Week 12 Care/Don’t Care: The Saquon Barkley-MVP debate is not productive

Week 12 Care/Don’t Care: The Saquon Barkley-MVP debate is not productive

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One of many matchups I used to be most eager to observe in Week 12 was the Eagles protection in opposition to the Rams offense. Regardless of a few of the gaudy effectivity numbers Los Angeles boasts when it has all its star skill-position gamers on the sector collectively, there gave the impression to be some leaks within the warship. On paper, a few of these cracks have been problematic in opposition to a staff that includes the Eagles’ defensive personnel.

The on-paper mismatches don’t at all times flip into on-field outcomes. Sadly for the Rams, this one in opposition to a stifling Eagles protection performed out exactly because the nightmare situation forecasted.

That stats might not completely present it, however the strain introduced on by the Eagles protection was a difficulty all evening. Philadephia solely blitzed on 11.9% of Stafford’s dropbacks and nonetheless pressured him to constantly regulate within the pocket. Stress has been the Achilles heel for this Rams’ passing sport, as Stafford has been one of many lowest-rated passers below strain this season. When it mattered most, that reared its head in an enormous method. Stafford wasn’t “unhealthy” on this sport however he ended the evening with 5 sacks and 4.8 yards per move try. Whole drives cratered below waves of warmth, because the Rams went 0-for-8 on third downs in opposition to the Eagles.

The Rams offense is usually a threatening unit over the course of a complete sport. For enormous sections of this contest, if Stafford wasn’t making a hero throw or Puka Nacua didn’t make a freaky play, this offense can be caught within the mud when the sport was even remotely shut.

Stafford and the Rams offense will finally be nice. You gained’t discover one other protection on the remaining schedule that may remotely dismantle a staff like Philadelphia’s. Nevertheless, this strain difficulty is a matchup notice to think about each week and shall be what limits the staff’s ceiling.

For the Eagles, their cease unit is licensed as for-real because it will get. A protection like this, paired with an obnoxiously particular working sport and a passing sport with an elite large receiver, is the recipe for a Tremendous Bowl run. Early within the season, there have been doubts about whether or not Philadelphia might be that sort of squad. It is not the identical group because the September Eagles. The arrival of the protection as a top-of-the-league unit modified every little thing. This can be a new staff; an entire battleship that may sink every other craft within the sea.

When Bucky Irving has the ball in his palms, I’ve to verify myself to not get too loopy with my enthusiasm for his future. He’s an exhilarating runner, the kind of participant who makes you need to assign some irresponsible reward and comparisons.

Irving is a easy mover who’s a handful for opponents to deliver down in house. He knifes by means of open holes within the blocking scheme after which actually will get cooking. As soon as he’s on the second degree, the primary defender hardly ever brings Irving down. He’s some of the spectacular pure runners league-wide in 2024. He gained 98 yards after contact in opposition to the Giants, per Subsequent Gen Stats.

The Bucs have been coming off their bye this week and it’s at all times vital to notice any personnel adjustments in these moments. It might be a fluke, however Irving noticed a big bump in his passing-game utilization in Week 12.

Liam Coen used the working backs within the passing sport a ton throughout the absence of Chris Godwin and Mike Evans. With the latter again in motion, a few of the backs ceded receiving work, however not Irving. The rookie again ran extra routes than Rachaad White and earned six targets, tied with Evans for second on the staff behind Sterling Shepard.

White has been such a top quality receiver; it could be a stunner if he’s phased out. Nevertheless, Irving has confirmed to be so electrical that this staff ought to attempt to get the ball in his palms by any means vital.

The 2023 Bucs offense featured one of many worst working video games within the NFL. They’re a top-10 speeding staff based mostly on EPA and success charge this season. That isn’t all because of Bucky Irving, however his imaginative and prescient and explosiveness performed an enormous position in that leap. The rookie has been a real revelation this yr.

If you happen to can rush and rattle C.J. Stroud, you’ll be able to beat the Texans. The Titans aren’t a terrific or full soccer staff, however their defensive position is a incredible unit, particularly on the inside. They weren’t a perfect matchup for Houston.

It’s gone under-discussed due to their file and the concentrate on the struggles of the offense amid Will Levis’ wild, turnover-filled season, however this Titans protection is nice. The truth that they beat the very best staff of their division on a day when Levis — who admittedly threw some haymakers on Sunday — took eight sacks, tossed a pick-six and misplaced a fumble, is a testomony to that aspect of the soccer.

The Titans pressured Stroud on a whopping 40% of his dropbacks, per Subsequent Gen Stats. He averaged 4.1 yards per try on 11 passes and threw certainly one of his two picks. It’s the identical story each week. Not solely did Jeffery Simmons and T’Vondre Sweat get in Stroud’s face all afternoon, they dominated the road of scrimmage in opposition to the run. Joe Mixon averaged a measly 1.8 yards per carry and was annoyed early on within the sport.

