🏈 Why The NFL Is One Giant Parity Party

NFL underdogs don’t just have the ability to pull off an upset on any given Sunday, they’re doing so every single Sunday. [View in browser]( [FOX SPORTS INSIDER WITH MARTIN ROGERS] In today’s FOX Sports Insider with Martin Rogers: NFL fans have started to get their heads around the fact that the unexpected is now to be expected this year ... we take a look at how the Gonzaga Bulldogs showed everyone who’s No. 1 ... and we are treated to a must-see highlight from Gonzaga freshman phenom Chet Holmgren. “Any Given Sunday” is the title of a movie that’s far from perfect but good enough and fun enough to be worth watching at least once a year. Perhaps, just saying, when you’re sprawled out on the couch after eating too much festive turkey. It’s also a mantra for coaches, fans and commentators, a statement to live by for the National Football League and a pleasant little phrase that adds up to much more than the sum of its parts. It symbolizes hope and unpredictability, serves as an excuse to watch a game, any game, and a reminder that as much as we like talking about football matchups and anticipating them, nothing beats the real thing. It’s a great little trio of words and it’s also, as things stand here at the commencement of Week 12 in 2021, completely freaking wrong. For NFL underdogs don’t just have the ability to pull off an upset on any given Sunday, they’re doing so every single Sunday, with no rhyme, reason or respite to the chaos and confusion. [STORY IMAGE 1] There are some silly stats flying around as a result of it all. During the month of November, only one NFC team hasn’t lost a game – and that’s 4-6 Washington. Aside from the Kansas City Chiefs, the other six Super Bowl favorites ([with FOX Bet]( were a combined 5-10 on the month before the Tampa Bay Buccaneers reversed their recent skid by beating the New York Giants on Monday night. Eight teams in the NFL have a winning streak of two or more games, which is nice, but good luck if you saw it coming. That group’s collective performance before those successes? A mere 20-42. Throughout the NFL, teams are tightly matched and so are the games, with a new record of 23 clashes decided on the final play through Week 11. Of the AFC’s 16 teams, 12 of them are at .500 or better. In the AFC North, the Cleveland Browns are mired in last place … with a record of 6-5. No one is truly dominant, with the Chiefs appearing ominously good in reeling off four straight wins, but only after struggling mightily in the early part of the campaign. The Tennessee Titans, for a while the only team that looked like it couldn’t lose, couldn’t do anything right on Sunday against the Houston Texans, formerly one of the only teams that looked like it couldn’t win. [STORY IMAGE 2] Each of the top squads look to carry some kind of vulnerability, and, even when they don’t, they sometimes fall anyway, like the Dallas Cowboys’ six-game winning streak ending with a trouncing at home to the Denver Broncos not so long ago. Frankly, it’s ridiculous. But don’t just take my word for it. “The parity in this league is ridiculous, so you have to stay on your game and you have to continue to work to get better,” Chiefs head coach Andy Reid told reporters. “In this league, you're just as good as your next game. We're seeing this every Sunday, on Thursdays and Monday nights.” Only the Detroit Lions are winless, but Dan Campbell’s team could have won perhaps five of their 10 outings with a bit more luck or calmness down the stretch. The New York Jets aren’t very good, but beat the Titans. The Jacksonville Jaguars aren’t very good, but beat the Bills, who were Super Bowl favorites. [STORY IMAGE 3] NFL fans and followers around the country have started to get their heads around the fact that the unexpected is now to be expected, and that it’s actually pretty neat. In Houston last week, local newspaper the Chronicle poked fun at the hometown Texans with a delicious headline: “NFL is a parity party, although Texans are parity poopers.” Great line, but, as detailed earlier, the headline didn’t survive the weekend. Some will argue the overload of egalitarianism means there are no great teams, but bear in mind that the reigning champion Bucs, recipients of some head-shaking concern at 7-3, were 7-5 by the end of the 2020 Thanksgiving weekend before ending up with the top prize. Tom Brady and the Bucs are the favorites to win it all again (+600 with FOX Bet), but being a favorite doesn’t seem to help much, at least not on a week-to-week basis. All of which is to the benefit of the viewer, in theory. The concept of any result being