Volume 26:1
- Cole Nadel
- 5 days ago
- 12 min read
NFL Week 18 Recap
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat the Carolina Panthers 16-14
This result kept the Buccaneers alive for the division that was determined by the Falcons vs. Saints game
The Atlanta Falcons beat the New Orleans Saints 19-17
This Falcons win handed the Carolina Panthers the NFC South title and a playoff bid
New Orleans’s four-game win streak was snapped
The Seattle Seahawks beat the San Francisco 49ers 13-3
Seattle finished with the best record in the NFC, earning the #1 seed and first round bye in the playoffs.
The Cleveland Browns beat the Cincinnati Bengals 20-18
Myles Garrett broke the single season sack record by taking Joe Burrow down late in the fourth quarter
The Minnesota Vikings beat the Green Bay Packers 16-3
Green Bay rested their starters as they had already clinched a playoff berth
The Vikings finished with a 9-8 record thanks to ending the season on a five-game win streak
The New York Giants beat the Dallas Cowboys 34-17
The Jacksonville Jaguars beat the Tennessee Titans 41-7
The Jaguars clinched the AFC South title with their win
The Houston Texans beat the Indianapolis Colts 38-30
Houston clinched the AFC #5 seed with their victory
The Buffalo Bills beat the New York Jets 35-8
The Jets defense went the entire season without intercepting any opposing QBs
The Detroit Lions beat the Chicago Bears 19-16
The Lions win meant that the entire NFC North finished with a record better than .500
The Denver Broncos beat the Los Angeles Chargers 19-3
The Broncos clinched the AFC #1 seed and a first round playoff bye with their victory
The Las Vegas Raiders beat the Kansas City Chiefs 14-12
With the New York Giants victory, the Raiders will earn the #1 pick in this year’s upcoming NFL Draft in April
The Los Angeles Rams beat the Arizona Cardinals 37-20
Los Angeles clinched the NFC #5 seed and a trip to Carolina, where they lost earlier this season
The New England Patriots beat the Miami Dolphins 38-10
The Washington Commanders beat the Philadelphia Eagles 24-17
The Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Baltimore Ravens 26-24
Tyler Loop missed the game-winning field goal attempt, allowing Pittsburgh to eke out the victory
Pittsburgh clinched a playoff berth and the AFC North title with their win over Baltimore
Myles Garrett: The New Sack King
Cleveland Browns star defender Myles Garrett broke the NFL’s single season sack record in the Browns win versus rival Cincinnati Bengals. Garrett, who was held sackless in Week 17, was down to the last six minutes of the season, and still half a sack behind the record. However, with 5:16 left in the fourth quarter, Myles Garrett finally did it– breaking through the offensive line and sacking Cincinnati QB Joe Burrow. Garrett finished with 23 sacks on the season, with half a sack more than the previous single season record.
NBA Star Traded
Trae Young is no longer an Atlanta Hawk. The NBA star is now a Washington Wizard. Washington obtained the star guard by trading guard CJ McCollum and forward Corey Kispert. Washington hopes the 27-year-old will give their young core a boost. This was a blockbuster trade that will shake up the Eastern Conference playoff picture, with Atlanta sitting ninth in the standings, barely in the playoffs. Washington started the season poorly, but has surged recently.
NFL Wild Card Preview
The NFL Playoffs will start later today with the Los Angeles Rams traveling to Carolina to take on the Panthers. The #5 Rams are the favorites versus the higher seeded #4 Panthers. Carolina got in thanks to an Atlanta win that gave them the tiebreaker over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the final playoff spot (the #4 seed by way of being the NFC South Champion, even though Los Angeles had a better record).
Los Angeles is led by MVP-candidate Matthew Stafford at QB. WR Puka Nacua, one of the NFLs best, and veteran wideout Davante Adams lead the LA pass-catching group. Adams will be returning from injury for this game. Kyren Williams is a great starting running back and forms a solid duo with his young backup, Blake Corum. The Rams defense can really get after the opposing QB and should make it difficult for Bryce Young. Young is the Panthers streaky QB. The youthful WR corps for Carolina provide a big boom or bust aspect to the game. Rico Dowdle and Chuba Hubbard make a solid pair of running backs for the Panthers. The Panthers defense is great at limiting opposing offenses late in the game and giving themselves a chance to take late leads. This matchup provided fireworks earlier in the season and should be no different today.
