Conor Allen

It's 5-5 vs. 5-5. It's Cousins vs. Garoppolo. It's Shanahan vs. Zimmer. This Sunday we have ourselves an NFC masterpiece between two teams that have have struggled, but turned their seasons around with recent decisive wins. The winner will move to 6-5 and be in a a great position to ensure a wildcard playoff spot. Strap in.  The 49ers hit a low point on 11/7 when they lost to a Kyler Murraly-less Arizona Cardinals 31-17. They rebounded with a season-changing 31-17 win over the Rams on MNF the next week, then avoided a letdown with a 31-10 win over Jacksonville on the road last Sunday. The 49ers kept the Jags out of the end zone and held them to just 54 yards rushing, while racking up 171 on the ground for themselves. They did all that without their lead Runner Elijah Mitchell, who remains questionable with a broken finger. 79 of those yards came courtesy of Deebo Samuel, who apparently, when he isn't serving as the teams leading pass-catcher, is also a running back.  Sa

The surging Patriots travel to Atlanta Thursday to take on a Falcons team that has put together some good wins but also struggled to achieve any kind of consistency this season. Atlanta is coming off a 43-3 beatdown at the hands of Dallas last week, while the Patriots issued a 45-7 drubbing of their own to the Browns on Sunday. Atlanta is just 1-3 at home, while the Patriots are undefeated (4-0) on the road.  Mac Jones is starting to look like the first rounder New England wanted. Jones was 19-of-23 for 198 yards and three touchdowns with no INTs in the Patriots 45-7 win over Cleveland. The rookie quarterback has thrown for 2,333 yards this season, 14th amongst QBs. Jones has completed 69 percent of his passes with 13 TDs and seven interceptions. New England's 241.7 yards per game though the air put them, like Jones, at 14th in the league. Jones and the rest of the offense are starting to translate those yards into points. Their 27.5 per game are sixth in the league. They should be

The Chiefs will head to Vegas to take on the Raiders Sunday in a matchup between two teams that have had eventful seasons full of disappointments in production and personal conduct. Patrick Mahomes has thrown 10 interceptions and not looked like the dominating force of the last two years. The KC defense has struggled, ranking in the bottom half of the league in several categories, including passing and rushing yards allowed. Yet somehow they have won three of their last four and at 5-4 and still alive in the AFC West.  The Raiders fired head coach Jon Gruden after it was discovered he sent numerous homophobic and and misogonistic emails between 2011-2018. They've cut several players for off-field legal troubles, but somehow still sit at 5-3 and are also very much alive in the AFC West. Sunday's matchup will be a big game for both teams.  News flash! News Flash! Patrick Mahomes is no longer the league leader in interceptions. The world can stop panicking and predicting his demis

The 6-2 Titans will travel to SoFi Stadium Sunday to take on the 7-1 Rams. Tennessee will be without star running back Derrick Henry, lost for the season following Sunday's win.  The Titans beat Indianapolis 34-31 Sunday for their fourth straight win, padding their lead in the AFC West to three games. Henry suffered a foot injury in the first quarter that at first seemed innocuous. He was looked at by team trainers on the sideline, but returned to play, finishing with 68 yards on 29 carries. But after the game it was revealed that doctors believe he suffered a Jones fracture, requiring season-ending surgery. Now every pundit in the land is proclaiming the Titans are done, Adrian Peterson is being signed to the practice squad, Mike Vrabel is calling Bill Belichick for tips, and Ryan Tanehill is preparing to throw 50 times a game. Funny how quickly things can change in the NFL.  Just how valuable is Henry to the Titans? To start, since 2019 they are 18-3 when he rushes for more than