Month: December 2019

Going into the regular season finales, ten of the 12 teams have clinched playoff spots and six of the eight have clinched division titles.

It is a difficult week to handicap because there is only one game – 49ers-Seattle — in which both teams have something to play for and they’re playing for the division title and the top seed, not a playoff spot.

The final two playoff spots go to the winner of the NFC East and an AFC wild card spot. The Eagles win the NFC East if they beat the Giants or if they lose and the Cowboys lose to Washington. The Cowboys get it if they win and the Eagles lose.

The Titans can clinch the AFC wild card spot if they beat the Texans. If they lose, Pittsburgh and even the Raiders have a shot.

The league is having the teams with something at stake playing at the same time although games could be affected by halftime scores.

For example, if New England is way ahead at halftime and on its way to clinching the second seed, Kansas City could pull Patrick Mahomes in the second half against the Chargers because the Chiefs would then have nothing to play for.

Game of the week: The 12-3 49ers go to Seattle to play the 11-4 Seahawks, who have been hit by injuries but have the homefield edge. A 49er victory clinches the top seed for San Francisco and relegates Seattle to a wild card spot. Seattle gets the division title if it wins but would need the Packers and Saints to lose to get the top seed. So, the odds are against the Seahawks getting the top seed but they get a home game in the first round of the playoffs if they win instead of playing on the road as a wild card team. The Seahawks will know by kickoff if they still have a shot at the top seed.

Game of the weak: The 5-9-1 Cardinals go to the 8-7 Rams, who are possibly the most disappointing team in the league. The Rams lost the Super Bowl last year and went all in on making it back by trading two first round picks for Jalen Ramsey. Now the Rams are cash strapped under the cap and don’t have those first round picks. The Rams are also locked in the same division with the 49ers and Seahawks and likely won’t be back to the Super Bowl any time soon. Whether they finish 9-7 or 8-8 is meaningless.

What to watch for this weekend:

—The Dolphins have been a surprise team, winning four games when the front office was trying to tank the season. But the Patriots are a virtual lock at home against the Dolphins. The Patriots are playing for the second seed and a first-round bye and it’s hard to imagine them not nailing it down even though they have struggled much of the season on offense and are facing questions whether Tom Brady is showing is age and will be back next year.

—The Chiefs are in an unusual situation. They can’t bench their starters because they get the top seed if they beat the Chargers and the Patriots lose to Miami. But they know the odds of the Patriots losing to Miami are slim and none. The Chiefs main goal is to not get anyone hurt. It will be interesting to see if the Chiefs rest their starters in the second half if the Patriots get off to a big lead over the Dolphins.

—The Steelers get a wild card spot if they beat the Ravens and the Titans lose to Houston. And the Ravens are resting Lamar Jackson and several other starters because the they have clinched the top seed. But they Ravens aren’t likely to mail it in because the Steelers are their main rival.

—The Eagles get the NFC East if they beat the Giants but this could be a dangerous game for the Eagles. They are riddled with injuries, are coming off an emotional victory over the Cowboys and Giants’ rookie quarter Daniel Jones is coming off a big game. The Giants have nothing to play for but would like nothing better than to knock a division rival out of the playoffs.

—The Packers get the top seed if they beat the Lions and the 49ers lose to the Seahawks. But since the 49ers-Seahawks game will be played Sunday night, they won’t know going into the Lions game if they have a shot at the top seed. But they do know a victory gives them at least a second seed regardless of what happens in the 49ers-Seahawks game so they have to play to win the game.

With two weeks to go, eight teams have already nailed down playoff berths and three more teams, the Texans, Cowboys and Vikings, can lock in playoff berths this weekend.

Baltimore and New England are on track to get the first two seeds in the AFC, but the battle for the top two seeds in the NFC is wide open with four teams, the Seahawks, Packers, Saints and 49ers, at 11-3.

The 49ers created the tie by losing to Atlanta on the final play when the replay official ruled Julio Jones had scored the winning touchdown after the officials first ruled he was stopped short of the goal line.

Positives

—The Atlanta Falcons seem to be trying to save Dan Quinn’s job by showing they haven’t quit on their coach. They posted their fourth win in the last six games by upsetting San Francisco.

—The Texans are a hard team to figure. They upset New England, were then drilled by the Broncos, but came back to beat the Titans to put themselves in a good position to win their division.

—The Cowboys and Eagles both won, beating the Rams and Redskins to remain tied at 7-7 and setting up a showdown this weekend with the division lead at stake. Dallas clinched with a victory while the Eagles have to win their last two to win the division.