At 8pm tonight, the playoffs will continue with an old school rivalry between the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers. The #2 seed Bears have been surprisingly good this season. Former Heisman winner and first overall pick Caleb Williams is under center for Chicago. D’Andre Swift is a solid running back for these Bears. Kyle Monangai is the real story in the backfield. Monangai is a rookie who was drafted in the seventh round. However, he played like a first or second round pick however. The young halfback rushed for 783 yards and five TDs. The Bears first round pick was tight end Colston Loveland. Loveland leads Chicago with 713 yards. The Bears top three receivers– DJ Moore, Rome Odunze, and Luther Burden III– all topped 600 yards this season. The leader on defense for Chicago is Kevin Byard III, who finished with a league best seven interceptions. Montez Sweat chipped in on the defensive side of the ball with ten sacks and three forced fumbles.
On the other side, Green Bay is a very well-rounded team. Jordan Love, a former first round pick, is Green Bay’s QB. Josh Jacobs is a strong, bruising running back who runs with force and doesn’t avoid contact– just runs through it. Romeo Doubs and Christian Watson are the team’s leading receivers since TE Tucker Kraft tore his ACL a few weeks ago. The Green Bay defense took a huge hit when their star defender, Micah Parsons, tore his ACL. Parsons was traded to them a few weeks before the season. He had 12.5 sacks through 14 games. This NFC North battle is sure to be hard fought with a divisional round game on the line.
The AFC side of things starts at 1pm tomorrow, when the team with the most playoff experience in the AFC, the Buffalo Bills, travel to face the red-hot Jacksonville Jaguars. Buffalo is led by dual-threat QB and former MVP-winner Josh Allen. Joining Allen in the backfield is James Cook, who was the league’s leadigng rusher during the regular season. Khalil Shakir led the Bills with 719 receiving yards. Keon Coleman also lines up at wideout. He had 404 yards on the season. Buffalo’s duo of tight end, Dalton Kincaid and Dawson Knox, create passing looks up the middle. The Bills defense is headlined by saftey Cole Bishop. Bishop had 85 total tackles, three interceptions, and two sacks.
The Jaguars are led by QB Trevor Lawrence, who threw for over 4,000. Travis Etienne Jr. rushed for over 1,000 yards this season. The Jaguars traded for WR Jakobi Meyers at the trade deadline. In nine games with Jacksonville, he has 483 yards and three TD’s. Defender Devin Lloyd had five interceptions on the season. Jacksonville also has kicker Cam Little, who hit the NFL record for longest field goal at 68 yards earlier this season (Little also made a kick from 70 during the preseason). Former Pro Bowler Logan Cooke at punter forms one of the best punter/kicker duo’s in the league with Little. Matched with long snapper Ross Matiscik, one of the Jags pro bowlers this year, and the Jags special teams group is among the best in the league.
The 4:30pm matchup tomorrow features the defending champ Philadelphia Eagles and the San Francisco 49ers. The Eagles are led by QB Jalen Hurts and 1,000-yard rusher Saquon Barkley. The top two Philly wide receivers, Devonta Smith and A.J. Brown, each had over 1,000 receiving yards. Jalyx Hunt had 6.5 sacks, three INT’s, and two forced fumbles over the course of the season.
The QB for San Francisco, Brock Purdy, threw for only 16 more yards than his backup Mac Jones due to missing time with injury. Christian McCaffery led the team in rushing and receiving yards, with 1,202 rush yards and 924 receiving yards. Earlier this season, the 49ers lost their two best defenders, Nick Bosa and Fred Warner, to injury. Bosa is out for the year. But Warner could return if the 49ers advance farther into the playoffs.
The New England Patriots host the Los Angeles Chargers tomorrow night. This matchup features two of the AFC’s three pro bowl QBs going head-to-head. The Pats QB, Drake Maye, is the MVP favorite and has thrown for 4,394 yards, 31 TDs, and eight interceptions. Herbert’s stats are not as great. But he is still considered one of the top QBs in the AFC. Herbert tossed for 3,727 yards, 26 TDs, and 13 INTs. It will be a great battle between two QBs still seeking their first playoff victory. The young running backs headline this matchup. Rookie TreVeyon Henderson rushed for 911 yards and was star late in the season for New England. Second year HB Kimani Vidal rushed for 643 yards this season for the Chargers. New England veteran Stefon Diggs racked up 1,013 yards on 85 throws from Maye. Young Ladd McConkey caught 66 of Herbert’s throws for 789 yards. This game is sure to provide alot of fireworks with a trip to the divisional round on the line.
