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NFL Weekly Preview NFL Weekly Recap Presented by UPS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 NFL Weekly Recap

Week 13 NFL Capsules

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Posted: Tuesday December 01, 1998 01:01 AM

  Drew Bledsoe rallied the Patriots to another last-second comeback victory, keeping New England in the thick of the AFC playoff race Rick Stewart/Allsport

Reaching back to that old truth of life, "it certainly isn't over five weeks before it's over," we humbly re-introduce the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Seattle Seahawks to the 1998 NFL playoff picture, with the weekly reminder that nobody mathematically alive should be handed a postseason toe tag before their time.

There's a real chance an 8-8 team will make the playoffs, something only three teams have done since the NFL-AFL merger in 1970 -- the '85 Browns, champions of a bad AFC Central, and the '90 Saints and '91 Jets, both wild cards.

The Bucs' victory over the Bears puts them at 5-7, one game behind the 6-6 Cardinals (who are in at .500 right now) and dead even with the Lions and Saints as outside shots for the NFC's third wild-card spot. The road ahead isn't easy for the Bucs -- they have the Packers and Steelers at home and then close with two seemingly easy ones on the road, against Cincinnati and Washington.

On the AFC side, it looks as if 9-7 might not even get you in for certain -- eight teams already have seven wins, and only seven will advance to the playoffs. Four AFC East teams are in the picture, and Seattle (6-6) is only one game back of the pack, but in dire need of a win on the road against the Jets next week. If that happens, Seattle has two easy home opponents in the Colts and Chargers before ending the season (gulp) at Mile High Stadium. That would put the Seahawks at 6-6 against AFC teams, which might not be enough.

The two teams with the greatest impact on the playoffs are the Jets and Saints -- New York still plays all three AFC East challengers, plus long-shot Seattle, while the Saints face the Cowboys, Falcons and Bills at home with the Cardinals on the road.

So unless that elusive "x-" or at least a spare "y-" has affixed itself to your team in the standings, there's still a long season left to play.

