Ricky’s Round-Up: NFL Christmas Extravaganza!
Welcome back to Ricky’s Round-Up, ranking the top five talking points from all the NFL action of the previous week. As Andy Williams proclaimed, it was the most wonderful time of the year, and the football certainly lived up to the occasion.
#1- Baltimore Ravens are the shining star on top of the Christmas tree in 2023.
Christmas day normally has me ready for bed by 11pm after overindulging in way too many Yorkshire puddings. The NFL had other ideas. The league’s two best sides in the Ravens and San Francisco 49ers on Primetime, which is sadly 1am for us UK fans, could not be missed out on.
Baltimore stole the show with a magnificent performance. Their defence under DC Mike MacDonald is just terrifying, as it is just impossible to predict how they plan to rush the QB. Four interceptions of 49ers QB Brock Purdy, and five in total, showed just why this team really is the team to beat.
Props must go to Ravens QB Lamar Jackson, who is just an enigma. His dual threat dynamism accounts for so much more than his statistics, which people still crazily debate. Could this be the year for Lamar? I think so.
#2- Russell Wilson chucked aside like a Lynx Africa gift set from your Nan on Christmas day.
Russell Wilson will be feeling very hard done by. He has been benched for the rest of the season, after the Denver Broncos lost with the last kick of the game to the New England Patriots on Christmas day. There is a financial incentive behind it, but the entire situation does not appear harmonious whatsoever.
They sit at 7-8, and their playoff chances are very slim with two games to go. By benching him now, they avoid having to pay a $37 million injury guarantee should he be injured in those two games and fail a physical in March 2024. He has had a very solid season all things considered, with certain QB statistics better than Patrick Mahomes for example.
Reports have differed on whether it is a financially driven or performance driven move, but one would think that with playoff chances still alive in a very open AFC, they would use their best man available to try and sneak in? Harsh business.
Late addition: Wilson was told he would no longer be part of the Broncos plans in late October if he did not agree to restructure his contract to avoid the guarantee, per Dianna Russini from ESPN. Gone from harsh to ugly very quickly.
Russell Wilson is expecting to be cut by the Denver Broncos in March, per league sources. For almost two months, the quarterback has been starting knowing the organization was most likely going to move on him from after this season.
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) December 28, 2023
#3- Rudolph delivers an early Christmas present in Pittsburgh.
Mike Tomlin quite simply does not know what a losing season is. In his 17th season as head coach, he has never had a record worse than .500, and it looks like that this season will be his 18th. When you take into account he has been without his starting quarterback for a lot of the season, and had to fire his offensive co-ordinator mid-season as well! Utterly unbelievable.
Mason Rudolph was promoted to starting quarterback for this Christmas eve cracker, and he stood and delivered. It’s almost as if the Steelers have the combination to the AFC North lock, as they just continue to play like a different team in their division matchups (4-1 this season).
This time they delivered a blow to the Cincinnati Bengals playoff hopes, beating them 34-11 in a dominant display. Their physicality was something the Bengals just could not combat.
#4- FraudWatch’s festive victim? On Santa’s naughty list this year… Jacksonville Jaguars!
It has been a miserable December in Jacksonville. Losing four on the bounce, they’ve gone from vying for the number one AFC seed to having the same record as their division rivals in the Indianapolis Colts and the Houston Texans. An exciting AFC South finish is in the works, but the Jaguars have thrown this away.
After three losses to teams from the AFC North, they went out with a whimper against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers losing 30-12. They also lost QB Trevor Lawrence again as he left the game with a shoulder injury, in what appears to be an imploding Jaguars team.
Luckily, they face the worst team in the NFL this New Year’s Eve in the Carolina Panthers, and then it is an all-important AFC South matchup with the Tennessee Titans. Two crucial games that will make or break their once promising season.
#5- Lions driving home for a Detroit Christmas with their first division title in just under three decades.
29 years. It has been 29 years and a whole new division format for the Detroit Lions since they last won a division title. They have finally done it, and ex-Packers QB Aaron Rodgers is fuming. All in all, I would think Detroit fans have had an excellent Christmas.
They are still for me very unconvincing, but since it is Christmas, I will let them enjoy the victory. Head coach Dan Campbell has done a remarkable job of turning this franchise around from the depths, instilling a sense of pride in their ‘pride’ (pardon the pun) that has been lacking for so long.
Not only have they won the division, but they have brought their fans a home playoff tie. With those fans behind them, Detroit will be a tough place for most NFC sides to come to.
Presents all unwrapped and ready for a New Year
2023 may be over soon, but the show must go on. These final two weeks look like they will have it all and more, with tense matchups and races for playoff positions going down to the wire. Look forward to seeing you in 2024!
