2014: A Sporting Year In Review!

What a year we had! 2014 provided the sports world with many memorable moments and events, both good and bad. We all know about the great stories and plays and games. We all know about the Alex Rodriguez, the World Cup, Ray Rice, Donald Sterling and everybody else from the sports world. All those personalities made us turn on the TV and listen to the radio to hear or watch what was gonna happen next. There was more to it than that. We saw the great performances on the playing surfaces: UCONN sweeps the basketball championships, the Spurs win another NBA crown. There were so many great moments on the field as well.; So we are here to help.

The following is the full list of championships won during the calender year 2014!

Golf:
Masters Tournament Winner:
Bubba Watson (Second Masters and Major win; sixth PGA Tour win)
U.S. Open Winner:
Martin Kaymer (Second Major win and first U.S. Open win; 21st professional win; third PGA Tour win)
2014 Open Championship Winner:
Rory McIlroy (Third major win and first British Open win; 7th PGA Tour win)
2014 PGA Championship Winner:
Rory McIlroy (Fourth major win and second PGA Championship; 9th PGA Tour win)

Tennis:
Australian Open Men's Winner:
Stanislas Wawrinka (first Australian Open and Grand Slam title)
Women's winner:
China Li Na (first Australian Open win; second Grand Slam title)
French Open Men's winner:
Rafael Nadal (ninth French Open title win; 14th overall Grand Slam title win; already achieved the Career Golden Slam in 2010)
Women's winner:
Maria Sharapova (second French Open title win; fifth overall Grand Slam title win; already achieved the Career Grand Slam in 2012)
Wimbledon Championships Men's winner:
Novak Djokovic (second Wimbledon title win; 7th overall Grand Slam title win)
Women's winner:
Petra Kvitová (second Wimbledon and Grand Slam title win)
US Open Men's winner:
Marin Čilić (first US Open and Grand Slam win)
Women's winner:
Serena Williams (sixth US Open win; 18th overall Grand Slam title win; already achieved the Super Slam and Career Golden Slam in 2012)

College:
BCS National Championship
#1 Florida State defeated #2 Auburn 34–31.

Basketball 
2014 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
The Connecticut Huskies defeated the Kentucky Wildcats, 60–54, to claim its fourth NCAA title.

2014 NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament
The Connecticut Huskies defeated the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, 79–58, to claim its ninth NCAA title.

NFL:
Super Bowl XLVIII, at MetLife Stadium
Seattle Seahawks defeated the Denver Broncos 43–8, to claim its first title.

MLB:
World Series
San Francisco Giants defeated the Kansas City Royals, 4–3 in games, to claim its eighth World Series title.

NBA:
NBA Playoffs
The San Antonio Spurs defeated the Miami Heat, 4–1 (in games won), to claim its fifth NBA title.

NHL:
Stanley Cup playoffs
The Los Angeles Kings defeated the New York Rangers, 4–1 (in games won), to claim its second NHL title.

If 2014 was this good a year, 2015 should be just as good if not better!

Best And Worst Of NFL Week Seventeen

The time has arrived. We reached the end of the line, the final regular season game has been played. After seventeen long weeks, the 2014 regular season has come to a close. We saw the playoffs finally get set. New England, Denver, Seattle and Green Bay all get first round bye's. Meanwhile the Colts will host the Bengals, Steelers will host Ravens, Cowboys will host the Lions and finally the Panthers will host the Cardinals. The final week of the season helped set these playoff matchups and gave us some pretty memorable moments to end the regular season.

With all that in mind, here are the best and worst of the final week of the 2014 regular season.

Best:
DeMarco Murray and Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys
Dallas needed to win to lock down the a home playoff game on Sunday. There were questions as to whether or not Murray and Romo would be able to play. Well both were answered in pretty convincing fashion. The Dallas Dynamic Duo emerged unscathed physically from a win in Washington that had few implications for Dallas, though the NFC East champs will take a hot streak into the playoffs after their 44-17 victory. And Murray has to feel good after claiming Emmitt Smith's franchise record for rushing yards in a season, while Romo completed the first undefeated December of his up-and-down career. Now that both guys appear healthy, the question has to be how far can they carry this team in the playoffs? For Romo can he shake the stigma of being a playoff choke artist? Only time will tell.

