A smaller slate of games means a smaller pocket full of cents.

$.01--The weekend kicked off in spectacular fashion with an instant classic from the Baltimore Ravens and New England Patriots. New England overcame separate 14-point deficits to knock out the game visitors from Baltimore 35-31.

There were so many twists and turns throughout the contest. Baltimore took the opening kick and drove down the field like a scythe through dry wheat. Then they did it again to go up 14-0 while Tom Brady and the Patriots offense were out of sync. Then Brady heated up and knotted the score before a truly hideous INT allowed Baltimore to jump back in front just before halftime.

Joe Flacco came out of halftime still smoking hot. Social media debated if he was finally validating his oft-laughable “elite” status as he smartly dissected a very talented Patriots defense. When the Ravens scored to go up 28-14 quickly after forcing a very meek 3-and-out on New England’s first possession, the game sure looked over.

Except it wasn’t. Brady showed why he’s in the short conversation for greatest QB ever. He rallied the Patriots without handing the ball off once in the second half. Baltimore knew the Patriots weren’t going to run and they still couldn’t stop it. A controversial--to Ravens supporters--alignment with an unusual ineligible receiver set up a score. A pass by wide receiver Julian Edelman after taking a lateral from Brady wound up producing an easy touchdown for Danny Amendola. New England manufactured its own opportunities and cashed them in.

Flacco and the Ravens tried hard to rally, but he was picked off on a play where he never looked off his intended receiver and led safety Duron Hamilton right to the INT. A final hail mary was innocuously batted away, and Baltimore went home with a tough loss.

Ravens coach John Harbaugh was clearly agitated by Bill Belichick’s trickery and deception. He cried foul during the game and earned an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. He cried foul again in his postgame press conference and came away looking bitter that his team was caught unprepared for tricks normally not seen above the high school level. It was a bad look for an otherwise outstanding coach, one who maximized the talent on his roster and nearly upset the Patriots once again.

$.02--Could we have seen the last of Peyton Manning? If his disappointing performance in Denver’s punchless 24-13 home loss to his former Colts team is any indication, I certainly hope so.

Manning was lousy. There’s no way to sugarcoat it. His downfield throwing was abysmal, as noted by ESPN:

Peyton Manning was 6-of-21 for 107 yards (5.1 yards per att) on throws deeper than 5 yards downfield. Only 2 quarterbacks in the last 9 seasons posted a lower completion percentage in a playoff game than Manning's 29% on those throws: Jay Cutler (16.7% in 2010 NFC Championship vs Packers) and Matt Cassel (22.2% in 2010 AFC Wild Card Playoff vs Ravens). Manning was 2-for-12 (16.7%) for 49 yards on throws at least 15 yards downfield, his lowest completion percentage on deep throws in a game since Week 12 of 2013 (16.7% vs Patriots). Manning tied a season high with 8 overthrown passes Sunday, all of which came on throws at least 15 yards downfield. Manning's 8 overthrown deep balls were 3 more than he's had in a game with the Broncos.

It was painful to watch such a legend play so poorly. Unfortunately this did not come as a surprise. Manning struggled down the stretch and this game only magnified his decline. It wasn’t as bad as Willie Mays stumbling around centerfield for the Mets, but it was close. Watching frustrated receiver Emmanuel Sanders animatedly--and justifiably--express his disgust with Manning is a sight nobody wanted to see.

Perhaps it’s the juxtaposition with his Indy successor, Andrew Luck, which makes Manning’s bad night look even worse. Luck was largely fantastic, throwing with great accuracy and velocity all over the field. While he did throw two long INTs, he also sprayed the ball to eight different receivers. Even more impressive, Reggie Wayne wasn’t one of them.

It’s too easy and convenient to write the “passing of the torch” narrative, though no doubt most national columnists will at least allude to that angle. It’s not inaccurate, either. But it does a disservice to Indy’s smart, well-played defensive attack. It undermines a superior coaching job by Chuck Pagano and his Colts staff compared to Denver’s John Fox…who could be making an inglorious exit too.

I sincerely hope Manning calls it a career. While I wouldn’t put a rebound year of greatness beyond him, it’s just as likely his body is no longer able to deliver what his mind and heart still want. I don’t want my son to remember him for hanging on too long the way I remember Joe Namath at his terrible end, never understanding why anyone thought that old inept guy was so great. It has to sting Manning that his legacy will forever be tarred by nine losses in the first playoff game of a season, five more than any other active QB. The way he finished 2014, he’d only extend that to 10. Nobody wants to see that, not even the most devoted Manning or Broncos fan. 

