewski. The former college quarterback stepped up in the pocket, and looped a ball to a streaking Winston. Jameis caught the ball, as Derrick Barnes — who was on pass rush duty on the play, but made a heads-up decision in tracking the quarterback once he leaked out of the backfield — recovered. In a one-on-one situation, you would back the 240-pound linebacker to deal with the immobile signal caller with minimal fuss. Instead, Winston stiff-armed his man, spun out of contact, and sauntered to paydirt, giving the Giants a ten-point lead.

Of course, the Giants would lose in overtime, thanks in part to a Winston interception on the ensuing possession, because that’s just what he does. It’s testament to this man’s ability to wow us that I’ve decided to lead with his performance in a game where Jahmyr Gibbs made mincemeat of the Giants’ run defense. The third-year back rushed for 219 yards on just 15 carries. He broke off two scores of 49 and 69 yards; the latter proving the winning score in overtime. How is that not the headline?

Because nobody does it quite like Jameis. Now in his tenth year in the league and any opportunity of a starting job distant, we have to savour every single second of these moments.

Loser: Chip Kelly

Just hours after the Raiders’ 24-10 home loss against the Browns, offensive coordinator Chip Kelly was shown the door in Las Vegas. The league’s highest paid coordinator is the easy fall guy for the torrid start to life under Pete Carroll’s leadership.

The Raiders offense ranks 30th in points per drive, yards per play, EPA/per play and success rate. Play callers long for consistency, but not when it’s abject.

Sunday was the fifth time this season that the Raiders scored ten points or less. The offensive line is one of the worst in the league, Geno Smith is turning the ball over at an alarming rate, Brock Bowers’ injury and Jakobi Meyers’ trade to Jacksonville has depleted their receiving stocks, while Ashton Jeanty has shown little to suggest he was worthy of such lofty expectations at this level. That’s a bum hand to be dealt, but there was zero sign that Kelly had the scheme to lift a moribund unit out of a deep and existential funk.

So poor was the Raiders’ offensive showing on Sunday that there was little pressure on Shedeur Sanders to produce anything above replacement-level play in his first start. The fifth-round pick had a measly 23 percent success rate and threw one brutal interception that could have been picked off by two Raiders. However, he took just one sack, executed plays within the flow of the offense — including a screen pass that was taken 66 yards to the house by Dylan Sampson for his first NFL touchdown pass — while also dropping one gorgeous 53-yard teardrop to Isaiah Bond. Off balance and rolling to his right, it was the type of throw that draftniks thought outside of his skillset.

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THE ROUND UP

Let me give you a sneak peek into the inner workings of the Gridiron editorial team. Our editor, Craig Llewellyn, posed a question in our group chat about an hour into Dallas’ 24-21 comeback win over the Philadelphia Eagles, asking, ‘Who’s playing worse right now: the Cowboys or Liverpool?’. I think that’s a pretty simple answer. Arne Slot’s side could not produce such a sterling turnaround in fortunes in their current guise. The Cowboys rattled off 24 unanswered points, as their defense bottled up the Eagles offense and George Pickens went sicko mode in the Lone Star State. A mix of ill-discipline (the Eagles gave up 14 penalties in the game), cowardly play calls and third down woes opened the door, but Brian Schottenheimer’s men were good value for their win. They are a live contender in the NFC playoff hunt.

J.J. McCarthy… yeesh. The second-year quarterback put forward another sorry display in the Minnesota Vikings’ 23-6 loss to the Packers, throwing for just 87 yards and tossing two picks at Lambeau Field. McCarthy faced pressure on half of his dropbacks and, while we could be generous in laying some of the blame on an over-matched offensive line, that would only tell some of the story. The Michigan alum shows an alarming lack of pocket presence. On one of the Pack’s five sacks on the day, McCarthy simply back pedals directly into the path of Rashan Gary, who did not have to deviate a step from his running angle to fell the signal caller. As per Arif Hasan, even when you take out those quick pressures, McCarthy’s performance ranked 344th of 346 QB performances this season by EPA per dropback.

Jaxon Smith-Nigba’s wonder season continued in the Seattle Seahawks’ 30-24 win on the road in Tennessee, as the Ohio State product took his statline on the season to 80 catches for 1,313 yards and seven touchdowns. That yardage is good for the franchise’s single season record. A reminder they have played just 11 games so far this term.

Ben Johnson’s Bears did it again. Chicago leads the NFC North with an 8-3 record and a -3 point differential. The former Lions playcaller has produced a remarkable turnaround in the Windy City, but you still can’t shake the feeling they aren’t for real. Again, Caleb Williams was wildly inconsistent on Sunday in the 31-28 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. A second quarter strip sack that resulted in a Steelers defensive score was a textbook example of how not to play the quarterback position in the shadow of your own posts. Chicago will likely make the playoffs, but will be a juicy matchup for more well-rounded outfits like the Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers, who seem destined for the Wildcard Round given L.A.’s rampant form in the NFC West.

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STAT OF THE WEEK

• It’s time for an update of everyone’s favourite stat. Shedeur Sanders was the 42nd (!) starting quarterback for the Cleveland Browns since the franchise was re-established ahead of the 1999 season. In the same time-frame, the Green Bay Packers have trotted out just eight quarterbacks, five of whom were largely thrust into action by injury to the regular QB1. 

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