Each week NFL Nation team reporters award a game ball to a player, coach or unit. Here are the game balls for Week 12:
RAIDERS 24, TITANS 21 | ANALYSIS
David Amerson. The cornerback had a great game replacing former first-round pick DJ Hayden. Amerson had six pass breakups and an interception. -- Bill Williamson
Delanie Walker. He was the only Titans receiver who could get open for Marcus Mariota. He caught six passes on eight targets for 91 yards, including a 36-yard reception. -- Paul Kuharsky
CHIEFS 30, BILLS 22 | ANALYSIS
Sammy Watkins. Rex Ryan wanted to feed Watkins the ball, and that’s exactly what Tyrod Taylor did -- in the first half. Watkins had six catches for 158 yards and two touchdowns, but he did not have a catch in the second half. It was a disappointing end to what looked to be a career day by Watkins. -- Mike Rodak
Jeremy Maclin. He had a 41-yard touchdown catch but also a 37-yarder that set up another score. He had his third game this season with at least 140 receiving yards, finishing with nine catches for 160 yards. -- Adam Teicher
COLTS 25, BUCCANEERS 12 | ANALYSIS
Jameis Winston. He showed veteran poise in sustaining all three first-half drives with crucial third-down completions. He also had a touchdown completion on second down that was called back by a holding penalty on left tackle Kevin Pamphile, forcing the Bucs to settle for a field goal. Winston completed 20 of 36 passes for 245 yards but didn't get enough protection from his offensive line to make the throws he wanted. -- Mark Montieth
Matt Hasselbeck. The backup quarterback continues to prove that age is just a number. The 40-year-old finished 26-of-42 for 315 yards and two touchdowns. Hasselbeck is now 4-0 as a starter this season in place of the injured Andrew Luck. -- Mike Wells
REDSKINS 20, GIANTS 14 | ANALYSIS
Odell Beckham Jr. He’s so clearly the best player on the field every week. Even in the Giants’ worst offensive game of the season, he delivered a vintage performance with nine catches for 146 yards and a dazzling, diving 21-yard touchdown catch that cut the Washington lead to 20-14 with 4:57 left in the game. Regardless of the opponent, the score or the situation, Beckham gives the Giants hope. -- Dan Graziano
Quinton Dunbar. Before leaving the game with a finger injury, Dunbar intercepted a pass in the end zone to kill a drive. The former undrafted receiver came up huge with Chris Culliver out for the season. -- John Keim
TEXANS 24, SAINTS 6 | ANALYSIS
Kai Forbath. His 57-yard field goal late in the first half beat his previous career high by 7 yards. It was a gutsy call when the Saints were trailing 14-3 and Forbath delivered. But it didn’t amount to much. -- Mike Triplett
J.J. Watt. He was a big part of why the Saints didn't get into the end zone for the first time in 156 games. Watt had two sacks and seven hits on Saints quarterback Drew Brees. He had five tackles, including two for losses. -- Tania Ganguli
VIKINGS 20, FALCONS 10 | ANALYSIS
Adrian Peterson. He broke into the top 20 on the NFL’s all-time rushing list, passing O.J. Simpson, Corey Dillon and John Riggins. Peterson posted his 48th career 100-yard game and powered a Vikings offense that seemed ready to lean on him from the start of the game. Peterson finished with 159 yards on 29 carries, caught two passes for 29 yards and finished with two rushing touchdowns. -- Ben Goessling
Ricardo Allen. His diving interception in the end zone saved a touchdown and helped negate a bad fumble by Tevin Coleman that put the defense back on the field in the first place. It was the second consecutive week that Allen had an interception after a Coleman fumble. -- Vaughn McClure
Tavon Austin. Playing with a heavy heart after the shooting of his close friend Stedman Bailey earlier this week, a clearly motivated Austin was the Rams' only consistent source of offense against Cincinnati. He finished with four carries for 63 yards and a touchdown to go with six catches for 33 yards. -- Nick Wagoner
Andy Dalton. The Bengals quarterback gets Cincinnati's game ball after a three-touchdown performance. He made smart pre-snap reads to consistently get receivers open. He finished 20-of-27 for 233 yards. -- Coley Harvey
CHARGERS 31, JAGUARS 25 | ANALYSIS
Philip Rivers. He completed 29 of 43 passes for 300 yards and four touchdowns. He also accomplished a couple of impressive milestones. Rivers became the 17th quarterback in NFL history with 40,000 career passing yards and moved into 12th all time in passing touchdowns with 274, moving past Hall of Famer Joe Montana with three touchdown passes in the first half. -- Eric Williams
Julius Thomas. The tight end finally made the kind of impact the Jaguars were hoping for when they signed him in March. He caught a season-high nine passes for 116 yards and a touchdown, which came on a fourth down from the San Diego 21-yard line.-- Michael DiRocco
JETS 38, DOLPHINS 20 | ANALYSIS