—The Packers and Vikings both won, beating the Rams and the Chargers to remain one game apart in the NFC North with the Packers at 11-4 and the Vikings at 10-4. They play next Monday night.

—Drew Brees became the all-time leader in touchdown passes as he threw four against the Colts to boost his total to 540, moving him one ahead of Peyton Manning. But he’s only two ahead of Tom Brady. And he had just one incompletion as he completed 29 of 30 passes.

Negatives

—The Rams are not only not likely to back to the Super Bowl, they’re not likely to make the playoffs after being routed by the Cowboys to fall to 8-6. They need to win their last two and the Vikings to lose their last two to get a wild card spot.

—The score looked impressive as the Patriots beat the Bengals, 34-13, but they don’t look like a Super Bowl team. They were actually outgained in yardage, 315 to 291. And Brady passed for only 128 yards, but the Patriots won on five turnovers.

—The Browns continued to be one of the most disappointing teams in the league. After all the hype in the offseason, they didn’t challenge for the playoffs. They lost to the Cardinals in the battle of Oklahoma Heisman Trophy winners Kyler Murray and Baker Mayfield and the best the Browns can do now is finish .500.

—The Panthers recently fired coach Ron Rivera but they committed three turnovers in a loss to the Seahawks. The Panthers are now 5-9. It may be the coach wasn’t the problem.

—The Lions fell to 3-10-1 with the loss to the Bucs as Jameis Winston torched them for a career high 458 yards. But the Ford family announced that GM Bob Quinn and coach Matt Patricia will be back at least for one more year. Probably another wasted year. Quinn fired Jim Caldwell, who went 9-7, to hire Patricia.

Ten of the 12 playoff teams are now determined with the Titans, Steelers and Raiders battling for the final playoff spot in the AFC, and the Eagles can clinch the final NFC spot by beating the Giants.

The Titans get the AFC slot if they beat Houston. If they lose, the Steelers probably get it because they play a Baltimore team that has clinched the top seed and will rest Lamar Jackson.

But if Titans and Steelers both lose and the Colts beat the Jaguars, the Raiders get in by beating Denver. New England gets the second seed and the bye by beating Miami.

In the NFC, the battle for the top seed is wide open. San Francisco gets it if it beats Seahawks. If the Seahawks win, the 49ers become a wild cardteam and the Packers, Seahawks and Saints will be battling for the top two spots.

Positives

—On Sept. 29, the Ravens didn’t look like a title contender when they suffered their second loss, a 40-25 setback against the Browns. It was fitting that they clinched the top seed with their 11th straight victory by beating the Browns 31-15. Lamar Jackson had a typical day, throwing for three touchdown passes and rushing for 103, the fifth time he has rushed for over 100 yards. Jackson’s MVP regular season is now over. He will sit out the season finale, but will be favored to get the Ravens their third title since the old Browns moved to Baltimore in 1996.

—Michael Thomas caught 12 passes for the Saints in their victory over Tennessee to boost his season total to 145 catches, the most over for a wide receiver in NFL history. And he somehow manages not to get much recognition because he is not a diva the way so many wide receivers are.

—Daniel Jones returned to the lineup for the Giants after sitting out two games with an ankle injury and completed 28 of 42 for 352 yards, five touchdowns and no picks in a 41-35 overtime victory over the Redskins. The Giants may have found their quarterback of the future.

—Jimmy Garoppolo twice converted on third and 16 in the game winning drive against the Rams to set up Robbie Gould’s game winning field goal that kept the 49ers alive in the bid for the top seed. They clinch it if they beat the Seahawks in their finale.

—The injury riddled Philadelphia Eagles beat the Cowboys 17-9 to put themselves in position to win the division and host a playoff game if they beat the Giants in their finale. Carson Wentz had a solid game, but it was the Eagles’ defense that was the difference as they throttled the Cowboys offense with the help of some errant throws by Dak Prescott, who was playing a shoulder injury.

Negatives

—The Rams not only won’t be going back to the Super Bowl, they won’t be making the playoffs after losing to the Seahawks, 34-31. The loss dropped the Rams to 8-7 and eliminated them from the playoffs. The Rams went all in on winning this year, giving up on Marcus Peters and giving up two first round picks for Jalen Ramsey. On one of the two third and 16 plays the Rams allowed, Ramsey and Taylor Rupp had a mix-up in coverage and Emmanuel Sanders ran free on a 46-yard reception. The future is now bleak for the Rams. The Rams have spent two much money, notably on Todd Gurley, and don’t have the top picks they need to get back to the top. Teams are no longer looking for the next Sean McVay the way they were last year.

