Five Wide: 2022 Week Thirteen

By Thomas Willoughby

Sunday was a nightmare. Yes, being in the future means you have access to a billion screens showing whatever you want at the same time. But trying to watch England on the TV, Falcons on a tablet, and then having Redzone on a laptop in a completely different part of the room? Didn’t know where I was. An absolute mess.

Still, the NFL attempted to serve us a reason to pull our eyes from the other football this weekend, and did a pretty good job too. We’re getting to the business end of the season, now. Strap in.

John Woof-ord

Arguably the worst way for me to kick off this week’s column is almost exactly how I’m going to do it: I don’t really have much to say about what I’m about to show you other than “Lol. Lmao.” Like…well, just take a look.

Listen, I know John Wolford is quarterbacking under very difficult circumstances, and I know the Rams are in a very horrible place right now. It would be harsh to laugh at this moment knowing it’s a moment of desperation gone wrong. And yet.

I legitimately don’t have much more to say about it. I’ve been watching it throughout my workday when I need a giggle, and it delivers. Thank you, John Wolford, for giving us this moment.

Time For A Change

Alright, indulge me a little here. I know I’m the Falcons guy, and I genuinely don’t try to shoehorn them into everything I do, but I feel like now’s a good time to talk Falcons a little. This Sunday, as England eased past Senegal, the Falcons hosted the Pittsburgh Steelers. A side that aren’t great, outside of their defense. Not once in that game did the Falcons look capable of winning. Not when they had the ball at the Steelers 10 with 5 minutes left down by only 6. Certainly not when they received the ball with about 60 seconds remaining down by only 3. For a team that had playoff ambitions only a month ago, they look a billion miles from where they hoped to be. It’s time for a change.

I feel like I’ve been softer on Marcus Mariota than most. I think he’s a pretty okay player, who excels at certain things. What he lacks, however, hurts everyone around him. His deep pass is erratic to say the absolute least, and his decision-making could be better. He’s a player that flashes what made him such an exciting prospect in 2014, but those flashes only make you lament the state of the Titans in his early years. He could have been something great, but, in his 8th season, the time for that growth has been and gone. He is what he is, now, and what he is isn’t going to win you many football games.

I’m surprised the Mariota experience lasted this long, but we’re now at the Falcons’ bye, and their playoff dreams are all but over. 2 games behind the Buccaneers, with the Bucs to play one more before they’re back on the field. Now feels like the time to take stock and see what you have for 2023. Desmond Ridder probably won’t be the answer for the Falcons long-term, but it feels right for him to be given a legitimate audition. Make the change over the bye, and give him the Saints, Ravens, Cardinals, and Buccaneers to show us what he’s got. If it doesn’t work, I’m sure a top 5 pick can nab a shiny new QB in the draft…

Justin Casterline-Getty Images

Welcome To Hell, New Orleans

Speaking of the NFC South: New Orleans! Welcome to the club! Please collect your complimentary Tom Brady voodoo doll from reception, and look forward to the “Oh My God Why Won’t He Just Retire” speech later today. It’s a really really horrible club to be a part of, but thanks for stopping by.

The Bucs and the Saints was a rivalry worth watching only a couple of seasons ago. Since then, the Saints have parted with everything that made their franchise successful, and the Buccaneers have fallen off a cliff. They met on Monday night, both with disgusting playoff dreams pushing them on. And, for almost the whole game, the Saints utterly stifled old man Brady and company. Note how I said “almost”.

With little over 5 minutes on the clock, the Buccaneers trailed 16-3, and were dead and buried. Smash cut to the final whistle, and they’re walking off 17-16 victors. We can’t keep letting him get away with this. 

Tampa Bay are well and truly in the driver’s seat of a horrible division. They should win it from this point. The Saints, with that defeat, secured their first losing season since 2016. I won’t call out my Touchdown Pod colleagues by name, but I do recall being told Sean Payton wouldn’t be much of a miss in the grand scheme of things. *Ahem*.

San Francisco? Purdy Good Team

Speaking of my Touchdown Pod colleagues, I have had enough of seeing the San Francisco 49ers occupying a spot on the fraud list on a weekly basis. The current toast of the NFC West has lost their QB1 and QB2 this season, and was forced to play someone I’d literally never heard of until this weekend. They were hosting the Miami Dolphins, unbeaten with Tua Tagovailoa under center this season, and absolutely slapped them. Fraudulent, indeed.

Kyle Shanahan is legitimately a genius. I cannot stress this enough. Any suggestion to the contrary comes from a place of jealousy or ignorance. The manner in which this 49ers outfit has played since he came in back in 2017 has been incredible. This is a team in the mire post-Jim Harbaugh, and Shanahan’s injected a spice that’s not only turned them into a watchable outfit, but a very competitive one at that. The fact they won on Sunday, as convincingly as they did, is a testament to the work he and his coaches have done.

Will it last, though? Well, that’s the thing. With both Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo out for the season, it falls on the shoulders of Brock Purdy, Mr. Irrelevant himself, to carry this side back to the postseason. Do they roll with the rook, and hope Shanahan can weave his magic for another month? Or will the lure of Baker Mayfield effectively on a loan prove too strong? Oh wait, never mind, Mayfield is a Ram. GOOD LUCK, BROCK!

Ezra Shaw-Getty Images

NFC East: The Division Of Erupting Forces

I guess now’s the time to talk about it. The best division in football isn’t to the west, or to the north, but on the east coast. The NFC East is a cavalcade of potential champions. At the time of writing, all four members of the division will play post-season football in January. Drink it in.

Top of the tree are the Philadelphia Eagles. Now, there’s a team. Jalen Hurts, AJ Brown, and DeVonta Smith headline an offense seemingly unstoppable. That defense is pretty nasty as well. They hosted the Titans this weekend, a pretty good side themselves. Dismantled. 35-10, even Gardner Minshew got a run-out. They clinch a playoff berth with a win over the Giants this weekend.

The Giants themselves sit third, and haven’t won a game for 3 weeks. They hosted the fourth-place Commanders on Sunday, and split to a 20-20 tie. The Giants are this season’s surprise package, beating teams they shouldn’t have, and playing those losses close, for the most part. The Commanders have been rejuvenated since Heinike replaced Carson Wentz, and face two divisional rivals in their next four games. Their final game sees them host the Dallas Cowboys. That might be tasty.

Then there’s the Cowboys, currently second on 9-3. They score points for fun, and the defense is as formidable as they come. Dan Quinn is going to be the first name on a lot of teams’ list of potential coaches this off-season for the work he’s done with that defense. They look the part and, in any other division, they’d be reading their “division champs” merch. They’re the real deal.

It’s a really good division, is what I’m saying. If they all make it, fair play to them. The NFC is bad enough that one of them could sneak in at 9-8, if things don’t go to plan over the next couple of weeks. Expect to see a lot more from these boys in the coming months.

Features Image Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

Thomas Willoughby

NFL ANALYST & SOCIAL MEDIA

THOMAS IS A WRITER, AND REGULAR GUEST ON THE TOUCHDOWN REVIEW SHOW PODCAST, FOR THE TOUCHDOWN. YOU CAN FIND HIM @WILLO290592 ON TWITTER

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