Tag: 2023 NFL Week 6

NFL Week 6 Awards: 49ers’ lethargic loss to P.J. Walker’s Browns shows they aren’t perfect team

Losing to an awful backup QB is just one sign the 49ers are more flawed than we thought.

They were likely never going to go 17-0, but you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who thought the San Francisco 49ers would lose to the Cleveland Browns Sunday. If there was even a singular person who actually believed in Cleveland’s chances, they seemed delusional about it once it was clear that a horrible backup like P.J. Walker would start against the 49ers’ ferocious defense.

And yet, there the Browns were, upsetting the 49ers 19-17 in easily the most shocking individual result of this still-young NFL season. What happened? Why did the 49ers drop the ball after looking like an absolutely perfect buzzsaw en route to a 5-0 start?

As always, it’s never so simple to blame just one person.

For one, Brock Purdy had one of his worst games as the 49ers’ starting quarterback, completing just 12-of-27 passes for 125 yards while throwing one touchdown and his first interception of the season. The Browns’ defense deserves a ton of credit for rattling Purdy. But there were more than a few throws Purdy left on the field, potentially reigniting the questions about whether he is actually good enough to elevate the 49ers’ stacked offense against equally good defenses.

Injuries played a part, too.

San Francisco’s do-it-all offensive Swiss Army Knife Deebo Samuel would leave the game with a shoulder injury. Meanwhile, after suffering an ankle injury, left tackle Trent Williams tried to battle, even though it was clear he wasn’t 100 percent. None of this absolves the defense, either. The 49ers should’ve feasted on a woefully mismatched quarterback like Walker. It’s inexcusable that they let his one genuine safety valve — receiver Amari Cooper — carry the Browns’ offense.

I’d also be remiss if I didn’t highlight Jake Moody, San Francisco’s highly-drafted rookie kicker, for missing the game-winning chip-shot attempt in the final moments:

The 49ers are probably going to be fine. By no means does one loss define what remains one of the NFL’s true Super Bowl contenders. But we thought this team was an unmitigated juggernaut headed toward a historic season.

As it turns out, they’re a bit more fallible and flawed than we believe. Even the “best” team in the league can still fall short on any Sunday. That’s something evergreen to keep in mind later this winter.

Alas, the rest of Week 6’s NFL Awards here at For The Win is a doozy. We’ve got backup running backs creating touchdowns with monster blocks. We’ve got an announcer intentionally avoiding an announcer jinx. We’ve got a superstar receiver ready on a moment’s notice for a creative touchdown celebration.

Heck, who am I kidding? We’ve got everything. Let’s dive in.

Mark Sanchez went on a weird tangent about salmon and Vaseline to describe Jalen Hurts’ balance

Who on Earth is covering salmon in Vaseline and why???

As an MVP-caliber quarterback, a lot of people have likely made creative comments to describe Jalen Hurts’ talent as the Philadelphia Eagles’ signal caller. However, I’m not sure I’ve ever heard the bizarre analogy Fox’s Mark Sanchez used to give Hurts’ brilliance more context.

When Hurts escaped a ton of New York Jets’ defensive pressure from the shadow of his own end zone in the third quarter, Sanchez launched into a tangent about how the “slippery” Hurts is apparently like a salmon covered in Vaseline.

I mean … sure? I do understand what Sanchez is trying to say. But … who’s covering a salmon in Vaseline? Don’t most people, you know, eat salmon? I can’t imagine it’s too appetizing (or even edible) once covered in a skin cream. So, where was Sanchez going this?

If it were me, I would’ve perhaps talked up Hurts’ strength and balance by noting that he squats a lot in the weight room and clearly does a lot of yoga. I would’ve maybe even said he’s something akin to Reed Richards in flexibility and movement around the pocket. But that’s just me.

I don’t know where Sanchez got this analogy from — he’s a Southern California native — but I’m so happy he decided to unleash it upon us.

Lions backup RB Craig Reynolds’ monster block on an Amon-Ra St. Brown TD sums up Detroit’s toughness

Craig Reynolds made the block of the YEAR!

There are a few hallmarks of every well-coached, tough NFL team. Their cornerbacks are active and productive in run support as tacklers. Their offensive linemen are excellent in space, especially when pulling. And their receivers and general skill players sell out, giving full effort when blocking for their teammates in the open field.

According to this summation, Dan Campbell’s Detroit Lions are a very well-coached and very tough team. Heck, backup running back Craig Reynolds exemplified it to perfection on Sunday.

With Detroit trying to build a late first-half road lead against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, star receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown found himself with green grass on a basic third-and-long short pass. When he tried to cut to the sideline, a gaggle of Buccaneers defenders awaited him. The person in most danger of making a tackle was cornerback Carlton Davis.

That is before Reynolds — again, the backup to an injured David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs — sent him to the moon with a colossal block. Phew:

Even while Detroit improved to 5-1 with a 20-6 win, seemingly small sequences like this shouldn’t be forgotten. Campbell has created a strong culture for the boys in Honolulu Blue, and it’s why they’re off to their best start in six decades.

It’s also why they’re one of the NFC’s top teams in the first place. This Detroit train isn’t stopping any time soon.

Alvin Kamara looked so disinterested as Jameis Winston ranted to him on the Saints sideline

Alvin Kamara seemingly couldn’t care less about Jameis Winston’s concerns.

Despite a top-10, playoff-caliber defense, the 3-3 New Orleans Saints remain a middling team. That’s because of an inconsistent offense that can’t pull its weight, especially in crunch time. It’s even worse when it doesn’t appear like their players are on the same page.