—The Steelers lost control of their destiny with the loss to the Jets. Coach Mike Tomlin benched Duck Hodges after he threw two interceptions and went back to Mason Rudolph but after he tied the game 10-10, he was injured and Hodges came back and couldn’t pull it out. The Steelers can still make the playoffs if they lose to a Baltimore team that will rest Lamar Jackson and Tennessee loses to Houston and could make it by losing if the Titans, Jaguars and Raiders all lose. But they may wind up being the seventh spot in a six-team playoff format for the fourth time in the last decade.

—Jerry Jones will probably fire Jason Garrett if the Eagles beat the Giants and knock them out of the playoffs. This will mean the Cowboys who last won a Super Bowl in 1995, won’t end that drought this year. But the problem isn’t Garrett. It’s Jerry. He likes a low-key coach like Garrett who doesn’t take the spotlight away from him. He should hire a general manager and let him find a coach but Jerry won’t do that so the Cowboys Super Bowl drought is likely to continue.

—The Bears got an up-close look at why they should have drafted Patrick Mahomes instead of Mitch Trubisky. The Chiefs routed the Bears 23-3 and Mahomes made a point of counting to 10 on his fingers to note he was the 10th pick. Trubisky was the second pick. Bypassing Mahomes and Deshaun Jackson will haunt the Bears a long time.

—The Browns got a lot of hype as a team on the rise in the offseason but they turned out to be the same old Browns. Their loss to the Ravens guaranteed them their 12th consecutive losing season and eliminated them from the playoffs. Freddie Kitchens could be gone after one season.

Since the college regular season is over, the NFL will scrap the Thursday night game and play a tripleheader on Saturday followed by a dozen Sunday games and the Packers-Vikings on Monday night.

The Sunday night game between the Chiefs and Bears is one of the most lackluster games of the weekend because the Chiefs are likely locked into the third seed in the AFC with Baltimore and New England likely to get the first two.

The premier Sunday game is the late afternoon game featuring Dallas at Philadelphia. The only other late game on Fox is Arizona at Seattle so the Cowboys-Eagles will be shown in every NFL market east of Denver.

The NFC battle for the top seed is wide open with four teams – 49ers, Packers, Seahawks and Saints — tied at 11-3 with two games left. Eight teams are in the playoffs and three more, the Texans, Cowboys and Vikings, can clinch this weekend.

Game of the week: The Cowboys go to Philadelphia with the NFC East division lead on the line with both teams at 7-7. Dallas clinched the division title with a win while the Eagles won’t clinch with a win. They would still need to beat the Giants in their finale or have Dallas lose to Washington in their finale. The game is more important to Dallas because Jason Garrett could lose his job if the Cowboys lose and don’t make the playoffs.

Game of the weak: The 1-13 Bengals, who now are likely to get the first pick, go to the 3-11 Dolphins, who supposed were tanking the season but have a chance to win their fourth game. Look for a lot of empty seats in Miami for this week.

What to look for this weekend:

—The 49ers, who have a shot at the top seed, will host the disappointing 8-6 Rams, who need a win to keep their flicking playoff hopes alive. They need to win their final two and have Minnesota lose their final two for them to make the playoffs so they are probably out of it even if they win. Meanwhile, the 49ers are battling the Seahawks, who are expected to beat Arizona, for the division title. The Seahawks and 49ers play next week at Seattle to conclude their seasons.

—There is not likely much at stake when the Bills play at New England. The Bills are likely to be the wild card team and the Patriots likely to be the second seed regardless of what happens in this game. But it would be a big statement game for the Bills to show they are contenders if they upset the Patriots and raise more questions about whether the Patriots are as good as their record. Tom Brady has a 31-3 record against the Bills.

—Green Bay, with a one game lead on the Vikings, can clinch the division title with a Monday night victory over the Vikings. Minnesota has the home field advantage but there are usually a lot of Packer fans at Vikings games. And Kirk Cousins isn’t noted for playing well in prime time.

—Since the NFL started its current playoff format, at least four teams that didn’t make the playoffs the previous year have made it. That is likely to continue because three teams that didn’t make it last year, the Bills, Packers and 49ers, have clinched and Minnesota and/or Pittsburgh have a shot at being the fourth team.

