The final week of the regular season is finally here & there’s a lot on the line for many teams. We’ll be breaking down playoff implications in each matchup and predicting the winner in each. Through 17 weeks, we’re 183-73 in matchups.
Cleveland Browns at Baltimore Ravens
Bailey Zappe is getting his first start in Cleveland after benching DTR. This is a chance for Zappe to earn himself a spot on their roster or another team for next season. He brings an edge over DTR but it’s still going to be an ugly blowout.
Winner: Baltimore Ravens
Cincinnati Bengals at Pittsburgh Steelers
After the Ravens win earlier in the day, the Steelers can give it their all to fight for seeding or take it easier to rest for the wild card round. They’ll still try to win but with Joe Burrow playing on another planet right now, the Bengals need to wait one more day before they see their playoff hopes crash.
Winner: Cincinnati Bengals
Carolina Panthers at Atlanta Falcons
Atlanta needs a win and a Tampa Bay loss to win the NFC South. One of those two will happen and it’s not Tampa Bay losing. Atlanta gets a small victory to end the year with a winning record which is a disappointing finish to the year with the money they spent this past off-season.
Winner: Atlanta Falcons
Washington Commanders at Dallas Cowboys
The Commanders are competing with Green Bay for seeding and are going to put on a clinic against a Dallas defense that just got torched by the Eagles.
Winner: Washington Commanders
Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers
Packers are playing for seeding and face a Bears team they always dominate. It’s not going to be pretty for Chicago fans who finish the season on a double digit losing streak.
Winner: Green Bay Packers
Houston Texans at Tennessee Titans
The Texans have the AFC South locked up and the #4 seed, but after losing 31-2 against the Ravens on Christmas Day, they need to get some momentum before their opening round game in the playoffs. They can’t afford to lose 2 ugly games in a row heading into the playoffs.
Winner: Houston Texans
Jacksonville Jaguars at Indianapolis Colts
If the Colts lose this game, there is going to be a sweeping change within the management and coaching ranks. After an embarrassing defeat last week at the hands of the Giants, a loss here and it’ll be a lot of jobs lost. They are in desperation mode and playing for their lives out here.
Winner: Indianapolis Colts
Buffalo Bills at New England Patriots
New England is in line for the #1 overall pick as long as they don’t win. They want that pick as it’ll bring them a hefty trade return. New England is going to do whatever it takes to lose this game.
Winner: Buffalo Bills
New York Giants at Philadelphia Eagles
The Giants seriously hurt their chances at the #1 seed with the win over Indianapolis last week. We don’t think they’re going to win twice in a row even with Philly resting half the team. We saw Kenny Pickett & Tanner McKee both light up the Cowboys defense last week & the Giants are even worse.
Winner: Philadelphia Eagles
New Orleans Saints at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Likely being the biggest blowout of the week, the Buccaneers are going to be full on attack to gain momentum heading into the playoffs. Mike Evans is 85 yards away from another 1,000 yard season and we think Baker is going to feed him all day.
Winner: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Kansas City Chiefs at Denver Broncos
The Chiefs clinched the first round bye with 15 wins & will be resting half the team including Mahomes & Kelce. Carson Wentz gets the chance to give a tryout for NFL teams looking for a potential veteran starting quarterback next year. It’ll be a good showing for Wentz but not enough against a Denver team who needs to win this game to make the playoffs.
Winner: Denver Broncos
Los Angeles Chargers at Las Vegas Raiders
Jim Harbaugh is in discussions of coach of the year for a reason with the turnaround this Chargers team has had. We’re a few years away from them being elite but the Chargers cruise past the Raiders into to the playoffs.
Winner: Los Angeles Chargers
Seattle Seahawks at Los Angeles Rams
The Seahawks have been eliminated from the playoffs & why the Rams are starting Jimmy G. While the Rams rest up, we expect Geno Smith to torch this defense to earn his contract incentives.
Winner: Seattle Seahawks
Miami Dolphins at New York Jets
Tyler Huntley is likely to start for the Dolphins and we’ve seen the offense without Tua, it’s not good. In what’s potentially the last we see of Aaron Rodgers, he’s going to want to go out with a bang and which is what he’ll do in this game to end the Dolphins’ playoff aspirations.
Winner: New York Jets
San Francisco 49ers at Arizona Cardinals
Another blow to San Francisco with Brock Purdy going down last week. His backup is Josh Dobbs. Without Purdy, the 49ers offense takes a huge hit. Arizona puts the nail in the coffin for San Francisco who’s just looking forward to the long off-season where they can use the time to recover from the plethora of injuries on offense & defense.
Winner: Arizona Cardinals
Minnesota Vikings at Detroit Lions
In the best game of the week, an absolute thriller is in store for us as the #1 seed in the NFC is on the line. Regardless of who wins this game, both teams need to be proud for how far they’ve come this season with both putting up 14 win seasons. This game is going to be a shootout and we’re flipping a coin and giving the edge to the home team in Detroit.
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