Week 11 NFL spreads and storylines: Is Super Bowl rematch also Super Bowl preview?

Week 11 in the NFL began with the injury gods pulling no punches.

The Ravens handily defeated the Bengals in a pivotal Thursday matchup to remain atop the vaunted AFC North, however, it was the significant injuries to Cincinnati quarterback Joe Burrow and Baltimore tight end Mark Andrews that overshadowed the result.

Burrow’s right wrist injury is of the season-ending variety, while Andrews is also likely to miss the remainder of the season after sustaining leg and ankle injuries in the first quarter on a polarizing “hip-drop” tackle.

As if that division weren’t dramatic enough already, the other two teams in that division meet with Pittsburgh visiting a Cleveland team that also lost its starting QB. The pair of AFC North games are among seven total divisional matchups this week, setting the stage for some compelling jockeying in playoff and draft positions.

Cleveland and Pittsburgh are both 6-3 heading into their anticipated Sunday showdown, as five-win Houston, Buffalo, Indianapolis and Las Vegas, plus the 4-5 Broncos, Jets and Chargers attempt to sneak into the playoff during the second half of the season.

New Orleans, Atlanta, Indianapolis and New England are all on bye this week.

SPREADS & TOTALS

- PIT (+1.5) at CLE (-1.5) | O/U: 32.5 (1:00 p.m. ET)
- CHI (+7.5) at DET (-7.5) | O/U: 47.5 (1:00 p.m. ET)
- LAC (-3.0) at GB (+3.0) | O/U: 44.5 (1:00 p.m. ET)
- LV (+12.5) at MIA (-12.5) | O/U: 46.5 (1:00 p.m. ET)
- NYG (+9.5) at WAS (-9.5) | O/U: 37.5 (1:00 p.m. ET)
- DAL (-10.5) at CAR (+10.5) | O/U: 41.5 (1:00 p.m. ET)
- TEN (+7.0) at JAX (-7.0) | O/U: 40.5 (1:00 p.m. ET)
- ARI (+6.0) at HOU (-6.0) | O/U: 48.5 (1:00 p.m. ET)
- TB (+11.5) at SF (-11.5) | O/U: 41.5 (4:05 p.m. ET)
- NYJ (+7.0) at BUF (-7.0) | O/U: 40.0 (4:25 p.m. ET)
- SEA (-1.0) at LAR (+1.0) | O/U: 46.5 (4:25 p.m. ET)
- MIN (+2.5) at DEN (-2.5) | O/U: 42.5 (8:20 p.m. ET)
- PHI (+2.5) at KC (-2.5) | O/U: 45.5 (8:15 p.m. ET*Monday)

Four games this week require the favourite to win by double digits to cover, the Houston-Arizona matchup surprisingly has the highest total of the week, while the Steelers-Browns showdown is expected to be a defensive battle with the low total of the week.

Tennessee is among the least popular public plays this week. The underdog Titans are bad ATS as a road team this season, only covering once in five away games.

The Vikings have been rolling despite a slew of injuries but Josh Dobbs and company are facing a Denver team riding high off a dramatic win over Buffalo. The Broncos are 2-3 ATS at home but have improved in recent weeks and are used to playing in prime time, while the Vikings are 4-0-1 ATS as the road team this season.

PROP WATCH: D-SWIFT IN 'MNF' SPOTLIGHT

Get ready to hear the names Swift and Kelce a whole lot during the Monday Night Football broadcast. In fact, don’t be surprised if you find yourself saying, “Why do they keep talking about Swift and Kelce? Can they seriously quit it with the Swift and Kelce nonsense?”

Well, obviously it’s because Eagles running back D’Andre Swift and his offensive line, led by All-Pro centre Jason Kelce, will play a key role in Philadelphia’s home game against the defending Super Bowl champions. Swift and Kelce will also probably be shown on camera together rather frequently…like when the Eagles huddle up and stuff.

Swift currently ranks seventh in the NFL with 614 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns. Not everyone thinks that’s impressive but the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate and Swift is a talented player who’s gonna play, play, play, play, play…when the Eagles have possession of the ball.