Worst:
Philip Rivers, Quarterback San Diego Chargers
Rivers had a fairly decent day on the day, but that was about it. Here's a guy who was considered to be an MVP candidate early on this season, when he had the Chargers in a prime spot in the AFC West. Since then, both he and the Chargers have fallen off. San Diego needed to win Sunday to hang on to the final wild card spot. They weren't able to do that. Rivers finished 20 of 34 for 291 yards, not a bad day by some standards. But he didn't throw a TD pass, was picked off twice and was sacked seven total times. Sure both he and the team were dealing with injuries, but he had a chance to fight through it and get the team to the playoffs and he wasn't quite able to do it.

Best:
Joe Flacco, Quarterback Baltimore Ravens
The week before, Flacco and the Ravens laid a major egg against the Texans. That loss forced them to have to win and get help in the final game of the season,. That's what happened. Flacco and co. bounced back in a nice way, with the 20-10 win over the Browns. Flacco went 22 of 36 for 312 yards and a pair of touchdown tosses. Thanks to that performance, and the team win, Flacco was able to help the Ravens snatch a playoff spot for the sixth time since 2008.

Worst:
Matt Ryan, Quarterback Atlanta Falcons
Atlanta laid a total egg at home in the final game of the season. Matt Ryan was part of that. He hasn't exactly been having a good year this year, and Sunday's loss was the bookend to it. Ryan was 29 of 47 for 260 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions. Both of his interceptions were returned for touchdowns. The Falcons didn’t score a touchdown, which is hard to explain for a team with Julio Jones and Roddy White (although fullback Patrick DiMarco did drop a sure touchdown catch).

Best:
Odell Beckham Jr., Wide Receiver New York Giants
This guy has been lighting it up for Big Blue this season. Beckham has been one of the bright spots for the Giants all year long. He finished the season on a high not in the Giants win over the Eagles, snagging 12 passes for 185 yards and a touchdown. Those yards were the 2nd highest by a wide receiver in the final week of the year, only the 221 yards hauled in by Eric Decker of the Jets were more than what Beckham did. He finished the year with 1,305 receiving yards, the third-highest total in Giants history. This was more amazing considering he missed the first four games of the year with an injury. I think it's safe to say that he a good lock to win Rookie of the Year this year!

Worst:
Blake Bortles, Quarterback Jacksonville Jaguars
Back at the June draft, Bortles was the first quarterback taken. Between then and now, Bortles might be happy that this season is over and we moving towards 2015. He was sacked five times Sunday and passed for just 117 yards. Bortles averaged 165 passing yard in his final six starts and never exceeded 210 in that stretch. Jacksonville was 0-for-11 on third downs Sunday in Houston and managed just 233 yards. The takeaway: Bortles needs a lot more offensive support. He can do only so much, he needs help.

Best:
J.J Watt, Defensive End Houston Texans
The NFL has not seen a defensive player win the league MVP award since Lawrence Taylor of the Giants won it in 1986. This year the streak may end thanks to the outstanding play of J.J. Watt of the Texans in 2014! He left MVP voters with serious food for thought after putting an exclamation point on his case to claim the hardware. Thanks to Watt's three sacks Sunday, he became the first player in league history with two 20-sack seasons. One of Watt's takedowns of Jags QB Blake Bortles led to a safety, giving the Texans star 32 points this season (he'd previously scored five TDs). He was a overall threat this year on the Houston Defensive line and should be in major consideration for the award.

Worst:
Mike Smith, Head Coach Atlanta Falcons
With the NFC South and a home playoff game on the line, his Falcons got laid out by the Panthers. Smith, the winningest coach in team history, took the fall for what happened and was let go by the Falcons on Black Monday.

