What to watch for in NFL Sunday: NFC West playoff race heats up

The NFC West’s playoff picture gets clearer, the AFC North hits prime time once again, and we could get a Super Bowl preview. Here’s what to watch for this NFL Sunday, including plenty of Week 15 clinching scenarios.

Brees is back… just in time for a Super Bowl preview?
Sunday’s highly-anticipated matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and New Orleans Saints just got a whole lot better, with quarterback Drew Brees making his return just in time for what could wind up being a Super Bowl preview. Brees suffered fractured ribs and a punctured lung back on Nov. 15 against the 49ers, and has been sidelined four weeks.

The news for the Saints isn’t all good, however. Shortly after Brees’ return was announced, top wide receiver Michael Thomas was ruled out with an injury. Thomas, who has been dealing with an ankle ailment all season, will miss the final three weeks of the season after being placed on injured reserve. Luckily, he will available to the team for the playoffs — per league rules, in accordance with adjusted COVID protocols, players on IR are eligible to return after just three weeks. A healthy Brees and a well-rested Thomas for the playoffs? Oh, this could be fun.

If Brees can pull out a win over the Chiefs in his big return, the Saints will be crowned NFC South champions. (Even if New Orleans loses, they can still lock up the division this Sunday if the Buccaneers lose to the Falcons or both the Saints and Bucs tie their respective games.)

Both the Saints and the Chiefs are in hot pursuit of their respective conferences’ top seed.

The Chiefs, who have already locked up their division, would have had a shot at clinching the AFC’s No. 1 seed and the coveted first-round bye this weekend, but the Bills’ Saturday night victory over the Denver Broncos rules that possibility out for at least another week.

Titans in control of AFC South… for now
The 9-4 Tennessee Titans have three paths to clinching a playoff berth on Sunday, and all involve a win Sunday against Detroit:
• Titans win AND Ravens lose (vs. Jaguars), OR
• Titans win AND Raiders* lose or tie (vs. Chargers) AND Dolphins lose (vs. Patriots) AND the Browns win or tie (vs. Giants)
• Titans win AND Raiders* lose or tie (vs. Chargers) AND Dolphins lose (vs. Patriots) AND the Titans or Browns clinches strength of victory tiebreaker over the Dolphins

* The Raiders lost to the Chargers in overtime Thursday night, keeping the Titans’ hopes alive heading into Sunday.

The 9-4 Colts will be checking the score on this one. A Titans loss and divisional win over the Houston Texans would see Indy leapfrog Tennessee in what is an extremely tight AFC South race.

Approaching the end of an era in AFC East
With Tom Brady down in Tampa Bay and the core of the club’s elite defence having opted out due to COVID-19 concerns, it’s not altogether surprising to see the New England Patriots on the brink of elimination… but it’s still jarring. If the Patriots lose to Miami Dolphins Sunday afternoon, it’ll officially spell the end of any kind of comeback from Bill Belichick & Co. this season. (They’ll also be eliminated if the game ends in a tie and the Baltimore Ravens win their matchup with the Jacksonville Jaguars.)

It will be the first time Belichick has missed the playoffs since 2008, and just the fourth time overall during his time in New England. Even more impressive: The first two misses came in his first three years with the club, separated by a Super Bowl victory.

While the 8-5 Dolphins are favoured, we shouldn’t count New England out until they’re actually out — surely we’ve learned our lessons by now? With the Buffalo Bills crowned AFC East champs Saturday night and the Dolphins emerging from their rebuild and currently in playoff position, the division has broken free from New England’s grasp… for now.

Can Tampa Tom keep his playoff streak alive?
While his old club’s hopes are likely dashed, Tom Brady looks poised to keep his own personal playoff streak alive. His Tampa Bay Buccaneers don’t have the clearest path the post-season this Sunday, but it is possible: They’ll need to defeat the Atlanta Falcons and the NFC North matchup between the Vikings and Bears will need to end in a tie. Should that magic happen, it’ll be TB12’s 12th consecutive playoff berth.

