5 things we liked and didn't like from Week 12: Gibbs shines, Chiefs survive and parity ahead of Thanksgiving

We've reached Thanksgiving week in the NFL, and there's so much to be thankful for this season if you take a step back and look at the sport as a whole.

Want parity? The Chiefs, who have won nine straight AFC West titles, are in third in their own division, but after beating the Colts in overtime, they reminded us they can't be counted out yet. The Bills, meanwhile, have won the AFC East five years running but are three games behind the Patriots in the win column and already down in the head-to-head tiebreaker. Buffalo, like Kansas City, just needs to focus on making the playoffs at this point, especially after a "Thursday Night Football" loss to the Texans exposed real problems on both sides of the ball.

Want unlikely stories? How about the Broncos, Patriots, Colts and Bears leading their respective divisions and the Panthers contending for theirs? At the beginning of the season, the Broncos were +300 to win the AFC West, Patriots were +550 to win the AFC East, the Colts were +350 to win the AFC South and the Bears were +600 to win the NFC North, according to FanDuel Sportsbook. None of those four teams earned a single vote in our preseason divisional picks, and I certainly don't think CBS Sports was alone in that.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: The NFL always delivers. There's a huge tripleheader on Thanksgiving, with Chiefs-Cowboys on CBS/Paramount+ being the perfect complement to your Thanksgiving feast. There's another huge game Friday. There are zero byes this week. Beautiful.

But before we get there, we have to review a thrilling and, in some cases, surprising Week 12.

5 things we liked in Week 12

The Chiefs look like themselves again

Patrick Mahomes

KC • QB • #15

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For the past half-decade or so, there was an inevitability around the Chiefs. They'd find a way. Last year's depleted offense made the Super Bowl. Kansas City won the two Super Bowls before that, also made the Super Bowl five seasons ago and won it six years ago. From 2020-24, the Chiefs went 21-7 in one-score games, the best mark in the NFL.

And then this year came. The Chiefs entered this weekend 0-5 in one-score games, the worst mark in the NFL. Call it overdue regression or bad luck or life in the NFL, but it was very un-Chiefs-like. When Kansas City entered the fourth quarter down 20-9 to the Colts and Kareem Hunt fumbled inside Indianapolis territory, the game -- and the season -- were in dire straits.

Then the Chiefs became the Chiefs. The defense got a three-and-out, and the Chiefs scored and got the two-point conversion on the ensuing drive. The teams traded scoreless possessions. Then Kansas City did what they had so often done -- but had failed to do this season -- and converted when they had to have it: a 15-play, 87-yard drive. Unsurprisingly, it was Patrick Mahomes getting it started.

Then the defense got another three-and-out to start overtime, and Mahomes led another one of those lengthy, agonizing-for-the-defense drives: 12 plays, 81 yards and a game-winning Harrison Butker kick.

Mahomes making big plays late? Check. The defense taking away what the opponent does best (Jonathan Taylor had just 58 rushing yards.)? Check. The Chiefs looked like themselves again, and just in the nick of time.

Jahmyr Gibbs is a superstar

Jahmyr Gibbs

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There were lots of huge individual performances in huge wins in Week 12. I wish I could shout them all out. Myles Garrett, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and George Pickens are among the ones that would earn top billing if Jahmyr Gibbs didn't do what he did: 219 rushing yards, 45 receiving yards and three touchdowns, including the game-winning 69-yarder on the first play of overtime.

The Lions needed every bit of it. Detroit's defense was a mess, getting picked apart by Jameis Winston. Jared Goff was up and down, once again looking shaky behind a shaky offensive line. Detroit trailed by 10 in the fourth quarter and was in danger of losing for the third time in four games.

Gibbs wouldn't let it happen. His 49-yard scamper to start the rally was even more impressive than the game winner.

Credit Dan Campbell for not abandoning the run when down. Credit the Lions for making Gibbs the clear feature back; he is playing over 62% of Detroit's offensive snaps this season, a career high, and played nearly 74% of the snaps against the Giants, his third-highest rate this season. He now has three plays hitting 22-plus mph as a ball-carrier this season; the entire rest of the NFL has three combined.

They say speed kills, but Sunday, it helped the Lions survive.

2025 NFL Week 12 winners and losers: Jahmyr Gibbs, Patrick Mahomes come up clutch; Bengals, Vikings spiraling

Cody Benjamin

Cowboys don't give up

This play has been making the rounds on social media, but if you haven't seen it yet, you should.

That play embodied the Cowboys' remarkable 21-point comeback in an eventual 24-21 win over the Eagles.