—The NFL has a lot of young guns who are emerging to replace players like Super Bowl winners Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Eli Manning, Aaron Rodgers and Ben Roethlisberger as the next generation of top quarterbacks. In 183 of the league’s 224 games this year, at least one quarterback at 27 or younger has started. The torch is being passed to the next generation.

Lamar Jackson started the weekend with another five-touchdown passing show against the Jets that moved the Ravens one step closer to clinching the top seed in the AFC. They hold a one game lead plus a head to head tie-breaker over the Patriots, who figure to beat Cincinnati Sunday. The Ravens last two games are against the Browns and Steelers. The Ravens and the Chiefs are the two AFC teams to clinch division titles. Both have three game leads. The Saints are the only NFC team to have clinched a division title with a four-game lead with three left. The other five divisions are close with no more than a game separating the top team from the second team. And then there’s the NFC East with the Cowboys and Eagles, who play next week, tied for first with losing records at 6-7.

Game of the week

The Texans and Titans are tied for first place in the AFC South at 8-5 and will meet twice in the last three weeks. If either team sweeps, they will clinch the division title.

Game of the weak

The 2-11 Giants and the 3-10 Dolphins meet in a game that may decide the second spot in the draft. Cincinnati is in the lead at 1-12. The game will feature the second start in a row for Eli Manning, who was benched for rookie Daniel Jones earlier this year, but got the job back when Jones was sidelined with a high ankle sprain.

What to look for this weekend

—The 8-5 Rams will attempt to stay in the wild card race in the NFC when they go to Dallas. It is a meaningless game for the Cowboys because they can lose this game and still win the division at 8-8 if they beat the Eagles and Redskins in their final two games. The Cowboys would have the tie-breaker edge with a sweep of the Eagles. The Eagles play at the Redskins Sunday.

—The 9-4 Bills go to the 8-5 Steelers, who started out 1-4, in a game that has a lot of playoff ramifications. The Bills can’t afford to look ahead to the game next week at New England. If the Bills win the next two, they would be tied with New England in head to head and division and conference records, assuming the Patriots beat the Bengals. A Steeler victory would likely mean both the Steelers and Bills get wild card spots.

—The Raiders play their last game in Oakland against the Jaguars before moving to Las Vegas next year. The amazing thing is the Raiders are leaving, but the Oakland fans still root for them. But both teams are struggling with the Raiders at 6-7 and the Jaguars at 4-9 so it is not likely to be a memorable matchup except for the atmosphere at the stadium.

—The 10-3 Packers can stay one game ahead of the 9-4 Vikings in the NFC North with the victory over the Bears. Meanwhile, the Vikings are at the Chargers. Both the Bears and Vikings have to stay focused. The Bears are an old rival and Mitch Trubisky is suddenly playing better. And the Chargers are better than their 5-8 record with all their losses by one score.

—The game between the 3-9-1 Cardinals and the disappointing 6-8 Browns wouldn’t seem to be much of an attraction except that it features a duel of the last two Heisman Trophy winners with Baker Mayfield facing Kyler Murray. Both played at Oklahoma.

The week featured what is likely to be the play of the year in the Saints-49ers game when the 49ers faced 4th and 2 on their 33-yard line late in the game. George Kittle caught a short pass and bulldozed his way for 39-yard gain while his face mask was being pulled. Then the 15-yard penalty was added on and 49ers won with a late field goal.

The win vaulted the 49ers from fifth to first seed in the NFC while the Seahawks dropped from first to fifth with the loss to the Rams. It also means the Saints are in danger of going on the road if they get to the NFC title game, which is always challenging for a dome team.

In the AFC, Baltimore kept a grip on the top seed by beating Buffalo.

Positives

—Jimmy Garoppolo boosted his record to 19-4 with four touchdowns and 349 passing yards as he outdueled Drew Bree’s. The Saints scored on their first four possessions and lost. Going into the game, teams that scored on their first four possessions were 44-0 since 2000.

—The rejuvenated Rams beat the Seahawks with defense as they survived two interceptions by Jared Goff, including a Pick Six.

—The Ravens also relied on their defense as they held the Bills to 278 yards of offense as they retained the top seed in the AFC. They have now won nine in a row, seven against winning teams.

—Ryan Tannehill boosted his record to 6-1 since replacing Marcus Mariota as the Titans crushed the Raiders, but Derrick Henry has been the key to their four-game winning streak with 599 yards and seven touchdowns. He got 103 against the Raiders.