The Houston Texans and Pittsburgh Steelers will end the wild card round on Monday night. CJ Stroud leads Houston and threw for over 3,000 yards. Woody Marks led the Texans with 703 rush yards and Nico Collins had 1,117 receiving yards. Danielle Hunter had 15 sacks for Houston.
Future Hall of Fame QB Aaron Rodgers leads the Steelers. He threw for over 3,000 yards this season. Jaylen Warren had 958 yards on the ground. DK Metcalf had 850 yards receiving. The Steelers have a defense with a lot of veterans, as they hope to make another run at the Lombardi Trophy.
College Football Semifinals Recap
Two underdogs made it all the way to the semifinals. Ole Miss was able to avenge their only loss of the season by beating Georgia in the quarterfinals. Miami earned a stunning upset win, taking down the defending champions, Ohio State, with a dominating defensive performance.
Miami’s defense started the show in the Fiesta Bowl by stalling Ole Miss immediately. The Rebels punted with -7 yards of offense after their first drive. Miami went down the field and scored a field goal. Things didn’t get much better for Ole Miss, as they were once again forced to punt after gaining only four yards on their second drive. Miami had their drive stalled and punted back to Ole Miss. Ole Miss finally got up and running. On the first play of the second quarter, Ole Miss running back Kewan Lacy took the ball and ran with it, scoring a 73-yard touchdown to put Ole Miss on top. The extra point gave Ole Miss a 7-3 lead. Miami than executed a 15-play 75 yard drive that ended with a four-yard touchdown run to take the lead back. Ole Miss tied the score at 10-10 with a field goal. However, Miami wasn’t done, as QB Carson Beck connected with Keelan Marion for a 52-yard touchdown on a play with busted coverage. Ole Miss managed to put a field goal on the board before half time. Miami started with the ball in the second half and on their first drive missed a 51-yard field goal attempt. However, Ole Miss had similar plans, also missing a field goal from 51 yards away on their first drive of the second half. Carson Beck was intercepted by Ole Miss on the next drive, giving the Rebels a chance to take the lead. However, they couldn’t. Ole Miss got a field goal instead, cutting their deficit to one point. After a Miami punt, Ole Miss took the lead with another field goal, making the score 19-17 Rebels. Miami than got a 36-yard TD pass on their drive to go up by five points. QB Trinidad Chambliss and Ole Miss weren’t done though. They drove down the field and got a touchdown and the two-point conversion to retake a three-point lead. Carson Beck had other plans, as with 18 seconds left in the game, he ran into the end zone from three yards out and gave the Hurricanes the lead back. Ole Miss managed to get down to the Miami 37, took a time out and set up for one last shot at the end zone. Chambliss got the pass off, but it fell incomplete and Miami advanced to the National Championship.
The Oregon Ducks lined up for the first play of the game. QB Dante Moore dropped back, threw and got intercepted. Hoosier DB D’Angelo Ponds ran the ball back 25 yards to give Indiana a quick 6-0 advantage. IU made it 7-0 with the extra point and didn’t look back, putting on a football clinic the rest of the game. The two teams traded touchdowns than traded punts, giving Indiana a 14-7 lead. But then Dante Moore had an absurd fumble. While he began his throwing motion, his arm hit the running back next to him and the ball came loose. Indiana got a one-yard TD run three plays later. An Oregon punt led to another Indiana touchdown, making the score 28-7 in favor of the Hoosiers. Dante Moore fumbled again and Indiana got another touchdown. Oregon ended the half with a missed field goal attempt from 56 yards away, and Indiana took a whopping 35-7 lead into the locker room.
