The 32 things we learned from Week 15 of the 2018 NFL season:
1. While there are no official rooting interests here, wouldn't it be nice to see Philip Rivers get that elusive ring? His accountability, joy, self-deprecation, enthusiasm and determination — and understandable incredulity for an unflagged helmet-to-helmet hit he absorbed as the game wound down — were fun to see after his Chargers shocked the Chiefs on Thursday night to move into a virtual first-place tie atop the AFC West. Strip titles out of the equation and Rivers' case as the best quarterback taken in the 2004 draft is just as strong as Eli Manning's or Ben Roethlisberger's … of course, titles are never stripped out of the equation.
2. Speaking of rooting interests, though, we *might* be rooting for the Bolts to get a wild card instead of the AFC West crown. "Why," you ask? Because a division title means they'll be playing in Los Angeles at the Home Depot Center … shoot, I mean the StubHub Center … rats, that's Dignity Health Sports Park, which their soccer field will officially be called starting Jan. 1. No chance we have the dignity or desire to keep this straight.
3. BTW, ICYMI, L.A. is home to two NFL playoff teams for the first time since 1985. Eat your heart out, New York. You, too, NorCal.
4. Meanwhile, are the 2018 Chiefs devolving into the 1984 Dolphins — a team carried by a record-breaking, supernova, second-year quarterback who may not have enough around him to go all the way? This might not have been the case had Kareem Hunt not been exposed, but now it appears Patrick Mahomes may suffer a fate similar to Dan Marino's — at least as it pertains to an MVP-caliber sophomore season.
5. If only Derrick Johnson had stopped Rivers on that final drive … right, Stephen A.?
6. Nice Le'Veon Bell, er, James Conner impression by Pittsburgh's Jaylen Samuels. His 172 yards from scrimmage in Sunday's win over New England were a key factor in ending the Steelers' three-game slide late in the year against an opponent they hadn't beaten since 2011.
7. But was that Tom Brady or Brady Quinn on the Patriots' last possession? The GOAT looked like a goat, misfiring badly on his final three throws from Pittsburgh's 21-yard line with New England trying to score the game-tying TD.
8.New England is suddenly in danger of missing out on a first-round bye for the first time since 2009. In their 15 playoff trips under Brady and Bill Belichick, the Patriots have had to play on wild-card weekend only three teams. All of those teams failed to reach the Super Bowl.
9. So glad to learn Washington QB Alex Smith is literally home for the holidays. I've interviewed him a few times over the years, and he couldn't be a more pleasant human being. Encouraging that he finally escaped the hospital a month after suffering a gruesome broken leg. Merry Christmas, Alex, and best wishes as your challenging recovery continues.
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