And when Adam Schefter reported the bungled deal, the Browns looked a lot worse. I am left with this thought: I do not see how, unless there’s a reversal of play by the Browns down the stretch of this season, owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam are going to let all front-office members return in 2018. This non-trade is a major disgrace, even by the standards of the Browns.
While the Chiefs offense struggled without their leading receiver, the Titans (10-7) opened the second half with a 15-play, 91-yard drive that ended with Marcus Mariota completing a 6-yard touchdown pass to himself.
The Chiefs (10-7) couldn’t put the Titans away as Kareem Hunt, who led the NFL in rushing, was limited to just 41 yards on 10 carries by Tennessee’s fourth-ranked rush defense.
The Chiefs thought they had a game-winning score late as Derrick Johnson picked up an apparent Henry fumble and returned it for a touchdown. But Henry was clearly down and then ripped off a 22-yard run two plays later to seal the win. The Titans offensive line dominated Kansas City’s defensive front in the second half and Tennessee controlled the clock during the comeback.
Make no mistake, though: When Stefon left Maryland as a junior and declared in each of his interviews at the 2015 NFL scouting combine, “I’m the best receiver in this draft, just so you know”—that wasn’t just Aron talking. This cocksuredness comes as much from Stephanie, who was in Tampa last January to watch Trevon play for the CFP championship when she ran into Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome. “You didn’t pick my son,” she blurted out. “They should fire your ass!”
The truth: Even the Vikings weren’t quite sure what they had after drafting Diggs in the fifth round. His time at Maryland had been marked by instability under center (he caught passes from multiple QBs every season, including from a true freshman converted linebacker one year); freak injuries (a broken right leg in 2013, a lacerated kidney in ’14); bursts of magic (among the witnesses to his 100-yard opening kickoff return against Virginia as a freshman was Vikings GM Rick Spielman); and vague murmurs about his immaturity. “His reputation was that he could be off the reservation,” says Minnesota coach Mike Zimmer, “that you were going to have to kick him in the butt.”
But as it turns out, those 25 seconds were more than enough. Case Keenum hit Stefon Diggs for a 61-yard touchdown, and the Vikings escaped with a 29-24 victory — a victory that didn’t end up coming down to a heartbreaking field goal.