Welcome to the Black Friday edition of the Week 13 grades!
After giving us a traditional feast of games on Thanksgiving, the NFL returned with its newest tradition: A Black Friday game. And it was a wild one with the Kansas City Chiefs holding off the Las Vegas Raiders 19-17 in a game that wasn't sealed until Nick Bolton recovered a Raiders fumble in Kansas City territory with just 11 seconds left to play.
What a WILD ending on Black Friday 👀 pic.twitter.com/JtYRVva6Zy
— NFL (@NFL) November 29, 2024
The win by the Chiefs capped off a solid 24 hours of football for the NFL that started on Thanksgiving Day.
The Turkey Day action started with a crazy game in Detroit where the Lions escaped with a 23-20 win over the Chicago Bears. The victory ended a seven-game losing streak on Thanksgiving for the Lions while improving their record to 11-1, which now gives them the best start in franchise history. The Bears choked away any chance at the win with poor clock management that ultimately led to the firing of Matt Eberflus.
The second game on Thursday ended up being a good time for a Thanksgiving nap with the Cowboys taking down the Giants, 27-20, to pull off a season sweep of their NFC East rivals.
The Thanksgiving nightcap took place in Green Bay where the Dolphins' cold-weather struggles continued in a 30-17 loss to the Packers.
With that in mind, let's get to the Thanksgiving grades, starting with the Lions' wild win.
Kansas City 19-17 over Las Vegas
| A- |  |
| The Raiders did the equivalent of taking a perfect game into the ninth inning only to watch their closer blow it. In this case, their closer was Daniel Carlson, who had a total meltdown with three missed field goals. Other than that, the Raiders actually played well enough to win. The defense was able to hold Patrick Mahomes mostly in check and that happened thanks to a pass rush that sacked him five times. Offensively, Aidan O'Connell (340 yards, two TD passes) played incredibly well for a guy who was returning from a broken thumb after missing more than a month of football and it definitely helped him that he had Brock Bowers, who continues to look like one of the best rookies in football (He caught 10 passes for 140 yards against the Chiefs). Not only were the Raiders let down by Carlson, but the offense also blew a shot at the win after an errant shotgun snap was recovered by the Chiefs after Vegas had driven down to Kansas City's 32-yard line in the final 15 seconds. The Raiders played one of their best games of the year, but they still lost, and for Vegas, it's just been that kind of season. | |
| B- |  |
| The Chiefs seem to find a new way to win every week, and this week was no exception. The Chiefs probably could have blown this game open if they had been able to score in the red zone, but they only came up with one TD on five trips. Patrick Mahomes made key plays when he had to, but for the most part, the Chiefs looked sluggish for a good chunk of the game. Mahomes did do a good job of spreading the ball around with four different players finishing with at least 50 yards. The defense looked dominant in the first half, but then got carved up for 233 yards by Aidan O'Connell in the second half. Every Chiefs game seems to go down to the wire, but the bottom line is that they keep winning and that's what championship teams do. | |
Detroit 23-20 over Chicago
| C |  |
| Matt Eberflus has been on the hot seat all season and after this loss, his seat became so combustible that blew up, because he's now out in Chicago. The Bears had a chance to win or tie this game in the final minute, but Eberflus totally botched the clock management in the final 30 seconds. On top of that, the Bears didn't look prepared to play during a first half where they fell behind 16-0 while totaling just 53 yards. The Bears did come back from the dead during a wild second half that saw Caleb Williams throw for 222 yards and three touchdowns. The defense also stepped up its game in the second half, holding the Lions to just 126 yards over the final two quarters. Keenan Allen and DJ Moore both came up with some huge plays for an offense that has looked completely rejuvenated under Thomas Brown. The problem for the Bears is that they continue to be held back by coaching. This is arguably the fourth game this year that Eberflus cost his team with questionable coaching late in the fourth quarter and that's why he's now gone. | |
| C+ |  |
| The Lions had a chance to run away with this game in the first half, but they couldn't get anything done in the red zone, which allowed the Bears to stay in the game. The Lions only scored on two touchdowns on five trips to the red zone and that's something they're going to have to clean up if they want to hold on to the No. 1 seed in the NFC. The Lions also took a Thanksgiving nap in the second half, because they appeared to be sleep-walking through the final two quarters. The Lions got several uncharacteristic mistakes from players like Jahmyr Gibbs (who lost a fumble) and Jake Bates (who missed his first field goal of the year). The Lions rushing attack disappeared in the second half with just 50 yards and that's a big reason why the offense slowed down. After his scare, you can bet Dan Campbell will be keeping his foot on the gas in every game going forward. | |
Dallas 27-20 over N.Y. Giants
| C+ |  |
| Drew Lock became the third QB of the season to start for the Giants and things didn't improve much with him under center. The offense struggled to move the ball through the air, as Lock threw for just 178 yards. Lock also committed two back-breaking turnovers with a pick six in the first half and a lost fumble in the second half. The Giants' offensive struggles can't be totally blamed on Lock, though. He got zero help from his offensive line -- Lock was sacked six times -- and he also got zero help from his rushing attack (Lock ran for 57 yards while the rest of the team totaled just 59 yards on the ground). If Giants fans are looking for something to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, they should be thankful that the season is almost over and that the Giants just took one small step closer to possibly getting the top pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. | |
| B+ |  |
| For the second week in a row, the Cowboys defense took over the game and led Dallas to a win. DeMarvion Overshown came up with a pick six in the second quarter that put the Cowboys in control and they never trailed after that. The Cowboys pass rush beat up on Drew Lock who got sacked six times with Micah Parsons recording 1.5 of those. The offense wasn't flashy, but it got the job done, especially Rico Dowdle, who had a breakout game with a career-high 112 yards and one TD. Mike McCarthy might be on the hot seat, but he still has this team playing hard, which might be why Jerry Jones has suddenly shown some interest in possibly bringing him back. | |
Green Bay 30-17 over Miami
| D |  |
| The Dolphins always seem to struggle in cold weather and those struggles continued on Thursday night. The offense got off to a slow start and the defense wasn't much better during a first half where the Packers shot out to a 24-3 lead. The Dolphins' rushing attack was nonexistent and although Tua Tagovailoa put up decent numbers (365 yards, two touchdowns), he came up empty on two big fourth-down attempts in Green Bay territory with one of those coming from the 1-yard line in the fourth quarter. The Dolphins weren't helped by the fact that Malik Washington muffed a punt inside his own 10-yard line in the first three minutes of the game. The Dolphins have now lost 12 straight games when the temperature is under 40 degrees and if they can't figure out how to play better in cold weather, it's hard to imagine them ever being a serious playoff threat. | |
| A- |  |
| The cold temperatures seemed to bother the Dolphins, but they didn't seem to bother Jordan Love. The Packers QB had one of his most efficient games of the year, throwing for 274 yards and two touchdowns. Josh Jacobs helped carry the offense through the cold weather with a solid all-around performance that included 117 total yards and one touchdown. Defensively, the Packers might have been even more impressive. Not only did the unit hold Miami's high-powered rushing attack to under 40 yards, but the defense also came up with four huge sacks of Tua Tagovailoa, including a sack by Quay Walker that came on a fourth-and-goal at the Packers' 1-yard line. The Packers have now won seven of eight and they're looking more impressive every week. This could be a dangerous team come January. | |
