NFL 2024 (Week 15)

You can tell the season is starting to wind down.  Some playoff spots have already been clinched and others will be soon.  We've also got doubleheaders on both networks (and both 4:25 national games are fantastic!) and two Monday night games (which are not).  There's also a lot of bad vs. bad this week, so we know one of them's gonna get a win and the other will help their draft position.

Thursday Night: Rams (Win)

Chiefs (12-1) at Browns (3-10): Kansas City-If you looked at everything other than their record, you'd have no idea the Chiefs were 12-1.  Kansas City's scoring margin for the season is just +56.  Yet, the Chiefs have already clinched the AFC West and are in position to once again claim the No. 1 seed.  It's because they record in one-score games is incredible.  Against Cleveland, it shouldn't be a one-score game.  But, even if it is, you'd have to figure the Chiefs will find a way again.

Bengals (5-8) at Titans (3-10): Cincinnati-Cincinnati won in both Dallas and Springfield on Monday night.  I didn't watch the Simpsons broadcast, but I saw plenty of highlights online and it was incredibly well-done.  Anyway, the Bengals kept their faint playoff hopes alive with that victory.  And by faint, I mean really faint.  They need to win out to have any chance.  That's a difficult task to say the least, but starting that string with the Titans should keep them alive for at least another week.

Commanders (8-5) at Saints (5-8): Washington-Washington absolutely thumped Tennessee in their final game before their ridiculously late bye.  The Commanders now begin the stretch run with very realistic wild card hopes.  They're currently on the outside looking in and face the Eagles next week, so this is effectively a must-win for them.  Especially since that win over the Titans snapped a three-game losing streak.

Ravens (8-5) at Giants (2-11): Baltimore-It sure looks like it'll be Giants vs. Raiders for the No. 1 pick in the draft.  And the Giants appear to be the clubhouse leaders in that department.  They haven't won a home game yet this season, and it's doubtful that'll change this week.  Things have gotten so bad that fans hired a plane last week with a sign begging to end this dumpster fire.  The good news is there's only three games left after this one.

Cowboys (5-8) at Panthers (3-10): Dallas-Monday night was the Dallas Cowboys' season in microcosm.  A dumb mistake that led directly to a loss.  Now they get a Panthers team that has actually played pretty well since its bye.  Carolina has lost all three, but was competitive in all of them against three division leaders.  So, this won't be easy for Dallas.  I do think this is a game the Cowboys can and should win, though.

Jets (3-10) at Jaguars (3-10): Jacksonville-There are five teams in the AFC that are currently 3-10.  These are two of them.  This season has obviously been a massive disappointment for both the Jets and Jaguars, although only one (the Jets) actually had expectations.  The Jets almost won in Miami.  Of course they didn't.  The Jaguars went into Nashville and won last week.  Can they make it two in a row?

Dolphins (6-7) at Texans (8-5): Houston-With a win and a Colts loss, the Texans will wrap up their second straight AFC South title.  It's certainly been a lot less dramatic than it was last season.  Miami is clinging to faint playoff hopes that won't officially go out with a loss, but will come pretty close.  If the Dolphins win, though, they end with San Francisco, Cleveland, Jets, so there's a definite chance (even if it is slight).

Colts (6-7) at Broncos (8-5): Denver-They both had their bye last week.  Now they meet each other in a game that could have a big impact on the AFC playoff race.  If the Broncos win, they'll all but clinch a wild card.  If the Colts win, they're not only still in it, they'll be just a game out with the head-to-head tiebreaker over Denver.  It's crazy to think that all seven AFC playoff berths can essentially be wrapped up with three weeks left, but that could very well be the situation we're looking at.

Bills (10-3) at Lions (12-1): Detroit-I saw a funny graphic on Facebook the other day.  It said the Super Bowl America wants: Bills-Lions.  The Super Bowl America will most likely get: Chiefs-Eagles.  We could easily be seeing a preview of that Super Bowl America wants.  The Bills lost to the Rams in what ended up being the trap game many thought it might be.  Don't be surprised if they bounce back and knock off the Lions, though.  Although, with the way the Lions have won their last few games, it seems silly to pick against them.

Steelers (10-3) at Eagles (11-2): Philadelphia-All four teams playing on Christmas have the same schedule with three games in 10 days, but Pittsburgh has by far the hardest schedule of the four.  While the Chiefs and Ravens get to play bad teams and the Texans are at home, they have to go to Philadelphia.  Fortunately, they enter the game two up on Baltimore in the AFC North.  That could be down to one by the end of the week since the Eagles are on a roll.  The good news for the Steelers is that they don't even need to win to clinch a playoff berth.

Patriots (3-10) at Cardinals (6-7): Arizona-The Cardinals' playoff chances have taken a hit in the past few weeks, but the NFC West is so tight that they aren't out of it at all.  However, because the NFC West is so tight, they really can't afford to lose a game they should win.  They've dropped three in a row, but they can be forgiven for losing to the Seahawks (twice) and Vikings.  Against the Patriots, they can't.

Buccaneers (7-6) at Chargers (8-5): Chargers-As we've seen throughout the season, Jim Harbaugh's Chargers win when they're supposed to and don't when they aren't.  It's still likely that they'll make the playoffs, and they'll probably end up with at least 10 wins.  I'm curious to see how Tampa Bay does on this cross country trip.  They've won three straight to take over the NFC South lead and could be a very dangerous team should they make the playoffs.  So, you can bet there's a lot of NFC contenders rooting for the Chargers in this one.

Packers (9-4) at Seahawks (8-5): Seattle-Every time Green Bay visits Seattle, something crazy happens.  The Packers make the long trip for the third of four straight primetime games (and it could easily become five if their Week 17 game against the Vikings gets flexed to Sunday night) knowing that a loss all but eliminates them for the division title.  The Seahawks, meanwhile, already saw the Rams win this week, so they need it to maintain the NFC West lead.  Seahawks-Rams is my prediction for the Week 18 Sunday night game.  This game could go a long way in determining whether that one matters.

Bears (4-9) at Vikings (11-2): Minnesota-Minnesota will have its playoff berth locked up if the Packers win on Sunday night, but if they don't, the Vikings can take care of it themselves by beating the Bears.  Why are the Bears on national TV again?  I have no idea!  Although, it's the first Monday night game for Caleb Williams, so I guess that's why.  The Vikings have a tough final three weeks, so, even though their playoff berth seems inevitable, getting the spot clinched and out of the way against a beatable opponent should be the focus.

Falcons (6-7) at Raiders (2-11): Atlanta-After the Falcons beat Dallas in Week 9, they were 6-3 with a two-game lead in the NFC South.  A four-game losing streak later, they're under .500 and a game behind Tampa Bay.  The good news is they have a very soft remaining schedule, starting with the Raiders this week.  And they swept the Bucs, so if they beat Las Vegas and Tampa Bay loses to the Chargers, they'll once again control their own path to the division title.

This Week: 1-0
Last Week: 9-4
Overall: 134-75