$.01--Dallas and Pittsburgh renewed the 1970’s best rivalry with a fantastically engaging game that would have made Tony Dorsett, Terry Bradshaw and all those greats from my childhood proud.

In a game with several lead changes and all sorts of big plays, Dallas ultimately prevailed with Ezekiel Elliott running away and hiding with the Offensive Rookie of the Year award on his final run.

The 35-30 Cowboys' win in hostile territory solidifies Dallas as the NFC’s top team. Now 8-1, the Cowboys are the only NFC team with more than six wins. With Elliott’s continued ground dominance, he might be more than just Rookie of the Year; his MVP candidacy grows with games like this, 114 yards rushing and 95 receiving yards and three total TDs. If you’re downgrading Elliott for running behind a very good--though slightly overrated--offensive line, you’re ignoring his obvious awesomeness.

Mike Tomlin’s odd fascination with the two-point conversion was quite the hot topic. Pittsburgh did not attempt an extra point but rather went for two on all four touchdowns. All four failed. That left the Steelers in a precarious position heading down the stretch and leading by just one point instead of four or five. Dallas would have had to score a touchdown to take the lead.

Elliott’s explosive run on a perfectly blocked play and a badly conceived blitz by Pittsburgh’s defense rendered the whole 2-point argument moot. For good measure, the Cowboys went for two and failed twice too. It’s one of their rare failures in what has been a magical ride so far in Dallas. 

$.02--Sunday Night did not disappoint, as New England hosted Seattle in a heavily promoted affair that featured seven lead changes.

LeGarrette Blount ran for three touchdowns and Tom Brady made some great throws to Martellus Bennett and Julian Edelman, notably a 33-yard rope down the sideline at the end of the third quarter. Yet Rob Gronkowski was oddly quiet, and when Brady’s final pass flew over his outstretched arms, Seattle prevailed 31-24.

Doug Baldwin answered Blount’s three TDs, including the TD which provided the final margin. This game saw Russell Wilson finally look healthy and back to his old self, too.

Seattle found real traction with rookie RB C.J. Prosise, and the beleaguered Seahawks' offensive line had its best game of the year. Prosise showed legit dual-threat ability befitting a guy who was primarily a wide receiver at Notre Dame, and he became the wild card to help Russell Wilson find success against the Patriots. He had 24 total touches for over 150 yards and was largely unstoppable other than in short yardage.

On the final Brady throw: There was indeed a lot of contact between Gronk and Kam Chancellor. My first impression was it should have been defensive holding. My second impression, from the angle the official closest to the play was looking, was that it should have been offensive pass interference. I’ll take the no-call, as unsatisfying as it might be.

The rest of the game was eminently satisfying. Really the whole day of NFL action was strong. All three time slots had some competitive, entertaining productions with real postseason implications as teams jockey for position. 

$.03--Believe it or not, there was more to Election Day than just the presidential outcome. In San Diego, voters failed to approve a funding proposition to keep the Chargers in the city. They needed 66 percent of the vote but managed just 59, which leaves the Chargers’ future in San Diego very much in doubt.

While most other local funding issues and measures passed, San Diegans refused to support any means to either build a new stadium to replace the dilapidated current home or improve the climate to help them stay. For more on the grisly details, check out this informative piece.

Did the uncertain future hinder the Chargers on the field? That’s a very difficult leap to make, and I’m sure that was nowhere near Philip Rivers mind when he threw this pick-six to Kiko Alonso:

That was the second lethal INT from Rivers on the day, the same afternoon where he topped 300 career TD passes. Miami capitalized just enough to win their fourth game in a row, a healthy rebound after a lousy 1-4 start. Don’t look now, but Miami has four eminently winnable games up next with a trip to LA--which could be starting Jared Goff in his first NFL action--, then San Francisco and a road trip to up-and-down Baltimore and then home for more down-than-up Arizona.

$.04--The Detroit Lions were the big winners in the NFC North on Sunday by simply not playing. Every other team lost, which thrusts the idle Lions suddenly into first place at 5-4.