Swift rushing yards: Over 58.5 (-110) | Under 58.5 (-110)
Swift rushing attempts: Over 13.5 (-115) | Under 13.5 (-115)
Swift longest rush attempt: Over 14.5 (-110) | Under 14.5 (-110)
Swift anytime touchdown: +140 | Multiple touchdowns: +900

WEEK 11 STORYLINES TO FOLLOW

What has changed since Super Bowl LVII? The clear-cut game of the week is a rematch of the two finalists from one season ago. The Chiefs edged out the Eagles 38-35 in February, so expect there to be some element of revenge on the Philly side. Kansas City and Philadelphia both had successful bye weeks, resting and healing and maintaining their spots atop each conference. The Eagles are without tight end Dallas Goedert but Julio Jones can serve as an additional red-zone target for Jalen Hurts who threw for more than 300 yards and rushed for 70 and three touchdowns in one of the better championship-losing performances.

Philadelphia has put up at least 28 points on their current three-game winning streak. The Eagles are coming off a huge win over NFC East rival Dallas and after facing the Chiefs will continue a tough stretch on the schedule with consecutive upcoming games hosting Buffalo and San Francisco before back-to-back road contests at the Cowboys and Seahawks.

Kansas City coach Andy Reid is a central figure in Chiefs’ and Eagles’ history and has never lost when playing against either team. Reid was 3-0 in his career coaching against the Chiefs when he was with the Eagles and he is currently 4-0 with the Chiefs when facing his former team, including February’s victory.

How do Browns move on without Watson? Cleveland reportedly worked out AFC North legend Joe Flacco Friday to see if the former longtime Raven might be a fit for their QB room and/or practice squad after news broke this week the Browns starting QB Deshaun Watson would require season-ending surgery on his injured throwing shoulder. Watson helped lead a huge comeback win over the Ravens last week. Dorian Thompson-Robinson will get the nod behind centre instead of P.J. Walker. DTR struggled mightily in his first start, tossing three interceptions in a 28-3 Week 4 loss to the Ravens. Cleveland still has an elite defence, yet it was the Steelers' defence that made the difference when Pittsburgh beat the Browns 26-22 in Week 2 as T.J. Watt scored a game-winning touchdown in the fourth quarter on a fumble return. Barring a tie, one of Cleveland or Pittsburgh will be 7-3 heading into Week 12 and within one win of Baltimore.

Are the Bills broken or can they bounce back fresh to avenge Week 1 loss to Jets? What will Buffalo, particularly the offence, look like less than a week after the team fired offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey? Can head coach Sean McDermott rally this group after they botched Monday’s game versus the Broncos, or will his seat become increasingly hotter? The Jets rallied in Week 1 to beat Buffalo with stout defence and special teams after the deflating Aaron Rodgers injury. New York can leapfrog Buffalo in the standings and pull to .500 if it completes the season sweep of the Bills. The Jets have lost two in a row and haven’t scored more than 13 points in a game since upsetting the Eagles in mid-October.

Can Chargers defence bounce back? The Chargers' defence allowed more than 500 yards of offence, including 200 yards rushing, and registered zero sacks and zero turnovers in a 41-38 home loss to the Lions last week. With the AFC playoff race more open than it was just one week ago due to the various injuries mentioned above, the Chargers are still in the hunt for an AFC wild-card spot. L.A. has allowed 27 or more points in four of its five losses and has yet to be above .500 at any point this season. Green Bay’s offence is not as potent as Detroit’s, ranking in the bottom half of the league in both average passing (208.9) and rushing (102.1) yards per game. Does that make it a good bounce-back spot for head coach Brandon Staley and defensive coordinator Derrick Ansley?

Fields back on the field in Brother Bowl: Whatever Justin Fields shows down the stretch, positive or negative, may influence what Chicago's front office does in the 2024 draft since they hold their own and Carolina’s first-round selection, currently holding the best odds at landing the No. 1 pick for a second consecutive season (reminder: they’d traded out of that spot in a swap with the Panthers in which Chicago received a haul of picks plus D.J. Moore). Fields has been out the past month with a thumb injury but has the green light ahead of facing the Lions. The team is getting running back Khalil Herbert back off injured reserve as well.

Also, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, this is the first NFL game since 1979 to feature three sets of brothers with Penei Sewell and Noah Sewell, Amon-Ra St. Brown and Equanimeous St. Brown, and Julian Okwara and Romeo Okwara all expected to suit up.

(Team betting lines and totals via Covers, player props via Bet365 as of Friday and subject to change)