A lot of the dialogue popping out of this sport will focus on extra rounds of “What’s improper with the Texans?” Sufficient already; the Texans are what they’ve been for months now.

We needs to be speaking concerning the painfully underrated Titans protection within the wake of their massive Week 12 upset.

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At one level this season, Josh Jacobs made his method into The Folks’s Panic meter phase on The Yahoo Fantasy Forecast. The manufacturing hadn’t been there on a weekly foundation. Sure sections of the fantasy soccer group even referred to as him washed throughout his Week 1 debut with Inexperienced Bay. What a bunch of licensed non-ball-knowers. Inform me you aren’t watching the video games with out telling me you aren’t watching the video games. Maybe it’s higher expressed by saying you merely don’t know what you’re watching.

What a disgrace for these of us, as a result of they’ve missed a extremely gratifying product all season.

The Packers working sport has been nice all season and Jacobs, particularly, has performed nice soccer. At instances this yr, the fantasy stats simply didn’t reside as much as the tape, as Jacobs didn’t clear 16 factors till Week 7. Typically fixing that divide requires a deep dive to uncover the reasoning behind it. This isn’t a kind of moments.

Jacobs solely discovered the top zone as soon as between Weeks 1 to 7, because the Packers offense lived in a number of completely different identities because of Jordan Love’s well being and Jacobs himself had a run of unhealthy luck. The universe is now in the course of therapeutic. Jacobs has discovered the end-zone a whopping seven instances of their final 5 video games, together with three scores in opposition to the 49ers on Sunday. Now, he seems like top-of-the-line backs in fantasy soccer. Humorous how that works.

The enjoyable may solely now simply be getting began for Jacobs, if the final two weeks are any indication. Since getting back from their bye, the Packers have leaned closely into the run sport and notably the kind of gap-scheme runs that Jacobs thrives below. For all of the enjoyable gamers within the Inexperienced Bay passing sport, Matt LaFleur has constructed the sport plans round what makes Jacobs tick the final two weeks.

My guess as to why the Packers let go of the beloved and nonetheless efficient Aaron Jones to signal Jacobs within the offseason was the latter’s means to thrive in a number of and assorted run schemes. We’ve seen that come to play within the final month, and LaFleur isn’t about to let up on the run-game hammer.

We would look again at DK Metcalf’s damage this season because the second every little thing modified for Jaxon Smith-Njigba. At instances, it takes a little bit of chaos to shake up a training workers and pressure them to reimagine utilization. What JSN confirmed Mike MacDonald and Ryan Grubb throughout these couple of video games appears to have opened the door to new heights for the 2023 first-rounder.

Smith-Njigba as soon as once more led the staff in goal share with 25% in opposition to the Cardinals. He solely averaged 1.9 air yards per goal however that’s not the vital consequence. What issues rather more than the air yards is how these seems have been designed. JSN was focused as the first learn on quick-hitting passes on the again of routes the place different large receivers helped filter house. That’s the kind of purposeful utilization that indicators the brand new status this wideout holds within the minds of this teaching workers.

JSN repaid the coaches’ religion in these designed performs. The gifted receiver averaged 11 yards after the catch per reception and 67% of his catches resulted in a primary down or landing.

Geno Smith accomplished 20 of 24 passes below 10 air yards in Week 12, per Subsequent Gen Stats, for 207 yards. This was a good way to assault a Cardinals protection that pressured Seattle with some success and performs some funky protection seems on the again finish. However that plan doesn’t succeed with out Smith-Njigba.

Smith is a good beginning quarterback however his aggression can get the very best of him when he’s completely searching massive performs. Having these designed layups in place helps settle Smith, and JSN being so glorious with the ball in his palms incentivizes the quarterback to take these throws.

Regardless of some superior stats portray a reasonably damaging play on JSN’s rookie yr and the beginning of 2024, movie confirmed he was nice as a rookie and nice early this season. Effectively, since Seattle has eliminated a few of the synthetic limitations on his deployment, he is been rather more than nice the previous couple of weeks.

Proper now, he seems just like the Seahawks’ most vital skill-position choice on offense and a solution to a lot of what ails different gamers on the unit.

The one cause I don’t care about these debates is that just about nobody taking part within the train goes to deliver something new to the desk. Most individuals who don’t suppose Saqoun Barkley is without doubt one of the Most worthy gamers to his particular person staff have dug their heels in and are able to cling to long-held dogma.

Nevertheless, discussing the influence of Barkley on this Eagles staff and the worth he gives is endlessly fascinating.

