My favorite players the week were…

Do I give an honorable mention or a dishonorable mention or what to Jameis Winston for his game?  He threw for 497 yards & was directly responsible for 6 touchdowns in the Browns game versus the Broncos.  Of course, 2 of those 6 touchdowns were to the wrong team.  He had 3 interceptions with 1 returned 71 yards for a touchdown, the second one returned 44 yards for another touchdown, & the final one returned 56 yards without a score.  All in all, I guess he was responsible for over 668 yards if you count the return yards.  Since I’m not a Browns fan, I can say that watching him play is exciting!  You never know what you will get, but it’s often crazy!

Offense

Jerry Jeudy Browns wide receiver

The Browns lost, but Jeudy had a game.  He caught a pass for 44 yards on the Browns’ first play from scrimmage.  He was just getting started though.  He finished with 9 catches for 235 yards with a 70-yard touchdown & a catch for a 2-point conversion. That’s the most receiving yards by a player against his former team in NFL history.

Brock Bowers, Raiders tight end

It seems weird to start with 2 guys who lost their games, but I think both were huge contributors to games their teams really should have won.  Bowers caught 10 passes for 140 yards & a touchdown in the Raiders 19-17 loss to the Chiefs.  Bowers was the best tight end on the field that day as he has been for many games this year.  He doesn’t just lead tight ends in yards, he is 4^th in receiving yards in the NFL this year.  Just imagine what he could do with an elite quarterback.

Bucky Irving Buccaneers running back

Another rookie who had a great game in week 13 was Irving who led the league in rushing for the week with 152 yards & a touchdown on 25 carries.  He also added 33 yards on 3 receptions.

Josh Allen Bills quarterback

Allen had a crazy night in the rout of the 49’ers. He only had 148 yards in the snow on 13 of 17 passing but he accounted for 3 total touchdowns.  He completed a pass to Mack Hollins in the 2^nd quarter for a 7-yard touchdown.  Then in the 3^rd quarter he completed a pass to Amari Cooper, who was about to be tackled & flipped the ball back to Allen.  Allen ran it in from there completing the 7-yard touchdown.  He finished off the scoring & his night with an 8-yard touchdown run with 12:31 left in the 4^th quarter.  The way that the NFL keeps records, Allen was credited with a touchdown reception.  This made him the first quarterback to score a touchdown via passing, receiving, & running in the same game!

Russell Wilson Steelers quarterback

Wilson continues to show that he isn’t washed up despite the issues in Denver last year.  He threw for 414 yards & 3 touchdowns with 1 interception against the Bengals to help win a 44-38 shootout.

Defense

Leonard Williams Seahawks defensive end

Williams had an excellent game last week but was even better this week.  He had a 92 yard interception return of an Aaron Rodgers pass for a touchdown.  It was the longest pick-6 in NFL history for a player over 300 pounds.  There’s just something awesome about a long run by one of the big guys!  That wasn’t it for Williams though.  He blocked an extra point attempt, had 2 sacks, & 3 tackles for loss

Nolan Smith Jr. Eagles edge rusher

With Brandon Graham out for the game, Smith had to step up & he did. He has eight tackles & a sack against the Ravens.

Tarheeb Still Chargers cornerback

Still had 2 interceptions & returned one 61 yards for what proved to be the game winning score.  He also had 3 pass breakups & 3 tackles.

DeMarvion Overshown Cowboys linebacker

Overshown had what I think was the most impressive play of the week.  He tipped a Drew Lock pass, ran under it for the interception, & ran it 23 yards for the pick 6.  It was a great combination of a smart play paired with high athletic ability.  It gave the Cowboys the lead & a lot of momentum.

Overshown changed the game again on the first drive by the Giants in the 3^rd quarter when he recovered a fumble.  The Cowboys scored after that to go up by 10 points.  He also had 9 tackles with 5 of them solo.

Special teams

Kene Nwangwu Jets running back

I’m ending this section the same way I started it, with a player who played a great game in a loss.  He had a 99-yard kick return for a touchdown.  He returned 4 kicks for 157 yards.  He also forced a fumble.

It was even more impressive given that he was elevated from the practice squad on Saturday.

My favorite wine of the week is…

Domaine Laroche Claire Chablis 2021 $18.09

Chardonnay 12.5% ABV

This will be a short write-up for several reasons.  I’m running late.  I can’t find out anything about the producer.  What makes this wine my wine of the week is very simple.  It’s a really good example of a classic style at a killer price.

I ran across this wine at Grocery Outlet & bought a bottle.  I have learned not to buy multiple bottles of a wine I don’t know at Grocery Outlet because it might not be any good.  Additionally, they don’t allow returns or exchanges even if you get a corked or faulty wine.  That said, I still try a number of their wines because I have found so many diamonds in the rough there.

The price of Chablis has been climbing over the last few years & I usually expect to pay $30+ for a solid basic Chablis.  Even Petite Chablis is usually over $25.  I was surprised to see one this cheap & a bit worried that it might be off.  It was worth a try though.

It turns out that the wine shows the classic elements of Chablis.  It had ripping acidity with lemon & green apple & a persistent chalky minerality.  It was clearly made in stainless steel & it doesn’t appear to have seen any lees stirring.  Is it the best Chablis that you will ever try?  No.  It’s a really tasty Chablis for under $20 though & I didn’t think they made those anymore.

I tried to look up the brand, but could only find Domaine Laroche, which doesn’t look the same as Laroche Claire.  By the time I realized that this should be my wine of the week, I had already tossed the bottle & recycling had been picked up.  I will try to add more information if I can find it.  In the meantime, I’m going back to the Grocery Outlet & I’m going to buy them out of this wine!  I suggest you give it a try if you can find it.  Knowing Grocery Outlet, it won’t be around for long & then we might never see it again.