Every contest is crucial from here on in, with some enormous results in week 14 that may determine postseason berths come the end of the campaign.
A 42-year-old Aaron Rodgers struck a major blow to Lamar Jackson's postseason hopes, while Josh Allen virtually ended Joe Burrow's chances. Meanwhile, the Houston Texans defense presented a massive problem and may have concluded the Kansas City Chiefs campaign earlier than ever before in the Patrick Mahomes tenure.
Divisional Analysis: Division Deciders Live Up To the Expectations
Three huge divisional battles delivered.
Seasoned signal-caller Aaron Rodgers, playing with a injured wrist, guided his team to a tough close victory in on the road. The future Hall of Famer recorded his initial rushing score in nearly three years, but it was his long passes to his top receiver that proved to be the difference.
Lamar Jackson seemed out of kilter as Baltimore missed key chances—though they were frustrated by a late score being overturned. The two teams will meet once more on the last weekend of the season.
In another, the longest-running rivalry in the NFL saw a epic encounter. Despite touchdown bombs, an exhausted defense had to thwart another fourth-quarter rally from the opposing young QB in the freezing weather.
This result gave one side a narrow advantage in their NFC North, whereas the losers fell from the conference's number one seed all the way to seventh.
In-Depth Look: Where Has It Gone Awry for the Kansas City Chiefs?
Statistical models give the Kansas City only a 15% probability of reaching the postseason. In all likelihood, this will be the first missed playoffs for star quarterback Mahomes—and the first such for the franchise in a decade.
During Mahomes' 7 complete seasons as a starting quarterback, he has reached 7 conference championship games and 5 Super Bowls. That indicates the club has played nearly each available game during his time.
So, the causes for this year's failure are evident and were highlighted during Sunday's defeat. Absences ravaged an already dodgy O-line, with multiple key players missing.
Even then, Mahomes gave his team a fighting chance, however failed field goals and costly dropped passes—such as on a decisive fourth-down attempt—confirmed their downfall.
In Focus: Is the Super Bowl Be Heading for the West?
A pair of top teams from the western conferences are making strong arguments for championship favorites.
One team, atop their conference, claimed the most recent title held at February's venue. They are constructed on a stifling defense that leads the league in quarterback takedowns and wins through grinding, time-consuming drives.
The other team, leading the other conference, demonstrated an explosive offense capable of putting points on the board from any situation. They feature a formidable running game to complement an exceptional passing attack.
A key matchup could be if the potent offense could withstand the relentless pass rush of the top defensive unit—what would be a fascinating potential showdown.
Talking Point: Travis Kelce Pondering Retirement?
Among the aftermath from the Chiefs' defeat, comments from Patrick Mahomes about his longtime teammate fueled rumors about a possible retirement.
Listening to Mahomes state, "every season... I try to appreciate because you never know" certainly seemed like the QB was preparing for the 36-year-old to call it a day.
"The tight end will have the option to do whatever he chooses to do after this campaign," he added. Should the season ends early for the Chiefs, the three-time Super Bowl veteran might decide to walk away.
Preview: Bills vs. Patriots Headlines Week 15
The Bills' quarterback did it all once more for Buffalo in a wintry win. Allen threw three touchdowns and ran for one more, responsible for a staggering percentage of his team's overall scores this year.
Allen is the only player in NFL annals with three thousand passing yards, 20 touchdown passes and 10 running scores in three straight campaigns.
Now, he tries to carry the team on his shoulders again as they aim to chase down their division rivals, the Patriots—coincidentally, they are precisely who they face next.
Key Week 15 Games:
- Buffalo Bills @ New England Patriots
- Lions @ Los Angeles Rams
- Green Bay Packers @ Broncos
- Los Angeles Chargers @ Chiefs
This Week's Statistical Highlights
- A kickoff runback for a 100-yard score—the longest play of the season—kick-started a second-half onslaught for one team.
- A star wide receiver scored two scores and is still tracking for a historic 2,000-yard season.
- A dominant pass rusher notched his twentieth QB sack of the season, closing in of the all-time mark.
- An international kicker helped his squad in a surprise win in rainy weather.
- A team that was shutout one week bounced back with a shutout of its own the next.
- A struggling franchise watched its franchise quarterback come back from an elbow issue, only to leave the game again with a similar ailment.
