JetNation Look Around the NFL Following Week 13

By Nick Ferraro: A Look Around the NFL – Week Thirteen

NFL Thoughts – Week Thirteen

• The Carolina Panthers miserable season is deserved as they were the ones who traded Christian McCaffrey to the 49ers. The rest of the league didn’t deserve that. McCaffrey will likely surpass his career high in rushing for a season when the 49ers play in Seattle this week. McCaffrey running behind an elite offensive line for the foreseeable future will make San Francisco a top-tier contender in the NFC for the next several years.

• If you picked the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday to win on the road in Jacksonville, you have my unending respect. I’m not sure if there has been a more unusual result in a season of strange results. The Bengals came into Monday on life support without their starting quarterback and having lost three straight games. The Jags had won seven of eight games, losing only to the 49ers. This season is one of the strangest that I can remember.

• The Los Angeles Rams appeared to be punting on the season before the opener. The Rams were spectators in free agency having gone all in to win the Super Bowl after the 2021 season. The Rams had no first-round pick as a result of the trade that brought Matt Stafford
  to Los Angeles. Punting on the year was obviously not a plan the players bought into. The Rams have won three straight and are now tied for the last seed in the NFC. The Rams have the Ravens and 49ers left, but they have winnable matchups against Washington, the Giants, and the Saints. If their stars are healthy, this is not a team you want coming to visit in the first round of the playoffs.

• The Eagles need to play well this week in Dallas. Losing to the 49ers is not embarrassing. Losing in the fashion that Philadelphia lost most certainly is. Sunday’s debacle compounded by a loss in Dallas this week, could send Philadelphia’s season into a death spiral.

• Khalil Mack now leads the NFL with 15 sacks. Mack is just another superstar on the talent-laden Los Angeles Chargers. How this team was held to only six points on Sunday in New England while notching just their fifth win of the year is one of the many mysteries of the 2023 season. The Chargers have what very few teams have – a true star at quarterback. Los Angeles has top talent at wide receiver, running back, defensive end, linebacker, and safety. The team has lost five games by three points or fewer. There will soon be a new coach at the helm tasked with solving the enigma that is the Los Angeles Chargers.

• Tim Boyle’s short tenure as starting quarterback of the New York Jets was not remarkable. Giving Boyle a chance was the right move despite the continued horrid play of the Jet offense. Boyle is inaccurate, but he makes decisions more quickly than Zach Wilson and at least seems emotionally invested in the game. Trevor Semian is the most talented of the healthy quarterbacks on the roster. Siemian should get the start this week and finish the season as the starter. It will probably not be very productive, but at least Siemian has professional level ability.

• I can’t say that head coach Robert Saleh’s denial of the rumor about Zach Wilson being reluctant to return to the starting lineup put the issue to rest for me. Wilson’s inability to shoulder any of the blame last year after the Jet’s poor offensive performance told me all I needed to know about his character. The Jets can’t part ways with him soon enough.

• After allowing Breece Hall to go underutilized for several weeks, the Jets made a clear effort to get the ball to their primary playmaker against Atlanta. The combination of the dismal play of the Jet offensive line and the Falcons stacking the box to force New York to throw the ball, made for a miserable day on the ground. The effort to get Hall more touches should continue this week and beyond despite the poor showing against the Falcons. This limited offense doesn’t have a chance if the team doesn’t create plays in the running game.
• Xavier Gipson’s performance against the Falcons was a bright spot. Gipson was targeted six times and made five catches for 77 yards. In addition to leading the Jets in receiving yards on the day, Gipson was impressive on punt returns. Gipson’s playing time down the stretch should increase as Allen Lazard plays his way to a new city.
• The Jets didn’t give Israel Abanikanda the ball against the Falcons, but they did start rookie Carter Warren at right tackle. Warren struggled a bit allowing the sack that ended the Jet’s last drive, but it’s more important at this point that the Jet rookies get playing time. This isn’t a playoff team. It’s time to think about 2024.
• Will McDonald didn’t hit the box score despite getting time Sunday against the Falcons. It’s a discouraging showing for sure, and the Jets need to proceed into this offseason with a rush end/rush linebacker as one of their top needs.