The teams started the second half of this Peach Bowl by trading touchdowns. On their touchdown, Oregon scored the two-point conversion, making the score 42-15 with the Hoosiers on top. Indiana punted, but their defense made it up by stopping an Oregon fourth-down attempt. They traded punts and then Indiana got another touchdown to extend their lead even further. Oregon was stopped on fourth down again. The teams traded TDs once again. Fernando Mendoza put his knee down one time, and Indiana became 15-0 to advance to the National Championship. In Football! Read that again: Football! The Indiana Hoosiers in the College Football National Championship! Taking into consideration their program’s history, Indiana’s last two seasons may be one of the best college football stories of all time!
NFL Wild Card Predictions
I already gave a preview, so I will make this short and sweet. Here are my predictions for the NFL Playoffs Wild Card round:
Carolina Panthers over the Los Angeles Rams, 31-25
Upset Alert! (Even though the Panthers are the higher seed, the Rams have the better record- so that’s an upset in my book) Carolina is so good at rebounding from losses. They know they can beat the Rams. I got the Panthers in this one.
Chicago Bears over the Green Bay Packers, 28-19
Micah Parsons is out and that will make it extremely hard for the Packers defense to stop the Bears. Jordan Love and the offense won’t be able to do enough. #2 seed Bears take care of business.
Buffalo Bills over the Jacksonville Jaguars, 33-31
The Bills have the experience. The Bills aren’t new to the postseason. The Jaguars have only made it past the Wild Card round once with Trevor Lawrence under center. Pro Bowler Josh Allen will take care of the Jaguars.
San Francisco 49ers over the Philadelphia Eagles, 24-21
The Eagles can’t get out of their own way and that is not how you beat good teams. On paper, the defending champs are great. But Philly is only 3-3 versus playoff teams this season. There other three losses are to each of their division rivals, including a blown 21-0 lead versus Dallas. San Francisco is better then any other team the Eagles have faced. Philly will not be ready.
New England Patriots over the Los Angeles Chargers, 27-26
QB Drake Maye will remain calm and composed with little pressure from the Chargers’ pass rushers. Every once in a while, Khalil Mack will come bursting through. But Maye won’t lose his cool, will rebound, and the Pats will squeak out a win.
Houston Texans over the Pittsburgh Steelers, 28-18
The Steelers offense is not made to face an elite defense. CJ Stroud and the Texans offense will be held up by their defense and will advance.
It’s Time for Hockey!
I will be recapping the most shocking NHL games of the week. There is only one game this week that when compared to the rest is shocking. This game had a natural hat trick, a goalie who posted a shutout with 44 saves, the winning team had 20 less shots than the losing team, and this game had a 9-0 scoreline.
On Tuesday, the New York Islanders were ready to face the rival New Jersey Devils at UBS Arena in Elmont, NY. Actually, the Islanders were more than ready. The Islanders started the scoring just over a minute in, with a Mathew Barzal goal. Just under three minutes later, teammeteAnthony Duclair scored one for the Islanders. Later in the first period, Duclair scored again. 3:29 seconds into the second period Duclair scored again. A natural hat trick– one of the best accomplishments in hockey! Barzal assisted Simon Holmstrom’s goal later in the second period. The Islanders were up 5-0 by the second intermission. 94 seconds into the third period, Casey Cizikas scored an unassisted goal. Tony DeAngelo got a goal and then assisted on Calum Ritchie’s goal just minutes later. With 58 seconds left, Casey Cizikas scored again, this time assisted by Anthony Duclair. Those nine goals and the 44 saves by Islanders goalie Ilya Sorokin gave the Islanders a 9-0 crushing victory over the Devils.
Basketball Banger
The Denver Nuggets were without their star Nikola Jokic. They were 14-point underdogs on the road versus the Philadelphia 76ers. Instead, they won with five seconds left in OT. Even without Jokic, Denver jumped out to a nine-point lead on the road. Philadelphia managed to claw their way back, eventually taking a nine-point lead of their own. But like the Denver lead, Philly’s was erased. Tyrese Maxey made a shot with 46 seconds left to tie the game at 120-120 heading into overtime. Denver started with a three pointer to take a 123-120 lead. After the 76ers tied it, Denver made two straight shots to take a 124-123 lead. And after another Philly basket, with five seconds left, Bruce Brown made a layup to give the Nuggets a 125-124 victory!
That’s this week’s edition.
Volume 26:1, first volume of 2026.
Happy New Year.