What to know from NFL Week 13: Russell Wilson cooked and Kirk Cousins has to be better

At times, Week 13 made it fair to wonder what year it was. Russell Wilson was lighting up an opposing secondary. Geno Smith was chucking the ball around MetLife Stadium. The biggest showdown of the week was between a pair of superstar running backs. Here is what to know:

Russell Wilson turned back the clock

Russell Wilson threw a pick-six to Bengals cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt on the Pittsburgh Steelers’ first possession Sunday, which a few hours later stood as an odd way to begin one of the best days of his exceptional career.

Wilson rebounded from Pittsburgh’s snowy loss in Cleveland - and that interception - by throwing for 414 yards in a 44-38 victory that effectively eliminated the Bengals from playoff contention and maintained the Steelers’ place atop the NFC North. Wilson had only exceeded that total once in his 13-year career, in October 2017.

There were few signs such an explosion was coming. Even in his Seattle prime, Wilson rarely punched up massive statistical totals. With the Steelers, Wilson had been piloting a ball-control offense, relying on his running game and short passes while making a few key throws per game.

Against the Bengals’ dismal pass defense, though, Wilson was an explosive-play machine. He passed for 257 yards by halftime, the highest first-half total of his career. George Pickens caught a 36-yard moonball down the right sideline. Wilson fired a running, sidearm dart to Pat Freiermuth for a 25-yard touchdown. A remarkable eight Steelers receivers caught at least one pass that gained at least 20 yards.

Wilson won’t have another game like Sunday’s anytime soon. The Steelers probably wouldn’t even want him to. For one day, at age 36, Wilson turned back the clock and threw the ball as well as he ever has.

Azeez Al-Shaair deserves any punishment coming to him

If the NFL wanted to suspend Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair for the remainder of the season after his vicious cheap on Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence, the league would be justified. Al-Shaair was immediately ejected in the second quarter of the Texans’ 23-20 win after he drilled Lawrence in the head while the quarterback slid at the end of a scramble.

Al-Shaair was about five yards from Lawrence as Lawrence began to slide. Al-Shaair had time to pull up. Instead, he launched into Lawrence’s helmet with the full force of his shoulder and forearm. Lawrence lay prone on the field, his arms involuntary bent in the “fencing position” associated with brain injury.

Jaguars players pummeled Al-Shaair and started a brawl. Jaguars cornerback Jarrian Jones was also ejected, and multiple players were flagged. The fault belonged fully to Al-Shaair. The hit violated not only the rules, but the covenant between players who engage in a dangerous sport that can leave their bodies broken long after they stop playing. “It’s everything you’re not supposed to do,” Fox analyst Daryl Johnston said over the replay.

Al-Shaair, a key part of Coach DeMeco Ryans’s defenses since his days as the San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator, is a violent player who straddles the edge between aggressive and dirty - and sometimes crosses it. Earlier this season, Al-Shaair punched a Bears player on the sideline after his questionable hit on Caleb Williams ignited a scuffle. Al-Shaair was fined for the punch and likely would have been ejected then, too, had referees not missed it. His career has not granted the benefit of any doubts when it comes to injurious hits.

For Lawrence, the hit provided the scariest moment of a rotten season that had already been spoiled by a shoulder injury and general dysfunction in Jacksonville. Lawrence was quickly ruled out of the game with a concussion, but he was sitting upright as he rode off the field on a cart. With the Jaguars spiraling, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Lawrence sits out the remainder of his first season after signing a five-year, $275 million contract.

Kevin O’Connell is a sorcerer

The Minnesota Vikings have not been a dominant team for the past two months, but they are still 10-2 because they continue to outperform expectations in close games under Coach Kevin O’Connell. The Vikings squeezed out another victory - and stayed on the heels of the Detroit Lions - with a two-minute drill touchdown to beat the Cardinals, 23-22, in Minnesota.

The Vikings have played 47 games under O’Connell, one playoff game included, and 34 have been decided by one score. Those are coin flips for most NFL teams. The Vikings have gone 24-10, including 7-1 this season.