Ravens control their own fate
The Baltimore Ravens’ win over the Cleveland Browns Monday night was dramatic, wildly entertaining, and easily the game of the year. It was also a major turning point for Baltimore, as it delivered a crucial divisional win to launch them back into the playoff race and put them in control of their own fate in their pursuit of a wild card spot.

If the playoffs ended today, the 8-5 Ravens would still find themselves on the outside looking in. But win all three remaining games, and there’s a strong chance they’re in. The Brown were their toughest remaining foe, with three very winnable coming up starting with the 1-12 Jaguars on Sunday afternoon and followed by the New York Giants next Sunday before concluding the 2020 campaign in Cincinnati.

NFC West sets up for grand finale
With three teams currently in playoff position, the NFC West continues to be one of the strongest divisions in the league. Two of those clubs, the Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks, can make it official on Sunday as the division can become the first with two teams in the post-season.

The Los Angeles Rams (9-4) will clinch a playoff spot with a win or tie against the 0-13 New York Jets. (In other words, L.A.’s in.)

It’s a win-and-you’re-in situation for the 9-4 Seattle Seahawks, too, although that one’s far from a guarantee considering they’re facing Chase Young and the red-hot Washington defence coming off a stellar outing against San Francisco.

The 7-6 Arizona Cardinals don’t have a clinching scenario, but are in must-win territory when they take on the Eagles if they’re to keep pace with the co-division leaders.

While this Sunday could see playoff tickets punched, next Sunday will really bring the drama as the Rams and Seahawks go head-to-head in what will likely determine the division champ. Buckle up for that one.

Now, about those clinching scenarios mentioned above… there’s another (less likely) route to the post-season for both the Seahawks and Rams…

Bears, Vikings tied up in several playoff scenarios
The Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings find themselves in the middle of some intriguing playoff clinching scenarios when they go head-to-head this Sunday — unfortunately for both NFC North teams, however, they can only clinch post-season berths for other teams. As unlikely as this may be, a tie-game outcome between Chicago and Minnesota this Sunday will see the Los Angeles Rams (9-4) and Seattle Seahawks (9-4) clinch playoff spots, and could be the final piece to Tom Brady’s playoff-clinching scenario, too — the Buccaneers can book their spot with a victory against the Falcons and a Bears-Vikings tie.

As we know, tie games are pretty rare — we’ve had just one game end in a tie this season — but we’ll be watching this one extra closely… just in case.

Browns back in the spotlight
After losing in dramatic fashion in a Monday night thriller against the Ravens last week, the Cleveland Browns are back for another prime time matchup — this time, hitting the Sunday Night Football stage against the New York Giants. Sitting at 9-4, the Browns are still very much in playoff position but are looking at some must-win games down the stretch. They’ll need to win on Sunday if they’re to even entertain the possibility of remaining in contention for the division title, as a loss hands the AFC North crown to the Steelers before Pittsburgh even steps onto the field Monday night. Even if Cleveland defeats the Giants, the Steelers can still claim the division with a win over the Bengals.

A win for Cleveland would get them to double-digit victories for the first time since 2007. That wasn’t enough to make the playoffs, and it doesn’t bring any guarantees this year, either. A loss makes things pretty tense, especially considering the Ravens are just a single win away from matching their record.

We’ll have to wait to see if Sunday’s matchup brings the kind of drama we saw on Monday, but… this could get interesting:

Giants Statement: Offensive Coordinator Jason Garrett has tested positive for COVID-19. He will continue to work remotely.

Tight ends coach Freddie Kitchens will serve as the team’s offensive play caller on Sunday against the Cleveland Browns.

— New York Giants (@Giants) December 17, 2020

Giants QB Colt McCoy is on track to start Sunday night vs the Browns, per sources. Daniel Jones is dealing with ankle and hamstring injuries.

McCoy, the former Browns QB, is in line to start, with former Browns HC Freddie Kitchens calling the Giants plays vs team that fired him.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 19, 2020

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