24. Jacksonville Jaguars
(4-7. Last week: 20)
This past offseason, the Jaguars signed quarterback Nick Foles to a four-year, $88 million contract with $50.125 million guaranteed. The contract carries a 2020 cap hit of $21.875 million and a further dead cap hit of $33,875 million if the team decided to move on. That’s a lot of scratch for a guy who’s completed 65 of 95 passes for 568 yards, two touchdowns and one interception in his two games back from a broken collarbone. In that time, Foles has completed just three of 13 passes on throws of 20 or more air yards, for 65 yards, one touchdown and one interception, making him one of the league’s least-impressive deep throwers — and a decided contrast to backup Gardner Minshew. The sixth-round rookie may have a development curve, but he has proven to be a better full-field passer, and that’s something the Jaguars are going to need to keep up with division opponents such as the Titans, who ravaged Jacksonville’s defense in a 42-20 beatdown on Sunday. There are times when the need for a franchise quarterback puts a franchise in quarterback purgatory. Financially, that’s where the Jaguars appear to be at this point in time.
23. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
(4-7. Last week: 28)
One tends to wonder just how well Bruce Arians’ offense would run with a relatively consistent quarterback. In Tampa Bay’s 35-22 win over a Falcons team that had enjoyed a bit of a defensive hot streak in the previous two games, Chris Godwin racked up seven catches for 184 yards and two touchdowns — his third game of the season with over 150 receiving yards. Battery mate Mike Evans also has three games with over 150 receiving yards this season, making the Godwin-Evans duo the first in NFL history to match each others’ feat in the same season for the same team. Jameis Winston threw those touchdown passes, as well as a marvelous 1-yarder to defensive tackle Vita Vea, who presumably became the heaviest player in NFL history to catch a touchdown pass. But Winston also threw two picks, lifting his league-leading total to 20. Arians is fond of blaming everybody but Winston when it comes to those picks, and it’s true at times, but there are several quarterbacks around the league who would do just about anything to have receivers of Evans’ and Godwin’s caliber. Perhaps next season, one of those quarterbacks will.
22. Arizona Cardinals
(3-7-1. Week 12 Bye. Last week: 19)
It’s been interesting and entertaining to watch Kliff Kingsbury adjust his personnel groupings through the season, with increasingly impressive results. Through the first four weeks of the season, the Cardinals basically had an Air Raid offense, running 10 personnel (one running back, no tight ends, four receivers) on 59% of their plays, per Sharp Football Stats. No other team ran 10 on more than 11% of its plays. Over the next four weeks, the Cardinals moved predominantly to 11 personnel — 46% of their plays had one running back, one tight end, and three receivers. Over the past three games, the Cardinals have used 12 personnel, with one running back, two tight ends and two receivers. Over that three-week stretch, Kyler Murray has completed 17 of 20 passes for 8.5 yards per attempt, two touchdowns, no interceptions and a passer rating of 135.2. In an NFL where most offensive coordinators find one primary personnel grouping and stick with it, Kingsbury has been moving the goalposts to great effect.
21. Chicago Bears
(5-6. Last week: 21)
In the first half of Chicago’s game against the Giants on Sunday, Mitchell Trubisky completed 13 of 23 passes for 107 yards and an interception, and it appeared to be more of the same for Chicago’s fundamentally limited quarterback. But Trubisky was able to exploit New York’s subpar secondary to a point in the second half, finishing his day with this touchdown pass to Allen Robinson, and a quarterback keeper for another score.
Took the ball and the defender with him.@AllenRobinson | #NYGvsCHI
🗳️ #ProBowlVote: https://t.co/DU7n6WL8Ke pic.twitter.com/tOiXPcPOJL— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) November 24, 2019
Has any receiver in the NFL’s modern era been saddled with worse quarterback play than Robinson? Selected in the second round of the 2014 draft, Robinson has had the following players as his primary quarterbacks: Blake Bortles, Chad Henne, Cody Kessler, Trubisky and Chase Daniel. At least DeAndre Hopkins finally got Deshaun Watson after so many seasons of middle-tier dreck; Robinson is still waiting for his quarterback savior.
20. New York Jets
(4-7. Last week: 27)
Don’t look now, but the Jets are officially feisty with a three-game winning streak following a 1-7 start that had many wondering if head coach Adam Gase would make it out of the season with a job. Gang Green has scored 34 points in all three wins, outscoring their opponents 102-47, and defensive coordinator Gregg Williams presided over the benching of Oakland quarterback Derek Carr as the Jets thrashed the Raiders, 34-3, on Sunday. Carr was limited to 15 completions in 27 attempts for 127 yards and an interception. Sam Darnold was far more efficient, going 20 of 29 for 315 yards and two touchdowns. It may be too late for a playoff run, but this has been an impressive streak.
19. Los Angeles Rams
(6-5. Last week: 18)
The Rams have been teetering on the edge of irrelevance all season, as the reigning NFC champs have struggled to get and keep things together on either side of the ball, especially on offense. But this was unlike anything the franchise could be prepared for. Los Angeles’ 45-6 loss to the Ravens on Monday Night Football was the worst loss for the Rams by point differential in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum era, which goes back to 1946. Wade Phillips had absolutely no answer for what Lamar Jackson brought as a runner or as a passer, and Sean McVay had to be looking on with deep envy at an opposing quarterback who can tilt the field whenever he wants. Jared Goff, the guy McVay’s going to be tied to for a very long time, was his usual unimpressive self, completing 26 of 37 passes for 212 yards, no touchdowns, and two interceptions. If the Rams needed a reality check to shake them out of any thoughts of postseason potential, this should do it.
18. Pittsburgh Steelers
(6-5. Last week: 17)
Pittsburgh quarterback Mason Rudolph escaped suspension for his role in the Steelers-Browns fracas in Week 11, but he couldn’t get past his own limitations against the Bengals’ generally awful defense in Week 12. Rudolph threw four interceptions in the Steelers’ loss to Cleveland, but that was overshadowed by Myles Garrett whacking him over the head with his own helmet and Garrett’s subsequent unsubstantiated claim that Rudolph used a racial slur during the incident. Nonetheless, Rudolph completed eight of 16 passes for 85 yards and an interception against Cincinnati, and head coach Mike Tomlin had seen enough, pulling Rudolph in favor of Devlin “Duck” Hodges. As Hodges helped lead the team away from what would have been a mortifying loss to the NFL’s only winless team, it may be that Hodges becomes the starter. And as Pittsburgh next faces the Browns again, there may be more than one reason to go that route.
17. Cleveland Browns
(5-6. Last week: 26)
In their first game since the Thursday Night Debacle against the Steelers that resulted in the indefinite suspension of Myles Garrett and a total of three suspensions, 33 players fined, and those fines totaling $732,422, the Browns needed a bit of stability to get back on track. The Dolphins were eager to provide it, as Baker Mayfield threw three first-half touchdown passes, Odell Beckham Jr. caught his first touchdown pass since Week 2, and linebacker Joe Schobert became the fourth linebacker in the Super Bowl era, and the first since the Colts’ Cato June in 2005, to record multiple interceptions in consecutive games. At 5-6, the Browns still have faint playoff hopes if they can stay out of their own way.