Key events
TOUCHDOWN! Bengals 13-7 Cardinals 11:44 2nd quarter
TOUCHDOWN! Jets 0-21 Patriots 14:55, 2nd quarter
New England en route to an 84-0 victory. Is it time to bench Drake May? Of course not, but the Pats could have still probably won.
This is good! Browns 10-3 Steelers 14:55 2nd quarter
The Steelers appear to be making a serious effort to move the ball without the threat of DK Metcalf. Makes sense, but still disappointing for Pittsburgh fans who won't want a playoff with the Ravens next week for the AFC North.
Panthers – Seahawks 0:3 0:56, 1st quarter
Seattle was out again after being hit by Carolina. Rashid Shahid gained eight yards but appeared to be injured after the catch.
TOUCHDOWN! Colts 10-0 Jaguars 12:49 2nd quarter
Another disappointment in development!
TOUCHDOWN! Bengals – Cardinals 13-0 14:48, 2nd quarter
Great news for my fantasy football team because my opponent is Chase Brown! Big smiles in the Chinchillas locker room when Perine bursts in.
Browns 10-0 Steelers 1:15 1st quarter
At midfield, big tight end Darnell Washington leads the Steelers to third and short. Things get tougher for them on the next play as Connor Huard takes a direct hit. He finds the advantage and takes the ball 29 yards.
Browns 10-0 Steelers 3:49 1st quarter
Tony Romo blames the referees for a poor call after offensive pass interference negated Pittsburgh's big gain. On 3rd and 16, the Steelers gained 11 yards and should have punted… BUT… The Browns take offense to the taunts. 1st place in Pittsburgh. Very stupid.
This is good! Panthers – Seahawks 0:3 3:23, 1st quarter
Seattle finds Smith-Njigbu on 3rd but is short of sticks. A welcome spark on the scoreboard after four punts early in this game.
Panthers – Seahawks 0:0 5:23, 1st quarter
Seattle is through center field and on 3rd, Carolina is thrown into confusion and gets 1st due to an encroachment penalty. Sam Darnold rolls back and has an open running back in the middle of the field, but he throws it into the defender's helmet. It's already getting tense.
TOUCHDOWN! Jets 0-14 Patriots 5:06, 1st quarter
Yes.
TOUCHDOWN! Dolphins 7-7 Buccaneers 4:29, 1st quarter
Game of the day? May be. Has the game started? Yes sir.
TOUCHDOWN! Browns 10-0 Steelers 5:11 1st quarter
Wow. A fantastic deep arc throw finds the tight end in space, he beats the inside defender and rolls into the end zone for the score. Cleveland's home advantage over Pittsburgh appears to be intact as they take a comfortable lead early in the game.
Panthers – Seahawks 0:0 8:38, 1st quarter
Carolina needs five yards on third down and a pass to Chuba Hubbard. The conservative play gets what it deserves thanks to the sharp drop in running back. Punt again. Buuuu.
TOUCHDOWN! Dolphins – Buccaneers 0-7 5:28, 1st quarter
Panthers – Seahawks 0:0 10:40, 1st quarter
Darnold puts Seattle well behind the sticks with an intentional touchdown penalty, and the Seahawks are forced to punt. Carolina's pressure forces a sometimes nervous QB to make a mistake.
Browns 3-0 Steelers 8:32 1st quarter
The omens are good so far, with the Browns clinching the fourth seed after an easy three and bust. Pittsburgh recovered the ball.
Browns 3-0 Steelers 9:13 1st quarter
Aaron Rodgers ran onto the field and threw the ball to Jaylen Warren, who missed!!! Luckily, his teammate dives towards him. Meanwhile, Tony Romo is in the booth dropping a nugget about how Pittsburgh has lost its last three games in Cleveland. Marvelous.
TOUCHDOWN! Bengals – Cardinals 7-0 9:17 1st quarter
Panthers – Seahawks 0-0 12:51, 1st quarter
After a Carolina punt, they nearly pick off Sam Darnold on their first play, but the QB throws one into the dirt. On 3rd and 10, the crowd gets loud, but Darnold hits his favorite target Jackson Smith-Njigbu for 13 yards for a 1st down. Ugh.
This is good! Browns 3-0 Steelers 10:48 1st quarter
Cleveland is on the board after a decent play from Shader Sanders to get them into shooting range.