Minnesota came up short in Washington as (insert mocking shocked face here) Sam Bradford couldn’t engineer a comeback drive. He was sacked on the final two plays, one of which saw Jake Long go down with what appears to be a serious lower leg injury. The statistics were nearly even, save Washington rushing for almost 100 yards more than Minnesota’s 32nd-ranked attack.

It came down to making plays, and other than Stefon Diggs nobody on Minnesota could make one when the team needed them. The injury-ravaged offensive line, the inept running game and Sam Bradford’s decided mediocrity get most of the attention, but quietly the Vikings defense is showing more signs of vulnerability. They’re not getting the relentless pass rush and teams have figured out how to attack the corners and safeties in coverage.

For Green Bay, their brutal loss in Tennessee might be the final straw for Mike McCarthy’s coaching career. His Packers came out completely unprepared and were badly outclassed by the solid but unspectacular Titans.

It was 35-16 at halftime but didn’t seem that close. Green Bay couldn’t cover. They couldn’t tackle. They couldn’t run. Even as Green Bay clawed back towards making the score relatively respectable, Aaron Rodgers looked resigned to his defeated fate. After a fourth-quarter INT ended any hope, Rodgers had the same look and flabbergasted posture of Patrick Roy disgustedly skating off the ice for the last time in Montreal. The 4-5 Packers are in real trouble, and right now they don’t have the personnel or the belief in their stale coaching to stave it off any longer.

Chicago fell meekly in Tampa Bay as Jay Cutler was responsible for 3 of Chicago’s four first-half turnovers. Adding injury to insult, the best player on the offense, guard Kyle Long, left the game on a cart one play before a Cutler red zone giveaway. The Bears had a little momentum and a chance to climb back into contention in a division where nine wins should take the crown, but now they must get a lot of help to avoid last place. Again.

$.05--There is a very real chance the Cleveland Browns are going to go 0-16 in 2016. I have refused to believe it was truly possible until Thursday night. The hapless Browns lost 28-9 to Baltimore in a game where the Ravens played one of their worst all-around game on the season.

The Browns are indeed that bad. Cleveland played three quarterbacks, none of whom should ever see more than NFL mop-up duty. Their offensive line, notably center Cam Erving and left guard Spencer Drango, was almost criminally negligent. Even venerable left tackle Joe Thomas got beat for a late strip sack by one-armed Terrell Suggs. And the offense in Cleveland is better than the Browns’ defense, which is the only team to allow over 300 points so far.

Now there are reports Browns owner Jimmy Haslam is set to make more changes to what is already the most unstable organization in pro sports history. Defensive Coordinator Ray Horton might be on the hot seat for the repeated failures even though popular Head Coach Hue Jackson is strongly in his corner. The larger impression to take from Jason LaCanfora’s report is that Haslam still can’t (or worse, won’t) plug the endemic leaks in his organization. For every step forward in Cleveland, there are just as many steps back.

Frequent readers know I’m a Detroit Lions fan even though I’m a Cleveland-area native. As a Lions fan, I’m oddly but fiercely proud and protective of being the only 0-16 team in NFL history. That 2008 Detroit team was historically bad, and we Lions fans celebrate our unmatched misery. Yet looking at the Browns remaining schedule and how hopeless they look on both sides of the ball, I’m afraid my hometown Browns are going to not just match them, but seize the title of the worst single-season team in NFL history. 

$.06--The New York Jets fell at home 9-6 to the visiting Los Angeles Rams in a battle of which offense could be less inept. On that front, Case Keenum and the Rams squeaked past Bryce Petty and the woebegone Jets.

The two teams combined for 317 passing yards on 62 attempts. New York picked up 99 of its 296 total yards on its lone scoring drive which spanned the first and second quarters. Of course, Nick Folk missed the extra point. It’s that kind of season for Todd Bowles and his Jets, who are quickly spiraling into one of the worst teams in the league. Between abysmal quarterbacking and draft misfires, Bowles is in real trouble.

The last two Jets second-round picks were both inactive. Wideout Devin Smith, the 2015 choice from Ohio State, is active from the PUP list but wasn’t quite ready to make his 2016 debut. Christian Hackenberg, the 2016 selection, still isn’t proving any better than Petty or Fitzpatrick or Smith and cannot justify a roster spot other than his ridiculously lofty draft position.

