NFL: Week 11 knee-jerk reactions
November, 20, 2012
11/20/12
1:30
PM ET
By ESPN.com staff | ESPN.com
You’ve heard the chatter by the sports pundits and on the talk shows. Heck, you may have even heard it here. So are the knee-jerk reactions about your team based in reality? Our NFL bloggers weigh in.
NFC Knee-jerk Reactions | AFC Knee-jerk Reactions
WEEK 11
| Team | Knee-jerk reaction | Reality or not? |
|---|---|---|
| AFC EAST by James Walker | ||
 | Did you see how we beat the Dolphins? It's time to run the table and make the playoffs, baby! | The Bills have an easy schedule, but this team isn't consistent enough to win out. Buffalo has a big game at Indianapolis next week that is a must-win. |
 | I can't believe quarterback Ryan Tannehill laid two eggs in a row. I want Chad Henne back! That guy was a stud on Sunday. | Calm down, Dolphins fans. Tannehill is a rookie who must go through some growing pains. He's ahead of schedule by simply playing this year, and he'll only get better. |
 | The Patriots' defense made Andrew Luck look like Trent Edwards. New England's defense won't be an issue the rest of the year. | This was a promising performance, but I'm not sure New England's defense is out of the woods just yet. But the offense is so good, it may not matter. |
 | We are coming for the Patriots on Thanksgiving! We almost had them at their place, but we let them off the hook. Can't wait! | Yes, I think the Jets have a chance at the upset. Rivalry games often can go either way regardless of record. The Jets also have the benefit of catching the Patriots on a short week. |
| AFC WEST by Bill Williamson | ||
 | The Broncos' offense is in serious trouble with starting running back Willis McGahee out for at least six weeks. | This offense revolves around Peyton Manning. McGahee will be missed, but Manning will find a way to make it work. |
 | The outrage displayed by Chiefs fans will force Kansas City ownership into making a change at both general manager and coach. | Unless the 1-9 Chiefs somehow get hot at the end of the season, I do think the Hunt family will feel no choice but to clean house. The fan base would completely revolt if a change isn't made. |
 | Oakland owner Mark Davis is seriously considering making changes because he expressed disappointment with his team's brass following Sunday's game. | No, we're not at that point, but Davis' words are worth paying attention to. It shows his frustration, and frustrated owners are always worth watching. |
 | The Chargers' problems on offense are not all the fault of quarterback Philip Rivers. He just isn't getting much help. | That is very much true. Yes, Rivers is causing his own problems with his chronic turnover issues, but look at this group as a whole. It is not helping its quarterback at all. |
| AFC NORTH by Jamison Hensley | ||
 | The Ravens beat the Steelers in Pittsburgh and beat up Byron Leftwich. Baltimore now owns the AFC North. The Ravens now need to worry about getting a top-two seed in the AFC. | With a two-game lead over Pittsburgh and given the current quarterback situation with the Steelers, it certainly looks like this is the Ravens' division to lose. But the Ravens could fall on Sunday at San Diego, where they've had problems. If the Steelers win at Cleveland, it's back to a one-game margin heading into another Ravens-Steelers grudge match. |
 | The Bengals took care of business at Kansas City and will have no problems with Carson Palmer coming to town. Cincinnati is one game back of the banged-up Steelers for the final playoff spot. Watch out Pittsburgh, here come the Bengals! | The Bengals have a favorable schedule ahead: Oakland, San Diego, Dallas and Philadelphia. But they still need to win at Pittsburgh in late December. If the Bengals finished tied with the Steelers at the end of the season, the Steelers would have the tiebreaker edge because of the season sweep. |
 | The Browns can't finish games. They were up 14-0 to the Giants earlier this year and lost. They were leading the Cowboys 13-0 at halftime on Sunday and lost. Will this agony ever end? | The close losses are heartbreaking, but there is reason for hope. Being competitive shows that there is talent on this team. The next step is finding a way to get these young players over the hump late in games. |
 | It looks like Charlie Batch is now going to start with Ben Roethlisberger and Byron Leftwich being hurt. Will he be able to hold up at 37? Can he beat the Browns in Cleveland? This is starting to look bad for the Steelers. | Batch is certainly the last resort in terms of quarterbacks on the current roster, but he has won before. He's 5-2 as a fill-in starter for Pittsburgh and has shown the ability to be a game manager (look at the game against the Rams last season). But it will be time to worry if the Steelers lose at Cleveland. |
| AFC SOUTH by Paul Kuharsky | ||
 | Our defense is horrible! What happened? We made the Jaguars look like a dangerous offense. Johnathan Joseph is hurt. Megatron will detroy us. | Even the best teams have a bad day. And when you win on your bad day, that's a pretty good development. The Texans are probably going to lose more than one game, and it won't be catastrophic. |
 | So much for those playoff hopes. That team that took the field in New England was horrible. They didn't deserve to be on the same field with the Patriots. | Being a playoff team and being an elite team in the AFC are two very different things. The Colts can easily be the first without being the second. |
 | Even on our best day we lose and give up massive quarterback and receiver performances. Blaine Gabbert is done here. Chad Henne and Justin Blackmon can beat the Titans, can't they? | It's been a long time since the Jaguars felt good about themselves. And even after blowing that game in Houston, there is reason to feel more upbeat than they have in a long time. |
 | Losing to Jacksonville on Sunday might be a new low for this team. Who's going to cover Justin Blackmon? | Maybe they found their footing with the big win in Miami and with self-scouting over the bye week. I don't see five or six wins the rest of the way, but Tennessee can play better down the stretch. |
AFC EAST SCOREBOARD
ABOUT THIS BLOG
James Walker
Walker joined ESPN.com in 2008 after four seasons covering the NFL and NBA for the Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch. He's a Temple graduate and Hyattsville, Md. native who lives in Miami.
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