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In The First Read, Jeffri Chadiha provides a snapshot of the hottest stories and trends heading into Week 13 of the 2025 NFL season, including:
But to kick things off, six NFL units that need to wake up fast …
Thanksgiving is always the time of year when we count our blessings, and the NFL should be no different. We’re now 12 weeks into the season, and we can clearly see those teams that are starting to separate from the pack. The question worth posing today — at least for some — is what it will take for them to create much-needed momentum as the playoff push starts. After all, there’s still a good amount of football left to be played over the next six weeks.
With that in mind, this latest installment of The First Read will focus on why certain teams should be thankful for the time given to them. Those squads still have ample opportunity to address concerns and frustrations and make themselves whole as more significant games appear on the schedule. We don’t know if they’ll all succeed. We just know these are the areas that need the most fixing as we move closer to January …
1) Eagles passing game
This topic has been talked to death. It also will continue to ignite discussion because Philadelphia’s offense literally disappeared in a 24-21 loss to Dallas. The Eagles had it rolling early, as quarterback Jalen Hurts led his team to a 21-0 lead with just over 11 minutes left in the second quarter. It all fell apart after that, as Philadelphia’s final seven true possessions included five punts, a missed field goal and a fumble by Saquon Barkley. Hurts actually produced a solid day, completing 27 of 39 attempts for 289 yards and a touchdown — and he rushed for two more scores. However, the longer Barkley remained a non-factor in the game — he finished with 22 yards on 10 carries — the more apparent it was that Philadelphia didn’t have an answer with Hurts throwing the football. It’s fair to say the foot injury that has sidelined Pro Bowl right tackle Lane Johnson is a new challenge for this team. It also would be wrong to think that Philadelphia can find its way back to the Super Bowl with Barkley underperforming and the passing game underwhelming. Last year’s team was able to put the offense on Barkley’s back, and he responded with a performance for the ages. This year’s bunch has been playing brilliant defense, but there’s too much talent on offense for Hurts to not even be reaching 200 passing yards (which has happened in six of Philadelphia’s 11 games this year). The Eagles have been able to get away with this for most of the season. It’s going to catch up with them at some point, just as it did in Dallas.
2) Cowboys defense
Remember all those jokes that came at the expense of Dallas’ defense? You don’t hear many of those anymore. Sunday’s win over the Eagles said plenty about the state of the Philadelphia offense, but that group didn’t implode all by itself. The Cowboys had to find a way to get crucial stops as that game went on, and that’s exactly what happened. It was crazy to think about that unit having that kind of day in a critical game even a month ago. Now, here Dallas sits at 5-5-1 and thinking legitimately about making a run at a playoff spot. Give owner Jerry Jones credit for rolling the dice on some trade-deadline deals (defensive tackle Quinnen Williams and linebacker Logan Wilson) to inject new life into this unit. The Cowboys gave up at least 30 points in five of their first eight games and at least 40 twice. They’ve now allowed just 37 points over the last two weeks. Even if you want to dismiss a win over the Raiders a week ago and spotlight an early 21-0 deficit to the Eagles, this still counts as improvement. It’s doubtful the Cowboys rally for a win over Philadelphia if that game was played before the trade deadline. This isn’t to say Dallas has everything figured out. It does mean this team is a lot closer to looking like one you can trust to play meaningful games over the next month and a half.
3) Bills run defense
This also has been a problem all season, and it certainly looks like Buffalo’s fatal flaw. To understand how bad the Bills are at stopping the run, know that they came into Week 12 ranked 30th in the league in rushing yards allowed. The two teams ahead of them were the Falcons and Dolphins. The two teams behind them were the Bengals and Giants. Not one of those squads currently has a winning record, which means the Bills are fielding a defense that should be causing them more problems than it already has. Buffalo has allowed at least 189 rushing yards in five of its 11 games this season (and three times has given up at least 200). The Bills are overcoming that issue by relying increasingly more on quarterback Josh Allen and a usually explosive offense, but there’s no guarantee that formula will be sustainable in the postseason. Houston just dominated Buffalo’s offense in a Thursday night win, with Allen taking a season-high eight sacks. And that’s a Texans team that didn’t have starting quarterback C.J. Stroud in the lineup and hasn’t exactly been dominating on offense. All an opponent with a better offense and a reliable running game needs is a couple of turnovers to make life hell for Buffalo. The Dolphins proved that much in a Week 10 upset, when Miami rushed for 197 yards. Now, it is worth saying the Bills recovered from serious run-defense problems in 2024, which included Baltimore rushing for 271 yards against them in the regular season before the Bills avenged that loss in the Divisional Round. But those problems seemed to have more to do with injuries to key personnel. This situation doesn’t feel like it can be easily remedied. It could absolutely destroy a season that started with championship expectations.