Best:
Carolina Panthers
Thanks to their big win over Atlanta on Sunday, the Panthers captured the NFC South once again. The first back-to-back champions in the 13-season history of the NFC South will host a winnable wild-card round contest against the Cardinals next weekend. Carolina (7-8-1), which went two months without a win in the middle of the season, suddenly seems set up to make a run in January.

Worst:
New England Patriots
They already owned the AFC's top seed at the outset of Week 17, hence the decision to sit TE Rob Gronkowski and WR Julian Edelman against Buffalo. But with its loss to the Bills, New England sacrificed its 35-game home winning streak against AFC teams, saw LT Nate Solder leave the field with a knee injury and won't carry any semblance of momentum into the divisional round after ending the regular season with two listless performances.

There you have it the best and worst of Week Seventeen in the NFL!

NFL Playoff Scenarios

The time has arrived. We have hit the final week of the regular season in the National Football League. There still plenty on the line for a lot of teams on this final Sunday of the year. In the NFC, there are two division titles up for grabs plus the seeding still needs to be figured out. In the AFC, its a little different. One wild card spot and one division title are still up in the air.

It's a lot to try and take in before kickoff, so we are here to help. Here's how the playoff scenarios look for each team fighting it out for the playoffs on the last day of the season.

NFC

Dallas Cowboys:
-Clinch home-field advantage throughout NFC playoffs with:
1) a win plus a Cardinals loss or tie and a Lions-Packers tie.

-Clinches a first-round bye with:
1) a win plus a Seahawks loss or tie plus a Cardinals loss or tie
2) a win plus a Lions-Packers tie
3) a tie plus a Seahawks loss and a Cardinals loss
4) a tie plus a Seahawks tie, a Cardinals loss or tie and Lions-Packers does not end in a tie

Detroit Lions:
-Clinch the NFC North with: a win or a tie.

-Clinch home-field advantage with:
1) a win plus a Seahawks loss or tie and a Cardinals loss or tie
2) a tie plus a Seahawks loss, a Cardinals loss and a Cowboys loss or tie

-Clinch a first-round bye with:
1) a win
2) a tie plus a Cowboys loss or tie
3) a tie plus a Seahawks loss and a Cardinals loss

Green Bay Packers:
-Clinch the NFC North and a first-round bye with a win, and canclinch home-field with: a win and a Seahawks loss or tie.

Seattle Seahawks:
-Clinch the NFC West with:
1) a win
2) a tie plus a Cardinals loss or tie
3) a Cardinals loss

-Clinch home-field advantage with:
1) a win plus Lions-Packers game does not end in a tie
2) a win plus a Cowboys loss or tie
3) a tie plus a Cardinals loss or tie, a Cowboys loss and a Lions-Packers tie

-Clinch a first-round bye with:
1) a win
2) a tie plus a Cardinals loss or tie and a Cowboys loss 
3) a tie plus a Cardinals loss or tie and a Lions-Packers tie

Arizona Cardinals:
-Clinch NFC West with:
1) a win plus a Seahawks loss or tie
2) a tie plus a Seahawks loss

-Clinch home-field advantage with:
1) a win plus a Seahawks loss or tie and a Packers loss or tie
2) a tie plus a Seahawks loss, a Cowboys loss or tie and a Packers-Lions tie

-Clinch a first-round bye with:
1) a win plus a Seahawks loss or tie
2) a tie plus a Seahawks loss and a Cowboys loss or tie
3) a tie plus a Seahawks loss and a Lions-Packers tie

Carolina Panthers vs. Atlanta Falcons:
-Winner gets the NFC South Crown!

AFC

Denver Broncos:
-Clinches a first-round bye with:
1) a win or tie
2) a Bengals loss
3) a Bengals tie plus Colts win

Cincinnati Bengals:
-Clinch AFC North with a win or tie in Week 17.

-Clinches first-round bye with:
1) a win plus a Broncos loss or tie
2) a tie plus a Broncos loss and a Colts loss or tie

Pittsburgh Steelers:
-Clinch AFC North with win.

