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Week 12 saw a lot of poor matchups but threw up some excellent games with six games being within a score. Here are my five takeaways from this week in the NFL

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Kansas City are not as good as everyone thinks – yes, they are 10-1, on top of the AFC Conference and hold the number one seed…but Patrick Mahomes is not playing that well. He has thrown 11 interceptions so far this season, which is only two less than his highest for a season (13 in 2021) and it’s only week 12! He is well down on touchdowns so far (18 this season – at the same point last season Mahomes had 21, ended the season with 27). This week they struggled to beat the Carolina Panthers, needed a walk-off 31-yard field goal to win the game, which the Chiefs led by 11 at half time.

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Miami Dolphins need Tua to function – it has been quite apparent to anyone who watches football that the Miami Dolphins are not a good side without QB Tua Tagovailoa playing. Tua missed four games this year after his third (??) concussion in 5 seasons and the team went 1-4, averaging 10 points per game. Since his return, the Dolphins have gone 3-2, averaging 29 points a game, and only a couple of late field goals have stopped Miami going 5-0. Tua has also been lights out since his return. He is 131-170 for 1277 yards with 11 touchdowns and 1 interception over those five games. He is averaging 9.75 yards per completion as well. Tua threw for four touchdowns in the game against the Patriots, the Fins winning 34-15 despite being 31-0 at the start of the fourth quarter.

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Detroit Lions are the best team in Football – Not such a bold take, with the team on a nine-game winning streak and are 10-1, but unlike the Chiefs, HC Dan Campbell has this Lions team purring and waiting to pounce on any team. Their last two games, they have scored 76 points and only allowed the opposition two field goals per game. QB Jared Goff is is ranked eight overall in passing yards (2761) but fourth in touchdowns. They are an exciting team to watch, and possibly the only team that can stop the Chiefs three-peating.

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Things are going from bad to worse in New York – Both New York sides are struggling at the moment – the Jets, after firing Robert Saleh after their week 5 loss in London, which took the Jets to 2-3, they have gone 1-5 under interim HC Jeff Ulbrich. Their owner, Woody Johnson, also fired the GM Joe Douglas, and rumours are abound about the future of Aaron Rodgers at the Jets. As for the Giants, they decide to change their QB – so they release Daniel Jones, and promote third string QB Tommy DeVito over Drew Lock, who was the backup…so things can only get better for New York, right?

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The NFC West is the strongest division in Football – after week 12, all four teams can still win the NFC West title and secure a home field game in the playoffs. Seattle Seahawks are currently top with 6-5, as they beat the Arizona Cardinals last week. The Cardinals are second, also on 6-5. The Los Angeles Rams are third on 5-6 with the San Francisco 49ers on the same, but the Rams beat the 49ers in week 3. Week 13 could see things change a lot in this division as all four teams are in action. The Cardinals are at Minnesota, Seattle travel to face the much troubled Jets, the Rams go to New Orleans to face the Saints and the 49ers head up to Buffalo to take on the Bills.