4) Chiefs defense
There were a lot of reasons for Kansas City to be excited about its 23-20 overtime win over Indianapolis — including head coach Andy Reid’s commitment to the run and huge day from wide receiver Rashee Rice — but it’s the defense that deserves a ton of credit for Kansas City keeping its playoff hopes alive and avoiding a three-game losing streak. That unit held the highest-scoring offense in the league to just 20 points and a season-low 255 total yards. It limited Jonathan Taylor, the league’s leading rusher, to 58 yards on 16 carries. Just as importantly, the Chiefs were able to harass Colts quarterback Daniel Jones in the second half of that game, which helped Kansas City rally from a 20-9 fourth-quarter deficit. The Colts went three-and-out on their final four possessions of the game, including overtime. That’s a huge change for a Chiefs defense that couldn’t contain Josh Allen and James Cook in a loss to Buffalo and also struggled with Bo Nix in a defeat at Denver. In fact, one of the least-discussed stories in the league was how vulnerable that defense had become this season. The Chiefs have struggled to generate pressure with their defensive line all year. They’ve been just as disappointing when it comes to blitzing, which is the trademark of defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. That’s why Sunday’s game had to create some optimism for Kansas City finding a way to turn around a frustrating season. Yes, there’s always a lot riding on quarterback Patrick Mahomes and his ability to generate points. There’s also plenty of pressure on the defense. That unit has been an underrated part of this team’s success, and the Chiefs will need more of what they saw on Sunday.
5) Packers offense
The good news for the Packers is that Sunday’s win over Minnesota kept them right in the hunt for the NFC North title. The bad news is the offense continued to look like something out of head coach Matt LaFleur’s worst dreams. Green Bay has now gone three straight games without gaining more than 300 total yards. Quarterback Jordan Love hasn’t thrown for more than 176 yards since a loss to Carolina on Nov. 2, and he’s nursing an injury to his left (non-throwing) shoulder. Oh, yeah — and the best weapon in Green Bay’s passing game, tight end Tucker Kraft, has been lost for the season with a torn ACL. There’s still time for LaFleur to find some better chemistry, but it needs to happen fast. The Packers travel to Detroit for a Thanksgiving Day game and also play the Bears (twice), Broncos and Ravens over the final six weeks of the season. It will help immensely, too, when running back Josh Jacobs returns (he missed Sunday’s game with a knee injury), along with wide receiver Jayden Reed (who’s been out since Week 2 with a broken collarbone). It also makes sense for LaFleur to lean even more on a defense that has been pretty strong all season. The Packers aren’t going to get right offensively overnight. They’ve proven that much already.
6) Steelers offense
It was easier to watch Pittsburgh’s offense when the AFC North was such a mess that the Steelers didn’t have to do much to maintain their grip on first place. It’s a different story now that the Ravens have officially moved into a tie, record-wise, for the division lead (and Baltimore would win the North if the season ended today). Quarterback Aaron Rodgers is nursing a left wrist fracture that sidelined him for Sunday’s 31-28 loss to Chicago. Mason Rudolph played in his place, but we’ve seen enough of Rudolph over the years to know he’s not a long-term fix. The Steelers signed Rodgers in the offseason because they thought he could stabilize the quarterback position for them. The longer he sits, the more you have to wonder what this unit will look like in December. For one thing, Rodgers wasn’t playing great before his injury in last week’s win over Cincinnati. He was especially ineffective in a loss to the Chargers on Nov. 9, when he completed 16 of 31 passes for 161 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. Rodgers looked every bit of 41 years old on that day, and then he was knocked out of the Bengals game a week later. But the fact is that Pittsburgh isn’t going anywhere with him standing on the sidelines. The Steelers don’t run the ball well (though they had season-high 186 ground yards on Sunday). Their defense has declined noticeably. They don’t even have many weapons in the passing game. That means their best hope of staying relevant in the AFC playoff race is Rodgers returning and going on a heater. The first is going to happen. The second is much harder to predict.
THREE UP
It was tempting to put Garrett on this list after he had a five-sack effort against New England and a four-sack afternoon against the Ravens. The problem was both those performances came in losses. Now that he just notched three sacks in a win over the Raiders, we’re not missing this opportunity. Garrett currently has a league-high 18 sacks, with 13 of those coming in his last four games. The Browns may be going nowhere, but he’s probably going to break the league single-season record for sacks (22.5) sometime in the next six weeks.
The Lions don’t have to look far to find the answer to making their normally prolific offense more consistent. Just keep finding ways to do what they did in Sunday’s overtime win over the Giants, which is feed Gibbs as much as possible. He dominated New York with 219 rushing yards (on only 15 carries), 45 receiving yards (on 11 catches) and three total touchdowns in a game that was far more competitive than anticipated. Gibbs often gets overshadowed by great backs like Jonathan Taylor, Saquon Barkley and Derrick Henry . Days like Sunday remind you that Gibbs is as good as anybody playing that position today.
