Welcome to our weekly column where we look at all things NFL from our regular NFL tipster and Rugby League raconteur Nick Tedeschi. He will look at the good, the bad and the ugly of the NFL, holding back no punches.
Chiefs Eliminated, Rebuild Incoming
In an event few anticipated at the start of the season, the Kansas City Chiefs have been eliminated before Christmas with still three weeks of the regular season remaining. It brings to an end a nine-year run on top of the AFC West where they won at least 12 games seven times, won three Super Bowls and lost two more. They have made the playoffs for the last decade and have not had a losing season since 2012, the year before Andy Reid arrived.
The Chiefs are now 6-8 and unlikely to get Patrick Mahomes back for the remainder of the season after he went down late in the game with a knee injury Reid conceded “did not look good”.
There is no doubt that for the first time since his early years at the Chiefs that Reid will need to re-tool a team that lacked punch offensively, offered little dynamism defensively and was incredibly ill disciplined.
Kansas City doesn’t have a single wideout with over 550 yards or 50 receptions with Rashee Rice the only really impactful wide receiver. There is an overreliance on the declining Travis Kelce. Since the departure of Tyreek Hill, there has been a clear reluctance to throw deep with the speed men like Xavier Worthy needing plays scripted for them. Kansas City rank in the bottom half in points per play and completion percentage.
Defensively the Chiefs ranked 7th in scoring but rank 19th in opponent yards per play and 26th in opposition third down percentage. They have been poor at creating pressure or stopping completions.
Only two other teams have given away more penalty yardage.
The first port of call will be the coordinators. OC Matt Nagy has had four years over two stints at Chiefs OC and while Reid truly sets the tone for the offense, he would be wise to look for someone with a little more flair and thirst for risk. DC Steve Spagnulo has been at the club a long time and while he is well respected the balance is clearly not working.
Expect the Chiefs to throw money into the free agent market looking for a receiver while a new approach offensively is needed.
Old Man Rivers
In arguably the most stunning move of the season, the Indianapolis Colts signed Phillip Rivers to make a comeback at 44, five seasons after he last played. With Daniel Jones and Anthony Richardson out, the Colts needed help and they found it in the nursing home. Rivers did an admirable job in a 18-16 loss, throwing a touchdown and going 18/27 for 120 yards.
Sack Record Watch
Cleveland edge beast Myles Garrett has pulled within one sack of the all-time record when being credited with 1.5 sacks against the Bears. Garrett is almost-certain to be the new all-time sack leader if he stays healthy. He has had at least one sack in eight straight games.
Micah Melancholia
Packer Nation is in a state of severe depression with star defensive recruit Micah Parsons leaving the Broncos-Packers clash with what looked like a severe knee injury with early forecasts being his season coming to an end. Parsons has 12.5 sacks, a forced fumble and 6.5 stuffs since being traded from the Cowboys despite ranking second in the NFL for double teams. The Packers cannot win the Super Bowl with Parsons sidelined.
Offensive Coordinators That Don’t Call Plays
The full list for 2025 …
- Frank Smith (Miami)
- Dan Pitcher (Cincinnatti)
- Jim Bob Cooter (Indianapolis)
- Grant Udinski (Jacksonville)
- Nick Holz (Tennessee)
- Joe Lombardi (Denver)
- Matt Nagy (Kansas City)
- Klayton Adams (Dallas)
- Tim Kelly (NY Giants)
- Declan Doyle (Chicago)
- John Morton (Detroit)
- Adam Stenavich (Green Bay)
- Wes Phillips (Minnesota)
- Brad Idzik (Carolina)
- Doug Nussmeier (New Orleans)
- Mike LaFleur (LA Rams)
- Klay Kubiak (San Francisco)
That is 17 of 32 offensive coordinators who don’t call plays with 16 ceding to the head coach and one ceding to the QB coach.
Week 15 Bad Beat Power Rankings
No sport lends itself to cruel beats more than American football. Here are the worst for Week 15:
3. Tampa Bay H2H: The Bucs led their division rivals Atlanta by 14 with less than 10 minutes to play but stunningly gave up two touchdowns to Kirk Cousins and then a miraculous last minute drive to allow a match-winning field goal.
2. Over 38.5 Cleveland-Chicago: This game appeared to be sailing over the very low total but just three points in the final quarter left overs punters on the floor.
1. New England +2: The Pats jumped to a 21-0 lead over division rivals Buffalo before completely capitulating in the second half as the Bills ran to a 35-31 win.
Fun Fact #1
Colts QB Phillip Rivers did not play a snap in the NFL for five seasons before returning for the Colts against the Seahawks this week.
Fun Fact #2
Phillip Rivers has 10 children and one grandchild.
Fun Fact #3
Phillip Rivers became just the 14th player to play an NFL game at 44 year or older – and just the fifth quarterback.
Punter Fact of the Week
Shane Lechler holds the record for the most career touchbacks with 178 – he was also named as the punter in the NFL 100-year team.
Read It
Pat Summerall is one of the great figures in NFL history, a man who spent a decade in the league as a kicker and defensive end before becoming the voice of the NFL for four decades, reaching his zenith with long-time partner John Madden. Much of the first 40 years of the Super Bowl era of the NFL was narrated by this behemoth of the booth. Read this wonderful obituary from 2013 from ESPN.
Watch It
Arguably the greatest clutch running touchdown by a quarterback of all-time came from fabulous 49ers lefty Steve Young, whose 50-yard run to win the game against the Minnesota Vikings remains etched in San Francisco lore. Watch this wonderful weaving, elusive, diving score here.