We've seen plenty of Cowboys teams go down and go out with a whimper. In fact, entering Sunday, the Cowboys were 1-16-1 in their previous 18 games when they trailed by double digits at any point. Twelve of those losses were by double digits. And Sunday, it looked like it would go that way again. The Eagles scored touchdowns on each of their first three drives. Dallas' first four drives? Turnover on downs, punt, fumble, interception.

But they hung in there. They got contributions from everyone, not just the stars. Kavontae Turpin's big catch jumpstarted the first scoring drive. Sam Williams forced a Saquon Barkley fumble. Alijah Clark and Markquese Bell helped force the above fumble, and long snapper Trent Sieg recovered it.

And then, of course, there are the stars. Dak Prescott was excellent after an awful start. Pickens is a star finally fulfilling his vast potential. At this point in the season, we're understanding a team's strengths and weaknesses, and sometimes, intangibles like toughness and persistence qualify. Dallas showed plenty of both.

Cowboys overcome self-inflicted wounds vs. Eagles for future-altering win, keep playoff hopes alive

Garrett Podell

Silver lining for Bengals defense

It's shaping up to be another lost year for the Bengals, in large part to a defense that remains a mess. But DJ Turner shouldn't be included in that. The third-year cornerback has been one of the game's best this season, and Sunday, he was targeted just once and was a big reason Stefon Diggs had just two catches for 20 yards.

Turner is Pro Football Focus' third highest-graded cornerback in coverage this season, and his 15 passes defensed are tied for the league lead. His 44% completion percentage allowed is fourth-best in the NFL among all players who have been the primary defender at least 40 times.

Only one player has more than two catches in a game with Turner as the primary defender this season. Only one player has had 50 yards in a game with Turner as the primary defender this year. Simply put, Turner has been a shutdown corner in every sense of the word.

Mike Kafka gets aggressive

I have been impressed with Kafka, whose Giants have played two strong teams down to the wire since he took over as coach following the Brian Daboll firing.

On Sunday, the Giants scored not one but two circus touchdowns, one thrown by Jameis Winston and one caught by Jameis Winston. I'd like to see Kafka get serious consideration for the Giants' full-time gig -- he has interviewed for head coaching jobs in the past -- but if he doesn't, he's certainly emptying the playbook.

The decision that drew plenty of questions, though, was going for it on fourth-and-6 from the Giants 6-yard line, leading 27-24 with under two minutes left. Winston threw incomplete for Theo Johnson, the Lions got a Jake Bates field goal at the buzzer, and to overtime they went.

I like the idea to go for it. Here's why:

• By being up three instead of six, the Lions don't have to go for it on fourth down. Essentially, the offense may have one fewer down to use.
• The Lions took over at their own 6-yard line. Had the Giants opted for a field goal and kicked off, the Lions likely would have started at their own 30-yard line or better.
• Most importantly ... the Giants had a chance to seal the game right there! "My pass to the right to Theo Johnson, if it is four inches to the left, that's a touchdown, and we finish the game," Winston said postgame.
  

If the Giants had kicked a field goal and given up a touchdown to lose by one in regulation, would that have been a better coaching job by Kafka? The result obviously didn't go his way, but I was more than OK with the process.

NFL Week 12 overreactions: Chiefs save season? Browns should stick with Shedeur Sanders? Steelers collapsing?

Tyler Sullivan

5 things we didn't like in Week 12

The Bills have WR problems

One of the aspects Josh Allen receives so much credit for is his ability to lift those around him -- the fact that he can lift an offense to elite heights despite not having a true No. 1 wide receiver.

But wouldn't it be nicer if he, you know, had a No. 1 wide receiver?

In the Bills' 23-19 loss to the Texans, Allen was sacked a career-high eight times. His average completion to a wide receiver was thrown a minuscule 3.9 yards downfield on average, and that number would have been even smaller without a miracle fourth-and-27 lateral-aided conversion.

This is nothing new. Allen's average completion to a wide receiver this year is traveling just 6.3 yards downfield on average, the lowest number in the NFL. In fact, Allen and Browns rookie Dillon Gabriel are the only players under 6.5. That's inexcusable company for arguably the league's most physically gifted quarterback.

Allen was always going to have to rein it in from his uber-aggressive early-career tendencies, but this current offense has nerfed him of one of his greatest strengths. Five of his 12 completions to wide receivers on Thursday were thrown behind the line of scrimmage. The Bills were without Dalton Kincaid (hamstring) and Keon Coleman (healthy scratch), their two best downfield threats. But even that designation is not a great sign. Kincaid is a tight end, not a wide receiver. Coleman is a contested-catch guy, not someone who creates separation downfield.

