2022 NFL Week 14 Takeaways

By Jeff Stinger • December 12, 2022

Another week, another captivating slate of football games. Week 14 had plenty of drama for fans and even more so for the teams still in the hunt for a playoff spot. From critical injuries to near-upsets and a stellar debut, the final bye week of the season surely didn’t lack intrigue even though six teams weren’t involved in the action.

Nitrobetting is ready to equip its bettors with the latest news, NFL odds, and special features for the entire duration of the 2022 NFL season. Let’s briefly recap the most notable happenings from Week 14 with our three key takeaways from this week’s action.

Top Takeaways from 2022 NFL Week 14

Brock Purdy's dad watching his son ????

What a moment ????

(via @nfl)pic.twitter.com/gsM4k3Y4Nr
— ESPN (@espn) December 11, 2022

Purdy Good Start

Don’t call him Mr. Irrelevant anymore, as San Francisco’s rookie quarterback Brock Purdy appears to be the real deal. Purdy, the last man selected in this year’s NFL Draft, had a professional debut to remember as he and the 49ers bludgeoned the Buccaneers by way of a 35-7 rout on Sunday.

Purdy completed 16 of 21 passes for 185 yards and scored three touchdowns (one on the ground) with no interceptions, as the former Iowa State standout became the first NFL player to make his NFL debut and beat Tom Brady on his very first try. Coupled with the Seahawks’ loss to the Panthers, the Niners now have a two-game lead over their NFC West rivals in the divisional race. Meanwhile, Tampa Bay slips to 6-7 but still has a one-game lead over the Falcons for the top spot in NFC South standings.

Stark Raven Mad Win for Baltimore

Over in the AFC North, the Ravens needed to keep pace with the surging Bengals as the two had identical 8-4 records entering Week 14. Cincy extended its win streak to five games after beating the neighboring Browns, while Baltimore mustered up a hard-fought win over the Steelers considering the dire circumstances they were in during that game.

That victory cost the Ravens yet another starting QB, as Tyler Huntley suffered a concussion during the third quarter and the team had to rely on third-stringer Anthony Brown for the rest of the contest. Brown did just enough to lead his team to a field-goal drive to put the Ravens up by two possessions in the fourth quarter. They’d end up snapping their four-game losing streak to Pittsburgh with a final score of 16-14. With Lamar Jackson still week-to-week with a knee injury, the Ravens, who gashed the Steelers for 215 rushing yards (120 yards care of returning running back J.K. Dobbins), will likely employ a run-heavy gameplan once more in their huge Week 15 divisional showdown against Cleveland.

Cardiac Cowboys and Chiefs

A couple of strong playoff contenders nearly suffered massive upsets during their respective matchups in Week 14. Dallas’ head was the first to be on the chopping block, as the one-win Texans had a three-point lead entering the final quarter. Dak Prescott staged an amazing 98-yard, game-winning TD drive to go up by four points with under 40 seconds remaining and ultimately prevent a stunning loss in Arlington.

During the late afternoon window of Sunday’s games, it was Kansas City’s turn to avoid an embarrassing fate against the offensively-inept Broncos. The Chiefs nearly squandered a commanding 27-point shutout lead in the first half, as Denver trailed by just six points in the fourth quarter. However, a late injury suffered by Russell Wilson limited the Broncos’ chances of pulling off the colossal comeback and the Chiefs hung on for the victory and overcame Patrick Mahomes’ relatively shaky outing (three INTs) against a stout Denver D.

Dallas and KC both improve to 10-3 for the season as the two remain virtual locks for the postseason. The Cowboys pretty much have a stranglehold on one of the three wild card spots in the NFC and are still within striking distance for a division title against the Eagles, who still have a two-game lead over them in the standings. Kansas City, meanwhile, failed to clinch the AFC West as the Chargers picked up a massive win over the Dolphins on Sunday. LA stays mathematically alive in the race for the division pennant even at three games behind the Chiefs, although KC wins any sort of tiebreaker after sweeping the Bolts in their two prior meetings this season.

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