$.03--Last week the Dallas Cowboys were the beneficiaries of some terrible officiating, calls that were egregious enough to have Barack Obama express his disdain with Pete Morelli’s crew. This week, the pendulum swung the other way for the Cowboys, sending them into a pit of despair in Green Bay.

Dallas lost 26-21, thanks in part to a controversial rule. When star wideout Dez Bryant hauled in Tony Romo’s soft heave down the left sideline on 4th down, it sure looked like the Cowboys were in business. Bryant leapt over Sam Shields to make an acrobatic snag. But as he crashed to the turf at the Packers 1-yard line, the ball moved out of his complete control for a half-beat. Never mind he quickly regathered the ball. He failed to complete the process of the catch. When Packers Coach Mike McCarthy challenged the play, it was easy to spot on the high-definition slow-motion that Green Bay was going to benefit from the “Calvin Johnson” rule.

Blame the rule, not the proper interpretation of it in this circumstance. It’s a terrible, nonsensical rule. Bryant seized the ball with two hands, landed on both feet, took another step and then hit the turf. Everyone’s eyes tell them that’s a catch, but the NFL thinks otherwise.

Just as Detroit fans begrudgingly accepted that blown calls were only a part of why they lost in Dallas, Cowboys fans too must realize the zebras were only partially culpable. DeMarco Murray lost a fumble on a brilliant play by linebacker Julius Peppers. Dallas’ vaunted offensive line allowed Romo to get clobbered repeatedly, not giving him enough time or sightline to find open receivers. They failed to stop a clearly hobbled Aaron Rodgers from a majestic second half, notably on a 3rd-and-11 conversion by Randall Cobb. They missed tackles on the long TD pass to Davante Adams and several hard runs by Eddie Lacy (19 carries for 101 yards). There were coverage breakdowns in the red zone and missed sack opportunities.

Yet all this game will be known for is the Dez Bryant spectacular catch that wasn’t. Bryant remained in inconsolable defiance after the game, while Packers talked of disgust for the rule itself but happiness it was properly called. It’s quite a dramatic shift for Dallas fans, who openly chastised Detroit fans late into the week for their ongoing grumbling about “being robbed” by the officials. Now it’s their turn to cry foul, and I’m sure it will be deafening. Are you listening, Mr. Goodell? 

$.04--Seattle cruised in the comfort of home, ending Carolina’s run 31-17 in the Saturday nightcap. This game might as well be referred to as the Kam Chancellor show.

The super-sized safety was everywhere. He body-rocked beefy Panthers RB Mike Tolbert with a collision that sent Tolbert rolling backwards. He essentially sealed the game with his sweet pick-six, quickly recognizing where Cam Newton was staring and darting in front of Ed Dickson for an easy, long trip to the opposing end zone. He finished with a team-high 11 tackles too.

Yet the play everyone is talking about came just before halftime and is a footnote in the box score. As the Panthers lined up to kick a field goal just before halftime, Chancellor made one of the most spectacular plays you’ll ever see on a football field. He charged towards the line, timing the snap perfectly, and broad-jumped over the Carolina blocking. As soon as he stuck the landing he leapt up again as if he was Phil Dalhausser going for a block on the beach volleyball court.

Panthers kicker Graham Gano somehow made the kick around him, but Carolina was guilty of a false start. Chancellor’s awesome act was for naught. Except he did the same thing on the very next play.

This time, Gano’s kick wildly missed to the left and it initially appeared as if the leaping Chancellor got a finger or two on it. Turns out Gano just shanked it like a golfer getting stung by a bee on his backswing. Unfortunately for Chancellor, he clearly and intentionally ran into the kicker and got flagged for it. Gano made the third attempt as Chancellor merely feigned his now-famous move and let him kick it unimpeded.

Oh sure, other Seahawks made some great plays. Russell Wilson’s perfect downfield strike to Jermaine Kearse, who fought off a defender and snagged it with one hand, is one you’ll see on highlight reels of the entire 2014 season. Marshawn Lynch barreled and careened for hard yards against a stout Carolina front. Richard Sherman pulled down a nice interception, one which I’m sure he’s still yapping about to anyone within earshot.

Seattle was the better team and it showed. Carolina just didn’t have the depth of talent or playmakers across the roster. They’re close, however, a lot closer than the 8-9-1 final record will have many believe. The leadership and strides as a passer Cam Newton grew into over the season bode well for a team in a division where the Falcons are kicking off an overhaul, the Bucs are holding the #1 pick and the Saints are teetering precariously on being worse than both of them next year. 

$.05--The Mueller Report, the independent investigation into the NFL’s role in the Ray Rice domestic abuse case and subsequent suspension, was released over the week.