—The Eagles rallied for a tying touchdown in the fourth quarter and then marched for a game winning touchdown in overtime to beat the Giants and tie the Cowboys for first place in the NFC East. They did it even though Carson Wentz was down to one healthy receiver. But it is hard to imagine the Eagles going deep into the playoffs even if they make it.

Negatives

—The home team usually gets the calls, but the officials blew critical calls that went against the Patriots in their loss at home to the Chiefs. They cost them two touchdowns, blowing the whistle on a scoop and score and nullifying a second touchdown by ruling the runner was out of bounds when he wasn’t. Still, the Patriots didn’t play well and Tom Brady seems to be showing his age.

—Kyle Allen apparently isn’t the Panthers quarterback of the future. After a 5-0 start, he has lost six of seven, including the loss to Atlanta. If they don’t keep Cam Newton, finding a new quarterback will be Job One for the new coach.

—The Houston Texans beat New England a week ago but then were drilled by Denver and rookie quarterback Drew Lock. The Texans now face the Titans twice in the last three weeks and are in danger of missing the playoffs.

—The Indianapolis Colts also are in danger of missing the playoffs after blowing a 14-point third quarter lead and losing to Tampa Bay. If they don’t make the playoffs, it will be the fourth time in the last five years they are failed to make it.

—The Lions fell to 3-9-1 with the loss to the Vikings but coach Matt Patricia tried to claim the team is better than its record. The team was 6-1 in his first season after replacing Jim Caldwell, who was fired for going 9-7. Patricia seems likely to be the latest Bill Belichick assistant to fail as a head coach.

The NFL has an entertaining tripleheader for much of the country on Sunday. It starts with the Saints-49ers at 1 p.m. on Fox, the Chiefs-Patriots on CBS as the late afternoon game and Rams-Seahawks on NBC as the Sunday night game. Unfortunately, the MNF game is the Eagles-Giants and the NFL can’t flex that game. Any of the three Sunday highlight games would have been a better attraction on Monday night.

Game of the week

Chiefs at Patriots. Early in the season, this looked like the game of the year in the AFC, but Baltimore has surpassed both teams. Still, it is a good game as Patrick Mahomes faces Tom Brady, who plays the role of the aging gunslinger facing the new kid on the block. Brady’s dealing with injuries and the lack of an elite receiving corps, but he is still Brady. The Chiefs will try to hand the Patriots their second straight loss after they were beaten by Houston Sunday night.

Game of the weak

The 3-9 Dolphins face the 4-8 Jets, who lost to the Dolphins in the first game and have now lost to two winless teams. The Dolphins were 0-8 when the Jets lost to them and the lost to the 0-11 Bengals. The Dolphins were supposed to be tanking to get the first pick but their three wins, including last week’s victory over the Eagles, has them two games behind the 1-11 Bengals.

What to Watch for this weekend:

—The game between the Saints and 49ers, both 10-2, could be a preview of the NFC title game and a battle for the top seed although the Seahawks are also 10-2. The top seed is the only thing the Saints have to play for because they are the only team in the NFC South with a winning record. But the 49ers are locked into a struggle with Seattle for the NFC West title. They play the Seahawks in the last game of the year.

—The 7-5 Rams need a win over the Seahawks to keep their wild card playoff hopes alive. With the Saints and 49ers at 10-2, they have no chance to win the division title. The Rams showed signs of getting it together when they routed the Cardinals last week, but it has still been a disappointing season for the Rams.

—Surprising Buffalo, which is 9-3 and is likely to get a wild card spot, will try to upset Baltimore, which is playing to keep the top seed. A Buffalo win and New England loss to Kansas City would leave the two teams tied for the AFC East title at 10-3 with three games left. The Bills play at Pittsburgh and New England the next two weeks.

—The 7-5 Titans, who are a game behind Houston in the AFC South race, can’t afford to look ahead to the Texans game next week. They play at Oakland, which has been unpredictable and is 6-6.

—Eli Manning returns to the starting lineup because rookie Daniel Jones is injured and faces a familiar foe in the Eagles, who will tie Dallas for first place in the NFC East at 6-7 with a victory. Yes, 6-7, that is how bad this division is. The Cowboys or Eagles will not only win the division, but host a playoff game against a team with a better record. That will cause howls of protest from those who favor reseeding at the end of the regulation season. But the league wants to put a premium on teams winning their division. There will be more howls if the Eagles or Cowboys win a playoff game at home against a team with a better record but it appears unlikely.

There’s a new sheriff in the NFL.

