Around the League We Go!

• Through nine games, Jeremy Langford has only 100 yards less from scrimmage than Melvin Gordon.
• Someone in the Browns organization needs to walk down to the head coach’s office and tell him playing Josh McCown is no longer an option. I’ve never believed Johnny Manziel’s ability would translate to the pro game but losing down the stretch with McCown does the team zero good. (Manziel was quietly good in that Steelers game yesterday and Manziel isn’t quietly anything.)
• Tom Brady is full of magic. That’s the only way I can explain it.
• Giants should be 8-1. They’ve only played one poor game all season. I wouldn’t want to be walking into the Meadowlands in January once this group puts it together. (They are also +12 in turnovers this season. They are secretly good.)
• The NFL got what they wanted by changing the extra point rule. They made kickers way too relevant on Sundays. (And they’ve delayed at least 7-10 of my piss breaks.)

Missed Extra Points – Since 2010 – NFL 2010 – 2014 37 2015 so far 36

— Paul Pabst (@PaulPabst) November 16, 2015

• I have no interest in seeing Peyton Manning play football like this. 
• DBB has been reporting it for months and nobody has been listening. Seattle isn’t any good.
• Remember when game stats used to be indicative of a player’s performance? Aaron Rodgers threw for 333 yards, 2 touchdowns and 0 interceptions at home against the Lions and all the morning talk shows had “What’s Wrong with Aaron Rodgers” as one of their major talking points.
• This was the most impressive moment in the NFL I saw all week:

Watkins v. Revis pic.twitter.com/3FleWxkdGW — Bre (@bre_88) November 13, 2015

• If the season ended today…

AFC BYES: Patriots, Bengals

AFC WILD CARD WEEKEND: Steelers at Colts, Bills at Broncos

NFC BYES: Panthers, Cardinals

NFC WILD CARD WEEKEND: Falcons at Vikings, Packers at Giants

Three Bears Thoughts

(1) Tracy Porter is climbing into my list of players I think can make a positive contribution in 2016. He’s by no means a shutdown corner but he’s a player the Bears can win with.

(2) Goldman, Amos, Langford are players. Grasu flashed in limited duty. Kevin White hasn’t seen the field yet. It takes two years to evaluate a draft class but early returns on Ryan Pace’s first go are uplifting.

(3) It seems in vogue to say the Bears will lose Adam Gase to a head coaching gig this January. But it’s way too early to know if Gase will be on the radars in Tennessee, Indy, Detroit, Miami…etc. My question. Why wouldn’t Vic Fangio be considered for head coaching vacancies? Fangio has the Bears playing respectable defense weekly with one of the weakest defensive rosters in the league. He’s a great, great football coach.

NFL CATCH RULE OFFICIALLY A JOKE

Nobody knows what a catch is. Sunday Odell Beckham had a catch called incomplete in the end zone. It was the exact same play as Golden Tate’s touchdown against the Chicago Bears. Boomer Esiason voiced his concern this morning.

JAY CUTLER UPDATE

Cutler has played 7 1/2 of the 9 games. His numbers:

• 64.2% of passes complete
• 2,045 yards
• 13 touchdowns
• 5 INTs

He is on pace for 4,362 yards, 28 touchdowns and 11 INTs. But no, he isn’t any good.

If he is kept (should be/will be IMO), Jay Cutler’s cap hit of $17 million in 2016 will be the 15th highest in the NFL. A relative bargain.

— Matt Spiegel (@MattSpiegel670) November 16, 2015