This comes in the wake of a first-round pick (2013), being suspended for a quarter last week after repeated violations of professional conduct. That would be defensive end Sheldon Richardson, whom the Jets unsuccessfully tried to deal at the trade deadline. News also came out about Jets players spending the night before games at strip clubs, missing meetings (Richardson’s primary offense) and generally not treating their position with the proper amount of professional respect. Fellow first-rounder (2011) Muhammad Wilkerson, who like Richardson plays the exact same position as 2015 first-rounder Leonard Williams, was also suspended in Week 9 for unprofessional conduct.

Redundant, unprofessional talents and overdrafted non-talents are but two of myriad problems in New York. After the game Richardson at least showed enough self-awareness to realize the season is a lost cause. “Just mess up the division as much as we can”. Given how messed up the Jets are, that’s perhaps the most noble goal left.

$.07--Chaos reigns in college football. No. 2 Clemson, No. 3 Michigan and No. 4 Washington all lost on Saturday. So did No. 8 Texas A&M, No. 9 Auburn and No. 14 Virginia Tech. Without breaking down the games, here’s where I see things in the CFB Playoff path…

Alabama is the clear No. 1 and that is not up for debate. I’d make the Crimson Tide a double-digit favorite against any other team in a neutral site, and with freshman QB Jalen Hurts playing the way he did against Mississippi State there isn’t a team that even threatens Nick Saban’s title quest. None.

Ohio State will jump to No. 2 after devouring Maryland 62-3. If you’re keeping score at home, that’s three points more than Michigan hung on the Terrapins last week. You’d better believe they’re keeping track of that in Columbus and Ann Arbor.

I still think Michigan holds onto the No. 3 spot. They lost on the road to Iowa, a preseason darling which is a notoriously tough place to play. One thing which helps the Wolverines: Colorado keeps winning and will crack the top 10, and Michigan beat the Buffaloes 45-28 at a game I attended back in September. That win looks more quality with every passing week.

Clemson and Louisville will be 4 and 5. Clemson beat Louisville. If head to head means anything to the playoff committee, the Tigers must be ahead of the Cardinals. And don’t judge Louisville’s 44-12 win over Wake Forest as a blowout; the Demon Deacons led 12-10 into the fourth quarter before presumptive Heisman winner Lamar Jackson got Louisville going.

Wisconsin and Penn State will be 6 and 7, probably in that order. Oklahoma, Colorado and either Utah, Washington or West Virginia will round out the top 10.

That gives the Big Ten four of the top-7 teams, and that’s why I believe Ohio State will qualify for the playoff if they beat Michigan. That outcome would send Penn State, which beat the Buckeyes, to the B1G Championship against Wisconsin. And given the state of the Big Ten versus the ACC, I believe the winner of that hypothetical game would also qualify ahead of Clemson…presuming the Tigers win the ACC Championship, which is certainly not a given. They might not beat an improving young South Carolina.

The one longshot party crasher is the winner of next week’s Oklahoma/West Virginia game, though they need three of the Big Ten teams and both ACC teams above them to lose.

Then there’s Western Michigan. The Broncos are the only other undefeated FBS team. I will not argue in any way the Broncos are superior to any of the above teams, but on a neutral field I strongly believe P.J. Fleck’s team could row the boat hard enough to give anyone but Alabama a competitive game. They shouldn’t be in the playoff picture but they absolutely deserve a New Year’s Day bowl, and if you’re a fan of Oklahoma or Penn State or Washington you don’t want to play them.

$.08--NFL Quickies

--Big win in Jacksonville for the Houston Texans to all but bury the Jaguars. My cousin Lynn saw her first NFL game while visiting our mutual cousin and family, who live in Jacksonville. Lynn grew up with me in the Cleveland area but now lives in Saints turf after spending years in Bills territory, but sees her first action in Jacksonville. Just how the NFL draws it up…

--One reason why the Titans are unexpectedly in the AFC playoff mix:

He pushed it to 30 about three minutes after Brian Billick tweeted that little tidbit. I’ll use an old Billick quote from his spots on Sirius NFL Radio to extrapolate further,

“The easiest way for a quarterback to win is to not lose the game himself”

--Denver beat New Orleans when rookie safety Justin Simmons blocked the Saints’ go-ahead extra point. Will Parks scooped it up and took it to the house, giving Denver two points instead of New Orleans getting their lead. It sure looked like Parks stepped out of bounds, but credit him for wearing solid white shoes that blended perfectly with the sideline to make it impossible to definitively conclude he did. Brutal way to lose for New Orleans on a day where their defense looked pretty good. Rough day for talented rookie WR Mike Thomas too with two lost fumbles.

