A pair of potential Super Bowl previews. Leap-frogging division leaders. Long shots battling for their playoff lives. And, of course, there’s always the Kansas City Chiefs, who enter NFL Week 15 looking to continue their march toward what they hope ends with a third straight Lombardi Trophy.
Last week, the Chiefs improved to 12-1 after delivering yet another nail-biting win — their 15th consecutive victory in one-score games. Is this yet another Chiefs team of destiny?
With last Sunday’s win over the Los Angeles Chargers and the Buffalo Bills’ loss to the Los Angeles Rams, Kansas City added to its lead in the race for first place in the AFC, a result that would secure them home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs.
This week, the Chiefs face the Cleveland Browns, who at 3-10 find themselves amid a gravely disappointing campaign. On the surface, it’s not at all that enticing of a showdown. The Browns, however, certainly have proven themselves capable of playing above their record. They upset another AFC front-runner, the Pittsburgh Steelers, three weeks ago.
The Browns already are eliminated from postseason contention, but they can do the Steelers, Bills and Baltimore Ravens a favor by upsetting the Chiefs and preventing them from extending their lead in the race for the AFC’s No. 1 seed.
Can Cleveland rock on Sunday? Or will Patrick Mahomes and company find yet another way to pull off a seemingly miraculous victory?
That’s just one of the many storylines on tap for Week 15. Here are five more to keep an eye on. (Find the full schedule here.)
1. Crunch time for the Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins faced the risk being eliminated from playoff contention early after falling into a 2-6 hole. But a healthy Tua Tagovailoa has led his team to victories in four of its past five games, and Miami is now 6-7 with an outside chance of saving its season. The odds still aren’t great. According to our NFL Projection Model, the Dolphins have only a 15 percent chance of reaching the postseason. But a victory Sunday against Houston could almost double those odds.
The Dolphins are coming off a thrilling comeback victory over the New York Jets. After trailing 23-15 late in the third quarter, Miami outscored the Jets 17-3 behind two touchdown passes from Tagovailoa, including a 10-yard strike to Jonnu Smith in overtime to secure the 32-26 victory. This week, the Dolphins will try to continue the momentum as they face the Texans’ top-10 defense. Tagovailoa last week became the first player in NFL history to post at least 40 pass attempts, 300 passing yards and no interceptions in three straight games within a single season. Houston’s defense, which is second in the NFL with 16 interceptions and tied for third with 24 total takeaways, will do its best to end that impressive streak.
The Texans have endured a rocky second half of the season, going 2-3 before entering last week’s bye with an 8-5 record. Now well-rested, DeMeco Ryans’ team aims to start building some momentum of its own in these final four weeks of the regular season. With a win Sunday and a loss by Indianapolis (at Denver), the Texans can clinch the AFC South for the second straight year. Ryans could join Jim Caldwell, Jim Harbaugh, Matt LaFleur, Sean McVay and Mike Tomlin as the only coaches in NFL history to win a division in each of their first two seasons. (Dolphins at Texans, 1 p.m. ET, Sunday)
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2. Steelers-Eagles Keystone State clash
The Pittsburgh Steelers visit their cross-state rival Philadelphia Eagles for a showdown that could be a Super Bowl preview.
Mike Tomlin’s Steelers are one of the NFL’s most well-rounded teams, boasting a top-10 defense and an offense capable of dominating on the ground or through the air. Quarterback Russell Wilson aims to improve to 7-1 as Pittsburgh’s starter, but for a second consecutive week he’ll be without top wide receiver George Pickens, who is nursing a hamstring injury. Wilson has averaged 254 passing yards a game, but last week threw for only 158 yards without Pickens. He did, however, record two touchdown passes. Facing an Eagles defense that boasts talented young defensive backs and ranks second in the NFL against the pass could present a steep challenge. Look for the Steelers to work to establish a rushing attack that averages 132.1 yards per game.