The Eagles domesticate such a terrific speeding ecosystem for any working again to work. We’ve seen a number of completely different backs have career-best years in Philly alongside Jalen Hurts and behind this offensive line the final three seasons. Even backup Kenneth Gainwell had some productive touches on Sunday Evening Soccer. The present-era Eagles have by no means employed a working again like Saquon Barkley, who can take over a sport and launch this ecosystem into the stratosphere.

There are such a lot of performs the place a typical working again would go down for a brief achieve that Barkley turns into an explosive. He makes the staff proper when the scheme is improper. I simply don’t understand how we’re nonetheless having the identical conversations about working again worth once we’ve seen an elite again like this weaponize an already nice speeding assault. He’s not even the one one doing it; take a look at 2022-2023 Christian McCaffrey in San Francisco and Derrick Henry in Baltimore.

Week 12 was the primary time Barkley cleared 200 yards from scrimmage since his second yr within the NFL (2019). He smashed that quantity and cleared 300 yards. His 44.2 half-PPR fantasy factors are essentially the most by a working again this season to date.

Would he have this statistical success degree again in New York or a equally poor atmosphere? After all not.

However can we please cease performing like that is completely a working again actuality? Former draft busts at quarterbacks resurrect their careers after they get paired with sharp play-callers and high quality skill-position gamers. Large receivers undergo within the field rating on unhealthy offense with subpar passers. Operating again statistics aren’t distinctive on this regard.

Saquon Barkley MVP debates are most likely nugatory for a number of causes, to not point out that non-December discussions concerning the award don’t really matter. Nevertheless, there isn’t a denying his arrival in Philly will go down as some of the impactful developments of the 2024 NFL season. Elite working backs like him nonetheless have the cache to carry the ceiling of their offenses.

As a soccer collective, we’re sluggish to let go of our priors. That’s not at all times a foul factor. The NFL is such a small sample-size sport that a few outlier performances may cause large overreactions to variables that may be nothing however noise. Different instances, it causes us to be far too late to consider the brand new actuality the video games are begging us to just accept.

We’re so nicely past that second for the San Francisco 49ers, who at no level have seemed just like the staff we anticipated them to be this season. The Week 12 model of the 49ers was nothing wanting a zombie staff.

When the 49ers suffered a number of accidents within the offseason, had their first-round decide get shot in August and needed to navigate a number of contract holdouts deep into coaching camp with two of their famous person gamers, it simply felt like this wasn’t going to be their yr. Effectively, it’s completely not their yr. They don’t have sufficient good gamers on offense and the protection isn’t the kind of unit to hold a squad.

Throw the names out, and simply take a look at the present play. Nothing we’ve seen from Deebo Samuel or Christian McCaffrey after they’ve been out there seems like their peak variations. The large receiver room is being led by , helpful participant in Jauan Jennings however he doesn’t create massive performs on his personal. I don’t care what any per-route stat tells you; he doesn’t come near offering the identical elite play Brandon Aiyuk dropped at the X-receiver place final season.

The 2024 San Francisco 49ers have been dwelling on the sting all yr. There’s nothing like a quarterback damage to offer you that last push throughout the cliff. The second Brock Purdy was dominated out Friday night, it was over for this staff. Given how Kyle Shanahan and co. dealt with sure accidents this yr, I don’t consider a phrase of hope popping out of that constructing that Purdy’s shoulder damage just isn’t a multi-week difficulty.

Maybe the theoretical model of the 49ers may survive a number of video games with Brandon Allen below middle. It’s previous time we settle for that interpretation of this staff died earlier than the season even kicked off. Week 12 gave us all of the proof we wanted.

The Panthers misplaced to the defending champs on a closing-seconds discipline aim after a two-minute drill that featured a back-breaking Patrick Mahomes scramble.

What would you like from them? Add Carolina to a protracted record of qualifying groups for that honor.

Past the loss, there are various optimistic takeaways from Carolina’s efficiency off their bye week. No improvement is extra vital than Bryce Younger’s play, which I assumed was glorious in opposition to Kansas Metropolis.

The 2 largest points that haunted Younger as a rookie: performs have been lifeless if he confronted extra strain, and he by no means threatened defenses down the sector. His 2023 teammates didn’t assist him in both space however Younger’s personal play wasn’t adequate. He reversed course on each points in Week 12.

The Chiefs blitzed Younger on 40% of his dropbacks, per Subsequent Gen Stats, displaying little respect for the Panthers’ passing sport. He made them pay. Younger accomplished 11 of 14 makes an attempt in opposition to the blitz and averaged a beefy 9.6 yards per try. He by no means wilted within the face of the Chiefs rush and was fast to diagnose coverages.

Younger was additionally extra aggressive pushing the ball downfield than we’re used to seeing from the Panthers passer. He averaged 8.1 air yards per try and posted a career-high completion proportion over anticipated of +14.0% on throws of 10-plus air yards, per Subsequent Gen Stats. Younger attacked all three areas of the sector with confidence.