--The Rams are 2-1 in games where they fail to score an offensive touchdown, 2-4 in games where they do. Yeah, you read that right…

--Impressive performance by the Philadelphia Eagles defense for slowing down Matt Ryan and the Falcons offense. Atlanta managed just 11 first downs in Philly’s 24-15 win. Rushing for over 200 yards helped the Eagles too. 

$.09--College/Draft quickies

--Washington WR John Ross emphatically stated his claim to be the first wideout drafted. Ross has documented sub-4.3 speed but showed he’s not just a speedster with moves like this:

I still prefer Western Michigan’s Corey Davis but they are very different types of receivers. If your NFL team needs game-breaking speed more than size and all-around skills, you want Ross over Davis.

--Clemson’s Mike Williams could be the No. 1 wideout taken as well, and if so he can point to his outstanding performance in the Tigers’ loss to Pittsburgh. Williams hauled in 15 catches for 202 yards, both career highs, and used his size on contested throws much better than in prior weeks. I still won’t rank Williams ahead of Ross or Davis, and perhaps a couple of others, but what he did to the Panthers is undeniably impressive.

--Less impressive from a scouting standpoint was Williams’ QB, Deshaun Watson. While he loaded the stat sheet with over 500 passing yards, many of his 70 (?!) attempts showed poor fundamentals with his feet and hips. He threw three INTs, one of which he stared down his intended target point from the second he got the shotgun snap. Watson definitely has a lot of talent to work with, but it will indeed require a lot of work before he’s ready to win at the next level.

--Western Michigan isn’t the only undefeated team in the western part of the Mitten State. Grand Valley State, less than an hour north of WMU in suburban Grand Rapids, survived a tough test at Wayne State to finish unbeaten. They are No. 2 in the latest D-II rankings and continue to roll with the highest win percentage of any college at any level. Good job, Lakers!

--At the D-III level, John Carroll upset Mount Union. Thus ends the Purple Raiders 112-game win streak, far and away the longest in NCAA. I went to a JCU/UMU game back in the late 1990s when I lived roughly equidistant between the two schools in Northeast Ohio, back when Mount Union was ripping off another 80+ game win streak. Incredible program in Alliance. 

$.10--I don’t get much free time during football season, so I try to spend it wisely. One of my favorite diversions returned this week with the NBA D-League.

My family and I are avid Grand Rapids Drive fans. It’s a fun, relatively affordable evening for us. My son and I go to about half their home games, and my wife and daughter tag along for a handful of those.

If you’re not familiar with the D-League, it’s the NBA’s official developmental league. The Drive are affiliated with the Pistons, and recent expansion has led to more direct affiliates. A couple of Pistons players are here in West MI to work on their games, including both their 2016 draft picks in Henry Ellenson (who looked pretty good) and Michael Gbinije (who cannot shoot). Most are minor league vagabonds looking for one crack to the NBA, and it happens often enough to keep the dreams real.

Almost the entire roster is brand new after the first two seasons in Drive history saw a decent amount of continuity. We enjoyed seeing what the fresh faces can do and how they might fit together. My aspiring cager son studied Serbian big man Nik Jovanovic, who was the best player on either team.

It’s a fun environment. Music plays during the action and the breaks are jam-packed with entertainment and giveaways. Despite the sterile home building with the woefully inadequate concessions, the arena was pretty full and the crowd more engaged than the local minor league baseball team.

It works in cities like Grand Rapids, Fort Wayne, Sioux City and Austin. And seeing how it works and provides benefits like real coaching and officiating development, it makes me all the more frustrated the NFL seems to have so little interest in even trying.