NFL: Week 13 knee-jerk reactions
December, 4, 2012
12/04/12
1:42
PM ET
By ESPN.com staff | ESPN.com
You’ve heard the chatter by the sports pundits and on the talk shows. Heck, you might even have 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 13
| Team | Knee-jerk reaction | Reality or not? |
|---|---|---|
| AFC EAST by James Walker | ||
 | The Bills are hot. They will run the table and make the playoffs. | The Bills have won two of three and that's not hot enough. At 5-7, they would need a lot of luck to even have a chance at the playoffs. It's a wrap. |
 | I keep going back and forth on this Ryan Tannehill guy. One week I think he's Dan Marino, and the next week I think he's another Chad Henne. Which is it? | Well, Tannehill is neither. Let's not put too many expectations on his going to the Hall of Fame. But also don't label him a draft bust after each bad game as a rookie. |
 | I'm getting a little worried, Walker. The Patriots scored only 23 points when I'm used to them scoring 40 points. Is my bar too high? | Relax, Patriots fans. New England won't light up the scoreboard every week. Miami's defense is tough at home. New England will be fine. |
 | Greg McElroy for president! He's much better than those two tomato cans: Mark Sanchez and Tim Tebow. | Let's keep McElroy's performance in perspective. He threw for only 29 yards in New York's 7-6 victory. Let's not crown him as the next Tom Brady just yet. |
| AFC WEST by Bill Williamson | ||
 | Denver is going to get the No. 2 seed and a bye in the AFC playoffs now that it is 9-3 and tied with Baltimore and New England for the second-best record in the conference. | Not so fast. Yes, Denver has an NFL-high seven-game winning streak and is playing at a high level. But New England and Baltimore won't roll over. The Broncos have to keep on winning if they expect to get the bye. |
 | Brady Quinn should be considered a candidate to start next year after having the best Total QBR game of any Kansas City quarterback in the past five years in a win against Carolina. | Let's see if he can keep it up. If Quinn can be efficient and timely in the final four games, maybe he can be considered a contender for the job next year, but I think the Chiefs will look for a new starter. |
 | There is a legitimate chance Dennis Allen will last just one season in Oakland. | I'm starting to think it's a real possibility. If the 3-9 Raiders go winless in the final four games, owner Mark Davis will have a hard timing finding a reason to keep Allen. I think he needs another year, but it's not my call. |
 | The Chargers could go 4-12 and end up losing 11 of their final 12 games. | Why not? Does this team look capable of winning a game right now? Offensively, it is a mess, and the defense folds in the fourth quarter. I don't think the Chargers will go winless the rest of the season, but it is clearly possible. |
| AFC NORTH by Jamison Hensley | ||
 | The Ravens lost to a third-string quarterback at home. How can anyone expect them to beat RG3, Peyton Manning, Eli Manning and Andy Dalton the rest of this month? That Steelers loss has created a lot of doubts. | The loss to the Steelers is deflating, especially because it came against an undermanned division rival. But the Ravens can still clinch a playoff berth Sunday with a win at Washington and can make a run at the No. 2 seed in the AFC by beating the Broncos. |
 | The Bengals have won four in a row. That comeback in San Diego shows this is a special team. Cincinnati is more than a playoff contender -- it's a Super Bowl contender. | The Bengals are one of the hottest teams in the league, but let's take a deep breath. Cincinnati shouldn't be able to say "Super Bowl" until these Bengals players win a playoff game first. Still, you have to be impressed with how the running game and defense have bounced back. |
 | The Browns have won four of their past seven games and are starting to look like a team on the upswing in 2013. Maybe the Browns shouldn't get rid of Pat Shurmur as head coach. | The new regime probably decided to part ways with Shurmur long before the Browns started to turn things around. The Browns already have pushed out president Mike Holmgren, and they probably will fire general manager Tom Heckert after the season. It's hard to believe Shurmur would survive the housecleaning. |
 | That win in Baltimore in going to catapult the Steelers. This is starting to look like 2005, when they won their last four games to make the playoffs as a wild-card team before winning the Super Bowl. | It's a nice story that the Steelers saved their season with a surprisingly strong effort by backup Charlie Batch. But the Steelers need Ben Roethlisberger to win the Super Bowl. His health will determine how far Pittsburgh goes in the postseason. |
| AFC SOUTH by Paul Kuharsky | ||
 | With our beat up secondary Tom Brady is going to light us up. I see 11-2. | The Texans have become masters at finding a way to win, and that could happen in New England, too. |
 | Remember when we doubted the idea of letting Peyton Manning go and drafting Andrew Luck? Me neither. | It's hard to say anything bad about the Colts' future. Or their present. |
 | Is this thing over yet? | With four games left, it's about evaluating youth and QB Chad Henne. |
 | Fire everyone. And convince me in the next four games that QB Jake Locker is the guy. | A new staff isn't always the answer when things go bad. Let's see what they do in the last month of the season. |
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