This Week 12 output from Younger just isn’t a fluke. He’s quietly performed strong soccer since coming back from his stint on the bench and,’ most significantly, you’ll be able to map game-by-game enchancment every week.

It appears like Younger has a powerful command and understanding of Dave Canales’ offense. The Panthers’ run sport is incredible behind an underrated offensive line and the pass-catchers are considerably higher than the league-worst 2023 crew. Younger lastly has the kind of atmosphere round him to succeed and his personal play is rising each week.

We’ll see if he ever performs as much as a first-overall-quarterback ceiling however he seems to have established himself as a starter within the league.

When the Cowboys-Commanders sport was 10-9 halfway by means of the fourth quarter, the Kliff Kingsbury stoop and Jayden Daniels fantasy-panic headlines have been prepared to write down themselves.

This sport broke open in an especially unusual trend from that time on to finish in a 34-26 last rating.

Maybe that sequence will quiet the criticism of Kingsbury. Nevertheless, if that does change into the speaking level, I feel that’s misplaced and only a handy narrative based mostly on Kingsbury’s historical past in Arizona.

Over the earlier two weeks, I didn’t see something conceptually or play-sequencing-related that may lead me to lift an eyebrow on the offensive coordinator. That is nonetheless a unit that’s making an attempt to push the fitting buttons; they only bumped into two of the very best defenses within the NFL within the Steelers and Eagles. Additionally, these two have simply the fitting sort of schemes to restrict a scrambling quarterback like Daniels, who won’t even be 100% wholesome.

Whereas it was tempting to write down this in as an apparent bounce-back spot, on condition that Dallas lives on the different finish of the defensive rankings, it wasn’t fairly that straightforward.

Whereas the Cowboys protection has been porous for a lot of the yr, their move rush has improved in current weeks with Micah Parsons again within the combine. No. 11 is that form of unit-defining game-wrecker. His presence proved to be a distinction on this matchup. Daniels was a catastrophe when below strain in Week 12, taking 4 sacks, finishing simply certainly one of his 9 move makes an attempt and throwing each of his interceptions. He was glorious when he was stored clear, largely within the fourth quarter.

As we’re discussing the Commanders’ current slide, we have to keep in mind not solely Daniels’ rib damage from a few month in the past but in addition the expertise degree of this offense. This was rightly panned as a roster that would result in the primary general decide in 2025. The staff is, and their main energy gamers are, a lot higher than marketed however there are nonetheless vital holes.

The offensive line has performed above expectations and the scheme has helped elevate some spots however the tackles can nonetheless be overwhelmed in robust matchups.

Throw out manufacturing. Outdoors of Terry McLaurin, no different large receiver or tight finish really scares opposing defenses. Kingsbury and Daniels are nonetheless working round a hampered offense.

We’ll proceed to watch this Washington offense which has outkicked expectations, it doesn’t matter what occurs throughout the remainder of the season. Kingsbury is a well-liked punching bag, however I don’t suppose he shall be an issue for this staff down the stretch.

I’m certain readers and listeners will demand a lot dialogue over Justin Jefferson this week however I’m not going to have the ability to muster a lot concern on the topic.

Regardless of scoring because the WR3 this yr, it has been a barely slower fantasy marketing campaign than the general numbers would recommend. Jefferson’s been a steady-eddy sort of producer greater than a week-winner, and he has solely scored one landing since we flipped the calendar to October. Week 12 was the bottoming-out second with simply two catches for 27 yards.

There are a number of causes I don’t care an excessive amount of about it.

For starters, the Bears have been extra susceptible to secondary pass-catchers than primaries. So, whereas we by no means count on Jefferson to show in a stat line like this, it’s not completely out of nowhere. The truth that guys like Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson dominated this sport is vital sign. Too usually this season, there’s been a lacking second pitch in Minnesota’s passing assault. Addison hasn’t popped up for a lot of productive video games and Hockenson hasn’t been out there. Addison’s 162-yard outing in Week 12 marks the primary time he’s cleared 80 yards in a sport. Hockenson’s 84% route participation is the best since he returned from his ACL restoration. Even Aaron Jones had his finest speeding output in months.

Having different threats look harmful on this offense is an efficient factor for your complete unit and may help Jefferson get lighter matchups sooner or later.

It was clear simply from the published angle that the Bears have been dedicating additional consideration to Jefferson, which isn’t uncommon. I’d enterprise to guess that when Josh Oliver was the beginning tight finish and Addison was constantly quiet, groups have been much more able to double Jefferson. They weren’t afraid of different pass-catchers.

Maybe they now suppose twice about promoting out to solely cease Jefferson.

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