The drama continues into Week 16 as the playoff landscape takes shape.
The Tennessee Titans are desperately clinging to the top of the AFC South, and they’ll need to be at their best with the red-hot San Francisco 49ers in town on Friday.
Another Sunday doubleheader is scheduled this week, headlined by a cross-conference battle between the rejuvenated Indianapolis Colts and the Arizona Cardinals from the desert.
Other key games include the Bills taking on the Patriots in Foxboro, the Ravens facing the Bengals for AFC North supremacy, and the Cowboys taking on Washington in a game that could decide the NFC East.
For analysis and betting advice, check out our NFL Week 16 Preview below!
The 49ers can basically punch their ticket to the playoffs this week with a win over the struggling Titans in Tennessee.
San Francisco’s blowout win over Atlanta last week was enough to push them into the second Wild Card seed, and already at 8-6, another win should be enough to see them home.
Tennessee has just as much to play for after losing to the Steelers on fourth and inches last week.
The Titans offence has managed 20 points or less in each of its last four games and is beginning to show real signs of struggle without Derrick Henry.
These two sides don’t meet very often, in fact, they’ve only played three times since 2009.
Defensively, the Titans have been much-improved, but the fact they are struggling to find the end zone is concerning here.
San Francisco has been a tough team to throw against for most of the year, and they’ve also cleaned up on the ground holding opponents to just under 110 yards a game.
There’s still a path to the playoffs for the Browns, but it needs to start with an upset over the red-hot Packers on Sunday.
Cleveland lost on a walk-off field goal last week at home to the Raiders, sinking their playoff chances to 40% if they were to win out from here.
Stranger things have happened, especially this season, but picking off Green Bay at home is still a tremendous ask for a side battling the current COVID wave.
The Packers did the double last week, locking up a playoff spot and the NFC North with a nail-biting win over Baltimore.
Aaron Rodgers is still nursing a toe injury, but you wouldn’t know it based on the way the Green Bay offence has been putting up points of late.
The inclusion of Baker Mayfield and Kareem Hunt would make this game easier on the Browns, but with cold weather forecast and Rodgers playing out of his skin, I’m backing the Pack.
The Colts are back in the limelight on Sunday, a week removed from an important win over the Patriots that kept their playoff hopes alive.
Jonathan Taylor further strengthened his claim for MVP with another monster day on the ground, and the Colts will be hoping to use him early and often when they take on a Cardinals team reeling from a shock loss to Detroit last week.
Arizona trailed from start to finish against one of the worst teams in the league, and while some might say it was the wake-up call the Cardinals needed, it’s still tough to ignore another less-than-convincing performance from Kyler Murray.
Aside from Taylor, the Colts defence was one of the main reasons they picked up the win over New England.
Darius Leonard played the best he has all year, while the rest of the pass rush also forced Mac Jones into a couple of mistakes.
Life is only going to get harder for the Cardinals with DeAndre Hopkins gone for the year, and I think the Colts could dominate this game based on how poorly Arizona has played against the run this year.
If Taylor gets going early and the pass rush picks up where it left of last week, Indy could walk away with the upset.
It’s always a big occasion when these two rivals get together, especially at this time of year.
The Patriots can move one step closer to locking up the AFC East with a bounce-back win at home, but they’ll need to be at their best against a Bills defence that just held the Panthers to 14 points.
Like the market suggests, there really isn’t much separating these two sides, just like when they met three weeks earlier.
The Patriots won that game 14-10 in the Buffalo snow, but it’s doubtful we see the Patriots run the ball 46 times on this occasion.
Instead, New England’s defence is going to have to stop Josh Allen and the rest of the Bills’ high-scoring offence.
Bill Belichick’s side did a phenomenal job of forcing Buffalo into mistakes last time out, but with clearer weather forecast, this is going to be tougher.
That said, the Patriots held Carson Wentz in check last week, and it’s fair to say Buffalo’s running game isn’t quite that of the Colts.
New England has also played to a strong 3-1 record on the back of a loss this year, so with home-field advantage, I’m happy to back them in another close one.
A game against the lowly Panthers couldn’t have come at a better time for Tom Brady and the Bucs.
No. 12 was shut out for the first time since 2006 against the Saints last week, a game that hurt the Bucs in more ways than one.
Not only does Tampa Bay find itself a game behind the Packers in the race for the NFC’s No. 1 overall seed, but the Bucs will also be without Chris Godwin, and potentially Leonard Fournette and Mike Evans.
The status of all three is unclear at time of publish, but even without them, the Bucs should be winning this game comfortably.
Tampa Bay’s defence is operating at a very high level right now, and with Cam Newton struggling to do the basics under centre in Carolina, it’s hard to see this not turning into a Bucs blowout.
Next year’s NFL Draft continues to take shape, and this game should go a long way to determining the order of the top five.
The Jaguars have now lost six straight following last week’s defeat against Houston, while the Jets are in a similar boat having lost three in a row.
This game isn’t one to get excited about, but it does represent enormous value in terms of betting.
For a pick, I like the Jags outright in what is their only winnable game left on the schedule.
The Jacksonville defence did a good job holding Davis Mills to 200 yards and two touchdowns last week, while I also like James Robinson to have a big game against a Jets defence that has given up large chunks of yards on the ground.
This also probably boils down to who can make the fewest mistakes, so I wouldn’t be surprised if it turns out to be high scoring.
