ICYMI in NFL Week 14: Talib, Pacman and WWE-style smack talk

By the Associated Press for USA Today.

Thanks to Aqib Talib and Adam “Pacman” Jones , there was a bit of WWE-style smack talk in NFL locker rooms Sunday.

No telling what might have been said on the field.

Broncos cornerback Talib shared his less-than-flattering thoughts about Harry Douglas after the Tennessee Titans receiver went low with a cut block on Denver’s Chris Harris Jr. And Cincinnati Bengalscornerback Jones had plenty to say about Cleveland Browns receiver Terrelle Pryor — although, in that case, it was not exactly clear why.

Giving new meaning to the term “trash talk” after the Bengals kept the Browns winless by beating them 23-10, Jones picked up a garbage can and yelled into it, “Do you see him in there? Terrelle? Terrelle?” And then, as if his message was in any way unclear, Jones slammed the can to the floor and added, “Terrelle Pryor is garbage.”

Pryor, who played QB in college and briefly tried to make it as a pro at that position before switching, was held to one catch for 3 yards.

“For a guy that’s been a slouch around the league as a quarterback, he does a lot of fake hard (stuff),” Jones said, peppering his comments with profanities. “I don’t have no respect for him. I looked up his background. He’s a suburban kid from Pittsburgh.”

Denver’s Talib, meanwhile, tussled with Douglas , sparking a melee in the reigning Super Bowl champions’ 13-10 loss to the Titans on Sunday. Then, Talib did not hold back with his words, saying about Douglas: “It was a dirty play by a sorry player. He don’t do nothing. He come in the game, don’t catch no passes. He come in the game and chop guys from the back.”

Have to wonder whether the NFL — so concerned by important matters such as end-zone celebrations — will let that bit of postgame aggression go.

In case you missed it, here are the other top topics after the NFL season’s 14th Sunday:

PRESCOTT’S NOT PERFECT

With a chance to clinch the NFC East, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescottlooked like a rookie, for a change. After going five games without a single interception, Prescott was picked off twice by the revamped Giants defense in New York’s 10-7 victory over Dallas at night. Dallas’ offense was 1 for 15 on third downs, and Prescott went only 17 for 37 for 165 yards as his team’s 11-game winning streak ended. “We didn’t do enough in the passing game,” coach Jason Garrett said. Another performance along those lines, and expect to hear the name “Tony Romo” a lot.

INJURED QBS

It was a rough Sunday for starting QBs, and some injuries could have playoff implications. Aaron Rodgers, Matthew Stafford and Ryan Tannehill all got hurt, and Miami’s Tannehill could be done for the season with ligament damage in his left knee. Already hobbled by a sore left hamstring, Rodgers injured his right calf on the opening drive of Green Bay’s 38-10 victory over the Seattle Seahawks. Stafford, whose Lions (9-4) lead the Packers (7-6) in the NFC North, banged up the middle finger on his throwing hand while edging lowly Chicago 20-17 . “I just tried to play through it,” Stafford said, “play as good as I could.” The Lions have a tough path to the postseason: at the Giants, at the Cowboys, hosting the Packers.

RING A BELL?

Le’Veon Bell does not have any self-confidence issues — nor should he. After running for a team-record 236 yards and three TDs in Pittsburgh’s snowy 27-20 victory at Buffalo, Bell declared: “I don’t think there’s a lot of backs who can do the things I do.” Fair assessment.