NFL

When six-time All-Pro wide receiver Davante Adams forced the Green Bay Packers to trade him to the Las Vegas Raiders over the offseason, there was an expectation that reforming his connection with his college teammate Derek Carr would lead to offensive fireworks.

While the Fresno State alums showed flashes of brilliance throughout the season, Adams didn't produce with the same consistency we've grown accustomed to, and he was nearly nonexistent once again as he registered just two catches for 15 yards in the Raiders' 13-10 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Saturday night.

Carr had an abysmal showing, throwing for 174 yards, a touchdown and three interceptions on 16-of-30 passing. All three of his picks came in the second half, and his last one came after Pittsburgh took its first lead of the game with less than a minute to go in the fourth quarter.

NFL Twitter was not happy with Carr for how he failed to get Adams involved in the offense during the disappointing loss:

Saturday's outing marks Adams' third straight game without a touchdown and with less than 100 yards, 10 targets or five catches. A player of his caliber should never be such a non-factor for a team that is now on the brink of elimination from playoff contention.

The Raiders (6-9) will need Carr to utilize Adams more if they hope to be successful when they return to action on New Year's Day against the San Francisco 49ers (11-4), who boast one of the best defenses in the NFL.

Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Chandler Jones has been ruled out for the remainder of Saturday's game against the Pittsburgh Steelers after being carted to the locker room with a left elbow injury.

The 32-year-old signed with the Raiders this offseason after spending the last six seasons with the Arizona Cardinals. Through 14 games with Las Vegas this year, Jones has 35 tackles, 4.5 sacks, three fumble recoveries and a forced fumble. He had three tackles against Pittsburgh before exiting.

Jones missed two games last season after being placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list following a positive test for the coronavirus.

Jones started last season with one of the best single-game defensive performances of the year. He set a Cardinals franchise record with five sacks and added two forced fumbles in the Week 1 win over the Tennessee Titans.

However, his production has tapered off a bit after that. Jones finished the year with 41 total tackles, 10.5 sacks, six forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.

After being drafted 21st overall in 2012 by the New England Patriots, Jones has solidified himself as one of the premier pass-rushers in the NFL. He is a three-time Pro Bowl selection and two-time first-team All-Pro. He was a part of New England's Super Bowl XLIX victory in 2014.

The Syracuse product led the NFL with 17 sacks and 28 tackles for loss in 2017. In 2019, he recorded a career-high 19 sacks. He was limited to five games in 2020 due to a torn bicep.

Jones' injury leaves Las Vegas fairly thin at defensive end. While star edge rusher Maxx Crosby can still be counted on for solid production, it will be interesting to see who lines up on the opposite side of him. Former first-round pick Clelin Ferrell could be inserted into the starting lineup. Malcolm Koonce could also be rotated in during pass-rush situations.

The Cincinnati Bengals' trip home after Saturday's win over the New England Patriots included an unplanned stop in New York.

Per Mark Slaughter of WLWT NBC in Cincinnati and confirmed by The Athletic's Paul Dehner Jr., the Bengals' team plane had to make an emergency landing at JFK Airport in New York City due to engine trouble and change aircrafts.

One person on the plane told Slaughter the ride was a "little rough but it was okay! Landed safely."

Per WLWT, the plane landed at JFK International Airport around 8:45 p.m. local time. They are expected to takeoff in a new aircraft around 9:30 p.m. and make it back to Cincinnati tonight.

The Bengals-Patriots game at Gillette Stadium on Saturday kicked off at 1 p.m. ET. Cincinnati looked like it was going to win in a route after taking a 22-0 lead into halftime.

New England was able to fight back in the second half, scoring 18 unanswered points to make it a one-score game with six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.

A fumble by Ja'Marr Chase recovered by Marcus Jones gave the Patriots' offense the ball back with a chance to take the lead. They got down to Cincinnati's five-yard line with less than one minute to play, but a Rhamondre Stevenson fumble on 1st-and-goal was picked by B.J. Hill.

The Patriots did get the ball back one more time at their own 24-yard line with 30 seconds left. They only gained 10 yards before turning the ball over on downs. Joe Burrow took a knee to run out the clock.