San Diego Chargers:
-Clinch playoff spot with:
1) a win
2) a tie plus a Ravens loss or tie

Baltimore Ravens:
-Clinch playoff spot with:
1) a win plus a Chargers loss or tie
2) a tie plus a Chargers loss

Kansas City Chiefs:
-Clinch a playoff spot with: a win plus a Ravens loss and a Texans loss or tie.

Houston Texans:
-Clinch a playoff spot with: a win plus a Ravens loss and a Chargers loss.

That's what's at stake during the final game of the regular season!

Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays!

It truly is the most wonderful time of the year. Yes Christmas has finally arrived! Its the time of year where all family and friends get together and enjoy each others company. This is the best time of the year for that very reason. So in the spirit of Christmas we here at Solly on Sports offer the following Christmas inspired hockey songs for your viewing pleasure. It's the 12 day's of Christmas, with a twist!

First up is a video made for one of the longest tenured broadcasters in the NHL the one and only Rick Jeanneret:


Next up is a personal favorite of mine. This guy is one of my idols and one of the better radio announcers in the NHL its Mike Lange:


Finally, we close out this little holiday gift with the 12 days of Christmas, NHL style!


We hope you enjoy this little hockey Christmas video present. So from all of us to all of you and your families we wish you a very Merry Christmas and a very Happy Holidays!

Best And Worst Of NFL Week Sixteen

It's getting close to that time of the year. Playoff spots are getting locked up, some teams get in while others faltered down the stretch. New England, Denver, Cincinnati, Indianapolis and Pittsburgh have locked up playoff spots in the AFC. Meanwhile the NFC has seen Seattle, Detroit, Dallas, Green Bay and Arizona lock up sports. The only things still to be decided next week, besides exact seeding of course, is the NFC South champion, between Carolina and Atlanta. Then in the AFC its a toss up for the division between Pittsburgh and Cincinnati for the AFC North, as well as the last wild card spot between Baltimore (who plays Cleveland) and San Diego (who plays Kansas City).

While all this was going on, we saw in week sixteen, the Eagles fall apart. We saw Arizona having a bit of a fall from grace, Odell Beckham continue to dazzle and the Cowboys win their first division title since 2009.

With all that being said, here's some of the best and worst from week sixteen in the NFL.

Best:
Seattle Seahawks (Offense and Defense)
They had a big game last week against the Cardinals and they really didn't disappoint. They showed up in a big way, whipping Arizona 3-5, the win moving them into the top spot in the NFC (based on tie breakers). Offensively, Seattle was lead by three guys: Russell Wilson (339 yards and two TDs passing, plus 88 yards and a TD rushing), Marshawn Lynch (113 yards on the ground, including mind-blowing 79-yard TD dash) and surprisngly Luke Willson (three catches, 139 yards, two TDs). Those three combined for a huge chunk of Seattle's 596 total yards of offense. And lets not forget about the resurgence of the Seattle defense as well. In their last five games, all wins mind you, this group has allowed 33 points and fewer than 1,000 total yards. It looks like the Seattle LOB is going to have given up the fewest points in the league for the 3rd year in a row. Yeah I'd say they're firing on all cylinders at just the right time.

Worst:
Arizona Cardinals
Up to this point, the Cardinals have been able to overcome every obstacle that has been thrown in their way. That's why they are, once again, 11-4 and in a playoff spot right now. At the same time though, they have taken a bit of a hit the last few weeks. Sunday the Cards ended up using a fourth-string quarterback who's never thrown a TD and forcing the defense to constantly take risks to compensate finally took its toll. Arizona held the NFC's No. 1 seed when Sunday dawned but had fallen to No. 6 by day's end following an ugly comeuppance to the Seahawks. So now they go from sitting atop the NFC to holding on to a wild card spot. Yes they are in the playoffs this year, but it don't look too good right now in Arizona.

Best:
Derek Carr, Quarterback Oakland Raiders
The rookie QB was able to do something on Sunday that Aaron Rogers and Payton Manning weren't able to do in the weeks prior against the Buffalo Bills. Carr managed to throw a touchdown pass. In fact he threw two of them, which was more than Manning and Rogers had combined against the Bills. Carr finished the day going 17 of 34 for 214 yards and those two touchdown tosses. Not astounding numbers by any means, but still Carr had more touchdown tosses against Buffalo than the two other MVP QB's combined. It was good enough to help the Raiders to their 26-24 win over the Bills, ending any hopes Buffalo had of making the playoffs this season.