Jarvis Landry. He was a rare bright spot in an otherwise poor overall performance by the Dolphins. Landry led the team with 13 receptions for 165 yards and a touchdown. He also played through a knee injury that had him in and out of practice last week. -- James Walker
Ryan Fitzpatrick. After two poor performances, Fitzpatrick rebounded with his best game of the season, throwing a season-high four touchdown passes in the Jets’ blowout win over the Dolphins. Fitzpatrick trimmed his bushy beard last week, saying he needed to change his mojo. It worked. Fitzpatrick threw touchdowns to three different receivers, quieting any talk of a quarterback change. -- Rich Cimini
CARDINALS 19, 49ERS 13 | ANALYSIS
David Johnson. After the Cardinals lost running backs Chris Johnson and Andre Ellington to injuries in the third quarter, Johnson took over the workload. He had 21 yards rushing on eight carries and a touchdown, and two catches for eight yards. -- Josh Weinfuss
Vance McDonald. He had a career-best six catches for 71 yards, including a touchdown. His role may grow now with Garrett Celek's injury. -- Paul Gutierrez
SEAHAWKS 39, STEELERS 30 | ANALYSIS
Markus Wheaton. He entered the year with high hopes but was not a factor the first 11 weeks of the season. When the Steelers went to him Sunday, he converted in a big way with nine catches for a career-high 201 yards, including a 69-yard TD in the fourth quarter. -- Jeremy Fowler
Russell Wilson. He put the offense on his back, completing 21 of 30 passes for a career-high 345 yards and career-high five touchdowns and no interceptions. With the game on the line late in the fourth quarter, Wilson connected with Doug Baldwin on a crossing route that went the distance for an 80-yard touchdown. Baldwin caught three of Wilson’s TD passes, the first Seahawks receiver to catch three scores since Joey Galloway in 1997 against the Raiders. -- Sheil Kapadia
BRONCOS 30, PATRIOTS 24 | ANALYSIS
Jabaal Sheard. His pass rush contributed to an interception by Chandler Jones when the football popped into the air. Tom Brady connected with Scott Chandler after the turnover for a Patriots touchdown.-- Mike Reiss
C.J. Anderson. He helped hand the Patriots their first loss of the season with a 48-yard touchdown run on third-and-1 in overtime. Anderson finished with 113 yards on 15 carries and two touchdowns as Brock Osweiler improved to 2-0 in place of the injured Peyton Manning.-- Jeff Legwold
RAVENS 33, BROWNS 27 | ANALYSIS
Brent Urban. Making his NFL debut, he blocked Browns kicker Travis Coons' 51-yard field goal attempt with four seconds left. Will Hill picked up the loose ball and sprinted 64 yards for the game-winning touchdown. -- Jamison Hensley
Austin Davis. He was elevated to backup quarterback after Johnny Manziel was demoted last week to the scout team. Davis, who came in for an injured Josh McCown in the fourth quarter, hooked up with Travis Benjamin on a 42-yard pass to tie the game at 27-27. Davis also got the Browns in position to kick the potential game-winning field goal, which was blocked by the Ravens and returned for a touchdown. -- Pat McManamon
LIONS 45, EAGLES 14 | ANALYSIS
Trey Burton. The second-year tight end had a career-long 43-yard reception. Pressed into action because of Zach Ertz’s injury, Burton was one of the few bright spots for the Eagles, finishing with two catches for 49 yards. Aside from playing Ertz’s role at tight end, Burton did his usual solid job on special teams. -- Phil Sheridan
Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson. Stafford and Johnson both tied career highs in touchdowns -- Stafford with five throwing, Johnson with three receiving --and were the catalysts to Detroit's third consecutive Thanksgiving Day blowout victory. Stafford finished 27-of-38 for 337 yards, and Johnson caught eight passes for 93 yards. -- Mike Rothstein
PANTHERS 33, COWBOYS 14 | ANALYSIS
Luke Kuechly. The middle linebacker had two interceptions, including one he returned 32 yards for a touchdown. His 10 interceptions since entering the league in 2012 lead all linebackers. -- David Newton
Matt Cassel. He is likely to start the rest of the season at quarterback after Tony Romo injured his left collarbone again. Cassel, who completed 13 of 19 passes for 93 yards, led Dallas on its only touchdown drive of the game, throwing to Cole Beasley for a fourth-quarter score. -- Todd Archer
BEARS 17, PACKERS 13 | ANALYSIS
Jay Cutler. He notched his first career victory at Lambeau Field. After a miserable start, Cutler rallied the offense, throwing a critical touchdown strike to Zach Miller. He finished 19 of 31 for 200 yards and no turnovers. -- Jeff Dickerson
Eddie Lacy. He was about the only thing the Packers had going on offense – and even he made a major mistake. Yes, Lacy put together his second consecutive 100-yard rushing game, but his lost fumble in the second quarter turned into the Bears’ first touchdown of the game. -- Rob Demovsky