Even though the final score shows a close game, the Bengals continued their streak of playing at a high level. They finished with 442 yards on offense, with Burrow racking up 375 yards through the air.

Cincinnati (11-4) has won seven consecutive games since a 32-13 loss to the Cleveland Browns on Monday Night Football in Week 8.

In what has been a tight race for NFL Defensive Player of the Year, San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa has at least one vocal supporter in his own locker room.

George Kittle told reporters Bosa "secured his defensive MVP" with a dominant performance in Saturday's 37-20 victory over the Washington Commanders.

The 49ers tight end went on to say he doesn't see a reason why Bosa shouldn't be in the MVP conversation:

While it seems unlikely Bosa—or any defensive player—will garner much MVP discussion, he would presumably be one of the few players on that side of that ball who could steal a vote away from one of the top quarterbacks.

It's assumed the voting for Defensive Player of the Year will come down to a battle between Bosa and Dallas Cowboys star Micah Parsons. Other players who could get into the mix include New York Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner, Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones and Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby.

If we go with the assumption that Bosa and Parsons have pulled ahead of the pack, the 49ers star certainly has a statistical advantage. His two sacks on Saturday brought his league-leading total up to 17.5 for the season.

Bosa also added four quarterback hits and two tackles for loss against the Commanders. He is up to 42 quarterback hits and 18 tackles on the season. The three-time Pro Bowler has put up those stats despite missing one game in Week 6 because of a groin injury.

Parsons didn't have a sack, quarterback hit or a tackle for loss on Saturday against the Philadelphia Eagles. The 23-year-old has 24 quarterback hits, 14 tackles for loss and 13 sacks overall. He has played in all 15 games for the Cowboys this season.

Since returning to the lineup in Week 7, Bosa has recorded at least one sack in eight of the past nine games.

Bosa could also benefit from being arguably the best player on what has been the NFL's best defense this season. San Francisco allowed 20 points to the Commanders, ending its streak of seven consecutive games holding opponents to 17 points or fewer.

San Francisco's defense ranks first in yards allowed (290.3 per game), rushing yards (75.0) and points allowed (15.3). It is tied for third in turnover differential (+9) and tied for fourth in takeaways (24).

The 49ers haven't had a Defensive Player of the Year winner since Dana Stubblefield in 1997.

It seems like Dallas Cowboys fans hoping for Odell Beckham Jr. to join their team this holiday season are going to be disappointed.

Speaking to reporters after Saturday's 40-34 win over the Philadelphia Eagles, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said it's "not realistic to think about having [Beckham] in a meaningful way for the playoffs."

Jones added he was "not dismissing" the possibility of signing Beckham in the future.

It's become impossible to keep track of all the twists and turns in the courtship between the Cowboys and Beckham.

Jones told USA Today's Jarrett Bell just eight days ago Beckham was "going to join us," and a deal could become official after the Cowboys played the Jacksonville Jaguars on Dec. 18.

No team seemed to be going after Beckham harder than Dallas. He had an official visit with the club on Dec. 5 and attended a Dallas Mavericks game with Cowboys stars Trevon Diggs and Micah Parsons the same day.

The Cowboys did add help at wide receiver when they signed T.Y. Hilton on Dec. 12. Josina Anderson of CBS Sports noted Hilton's addition didn't necessarily take them out of the Beckham sweepstakes.

Anderson also noted she spoke to an NFL source who said the Cowboys wanted Hilton because he was available to play "right now." The 33-year-old made his season debut against the Eagles. He only had one catch, but it was a 52-yarder on 3rd-and-30 midway through the fourth quarter to help set up a game-tying touchdown.

Beckham's availability for the stretch run this season has been called into question recently. He is still recovering from a torn ACL suffered in Super Bowl 56 while playing for the Los Angeles Rams.

ESPN's Ed Werder reported on Dec. 6 that Dallas had concerns about Beckham's knee after he took a physical that made it unclear if he would be able to play before mid-January.

The Cowboys have already clinched a playoff berth. Their victory over the Eagles kept their hopes of winning the NFC East and clinching a first-round bye alive, but they need to win out and have Philadelphia lose its final two games to have a shot.

After Saturday's 40-34 win over the Philadelphia Eagles to split the regular-season series, there's a chance that the Dallas Cowboys meet their NFC East rivals once again in the playoffs.

Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott acknowledged the possibility of a rubber match and told reporters he would relish the opportunity to face the Eagles in a postseason game:

Prescott threw for 347 yards, three touchdowns and an interception in the Christmas Eve thriller. Dallas faced a 27-17 deficit in the second half before mounting a comeback. The Cowboys defense forced four turnovers in the win.

Dallas (11-4) will quickly turn the page to its Thursday Night Football matchup against the Tennessee Titans (7-8).

On just his third pass of the day, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott threw a pick-six against the Philadelphia Eagles. However, Prescott would not let the early blunder deter him as he powered Dallas to its biggest win of the season.

The 29-year-old threw for 347 yards, three touchdowns and an interception to lead the Cowboys to a thrilling 40-34 victory over their NFC East rivals, who were hoping to clinch a division title on Christmas Eve.

Dallas had trailed 27-17 early in the second half before storming back to hand Philadelphia its second loss of the year. With the win, it is still mathematically viable for the Cowboys to win the NFC East in the final two weeks of the season.

Prescott showed flashes of brilliance on Saturday with dazzling throws that wowed the home fans at AT&T Stadium. His connection with star receiver CeeDee Lamb was clicking all day, as the wideout racked up 10 catches for 120 yards and two touchdowns.

NFL Twitter heaped praise on Prescott for his heroics in the intense rivalry game:

Saturday's performance was Prescott's first 300-yard game of the 2022 season, and it came at the perfect time. With back-to-back road games to end the season, Dallas will need its signal-caller to be at his absolute best as the playoffs approach.

The Cowboys (11-4) will look to keep the momentum going with they return to action on Thursday Night Football this week to visit the Tennessee Titans (7-8), who have lost their last five games.

In a game where they could have clinched the No. 1 seed in the NFC, the Philadelphia Eagles fell to the Dallas Cowboys 40-34 on Saturday at AT&T Stadium to drop to 13-2 on the season.

It was a very winnable game for the Gardner Minshew-led Eagles, but four turnovers, including two interceptions by Minshew, resulted in Philly dropping their second game of the season.

Minshew completed 24-of-40 passes for 355 yards and two touchdowns against two interceptions in the loss. He also fumbled once, as did running back Miles Sanders.

Following the loss, NFL Twitter ripped the Eagles for their string of turnovers, three of which came in the second half:

The Eagles still have a very good chance of locking up the No. 1 seed, especially if Jalen Hurts returns to the lineup next weekend against the New Orleans Saints.

Hurts missed Saturday's game with a shoulder injury. Before the matchup, Jay Glazer of Fox Sports reported the signal-caller would push to return to the field against the Saints if the Eagles lost to the Cowboys this week.

The Washington Commanders have replaced Taylor Heinicke with Carson Wentz in the fourth quarter of Saturday's game against the San Francisco 49ers.

Washington was down 30-14 at the time it inserted Wentz into the game. Heinicke completed 13 of 18 passes for 166 yards and two touchdowns against one interception before being pulled.

Jay Glazer of Fox Sports (h/t NFL insider Dov Kleiman) reported before the game that the Commanders had a "plan" to bench Heinicke in favor of Wentz if he struggled in Saturday's game.

Additionally NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported that the leash was getting shorter for Heinicke following poor performances against the New York Giants on Dec. 4 and Dec. 18.

While Heinicke wasn't necessarily playing that poorly, the Commanders needed any kind of spark they could get against a 49ers team that has played very well behind rookie quarterback Brock Purdy.

Wentz, who returned from a stint on injured reserve late last month, told reporters Wednesday that he was "physically feeling good" and would be ready to go against the 49ers if his number was called.

The 29-year-old began the season as Washington's starter after coming over in a trade from the Indianapolis Colts. In the team's first six games, he completed 62.1 percent of his passes for 1,489 yards and 10 touchdowns against six interceptions as the Commanders went 2-4.

Heinicke has started every game since, going 5-3-1 including the 37-20 loss to the 49ers. He entered Saturday's game having completed 61.4 percent of his passes for 1,693 yards and 10 touchdowns against five interceptions.

Despite falling to 7-7-1 on Saturday, Washington is still very much in the NFC playoff picture.