Worst:
Joe Flacco, Quarterback Baltimore Ravens
Baltimore had a golden chance to handle their business and deal with a playoff spot this past Sunday.Houston was the opponent and Joe Flacco had a chance to lead the Ravens once again to the promise lad of playoff football. But that had to wait till the final game of the season for it to possibly happen. Why? Flacco's three INTs led directly to 13 Houston points in a game the Ravens lost 25-13. Baltimore surrendering its playoff destiny to the Chargers.

Best:
Joe Philbin, Head Coach Miami Dolphins
Miami Dolphins coach Joe Philbin got a vote of confidence from owner Stephen Ross and assurance he'll be back for the 2015 season. Why you ask? Alot of it had to do with QB Ryan Tannehill's career-best four TD passes and nine Miami points in the final 71 seconds of a 37-35 home win over the Vikings. Philbin had his guys ready to go and made sure they took advantage of what Minnesota gave them on Sunday. If Miami beats the Jets in Week 17, Philbin will earn his first winning record for a season and improve to 24-24 after three years. He gained trust of his owners so he knows he has a job next season.

Worst:
Rex Ryan, Head Coach New York Jets
Rex has always been compared to Bill Belichick, it's been going on ever since he came here to New York. Rex has had his moments, but Sunday wasn't exactly one of them. His Jets made Tom Brady look mortal and actually outgained the Patriots 307-231 as the teams kept the outcome within three points for the fifth time in their last six meetings. Unfortunately for Ryan, New England won four of those contests, including a 17-16 victory Sunday that clinched a first-round bye. This loss the Jets to their first 12-loss season since 2007. The bitter defeat likely will be Ryan's final appearance as New York's coach at MetLife Stadium.

Best:
Green Bay Packers Defense
A normal power of the Packers game, at least this season anyway, has been their offense. No disrespect to the defense, but the offense has been carrying the load this year. Well on Sunday, it was the defense that played the biggest role. It was dominant while helping Green Bay sew up a playoff berth in Tampa. The Pack limited the Bucs to three points, six first downs and 109 yards while sacking QB Josh McCown seven times, 2½ courtesy of Clay Matthews. Green Bay showed that while the offense has been outstanding, their defense can be just as good if not better when it has to be.

Worst:
Kansas City Chiefs Offense
A strange occurrence happened this past Sunday. Kansas City tried to go head to head with the Steelers high powered offense. Surprisingly, Kansas City actually managed to outgain Pittsburgh by 45 yards (327-282). But Kansas City continually settled for field goals, going 0-for-4 in the red zone, and couldn't get primary threat Jamaal Charles (77 yards) loose. The 20-12 loss, the Chiefs' fourth in five games, will likely deep-six their season. Kansas City had a real shot to possibly overtake teams and make the playoffs this year. But with the offense seeming to go cold at the worst possible time, that pretty much took out any chances the Chiefs had of making the playoffs this season.

Best:
DeMarco Murray and Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas duo combined for five TDs on Sunday, four came on throws by Romo, while the other was on a run by Murray. Each hit the showers early while avoiding further injury as the Cowboys wrapped up the NFC East with a shocking 42-7 win over the Colts. Now coach Jason Garrett must decide how to divvy up his stars' snaps next week with Dallas in play for a bye but also presented with an opportunity to give Murray and his surgically repaired hand immediate relief.

Worst:
Philadelphia Eagles Offense
Are they really human after all? As prolific as the Eagles offense can be, its league-high 35 turnovers short-circuit way too many opportunities. Mark Sanchez's ill-timed pair of giveaways Saturday ultimately cost Philly a winnable game at Washington and, ultimately, their playoff shot as the Eagles spiraled from 9-3 last month to home for the winter next month. You really have seen down the stretch this season how much not having Nick Foles under center has hurt Philly. They went from leading the pack in the NFC East to missing the playoffs altogether. Mark Sanchez did all he could but now many are starting to realize why he is more of a backup than a number one passer.