It might be curtains for the Falcons this week if they somehow go down to the Lions.
At 6-8, Arthur Smith’s side is still a sneaky chance to fall into a Wild Card berth, but they’ll need to make sure they don’t overlook Detroit, much like the Cardinals did a week ago.
Detroit, on the other hand, is in a very peculiar situation.
The Lions coughed up the No. 1 overall pick in next year’s Draft with their win over Arizona, and they might be picking third overall f they pull off another upset this week.
As far as betting goes, I think the Over is probably the safest play.
Both teams currently rank top five in points allowed this season, and I wouldn’t discount either side turning it over a couple of times.
The last two games between Detroit and Arizona have combined for over 50 points, and with both teams banged up, that trend should continue.
The Chargers currently occupy the second Wild Card spot in the AFC, but there’s still plenty of work to be done with the Bills, Ravens, Steelers, and Raiders all breathing down their neck.
Brandon Staley has had an extra few days to reflect on last week’s overtime loss to the Chiefs, a game that basically boiled down to the defence running out of gas.
That defeat could prove pivotal in the race for the AFC West crown, but fortunately, the Chargers have an enormous opportunity to boost their chances against a Texans team that is basically counting down the days.
To their credit, Houston did pick up a 14-point win over Jacksonville last week, but this is obviously a much tougher challenge against a Top 10 scoring offence.
The Chargers averaging over 27 points a game this season, which spells big trouble against a Houston defence averaging a similar number.
Aside from what happened last week, LA’s defence has been tough to throw against this year, and that is another problem for a Texans team that has averaged less than 200 yards a game through the air.
Combining all of that with LA’s 4-1 record following a loss, the Chargers should be winning this one.
The AFC North is set to go right down to the wire, and this game could go a long way to determining the outcome.
Jim Harbaugh’s decision to go for two for the second week in a row cost the Ravens in more ways than one last week.
The loss has left the 8-6 Bengals atop the division based on percentage, while the Steelers are also right in the mix after knocking off the Titans.
These two sides met just over a month ago in Baltimore, a game the Bengals surprisingly won 41-17.
Joe Burrow threw for over 400 yards and three touchdowns on the Ravens defence, and there’s a good chance history repeats itself based on Baltimore’s long list of injuries.
The Ravens are still waiting on word surrounding Lamar Jackson’s ankle injury, but they must have liked what they say from backup Tyler Huntley last week against Green Bay.
The rookie is basically a mini Lamar, but even so, I think Baltimore’s defence will be the deciding factor here.
The Ravens were carved up by Aaron Rodgers last week, and with the Bengals also starting to find their footing on the ground, I think Cincinnati sneaks home late in what should be a thriller.
This should be a fun one at Arrowhead between two teams in the thick of the AFC playoff race.
The 10-4 Chiefs currently hold the No. 1 seed and the first-round bye, while the 7-6-1 Steelers are hoping to continue their push for a Wild Card spot following last week’s win over the Titans.
Kansas City has opened firm double-digit favourites in betting, and it’s not hard to see why.
The Chiefs offence is basically back to what it was in 2019, but like most teams, COVID has quickly swept through the locker room with star tight end Travis Kelce likely to miss this game.
Even so, the Chiefs still have enough depth and talent to get by.
The Steelers have basically only made it this far on the back of their extraordinary defensive play, and while one could argue that might give the Chiefs problems, it’s hard to see Pittsburgh matching Kansas City on the scoresheet for four quarters.
The Broncos and Raiders will write another chapter in their long-standing rivalry when they meet in Vegas on Monday.
Both sporting 7-7 records, this is a crucial game as far as the AFC Wild Card picture is concerned, and from a betting perspective, it’s another difficult one to try and pick.
Teddy Bridgewater suffered a gruesome concussion in last week’s loss to the Bengals and it wouldn’t be surprising if he was to miss this game as a result.
The Raiders, on the other hand, are riding the high of last week’s walk-off road win over the Browns, but they too have some injury concerns to address with most of the secondary banged up.
Games between these two foes are always tough to pick, so I’m giving the edge to the Under providing Drew Lock starts in place of Bridgewater.
Both teams have had trouble scoring more than 20 points in recent weeks, and with eight of their last 10 meetings falling Under the Total, it seems like the safest play.
We’ve got a fascinating cross-conference game to wrap up the week, one that holds plenty of weight in terms of the playoff picture.
The Saints recorded one of the upsets of the season last week when they blanked the Patriots in Tampa Bay, a result that has left them still with a pulse at 7-7 in the standings.
Miami, meanwhile, picked up a crucial win over the Jets to move to an even .500 with three games to play.
It looks as though the Saints will go into this game as minor favourites in betting, which feels about right after handing Tom Brady is his first shutout since 2006.
Much of that game boiled down to New Orleans’ outstanding defensive play, a performance Saints fans will be hoping their team can replicate with a Wild Card berth still up for grabs.
These two sides rarely get together, so tipping this game is tough, but I’m giving the edge to the Saints and their defence.
New Orleans has been one of the toughest teams to score against all year, and I don’t think that bodes well for a Dolphins team that has averaged only 20 points a game.
Miami has had it fairly easy over the last month with games against the Jets (twice), Giants and Panthers, while the Saints are much more battle-tested after facing the Bucs, Cowboys and Bills during the same period.
If the defence comes to play, the Saints should cover.