In the 96-page report, former FBI Director Robert Mueller concluded the NFL did not view the incriminating video of Rice slugging his then-fiancée from inside the elevator of the now-defunct Atlantic City casino. In other words, when Commissioner Roger Goodell sweated his way through the bizarre press conference a few months back, he was indeed telling the truth.

Goodell used that ghastly sight as justification for lengthening Rice’s suspension, making an executive decision without any regard for due process or appeal. Mueller’s finding rubber stamps Goodell’s immodest impression of Russian oligarch Vladimir Putin, putting brass knuckles around his iron fist.

I do believe Goodell never saw the video before that moment. I truly do. But in no way do I believe nobody else in the NFL headquarters knew about or saw the video. Goodell got mighty defensive when a reporter from TMZ dogged him on this issue in that ridiculous dog-and-pony show, but TMZ was exactly right--everyone knows cameras are always recording every square inch of casinos, and they got the video with one simple phone call.

Unfortunately, Goodell doesn’t have to learn any lesson here. There was no recourse against Mr. Commissioner other than more people in the general public understand how power-mad and out of touch he is. The owners will let him be their hatchet man and the public punching bag, and he’ll happily take their tens of millions every year to do it. 

$.06--The coaching dominos have started to fall with the Buffalo Bills hiring former Jets coach Rex Ryan. That’s a strong get for new owner Terry Pergula after the ham-handed departure of Doug Marrone. Ryan proved he can coach in New York and he inherits one of the best defenses in the league. Of course he might actually have a worse QB situation than his perennial struggle with the Jets at that position, but at least they’ve got a very talented receiving corps on the eastern shore of Lake Erie.

Expect a lot of movement on this front in the next week. Aside from having another round of coordinators and positional coaches now eliminated from the playoffs and available to focus on a job search, teams really kick into draft and free agency preparations right now.

This week is the Shrine Game practices in St. Petersburg, and during this week last year three coaches were hired. While the NFL contingency here (yes, I’m covering the week once again!) is scattershot with mostly positional coaches and only a handful of head coaches or GMs, about half the players taken in the 4th-6th rounds will come from the practice fields.

Teams want to have a coaching staff in place before the Senior Bowl practice sessions kick off on the 19th. Everyone who is anyone in the NFL is in Mobile, including out of work coaches practically begging for jobs in hotel lobbies and along the sidelines during practice. It’s awkward and uncomfortable, and teams want to avoid that. They also want as much of a staff in place as possible to evaluate the outstanding rosters Senior Bowl executive Phil Savage (yeah him, Browns fans) has assembled this year.

I don’t have inside info on any of the jobs other than grapevine gleanings of a few of the interviews. But I’ll say these three things with confidence:

• Arizona Defensive Coordinator Todd Bowles is the one guy everyone wants.
• Detroit’s Teryl Austin is also hot but it seems as if he’s a year behind Bowles on the carousel. Next year will be his year.
• Atlanta very well might have a coach by the time you read this on Monday. 

$.07--Jameis Winston finally answered the “will he or won’t he?” in terms of the NFL by declaring for April’s draft. As if there was any doubt…

Florida State was clearly done with their bad boy quarterback and the negative public image he brought the university with several acts of immature chicanery, from sexual assault allegations (he was cleared) to stealing crab legs to shouting a particularly lewd phrase quite publicly. It’s that behavior which makes his draft stock a real hot topic right now.

I said it in my last mock draft a couple weeks ago, and I 100% still believe Winston will be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft despite the maturity concerns. His physical talent is too tantalizing for a truly desperate Buccaneers organization to pass up.

Strictly from an on-field aspect, Winston is head and shoulders ahead of Heisman successor Marcus Mariota. He comes from a more pro-friendly offense which required him to make NFL reads and throws into coverages, while Mariota often got the ball out quickly to wide open wideouts thanks to Oregon’s brilliant collegiate scheme. The warp speed pace Mariota benefitted from for the Ducks is impossible in the NFL; the officials do not let them play that fast, period.

Staying just on the field, my biggest concern with Winston is the number of careless decisions he made in 2014. He led the country in interceptions and many of them were of the mind-numbing variety. From forcing balls into tight coverage to incorrectly reading the defense or trusting his own arm too much, no NFL coach is going to tolerate so many giveaways. Yet he was better in 2013, and he deserves the benefit of the doubt to progress as a passer. While he’s frequently compared to Big Ben Roethlisberger, Cam Newton or Andrew Luck, the player I see him most emulating at the next level is Joe Flacco. Obviously they are stylistically divergent, but I’m more comparing their impact on their team and games. When he’s hot, he’s capable of greatness, but it’s going to be inconsistent greatness wrapped around bouts of almost comedic incompetence. That’s true of both Flacco and Winston, even if they use their rocket arms in different ways.