So there you have it. The best and worst of week sixteen in the NFL!

Mets Already Project Opening Day Lineup?

It's early December. We haven't even hit Christmas yet. There's still plenty of time between now and the start of Spring Training, which starts with games on March 6th. There's still a good chance that Mets General Manager Sandy Alderson could make another move. As it looks right now though, many believe, myself included, that Sandy wopn't do much of anything the rest of the winter months. Sandy made a splash early, signing Michael Cuddyer to a two-year deal, but since then he’s only added lefty reliever Scott Rice and outfielder John Mayberry, Jr. With that being taken into account, plus the fact that it looks like Wilmer Flores is going to be the starting shortstop instead of Ruben Tejada.

With all that taken into account, Manager Terry Collins feels pretty comfortable that, baring any major injuries, his opening day roster is set in stone. In a story from the New York Post, Collins had given the paper his projected opening day lineup, which was said to look a little something like this:

CF – Juan Lagares
LF – Curtis Granderson
3B – David Wright
1B – Lucas Duda
RF – Michael Cuddyer
2B – Daniel Murphy
C – Travis d’Arnaud
SS – Wilmer Flores
P

When the Paper asked Collins how he felt about his lineup, he responded with the following.

“I really like our team, I am so excited. There were always big missing pieces in the past. Now there’s not. We’re not going to put a number on it, but we’re going to win. I don’t think that there is any question that we should be playing in October next year.”

Now there's a couple of things that I have a slight issue with here. As far as the lineup goes, I wouldn't mind keeping Granderson in right and having Cuddyer play left. But I have a feeling either guy could play well in either the corner outfield spots. Some people have been calling for the Mets to make a move to pick up another shortstop. The way I see it I don't really care who it is as long as it's nor Ruben Tejada. I'm sorry Tejada isn't that fast and doesn't have much range for a position that you need both those skills. The Mets haven't been able to find a guy to settle down at that position since Jose Reyes left town for a bigger contract.

Some people have wanted Troy Tulowitzki to be acquired from the Rockies. I wouldn't mind that myself, but there are two problems with that theory. One is the HUGE contract that Tulowitzki has, a deal that I don't think the Mets are going to be willing to take on. The other reason I say getting Troy would be a bad idea is beacuse he always has health issues. He hasn't been able to stay healthy, which is a big red flag and why the Mets haven't gone after him.

As far as this batting order is concerned I would actually consider making a couple of changes. I would keep Lagares and Granderson at the the top of the order. Granderson put up his good numbers in the Bronx was when he was hitting mostly in the 2 spot in the lineup. I would take Wright out of the 3 hole and put Murphy there. I say this because Murphy has been the Mets most consistent hitter the last few seasons, no disrespect to Wright, who has been the face of the franchise the last few years. The reason I would have Wright hitting either 5 or 6 is because, when you look back to some of Wright's better years with the team, he was hitting down there in the order. Granted at that time he had hitters ahead of him like Mike Piazza, Cliff Floyd, Carlos Beltran and Carlos Delgado, so there was pressure taken off Wright to produce. And he was healthier. Still I would give it a shot hitting Wright lower in the lineup, just to take pressure off him trying to produce.

A lot can still change between now and the start of Spring Training but if this stays put as what the Mets are gonna do, I think they have better options but that's just me.

Best And Worst Of NFL Week Fifteen

That time of year has arrived. Not only are the holidays in full swing, but we are also now at that point during the NFL season where playoff hopes and early draft picks are are really starting to take shape. New England (AFC East), Denver (AFC West) and Indianapolis (AFC South) have already locked up their respective divisions, while the Arizona Cardinals have their ticket punched for the post season in the NFC. Cleveland continues to fall from grace in the AFC North, while the Packers fall in a surprise upset. Even with losing DeMarco Murray, Dallas overtakes Philadelphia for the lead in the NFC East. While all that's going on in the top of the league, the bottom feeders are fighting out for the top overall pick. Right now Tampa Bay, Jacksonville, Tennessee and Oakland are fighting it out for the top pick in next June's draft.