Baltimore’s gritty victory over San Francisco in rainy conditions and New England’s loss to Houston vaulted the Ravens into the No. 1 seed in the AFC. They both have 10-2 records but Baltimore has the tie-breaker because of its victory over the Patriots.

Meanwhile, the surprising Bills boosted their record to 9-3 with a victory at Dallas and still play the Patriots in the second to last game.

In the NFC, it now appears to be a three-team race for the top seed with Saints, 49ers and Seahawks all at 10-2. The 49ers go to New Orleans this week.

A look at what happened last weekend:

Positives:

—Baltimore showed it could win a low scoring defensive game in bad weather in beating the 49ers. Now they face another test at the surprising Bills.

—Seattle vaulted into contention for the top seed with the victory over Minnesota. It is now one of three 10-2 NFC teams with the Saints and 49ers.

—The Rams are still alive in the wild card race at 7-5 after routing the Cardinals as Jared Goff threw for 424 yards.

—Deshaun Watson outdueled a frustrated Tom Brady with three touchdown passes as the Texans beat the Patriots. The Texans have a game lead in the AFC South over the Titans, but play the Titans twice in the last three weeks.

—Cincinnati went back to veteran Andy Dalton at quarterback and beat the Jets to post their first victory after an 0-11 start. The Bengals, despite the win, are still in lead for the top pick in the draft.

Negatives:

-/Kirk Cousins lost another big prime time game as the Vikings lost to Seattle. Cousins is now 0-8 on MNF.

—Cleveland coach Freddie Kitchens wore a Pittsburgh Started It T-shirt and the Steeler finished it by beating the Browns. Kitchens ill-advised move raised more questions about whether he is destined to get a second year as the Browns’ coach.

—Carolina coach Ron Rivera became the second coach to be fired after the Panthers fell to 5-7 with a loss to Washington, which was the first team to fire its coach, Jay Gruden, this year.

—The Jets lost to 0-11 Cincinnati after earlier losing to 0-8 Miami. The 4-8 Jets would be 6-6 if they had been able to beat two winless teams.

—There is a chance the NFC East winner could have a losing record after the 6-6 Cowboys lost to Buffalo and the 5-7 Eagles lost to Miami. One of these teams will win the division and host a playoff game. The two teams play at Philadelphia in the second to the last game of the season.

In the aftermath of the three Thanksgiving Day games, New Orleans became the first team to clinch a playoff spot. But it now appears that five of the six NFC playoff slots are set with 10-1 San Francisco, 10-2 New Orleans, 9-2 Seattle, 8-3 Green Bay and 8-3 Minnesota virtual locks.

The only question is which two wind up with wild card spots. The sixth spot goes to the NFC East winner – Dallas or Philadelphia. In the AFC, only three teams – 10-1 New England, 9-2 Baltimore and 9-3 Buffalo appear to be locks. Six teams – Houston and Kansas City at 7-4 and four 6-5 teams – Colts, Titans, Raiders and Steelers – are fighting for the final three slots.

Game of the Week (and Maybe the Season)

San Francisco goes to Baltimore in what may be a Super Bowl preview. The 49ers defense will try to stop Lamar Jackson from putting on another show.

Game of the Weak

Tampa Bay goes to Jacksonville for a battle of two 4-7 teams. The Jaguars have given up more than 200 yards rushing in three consecutive games, but that string will likely be snapped because Tampa isn’t a rushing team. The game will turn on whether Jameis Winston can avoid throwing interceptions and how the Jaguars react to reports of internal strife between the coaching staff and the front office.

What to Look For This Weekend

–If not for the 49ers-Ravens matchup, a duel between 9-2 Seattle and 8-3 Minnesota would get top billing. Both teams are fighting for division titles in their respective divisions.

–Third string quarterback Devlin Hodges replaces Mason Rudolph as the starter for the Steelers against Cleveland, but the real question about this game is whether the two teams can avoid mayhem this time in the wake of now suspended Myles Garrett hitting Rudolph with his helmet two weeks ago.

–The Colts-Titans winner can tie for first place in the AFC South if the Texans, as expected, lose to New England. The Titans play the Texans twice in the last four games while the Colts play only one more division game left against the Jaguars.

–Philadelphia is 5-6 for the second consecutive year. Last year they won four of last five to make the playoffs at 9-7 with Nick Foles at quarterback. In the wake of Dallas’ loss to Buffalo, they control their destiny and they are well positioned for a playoff run. After meeting Miami Sunday, they have two games against the Giants and one with Washington. The key is their Dec. 22 game against Dallas.