The Vikings trailed Arizona for nearly the entire game Sunday, and they didn’t lead until Sam Darnold hit Aaron Jones for a five-yard touchdown with 1:13 left. On fourth and 5 just before the two-minute warning, Darnold found Justin Jefferson for 12 yards. Coordinator Brian Flores’s defense forced the Cardinals to kick four field goals after reaching the red zone.

Time and again, the Vikings are prepared to make crucial plays and execute at their highest level when they most need to. The number of close games they play may indicate they are not one of the NFL’s elite teams. But their record in them is a reflection of the infrastructure O’Connell (with the assistance of Flores) has built.

Kirk Cousins has to be better than that

The Atlanta Falcons signed Kirk Cousins to a $180 million contract to provide a baseline of competence and a high floor. In a pivotal home game Sunday, Cousins’s inexplicably sloppy performance cost the Falcons in a 17-13 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers that left them barely clinging to the NFC South lead at 6-6.

The Chargers intercepted Cousins four times. Cousins was blameless for the final pick, a throw he attempted to desperately thread down the middle on fourth down with seconds remaining. But the first three interceptions, including a bizarre floater into a defensive backs meeting in the back of the end zone, put the Falcons in that position.

Cousins’s second interception, thrown in the third quarter, was taken back 61 yards for a touchdown by rookie cornerback Tarheeb Still and turned a 10-9 lead into a 17-10 deficit. Later in the fourth quarter, Cousins attempted to chuck a pass while in the grip of two pass rushers, resulting in a fumble that an offensive lineman luckily recovered.

The Falcons’ defense held Justin Herbert without a touchdown. Given the massive salary and draft resources devoted to their offense, Atlanta needs to win at home when that happens. It couldn’t on Sunday, and Cousins needs to answer for it.

Drake Maye can scoot

The Patriots remain a rebuilding franchise with a shaky head coach and a hazy vision of future success after the Colts beat them, 25-24, when Joey Slye’s 68-yard - 68! - field goal attempt fell a couple yards short. But Drake Maye continues to prove himself a viable franchise quarterback, which means they have the most valuable asset a rebuilding team can acquire.

Anthony Richardson may have led the Colts on a game-winning touchdown drive, but Maye was the best quarterback on the field. He completed 24 of 30 passes for 238 while adding another 59 yards on five rushes. Maye, 22, is younger than rookie of the year contenders Jayden Daniels (24 this month) and Bo Nix (24).

Maye’s excellent rookie season includes a fascinating - and telling - statistical achievement. The all-time single-season record for yards per carry is 8.4, held by Michael Vick of the 2006 Atlanta Falcons and wingback Beattie Feathers of the 1934 Chicago Bears. In his first nine NFL games, Maye has rushed 38 times for 345 yards, an average of 9.1. Presuming Maye gets the requisite carries to qualify, he could break the record.

Maye racks up yardage with long strides, which he showcased Sunday on a 41-yard scramble. It may be an obscure feat. But if you can break a record held by Michael Vick and a wingback, you’ve done something.

Don’t forget about Josh Jacobs

The late afternoon showdown between Saquon Barkley and Derrick Henry placed an emphasis on free agent running backs and how much good teams can benefit by acquiring one. While Barkley and Henry have been trading places as the favorite to win Offensive Player of the Year, Josh Jacobs has had a similar impact on the Green Bay Packers as Barkley and Henry have had on their contending teams.

Jacobs only rushed for 43 yards in Green Bay’s Thanksgiving night victory over the Miami Dolphins, but he scored a touchdown and caught four passes for 74 yards. Jacobs ranks third in the NFL in rushing yards (behind only Barkley and Henry) while carrying the ball 18.4 times per game, fifth in the league. Jacobs has provided the Packers a physicality they lacked - he was a primary reason the Dolphins were credited with missing 20 tackles Thursday night.

The Packers are built for playoff football with Jacobs. General Manager Brian Gutekunst made a difficult choice when he let Aaron Jones leave in free agency and signed Jacobs for more money, but Jacobs is a better fit for how Coach Matt LaFleur wants to pound opposing defenses.