This past weekend went a long way in helping shape the playoff future and the draft future for a lot of teams. Here's some of the highlights from the week that was in the National Football League.

Best:
Derek Anderson, Quarterback Carolina Panthers
For the second time this year, Anderson has come in as the starter in Carolina for an injured Cam Newton. For the second time this season, Anderson has gotten a start against the Buccaneers, winning both games. This past Sunday, Anderson went 25 of 40 for 277 yards and a touchdown. I know he was sacked three times during the game, but still he was able to get the ball out to Greg Olsen and Kelvin Benjamin, who each had 100 yard receiving games. Anderson came in during a big game, allowing the Panthers to keep pace in that weak NFC South.

Worst:
Aaron Rogers, Quarterback Green Bay Packers
Many people had the feeling that, coming into Sunday, Rogers had been leading the pack for the MVP race in the NFL. That may have changed a little this week, as Rodgers suffered through what was probably his worst game as a pro as the Packers stumbled to a 21-13 loss at Buffalo. Rodgers didn't throw a TD and was picked off twice by the Buffalo defense/ This after he had thrown just three INTs in his first 13 starts of the season. He was also stripped of the ball on the Packers' final possession, a miscue that gave the Bills a safety and enabled them to run out the clock after taking possession on the ensuing free kick. Rodgers' 34.3 passer rating was the lowest of his 10-year career. Worst of all, Green Bay fell out of first place in the NFC North and may have fumbled away its shot at securing home-field advantage in the playoffs..

Best:
Bill Belichick and Tom Brady, New England Patriots
This dynamic duo seems to always find a way to pull this off. Coming off the strength of the Pats 41-13 win over the Dolphins on Sunday, New England clinched the AFC East crown for the 6th year in a row and the 12th time in the last 14 years. I really don't know what it is but these two guys always find a way to win together, but during the playoffs its a bit of a different story. New England hasn't won a Super Bowl in the last decade.

Worst:
Cleveland Browns Offense
Sure the Johnny Manzel era has begun in Cleveland, but it hasn't gotten off to all that great of a start. Cleveland ran 38 total plays, during which Manziel was awful. He did Manziel things. He broke tackles, and extended plays, and was generally thrilling before throwing the ball to someone on the other team or no one in particular. His two interceptions were horrendous, both coming after he did some scrambling and then lofted a ball downfield. If there is a takeaway from Manziel’s first start, it’s that arm strength may turn out to be a problem.

Best:
Seattle Seahawks Defense
The Legion of Boom and Co. continued their late-season surge and have allowed just 27 points over the last four games after knocking out the 49ers 17-7. Only one of the Seahawks' last nine opponents has surpassed 300 offensive yards.

Worst:
Jim Harbaugh, Head Coach San Francisco 49ers
For the 2nd time in this calender year, the 49ers season has come to an end at the hands of the Seahawks in Seattle. Just 7-4 three weeks ago, the Niners fell to 7-7 after losing twice to Seattle over the last three games. It is the first time San Francisco won't reach the playoffs under Harbaugh, and maybe the last time he'll visit Seattle for a while given he and the 49ers are widely expected to part ways once the season ends.

Best:
Odell Beckham Jr. Wide Receiver New York Giants
This guy just keeps getting better and better every single week. He led all receivers this week in catches with 12, receiving yards with 143 and had his first 3-TD game of his young career. With that, he now has posted at least 90 receiving yards in his last seven games. By the looks of things the past two months, I think it might be safe to say that this guy could now have a hold on the offensive rookie of the year in the league this year, with the way he's been playing.

Worst:
Bradley Fletcher, Cornerback Philadelphia Eagles
He got abused pretty good on Sunday by Cowboys WR Dez Bryant, who found the end zone on three of his six receptions Sunday night while being "covered" by Fletcher. Dallas' 38-27 victory gave it a 10-4 record and sole possession of the NFC East lead

So there you have it, some of the best and worst of the last week in the National Football League!