Late in the fourth quarter of New Orleans’ 20-13 loss to the Houston Texans Sunday, backup quarterback Jameis Winston had something seemingly very important to tell Alvin Kamara. Except, based on the look on his face, Kamara didn’t show signs of much interest in whatever Winston was ranting about to him.

If anything, Kamara was making a face that said, “OK, man,” before moving on about his business:

I gotta be honest: I probably would’ve done the same thing in Kamara’s shoes. Who is Winston, the backup quarterback, to go on a random tangent at the game’s most critical juncture? The Saints’ offense missed a field goal, turned the ball over on downs, and threw an interception to lose.

Call it a hunch, but Kamara and Co. had much bigger fish to fry than whatever Winston wanted to tell him.

Kevin Burkhardt and Greg Olsen thought a ref’s correction was so funny after he messed up a penalty call

They spent SO MUCH time debating this play before the ref fixed his mistake.

It’s hard to remember sometimes, but the human element often comes into play when it comes to NFL officiating. We saw a delightful episode of this with referee John Hussey, who led the crew working the battle between the San Francisco 49ers and Cleveland Browns Sunday.

Late in the first quarter, the Browns were called for a facemask on a kickoff return. There was just one problem: It looked like San Francisco player Ambry Thomas was the one who actually committed the facemask infraction. This was a significant point of contention for Fox announcers Kevin Burkhardt and Greg Olsen, who couldn’t believe Cleveland was being called for the penalty.

Burkhardt and Olsen debated so much, only to eventually be cut off by Hussey, who quickly corrected his penalty call to be on Thomas and the 49ers. The announcing duo thought this was hilarious:

This is what you get with the human element. Sometimes, you might have a brain fart on your initial penalty announcement. Kudos to Burkhardt and Olsen for showing a good sense of humor about it on air.

A frustrated DK Metcalf took a blatant cheap shot at the Bengals’ Cam Taylor-Britt

DK Metcalf has to be A LOT more mature than this.

The last reaction you want from your players amidst a poor performance is taking a backbreaking penalty. Someone with the Seattle Seahawks should remind DK Metcalf about how important it is to stay ahead of the chains.

As Seattle battled the Cincinnati Bengals in an underrated heavyweight battle Sunday, Cam Taylor-Britt had the lofty assignment of covering Metcalf. And, from an early account, at least, Taylor-Britt was passing this test with flying colors. Through the first half, Metcalf had one catch for 12 yards and was a complete non-factor.

Rather than respond with a big play for his team, Metcalf decided to let Taylor-Britt get into his head. He wound up taking an unnecessary cheap shot on the cornerback, who notably didn’t even instigate Metcalf outside of just doing his job on the boundary.

Yeah … you can’t do this:

Metcalf is an integral part of what the Seahawks try to achieve offensively. He’s arguably their top offensive playmaker. But that’s the key — he has to make plays to be effective, like anyone. And he has to keep his cool amidst any slow starts against defenders like Taylor-Britt, who are simply punching in and sticking to their assignment.

Rich Eisen intentionally avoided putting an announcer jinx on Nick Folk’s impressive kicking streak

“Notice I said it AFTER he kicked it.”

It’s not tried and true to the point of a guarantee, but almost no kicker is immune to the dreaded announcer jinx. You can be as lights-out between the uprights as you want — if a commentator says if you’ve been on a remarkable streak, it’s probably ending then and there.

As the Baltimore Ravens took on the Tennessee Titans in London, kudos to play-by-play man Rich Eisen for recognizing his power.

When Titans kicker Nick Folk lined up for a chip shot early in the first quarter, Eisen just let the play breathe. After Folk smashed the ball through, Eisen only then noted that the veteran had made 68 straight kicks under 40 yards.

Shoutout to Eisen for realizing he does indeed “affect” the game, especially kickers who have had ice in their veins lately. That’s self-awareness most football fans should appreciate.

Here’s why the Chiefs ran a fake FG quarterback sneak without Patrick Mahomes

The Chiefs don’t like using Patrick Mahomes on QB sneaks and they have a VERY good reason.

The Denver Broncos might be floundering, but they’re still a division rival of the Kansas City Chiefs. They’re still someone the Chiefs (generally) take seriously. They’re still someone the Chiefs feel the need to keep the foot on the gas pedal to finish off.

That’s why when a Kansas City possession halfway through the second quarter stalled, the Chiefs tried for a fake field goal, quarterback sneak. Okay, sure. Except there was one key person missing: Patrick Mahomes.

You might have been wondering why Kansas City didn’t just have Mahomes do a straight QB sneak. That would’ve been the normal play to call in that situation for almost any other team in the league. But they have an excellent reason for not throwing their face of the franchise, best-player-in-football into short-yardage scrums:

Ever since he dislocated his kneecap on a sneak during a Thursday night battle with the Broncos, ironically, four years ago, the Chiefs have stopped using Mahomes on such plays. They simply do not believe it is worth the risk of his injury as opposed to trying a tried and true conversion strategy.

For what it’s worth, Mahomes has expressed he wants them back in Kansas City’s playbook, even though Andy Reid has stopped calling them.

More from Chiefs Wire:

“I’ll always want to because I always say that I haven’t got stopped yet,” Mahomes said. “Because even the one that my knee I got hurt on, I still got the first down. But I’m pretty sure he’s not going to let me do it unless it’s like for the Super Bowl, and so I might have to call my own number in the Super Bowl if we get there.”

The Chiefs have a delicate balance to play. Risk injury for Mahomes or risk not converting fourth downs. So far, with two Super Bowl titles in four years, it hasn’t seemed like they’ve had to change their strategy much.