possible lends itself more closely to a watching experience of enjoyable anticipation, rather than the potential for a snoozer that made you wish you hadn’t bothered. “If the NFL season ended today, there would be no playoffs or Super Bowl because too few teams are worthy of the postseason,” [wrote Mike Tanier of The New York Times](. “Or perhaps it just feels that way because so many of the league’s top contenders are reeling from recent upsets.” [STORY IMAGE 4] Upsets are upsetting only to the ones being upset, for the rest of us, they’re a boon of significant proportion, particularly when they come in great enough numbers to feel like each game is a toss-up, regardless of odds, standing, reputation or form. There are various reasons being put forward as to why things are shaking out this way but they are boring and procedural and not worthy of our time. Turkey season is a feast of football so save your spare hours for watching it and put all else aside. Any given excuse to grab the remote control will suffice. Once you do, any given result might happen. [STORY IMAGE 5] [IN OTHER WORDS] - With Drew Timme and freshman phenom Chet Holmgren leading the way, Gonzaga cruised past UCLA and showed who’s No. 1, [FOX Sports College Basketball Analyst Andy Katz writes](. - Cincinnati made history in the latest CFP rankings, while Ohio State-Michigan is set up as an elimination game, [FOX Sports College Football Writer RJ Young writes](. - [Peter Schrager ponders the Eagles’ playoffs chances]( what the future holds for Baker Mayfield and Saquan Barkley, and more. [THE INTERNET IS UNDEFEATED] [THE INTERNET IS UNDEFEATED]( Tuesday night was a beautiful night for the sport of college basketball. First off, fans were treated to a special 1 vs. 2 matchup, which marked just the fifth time in college basketball history the top-two teams in the nation faced each other in the month of November or earlier. Second, this game marked the return of long-time ESPN college basketball analyst Dick Vitale, who hasn’t been able to call games so far this season after being diagnosed with cancer earlier this fall and undergoing chemotherapy treatment. And third, this game was a chance for fans to see the top-ranked freshman in America, Gonzaga’s Chet Holmgren. The 7-foot diaper dandy (that one’s for you, Dickie V) put on a show Tuesday night, including this incredible sequence where he blocks a shot, gets the rebounds, dribbles down the court, goes behind his back, and then drives to the hoop for a two-handed slam. This kid is going to be a star for years to come! [VIEWER'S GUIDE] Brooklyn Nets at Boston Celtics (ESPN, 7:30 p.m. ET) Kevin Durant and the Brooklyn Nets take on Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics. Baylor at Arizona State (ESPN2, 7:30 p.m. ET) Matthew Mayer and the No. 6-ranked Baylor Bears battle Kimani Lawrence and the Arizona State Sun Devils. Philadelphia 76ers at Golden State Warriors (TNT, 10 p.m. ET) Seth Curry and the Philadelphia 76ers go up against Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors. [BET OF THE DAY] [BET OF THE DAY] Odds provided by [FOX Bet]( Chicago Bears at Detroit Lions: First half under 20.5 points From FOX Sports Betting Analyst Sam Panayotovich: In this matchup, we get two struggling offenses and two backup quarterbacks. All signs point to Andy Dalton starting under center for Chicago and Tim Boyle getting the call for Detroit. There aren't many playmakers in this game, and there isn't much hope for offensive fireworks. But rather than sweat the entire game, I'll cut the second half out of the equation. Chicago is averaging a measly 7.1 points in the first half, while Detroit is even lower at 5.9. I'll bank on those numbers and avoid second-half adjustments and fourth-quarter desperation. I won't be stunned if this one is 7-6 at the break. [WHAT THEY SAID] “I'm really not a celebrity. I'm just a teacher." - Chuck Noll [FOLLOW FOX SPORTS] [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [YouTube]( [Instagram]( Download FOX Sports App: [Fire TV]( [Roku]( [Google Play]( [App Store]( [Fire TV]( [Roku]( [App Store]( [Google Play]( Also available on these devices: [fireTV | AppleTV | ROKU | Google Chromecast | XBOX ONE | SAMSUNG Smart TV] [fireTV | AppleTV | ROKU | Google Chromecast | XBOX ONE | SAMSUNG Smart TV] Trademark & Copyright Notice: ™ and © 2021 Fox Media LLC and FOX Sports Interactive Media, LLC. All rights reserved. Please do not reply to this message. If you do not wish to receive emails like this in the future, please [unsubscribe](. FOX Sports respects your privacy. 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