Around the AFC
Lamarvelous: The MVP resides in Murrland, and there’s no need to think twice about it. Bills quarterback Josh Allen has put up absurd numbers (3,549 passing yards, 26 touchdowns, six interceptions and 11 rushing touchdowns). But what Baltimore star quarterback Lamar Jackson has done lately should be enough to earn his third MVP award. He led the Ravens to three wins in 11 days, with two coming against playoff teams. During that stretch, Jackson threw for 665 yards, 10 touchdowns and an interception with a completion percentage of 73%. Jackson dazzled in Baltimore’s win over Houston on Christmas, throwing for 168 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for 87 yards and a score on four carries. Unless Jackson has a dreadful performance against the Browns in the regular-season finale, it’s hard to imagine him not winning the award.
Pierce doesn’t care about draft position: Even when the Raiders are victorious, they find a way to anger their passionate fan base. Las Vegas’ 19-14 win over Jacksonville snapped a 10-game losing streak, but its draft position dropped significantly from No. 2 to No. 6. Does Raiders coach Antonio Pierce care? Heck no. “We don’t do this to lose,” Pierce told reporters earlier this week. “We don’t do this for anybody’s fantasy football team. Don’t do this for anybody’s draft projections. None of that (explicit) matters to us. What matters is winning, and that’s all we want to do.”
Chiefs offense surging at the right time: Kansas City’s three-peat is beginning to feel inevitable. The Chiefs clinched the top seed in the AFC with a 29-10 beatdown on the Pittsburgh Steelers on Wednesday, and their offense is peaking at the right point in the season. In the last three games, the Chiefs averaged 25.6 points and 358.3 total yards on offense. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes has thrown for 2,277 yards, 18 touchdowns and two picks since Week 9. Meanwhile, rookie wide receiver Xavier Worthy has found a groove. He totaled a season-high 79 receiving yards and a touchdown on eight catches against Pittsburgh. The first-round pick has 15 catches for 144 yards and two scores in the last two weeks.
Around the NFC
Carroll making a comeback? Pete Carroll saw Bill Belichick take the North Carolina coaching job after a year off and said hold my beer. ESPN reported that Carroll, who retired in January after 14 seasons in Seattle, is interested in the Bears’ coaching job, which opened up after the team fired Matt Eberflus last month. Carroll, 73, is the type of coach who can change the culture of a team. He made USC back into a national powerhouse and then went to Seattle, where he made 10 playoff appearances and two conference championships, and won Super Bowl XLVIII. Bears have one of the most attractive coaching jobs because they already have a quarterback and pieces on offense to work with. Even though Caleb Williams has been underwhelming at times, he still has the potential to develop into a star quarterback. He just needs a strong support system.
Daniels has OROY locked up: Bo Nix gave it a shot. So did Brock Bowers. But Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels has the Offensive Rookie of the Year award on lock. He solidified his case after throwing for five touchdowns and orchestrating a game-winning scoring drive to beat the Eagles — one of the league’s best defenses — in Week 16. This season, the 2023 Heisman Trophy winner is 14th in passing yards (3,303), tied for 10th in touchdown passes (22) and fourth in quarterback rating (71.8). With Jackson and Daniels potentially winning MVP and Offensive Rookie of the Year, respectively, while leading their teams to the playoffs, it’s a special time in the DMV area.
Barkley on cusp of rushing record: Each week, Saquon Barkley has made the Giants regret their decision to move on from him and try to build around quarterback Daniel Jones, who was released in late November. Barkley has 1,838 rushing yards through 15 games and could potentially break the league’s single-season rushing record of 2,105 yards, set by Eric Dickerson in 1984. Barkley will need 268 yards in the last two games to rewrite the record books. The task isn’t impossible, since the Cowboys and New York are 27th and 31st in rushing yards allowed. Barkley breaking the rushing record in the season finale against his former team would be a hilarious sight to see.
Game of the Week
Green Bay at Minnesota
This game is one of the most intriguing games of the week. Green Bay and Minnesota have been on a roll lately. The Vikings are winners of eight straight, while the Packers have won nine of their last 11 games. Jordan Love has been balling, throwing for 1,054 yards, eight touchdowns and no picks in five games. Even though the Packers signal-caller is 1-2 in his last three games against the Vikings, he has led one of the hottest offenses in the league, to the tune of 32.6 points per game since Week 12, and should get the job done on Sunday afternoon.
Packers 27, Vikings 24
Lock of the Week
New York at Buffalo
The Jets have lost four of the last five games, most recently a 19-9 loss to the Rams in Week 16. Buffalo is undefeated at home and has scored 30-plus points in eight of its last nine contests. The Bills’ 24-21 win over the Patriots was a lot closer than many expected, but they should be able to handle the Jets by a sizable margin.
Bills 31, Jets 17
Upset of the Week
Carolina at Tampa Bay
The Buccaneers barely squeaked by the last time these two teams faced each other. They needed a game-winning field goal from Chase McLaughlin in overtime to secure a 26-23 win on Dec 1. Tampa Bay needs a win to keep its AFC South title hopes alive. Carolina ended the Cardinals’ playoff hopes last week. Expect quarterback Bryce Young to build on his performance against Arizona and do the same in Tampa Bay despite being 8.5-point underdogs.
Panthers 23, Buccaneers 20
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