The NFL is entering its closing stretch, with the Dallas Cowboys and Oakland Raiders appear to be headed for for surprisingly high playoff berths.
On the other hand, several teams that had high hopes before the season have Sean Mannion Youth Jersey been struggling. So, #PulseOfTheNation asks:
The Carolina Panthers (4-7), of course, reached last season’s Super Bowl after a long unbeaten run to start the season. The Arizona Cardinals (4-6-1) were the Panthers’ opponent in the NFC Championship Game after beating the Green Bay Packers (5-6) in the divisional round. The Cincinnati Bengals (3-7-1) are coming off five straight playoff appearances, while the New York Jets (3-8) went 10-6 last year, missing the playoffs on a tiebreaker.
“I kicked the ground, and from that distance you can’t kick the ground,” McManus said. “I can probably make that kick eight or nine out of 10 times, so I’m disappointed in that. When you’re that far, you just want to hit a good ball and give it a chance.”
Said Kubiak: “The fact that we had no timeouts made me want to go in that direction. If you did have your timeouts maybe you think about punting it down there and see if you can get the ball back. I don’t know, we’re going to try to win, I’ve seen [McManus] do that many times in practice. It’s on me … I thought we could do it and we didn’t get it done.”
McManus’ miss will be the play to remember for some. But the Broncos’ defense gave up three consecutive scoring drives to close out the fourth quarter and in overtime, the special teams were shaky at best and the offensive line had plenty of struggles as quarterback Trevor Siemian was sacked five times, including once for a safety.
The Broncos let Siemian’s 368-yard, three-touchdown evening go to waste, and as a result they find T.J. McDonald Youth Jersey themselves in the unfamiliar position of potentially missing the playoffs. This is, after all, a team that has won five consecutive division titles and made two Super Bowl trips in the past three seasons.
“It is do or die,” wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders said. “… That is how we’re looking at it.”
“I think we have to win out,” linebacker Brandon Marshall said. “We’re not used to this, but we know what we have to do.”