by As the regular season draws to a close, every Friday we’ll look at a game that could affect the playoff race, along with the teams that are rising and falling. And, so we don’t neglect the teams as well, we’ll see which teams will be chasing the No. 1 pick. 1 next year.
Game of the week
Dallas Cowboys (10-3) v Buffalo Bills (7-6)
Story of the season: The Bills thread at this stage of that white-knuckle journey for the franchise and the AFC as a whole needs to be followed. After battling with the Super Bowl Champions to keep their season alive, they are 7-6 but need to keep winning because of their weak division record and the details of half of the conference with the same win column. A win has the potential to send the Bills from 11th to a push into the postseason running at seventh, so beating Kansas City was crucial but now it’s falling to the Cowboys . Dallas rolled into Buffalo fresh off dominating the Philadelphia Eagles, a statement win that puts them in pole position in the NFC East and keeps their foot to the metal across from the 49ers in the race for the NFC’s top seed. They are still likely to succeed and possibly take the only shot at the conference crown. The pressure is intense.
What the Bills need to do to win: Buffalo may be down but their impressive home form (5-2) still gives them the edge. They need the life of Bills Mafia and their unique enthusiasm to continue their great run. Fever will be running high as the team returns home after a month away from Highmark Stadium. The crowd can also help pump up receiver Stefon Diggs, who is suffering from a slump at the wrong time for his team. Diggs has started strong with 100 yards or more in five of his first six games but in the past has had fewer than six catches and 58 receiving yards per game. The coaching staff must address this lack of use, give them what they want: the Diggs comeback special.
What the Cowboys need to do to win: Head coach Mike McCarthy’s offensive production is assured as quarterback Dak Prescott connects with receiver CeeDee Lamb. The former’s sublime season has him leading the MVP race and the latter needs 107 yards and two touchdowns to top his best year to date. The defense needs to keep quarterback Josh Allen on their own to prevent a huge edge to the last man who won the ball. Statistically Allen provides them with both carrot and stick: he leads the NFL in gifts and total touchdowns with 17 turnovers playing 33 scores. The pressure is where they can look to reduce Allen’s influence; he has completed 50.4% of his passes while on fire compared to 75.2% in the clean pocket this year and has thrown six interceptions under pressure. Defensive coordinator Dan Quinn must let go of the considerable talent of pass rushers Micah Parsons, DeMarcus Lawrence and Dante Fowler. Rookie kicker Brandon Aubrey would also be very useful to get his career off to a perfect start. The 28-year-old former software engineer has yet to miss his first 30 field goal attempts, an NFL record.
Risers and fallers playoff race
Rising: AFC North (mostly)
“Maybe the Pittsburgh Steelers tradition is done,” said Ben Roethlisberger, on his Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger podcast, reflecting on his team’s win against the lowly Patriots. Now, if Ben Roethlisberger knows, he’s Footbahlin, so his race is run, maybe forever. (He certainly isn’t upset yet about the cost of living in Tom Brady’s shadow.) Meanwhile, the division’s three other franchises are thriving. The Baltimore Ravens lead the AFC dogfight 7-6 and the Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals are right in the mix thanks to their backup quarterbacks or, in the case of the Browns, their backup quarterbacks. The No. 1 seed is right in the grasp of the Ravens – only the second in franchise history if they concede it – and their passing attack can keep it thriving against a Jacksonville Jaguars team nervous about conceding more land at the top of the AFC South. Cleveland’s unlikely success with the 38-year-old Joe Flacco feels fragile but at 8-6, two wins from their last four fixtures (Bears, Texans, Jets, Bengals) should send them into the postseason. It’s amazing that Flacco’s last dance is being held next to the house that Jake Browning built for storytelling. Back-to-back wins have given the Bengals hope from the ruins of Joe Burrow’s early departure and with the Vikings and the odd Steelers on the other day, Browning could be the incredible story of the year across the series. Pittsburgh is 7-6, too.
Falling: Houston Texans (7-6, currently No. 8 in the AFC)
The Houston Texans in 2023 were a joy to behold. The narrative of the team that suffers the blow that their legs receive never fails to capture hearts and minds. His story as a first-year head coach and former player with DeMeco Ryans is legendary with a rookie-heavy roster. The Texans were dead last in the preseason in hopes of making the Super Bowl but are still on the playoff bubble and Ryans, rightly so, is a favorite to be named coach of the year. However, a loss to the Jets may have put an end to their remarkable run. There is another notch in the loss column when the AFC is so suffocatingly tight painful enough but missing CJ Stroud and Nico Collins for at least this week a meeting with the Titans could be too much to overcome with Tank Dell is already out of the lineup. The quarterback’s secrets in the concussion protocol put Davis Mills in as the likely starter against Tennessee. With the win coming early and a significant slide in the playoff race, will this team have enough fight left for week 16 against Flacco’s Browns?
Race for No. 1 Pick
The Carolina Panthers can only improve after flatlining against the Saints but a trip to Atlanta with the Falcons to play to regain supremacy in the NFC South but going to end one way. Nothing new then but Zach Wilson absolutely predicted a moment for the New York Jets by being great against Houston. Aaron Rodgers will even smile at the comeback kid as they step out of the race for the next top picks. In the fight now for Pick No. 2 we have New England, Arizona and Washington who will face Kansas City, San Francisco and the LA Rams respectively. The Chiefs are on the road, San Francisco is the best in the NFL and LA needs to win to stay relevant, so in this year of total chaos, at least they can win. two of our best of the worst to put the loser in pole position. . EDS? Who knows?
