Week 16 of the NFL season begins with two games on Saturday and ends with two on Monday night, with all the others played on Sunday. There’s no more “Thursday Night Football,” which means teams won’t be at risk of being completely unprepared and players unready to compete on a short week. One team is fighting for its first win, others are battling to lock up playoff spots, and there is one huge divisional game on the horizon.
Here are 15 key questions for NFL Week 16.
1. What will Ezekiel Elliott’s return mean to the Cowboys?
The Cowboys have survived their last six games without their most important offensive player, and Elliott is returning just in time for Dallas to make a playoff push. Dallas is currently the No. 9 seed in the NFC, so they will need help from more than just Elliott in order to reach the postseason. The Seahawks, the team they will face on Sunday, are currently just ahead of them in the playoff picture. Both teams have the same record, so it goes without saying that this weekend’s game is huge.
Dak Prescott is infinitely more comfortable with Elliott on the field. If there’s a problem for the Cowboys, it could be that they travel on the road to face the Eagles in Week 17. They are probably hoping the Eagles beat the Raiders Monday night to wrap up home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. That might make Dallas’ path to the playoffs a bit easier.
2. Could the Titans end up missing the playoffs?
The Titans, once in great shape to cruise to a playoff spot, have backed themselves into a corner by losing consecutive games to the Cardinals and 49ers. Teams that play their worst football in December typically go home early, and that is exactly what Tennessee has done. Now, they have to close out the season with games against the Rams and Jaguars.
While the Titans are currently the No. 5 seed in the AFC and still control their own fate, the Ravens and Chargers have played much better than Tennessee over the past month-plus and are waiting to pounce if the Titans slip up. If Marcus Mariota can’t lead his team to wins in its final two games, it may be bye-bye until next season.
3. Will the Bills retaliate against Rob Gronkowski?
Bills cornerback Tre’Davious White was on the receiving end from a ruthless cheap shot from Gronkowski in Week 13. He initially blasted Gronk for being a “dirty player” and hinted that his teammates were looking to retaliate. However, White changed his tune this week and said he has no plans to seek revenge. Still, the situation will be worth monitoring.
Unlike most of the illegal hits we have seen this season, Gronkowski’s forearm to White’s head came after the whistle when White was laying on the turf. You can understand why it rubbed the Bills the wrong way, and the big tight end would be wise to keep his head on a swivel for 60 minutes.
4. Is there any quit in these New York Jets?
Remember when the Jets were supposed to be tanking to secure the top overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft? If that was the plan, ownership did a terrible job of getting the players and coaching staff to buy into it. The Jets have won five games this season and remained competitive in most of their losses, including last week’s against the Saints in New Orleans.
On Sunday, New York has a chance to play spoiler against the 7-7 Chargers, who are still in the hunt for a postseason spot. Even with Bryce Petty at quarterback, the Jets refuse to quit on head coach Todd Bowles. The Chargers had better be prepared to give their best effort.
5. When will Jimmy Garoppolo lose his first NFL game?
The sample size is small so far, but it looks like the 49ers may have themselves a franchise quarterback. Between his time in San Francisco and New England, Garoppolo has now won all five of his NFL starts. Last week’s win over the Titans may have been the most impressive, as Jimmy G. did his best Tom Brady impression and led an effortless field goal drive to win the game in the fourth quarter.
On Sunday, Garoppolo will face his toughest test yet when the Niners host the Jaguars and their elite defense. Jacksonville has been terrorizing opponents all season, so it will be interesting to see how Garoppolo handles the pressure. If he comes away with another win, fans in the Bay Area may start calling for the statue to be built.
6. Can Pittsburgh’s offense survive without Antonio Brown?
The Steelers were able to move the ball well last week even after Brown exited their game against the Patriots in the first half, but we can’t assume that will be the case going forward. While Houston’s pass defense is nothing special, no quarterback leans on his top receiving threat more than Ben Roethlisberger. The Steelers have good depth at wide receiver with rookie JuJu Smith-Schuster and Martavis Bryant, and they will need both to step up this week and perhaps in Week 17.
Brown is dealing with what head coach Mike Tomlin called a “significant contusion,” though he is expected to return in time for the playoffs. However, he could probably use an extra week to heal, and the Steelers may need to win their final two games to earn a first-round playoff bye. Fortunately, they face the Browns in Week 17.
7. Can the Jaguars steal a first-round playoff bye?
Speaking of first-round playoff byes, the Jaguars are in a good position to steal one from the Steelers if Pittsburgh slips up. Currently one game behind the Steelers in the AFC, Jacksonville holds the head-to-head tiebreaker from beating Mike Tomlin’s team earlier in the year. The Jags close out their season against the 49ers and Titans, so they have a good shot to finish 12-4. Unfortunately for them, Pittsburgh gets to play the Texans and Browns.
It’s possible that the Steelers could experience a hangover this week from their heartbreaking loss to New England, especially with Antonio Brown injured. If that happens, the Jags could swoop in and steal the bye.