Buffalo has made several measures (mostly half-measures) at wide receiver since trading away Diggs after the 2023 season. Allen needs a full-fledged downfield threat to restore him to his best and most dangerous level of play.

Jaguars keep making major mistakes

Every time you want to believe in the Jaguars, they give you the biggest possible reason not to: They simply are not trustworthy. On Sunday, Jacksonville eked out a 27-24 win over the lowly Cardinals, and I fully believe all wins are good wins. Jacksonville would be a playoff team if the postseason started today.

But wouldn't it be nice if they could just win in a little more straightforward fashion? Trevor Lawrence threw three interceptions and had a fumble that Walter Nolen caught in midair and returned for a touchdown. (Note: We here at "Five Things" are huge fans of big-man touchdowns.)

Again, good for the Jaguars for winning despite four turnovers. Travis Etienne has been awesome. Devin Lloyd is a star. Lawrence shows flashes, which makes his bad plays all the more frustrating. It just seems like every step forward has a step back with this team. The Jaguars will be playing meaningful late-season football, and even though it didn't happen Sunday, these errors will come back to bite them if they continue.

Everyone feels the need to have a Shedeur Sanders take

Shedeur Sanders

CLE • QB • #12

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Shedeur Sanders' first start was fine. Not great. Not awful. Not even particularly good or bad. His best throw was a beautiful 52-yarder rolling to his right. His first career touchdown pass was a swing pass behind the line of scrimmage that Dylan Sampson took 66 yards to the house. He also threw a bad interception. The overall numbers -- 11 for 20 for 209 yards, one touchdown, one interception and one sack -- are meh.

And guess what? It's fine to leave it at that. The Browns led almost the entire way thanks to the Raiders being completely hopeless offensively. The game plan was among the more conservative you'll see in modern football. I mean, the Browns had 11 first downs all game long, tied for the second-fewest by any team in a win this year.

And, again, that's fine. This was a fifth-round rookie making his first NFL start. He wasn't a disaster, like many in that position have been. He wasn't a star. If anything, feel good for Sanders the human being, who has been under intense scrutiny unlike any fifth-round pick ever. He's the first Browns quarterback to win his first start since 1995, and he was genuinely ecstatic. Good for him!

The Browns are going to keep him as their starter, which, as my colleague Ryan Wilson explained, is absolutely the right idea -- not because he was awesome or is destined to solve Cleveland's quarterback woes, but simply because they need to learn more about him. We can leave it at that.

What are the Browns doing if Shedeur Sanders isn't starting the rest of the season?

Ryan Wilson

The Raiders are a mess

As for the team Sanders beat, the Raiders are in a wretched position. They hired a 74-year-old coach (Pete Carroll), traded for a soon-to-be-35-year-old quarterback (Geno Smith) and spent $6 million on an offensive coordinator they just fired (Chip Kelly). Carroll's son Brennan is the team's run game coordinator/offensive line coach. Raiders ball carriers are averaging 0.40 yards per carry before contact, on pace to be the lowest on record, and Smith just got sacked 10 times.

Other than that, how was the play, Mrs. Lincoln?

The Raiders could use a significant upgrade -- and in some cases multiple significant upgrades -- at every spot on the roster that isn't tight end or running back. Is Carroll willing to see that out? Is Tom Brady, who has become more involved in the football operations and helped his former teammate as general manager, the right guy to do that while he also handles his broadcasting duties? What even is Brady's role, really?

Being directionless is even worse than being very bad. Both apply to Las Vegas.

Derrick Henry's struggles

Derrick Henry

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Henry scored two touchdowns in a 23-10 Ravens win over the Jets but had just 64 yards on 21 carries. He's down to 4.7 yards per carry on the season, and while that number is fine, he simply hasn't been the explosive force we saw him be as recently as Week 1 of this season.

Some notes to consider ...

• Henry has forced 16 missed tackles this season per PFF. Last year he forced 87. The year before, 69. Since becoming a full-time starter, his career low is 36, and that came in 2021, when he only played in eight games.
• His 8.6% tackle avoidance rate ranks 61st out of 65 players who have at least 50 carries this year.
• His tackle avoidance rate prior has never been below 18.8% in a season he was healthy.

The Ravens have won five straight, but they know the offense isn't where it needs to be in order to be a contender. Perhaps Henry can have a Thanksgiving feast against the Bengals' struggling run defense, and the Ravens hope that will spark a late-season surge.