TOUCHDOWN! Jets 0-7 Patriots 10:42 1st quarter
The start of what could be a very long day for New York.
Panthers – Seahawks 0-0 14:47, 1st quarter
Rough start for the Panthers as tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders was injured in the opener. Looks serious, knee length. Perhaps everything will be ready for the day.
The Panthers take over the offense in Charlotte and Cleveland does the same in Ohio. Whoaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaasaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa now…we…are going!
Anyone else still eating Christmas leftovers? In a shameless cross-promotion, I'm just munching on Felicity Cloke's perfect turkey curry and it's absolutely delicious. Exactly what I needed to bring seven hours of raw, uncut film to life. NFL action. Cheers, Felicity!
Some other encounters that should provide a spark: rivalry games between the Jets and Patriots, Colts and Jaguars. Philip Rivers, 44, is seeking his first win over Jacksonville after two losses to keep Indy's playoff hopes alive on life support. Trevor Lawrence's team, which is riding a six-game winning streak, may be tough to beat. Oliver Connolly has more here…
The Patriots would then need to beat the Jets to keep pace with the AFC-leading Broncos and could clinch the AFC East title if they win and the Bills later lose to the Eagles.
And now we return to the eternal question: Is there anything more boring than talking about your own fantasy football team?? It is, of course, right here, and yet here we go. The Chinchillas have reached the championship match, and the head coach (me) needs your help. I've been playing in this dynasty league for nine seasons now and I even beat my brother to get to my first final. Massive. So what do you think I should do? Continue with the established lineup or drop Rashid Shahid for Juwan Johnson? Or something else that the strap will bring me? Help me football world, you are my only hope.
Elsewhere we have a battle with Playoff dreams are on the line between the Seahawks and Panthers. The Seahawks need a win to stay ahead of the 49ers at the top of the NFC, while the Panthers can clinch the NFC South with a win and a Buccaneers loss to the Dolphins. If Miami's disastrous 45-21 loss to Cincinnati last week is any indication, Tampa Bay should return to winning ways and make a difference against Carolina next week, regardless of the result in Charlotte.
Major injury news comes out of Seattle, which will be without two key players. Starting left tackle Charles Cross and cornerback Kobe Bryant missed the call. Josh Jones remains in Cross' lineup after performing well and avoiding a sack last week against the Rams. Tai Okada will replace Byrant in the second half, who also performed well in the second half against the Rams. Okada excelled early in the season, replacing Julian Love when he made his first career interception against the Commanders.
Preamble
Hello and happy holiday! I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and are looking forward to a Happy New Year. Not to bring you all down with an almighty blow, but after this Week 17 we have one more regular season Sunday to enjoy. But what a year we've had, full of disappointments, fallen giants, rising stars and this epic Bills/Bengals blizzard game. Hopefully we have some more twists and turns tonight as Pittsburgh looks to secure a playoff spot with a win over Cleveland, Seattle tries to get closer to locking down the No. 1 seed in the NFC and more in seven games starting at 12:00 p.m. CST/13:00 EST/18:00 GMT (hosts listed first):
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(8-7) Carolina Panthers v Seattle Seahawks (12-3)
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(5-10) Cincinnati Bengals v Arizona Cardinals (3-12)
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(3-12) Cleveland Browns v Pittsburgh Steelers (9-6)
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(8-7) Indianapolis Colts v Jacksonville Jaguars (11-4)
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(6-9) Miami Dolphins v Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-8)
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(3-12) New York Jets – New England Patriots (12-3)
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(3-12) Tennessee Titans – New Orleans Saints (5-10)
Can Cleveland stop division rival Pittsburgh? closure of AFK North? They'll have to contend with this considering their offense ranks 31st in EPA per game and averages a measly one touchdown per game. The Steelers may not be very good at stopping opponents, but the experience of veterans like Alex Highsmith and Cam Heyward should give rookie quarterback Shader Sanders a huge headache. Meanwhile, the Browns were also without their impressive rookie running back Quinshawn Judkins, who was placed on injured reserve after surgery to repair a sprained right ankle and a fractured right fibula. Pittsburgh is missing a star receiver DK Metcalf out due to suspension after punching a Lions fan last week.
When it rains, it pours in Ohio. However, Myles Garrett still leads Cleveland's defense and needs just one sack to break the regular season record of 22.5. Entering the history books by beating future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers might just give Garrett and the Browns the vengeful juice they need to finish another bitterly painful season on a high.