8. Will the Chiefs finally wrap up the AFC West?
After the Chiefs began the year 5-0, it looked like they were going to cruise to an AFC West title and be able to rest players late in the year. They then went on to lose six of their next seven games, but it appears they have righted the ship over the past two weeks.
Alex Smith is back to playing at a high level and Kareem Hunt has seemingly busted through the rookie wall he appeared to have hit. With a win over the Dolphins at home on Sunday, Kansas City would clinch the AFC West title. Andy Reid should have no problem keeping his players focused this week.
9. How much worse are the Eagles with Nick Foles?
The Eagles’ championship hopes seemingly went up in smoke two weeks ago when Carson Wentz tore his ACL, but fans have to be encouraged with what they saw from Nick Foles in last week’s win over the Giants. After Philly fell behind early, Foles led the team back and completed 24 of 38 passes for four touchdowns and no interceptions. His performance was reminiscent of the way he played in 2013, when he threw 27 touchdowns passes and just two picks playing under Chip Kelly.
Foles should get another confidence booster on Monday night when Philadelphia hosts the Raiders and their 23rd-ranked pass defense. If the Eagles win that game, they’ll clinch a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. Even with a backup quarterback under center, that’s an enviable spot to be in.
10. Is Joe Flacco getting hot at the perfect time?
For the most part, Flacco has had his worst season as a pro in 2017. However, none of that will matter if he can continue to play the way he has in the month of December and lead the Ravens to a playoff appearance.
After throwing more interceptions (11) than touchdown passes (9) over the first 10 games of the season, Flacco has thrown just one pick in Baltimore’s last four contests. The Ravens have won four of their last five, with the lone loss being a crushing 39-38 defeat against the Steelers. Flacco’s passer rating over the past three weeks is 94.7. The Ravens still need some help to sneak into the postseason, but they close out the regular season with home games against the Colts and Bengals. If Flacco can continue his steady play, Baltimore could become a dangerous team to face in the playoffs.
11. Is history on the Browns’ side?
The Browns are just two losses away from going 0-14, but there may be one reason and one reason alone that they have a chance to avoid the dreaded defeated season. That reason is John Fox.
In Fox’s three seasons as the head coach in Chicago, the Bears have never won a game when they are Las Vegas favorites. Their record in those games is 0-7, with six of the losses coming at home. You have to assume Cleveland will be as motivated as possible to avoid becoming a part of the most embarrassing club in sports. If history repeats itself, the Browns may do just that.
12. Have Marvin Lewis and the Bengals thrown in the towel?
Prior to last Sunday’s game, a report surfaced indicating Lewis has decided to part ways with the Bengals after the season. The report came on the heels of Cincinnati’s embarrassing 33-7 home loss to the Bears in Week 14, and they went out and looked just as bad in a 34-7 loss to the Vikings.
It seems obvious that the Bengals have given up on the season, but you have to wonder if they have also given up on their coach. The results seem to speak for themselves.
13. Does Brett Hundley have any magic left?
The Green Bay Packers are going back to Hundley as their starting quarterback after falling out of the playoff race, which led them to place Aaron Rodgers back on IR. Though Hundley was extremely shaky in his first two October appearances and later bottomed out in a shutout loss at home to the Ravens, he finally got things going in his last few starts. Hundley helped the Packers win two games in a row in overtime in his last two starts. Before that he threw three touchdowns against the Steelers in a game the Packers had a legitimate shot at winning. If Hundley has any magic left, the Packers could spoil the Vikings’ efforts to snag the top overall seed in the conference.
14. Can the Saints get revenge on the Falcons?
The Saints were held to a season-low 17 points in a Week 14 loss to the Falcons. After going on an 8-game winning streak early, New Orleans has now gone 2-2 in their last four, and they only lead the Falcons by a game in the NFC South. This game will be huge for the division standings.
The Saints’ big problem in the first meeting with Atlanta was the lack of a rushing attack. Alvin Kamara suffered a concussion in the beginning of the game and didn’t get a chance to make an impact. New Orleans only ended up rushing the ball 15 times for 50 yards as a result. With Kamara back and Mark Ingram still looking good, the Saints will have to lean on their rushing attack much more this time around. And Sean Payton has to avoid stupid penalties.
15. Will Brock Osweiler look sharp again?
The Denver Broncos looked like two different teams in Week 15: One when Trevor Siemian was at quarterback, and another when Brock Osweiler stepped in. Osweiler went 12 of 17 for 194 yards, two touchdowns passes, and one rushing touchdown as he led the Broncos back from down 10-0 to a 25-13 win over the Colts filling in for the injured Siemian.
Osweiler has seen significant action in four games this season, and none have led to as many points as the Week 15 game. Osweiler may not be able to convince anyone he’s worthy of anything more than a backup job at this point, but he may be able to turn some heads if he can put together a few strong games in a row.
