Eagles look like team to beat in NFC, Bills beat Lions in potential SB preview
Mackenzie Salmon breaks down the top storylines from Week 15 in the NFL.
Sports Seriously
The NFL has officially scheduled its Saturday tripleheader for Week 17 while also flexing its post-Christmas “Sunday Night Football” matchup.
The Saturday slate on Dec. 28 will kick off with the Los Angeles Chargers at the New England Patriots at 1 p.m. ET, followed by the Denver Broncos at the Cincinnati Bengals at 4:30 p.m., and the Arizona Cardinals taking on the Los Angeles Rams at 8 p.m.
All three games will be broadcast on NFL Network and available on NFL+, the league’s streaming service.
The NFL was set to pick three games from five possible matchups. One of the options – the Atlanta Falcons at Washington Commanders – will shift to “Sunday Night Football” on Dec. 29 in place of the Miami Dolphins at Cleveland Browns. The other game – the Indianapolis Colts at New York Giants – will be played at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
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The reworked could have notable ramifications for the playoff picture.
The Broncos (9-5) are in good shape to end their eight-season playoff drought, as they stand in the sixth seed in the AFC. But this Thursday’s matchup against the Chargers (8-6) could prove critical in establishing the wild-card pecking order, and Denver will be facing a resilient Bengals team (6-8) that has posted at least 34 points in four of the last six weeks.
The Rams (8-6) claimed the NFC West lead this weekend thanks to owning a tiebreaker against the Seattle Seahawks, but they’ll still need to finish strong given the state of the wild-card race and the Week 18 rematch with the Seahawks. The Cardinals need both teams to slip up in order to make up ground in the division.
The Commanders (9-5) are clinging to the final NFC wild-card spot, while the best hope for the Falcons (7-7) is probably catching up to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-6) for the NFC South crown given Atlanta has already swept the Bucs this season, a decisive tiebreaker if the clubs wind up deadlocked.
NFL Week 17 schedule
Wednesday, Dec. 25
Kansas City Chiefs at Pittsburgh Steelers, 1 p.m. ET, Netflix
Baltimore Ravens at Houston Texans, 4:30 p.m. ET, Netflix
Thursday, Dec. 26
Seattle Seahawks at Chicago Bears, 8:15 p.m. ET, Prime Video
Saturday, Dec. 28
Los Angeles Chargers at New England Patriots, 1 p.m. ET, NFL Network
Denver Broncos at Cincinnati Bengals, 4:30 p.m. ET, NFL Network
Arizona Cardinals at Los Angeles Rams, 8 p.m. ET, NFL Network
Sunday, Dec. 29
New York Jets at Buffalo Bills, 1 p.m. ET, CBS
Tennessee Titans at Jacksonville Jaguars, 1 p.m. ET, CBS
Green Bay Packers at Minnesota Vikings, 1 p.m. ET, FOX
Las Vegas Raiders at New Orleans Saints, 1 p.m. ET, FOX
Indianapolis Colts at New York Giants, 1 p.m. ET, FOX
Carolina Panthers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 1 p.m. ET, CBS
Miami Dolphins at Cleveland Browns, 4:05 p.m. ET, CBS
Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles, 4:25 p.m. ET, FOX
Atlanta Falcons at Washington Commanders, 8:20 p.m. ET, NBC
Monday, Dec. 30
Detroit Lions at San Francisco 49ers, 8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN/ABC