Week 13 NFL Capsules
Teams Key Stat Key to Victory MVP
Lions 19 (5-7)
Steelers 16 (OT) (7-5)
Detroit quarterback Charlie Batch completed 16 of 23 passes despite sitting out several minutes with a neck injury.
A controversial coin-toss interpretation by referee Phil Luckett that resulted in the Lions receiving the overtime kickoff.
Detroit kicker Jason Hanson, who was true on field goals of 45, 51 and 35 yards before connecting on the 42-yard game-winner.
Stats and recap
Vikings 46 (11-1)
Cowboys 36 (8-4)
Minnesota's Randy Moss caught only three passes, but each went for touchdowns, two for 56 yards and another for 51.
With Deion Sanders out with a sore toe, Randall Cunningham victimized the Cowboys' secondary, completing 17 of 35 passes for 359 yards.
Who else but Moss, who continues to serve notice that he will soon be the NFL's best receiver, if he isn't already.
Stats and recap
Chiefs 34 (5-7)
Cardinals 24 (6-6)
Cards RB Mario Bates had 1 TD and 1 rushing yard, giving him three games in '98 with a TD and less than 10 rushing yards. K.C.'s offense finally moved the chains as it was supposed to, gaining 20 first downs with efficient, winning football. Chiefs QB Rich Gannon had his best game of the year, throwing for 3 TDs and completing 75 percent of his passes.
Stats and recap
Falcons 21 (10-2)
Rams 10 (3-9)
Atlanta gave up only one sack, had just 24 yards from five penalties and committed only one turnover in the win. Falcons outrushed the Rams 204-45, taking the pressure off fill-in quarterbacks Tony Graziani and Steve DeBerg. Jamal Anderson rushed for a career-best 188 yards, giving him 1,426 this season, trailing only Terrell Davis.
Stats and recap
Buccaneers 31 (5-7)
Bears 17 (3-9)
Team combined to go 6-for-30 on third-down chances and 1-for-6 on fourth downs, with 14 punts between them. Chicago's injury-depleted backfield showed -- Moses Moreno held up well, but the Bears rushed for just 69 yards. Bucs QB Trent Dilfer threw 3 TD passes, giving him 10 in his first four games after six TDs in his first eight games.
Stats and recap
Ravens 38 (5-7)
Colts 31 (2-10)
The Colts settled for PATs after all four TDs -- they'd gone for two nine times in their previous 18 touchdowns. The Ravens outscored the Colts 17-0 in the fourth quarter, led by the running of emerging tailback Priest Holmes. Jim Harbaugh led the Ravens back from a 17-3 deficit, throwing for two TDs and completing 64 percent of his passes.
Stats and recap
Jaguars 34 (9-3)
Bengals 17 (2-10)
Injuries forced the Jaguars to give George Jones 13 carries for 42 yards, tripling his season yardage total. The Bengals, who had two turnovers in their first six games, turned the ball over four times, leading to 10 Jags points. Jags QB Mark Brunell set a team record with four touchdown passes, giving him a career-best 20 this season.
Stats and recap
Jets 48 (8-4)
Panthers 21 (2-10)
Jets' Wayne Chrebet had his first multi-TD game since the 1997 opener and his fourth 100-yard game of this season. Jets' Vinny Testaverde played flawless football, throwing two TDs and hitting 76 percent of his passes with no INTs. Curtis Martin exploded for a 60-yard TD, giving him two runs of 31 or longer in two weeks after none in the first 9 weeks.
Stats and recap
Seahawks 20 (6-6)
Oilers 18 (6-6)
Seattle's new starter, Jon Kitna, passed for 299 yards, tossing two TDs and setting up the game-winning FG. A 15-yard late hit penalty on undrafted rookie Perry Phenix helped put Seattle in range for the final kick. Seahawks receiver James McKnight caught a 55-yard touchdown, then two passes for 30 yards in the final minute.
Stats and recap
Patriots 25 (7-5)
Bills 21 (7-5)
New England's Ben Coates has 38 catches in his past five games, after just 18 in his first six games. A pass interference call on Henry James as time expired gave the Patriots one final play and cost the Bills a win. Bledsoe (again, fractured finger) threw for three touchdowns, including the game-winner with no time remaining.
Stats and recap
Redskins 29 (3-9)
Raiders 19 (7-5)
Washington had 324 return yards, giving great field position that allowed three scoring drives to start in Raiders territory. Oakland, fighting for a playoff berth, committed four turnovers and converted just 4 of 16 third-down opportunities. Trent Green threw three more touchdown passes, giving him 10 touchdowns and one interception in the last five games.
Stats and recaps
Packers 24 (8-4)
Eagles 16 (2-10)
Philadelphia's Jeff Graham had two touchdown catches, the first this season for any Eagles receiver (94 catches). After 3 TDs in his first three-plus seasons, Green Bay's William Henderson ran for one score and caught another. Packers' Darick Holmes rushed for a career-best 163 yards, trumping the early return of Dorsey Levens.
Stats and recap
Dolphins 30 (8-4)
Saints 10 (3-9)
Miami's O.J. McDuffie caught three TD passes and has 33 catches in his last four games, after 30 in his first eight games. Dolphins held the ball for 39:45, with Karim Abdul-Jabbar and John Avery rushing 32 times for 111 yards. Miami's Dan Marino threw for a season-high three touchdown passes, while Kerry Collins threw three interceptions.
Stats and recap
Broncos 31 (12-0)
Chargers 16 (5-7)
Chargers QB Craig Welihan threw five interceptions, the most by a San Diego starter since 1986. San Diego failed to take advantage of four Denver turnovers in the first half and finished the game with six themselves (five interceptions, one fumble lost). Despite accounting for four turnovers, Broncos QB John Elway completed 19-of-34 for 239 yards and a season-high four TDs.
Stats and Recap
49ers 31 (9-3)
Giants 7 (4-8)
49ers rushing attack averaged 7.0 yards per carry (237 yards on 34 carries). 49ers running back Garrison Hearst rushed for 166 yards on 20 carries, including a 70-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. 49ers' receiver Terrell Owens hauled in five passes for 140 yards, including his catch and run for 79 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter.
Stats and Recap
 

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