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Week 16 of the NFL begins the final push for the playoffs for many teams and several key games are on the agenda.
The week kicks off on Thursday night with the Chargers at the Broncos, and includes a pair of interesting Saturday matchups with Pittsburgh at Baltimore, and Houston at Kansas City. The Chargers are favored by 2,5 over Denver, the Ravens are a 6.5-point play over the Steelers, and the Chiefs are now 3.5-point favorites over the Texans.
No one has clinched anything more than a playoff berth in the NFC, while the Bears, Panthers and Giants are the only teams that have been mathematically eliminated.
Detroit and Minnesota are tied in the NFC North with 12-2 records, but the Lions still own a 4-0 division mark while the Vikings are 3-1 with their only divisional loss coming at home to the Lions, 31-29, back on October 20. They meet again on January 5 in Detroit in the regular season finale.
Green Bay lurks at 10-4, but the 1-3 divisional record has the Packers looking at a Wild Card spot. Especially when the final two games against the Vikings (12/29) and Packers (1/5) are both on the road.
The Eagles are the real commanders of the NFC East at 12-2 over-all and 3-0 in the division. The Washington (wanna be) Commanders are 9-5 and 2-2 in the division.
Tampa Bay has a 1-game lead over-all on Atlanta with an 8-6 mark next to at 7-7, but the Falcons are 4-1 in the division vs. the Bucs' 2-2 record. The Falcons also own a 31-26 win at Tampa Bay on October 27. The Saints (5-9, 2-3) aren't completely out of the picture, but likely will be after this weekend.
Everybody is still in the hunt in the NFC West with the LA Rams (8-6, 3-1) leading Seattle (8-6, 3-2) and owning a 21-14 at their division rival on December 1. The Rams also host the Saints in the season finale on January 5. San Francisco (6-8, 1-4) just fell to the Rams for the second time for a fourth loss in their last five games, and are pretty much in a situation of needing to go 3-0 to have any chance at the playoffs. Meanwhile, Arizona hasn't exactly taken advantage of its opportunities, either, as the Cardinals (7-7, 2-2) just ended a 3-game losing streak against cross-conference foe New England. But the 1-3 record in the last four games has erased the 4-game winning streak they enjoyed before the recent slump.
In the AFC, the Chiefs and Bills are competing for the 1-seed and home field advantage throughout. Each has clinched their division, but the Bills seems to be surging while Kansas City is hurting as the main chief, Patrick Homes, deals with his ankle injury.
Buffalo (11-3, 3-0) has run away with the AFC East. In the whacky world of NFL scheduling, however, the Bills still have three divisional games remaining with home dates versus the Patriots and Jets before closing at New England. Buffalo is 7-2 in the conference while Kansas City is 8-1.
Elsewhere, the Texans have clinched the AFC South and the Steelers have locked down a playoff berth.
Streaking Denver (9-5, 2-2) goes for a 5th straight win at SoFi Stadium on Thursday as the host LA Chargers (8-6, 2-2) try to end a 2-game losing streak and avoid elimination, which is exactly what will happen if the Chargers lose that game, and the Ravens beat the Steelers on Saturday. The Chargers were 23-16 winners at Denver on October 13, so a second win over the Broncos would immensely boost their playoff chances.
Baltimore (9-5, 2-2) needs a win at home over the Steelers (10-4, 3-1) to keep any hopes of a AFC North title alive as the Ravens already own an 18-16 loss at Pittsburgh just four weeks ago.
Meanwhile, Joe Burrows and the Bengalis are on the brink of an elimination as their only hope is the 7th playoff spot. Those hopes evaporate with a loss at home to the Browns on Sunday.
SEE: NFL Picks and Odds