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Speaking of rushing attacks, the Eagles boast a league-best 190.5 rushing yards per game, and Saquon Barkley leads the NFL with 1,623 rushing yards. Pittsburgh’s defense presents a stiff test, however, having limited opponents to just 91.5 rushing yards per contest.
If the Steelers succeed, that will put more pressure on quarterback Jalen Hurts, who is averaging 200.2 passing yards per game (a career low as a starter) and has only 16 touchdown passes. Hurts has come under scrutiny after reports of friction between him and top wide receiver A.J. Brown surfaced this week. Brown has grown frustrated by the decline in the passing attack. After averaging 9.3 targets and 6.2 catches per game last season and receiving double-digit targets eight times, Brown hasn’t received double-digit targets since Week 1 of this season and is averaging 6.6 targets and 4.8 catches per game.
Coach Nick Sirianni said earlier this week that Hurts and Brown are working overtime to strengthen their connection on the field. Brown and Hurts both downplayed any cause for concern but expressed a desire to together lead their team to great heights. Are they in for a breakthrough this week? Or will a Steelers defense that has limited opposing quarterbacks to a 79.2 rating (second lowest in the NFL) extend their frustrations? (Steelers at Eagles, 4:25 p.m. ET Sunday.)
MVP candidates face off as Jared Goff and the Detroit Lions welcome Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills to Ford Field for a legitimate potential Super Bowl preview. Goff and the Lions have a franchise-record 11-game win streak and lead the NFL with 32.1 points per game. Buffalo ranks second, scoring 30.5 points per game, and hopes to rebound from last week’s loss to the Rams. The Bills had won seven straight before that loss.
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Goff ranks second in the NFL with a completion percentage of 72.4, and he directs an offense that is top five in passing and rushing. It’ll be interesting to see which Bills defense he faces: The unit that entered last week ranked third in the NFL with 24 takeaways while limiting foes to just 18.7 points per game, or the squad that got gashed by Baltimore for 35 points and by the Rams for 37 points. (L.A. also scored another touchdown on a blocked punt.) Buffalo’s defense has struggled against the run, yielding 4.7 yards per carry, which could translate into a big day for Detroit’s tandem of Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery.
Detroit, meanwhile, plays an aggressive brand of ball on defense and boasts a blitz rate of 36.4 percent (fourth highest in the NFL). However, Allen is just as dangerous with his legs as he is his arm. He has thrown for 23 touchdowns and rushed for nine more. There’s a lot of pressure on Allen. Can he elevate his team against this elite opponent? (Bills at Lions, 4:25 p.m. ET Sunday.)
4. Bucs surge, Chargers wobble
This is the week of strong interconference matchups, because here comes another one: The Tampa Bay Buccaneers visit the Chargers as both battle to remain in heated playoff races.
After an injury-plagued 0-4 stretch in the middle of their season, the Buccaneers have rebounded while also regaining strength. Tampa Bay (7-6) has won three straight to leapfrog the reeling Falcons for first place in the NFC South. Leading the way is quarterback Baker Mayfield, who is tied for third in the league with 28 touchdown passes while directing a Buccaneers offense that ranks third in total offense with 379.2 yards per game and fifth in scoring (27.9).
The 8-5 Chargers boast the NFL’s stingiest defense, however, holding teams to 15.9 points per game. L.A. has limited opponents to 20 points or fewer in 11 of 13 games this season. That robust effort has eased pressure on quarterback Justin Herbert, who this season has 14 touchdown passes and only one interception. Herbert can become on Sunday the first quarterback in NFL history to avoid throwing an interception in 12 straight games. (Tom Brady had an 11-game interception-free streak in 2010.) The Chargers will need Herbert and their defense to play at a high level for them to regain the impressive form that helped them win four straight midway through the season. Since then, however, L.A. has gone 1-2, losing to Baltimore and Kansas City.
The Bucs enter this week in the NFC’s fourth spot and a game ahead of Atlanta in the division race. They aim to extend their streak of winning the NFC South to four seasons. The Chargers, meanwhile, hope to continue their rebound from last season’s 5-12 campaign by returning to the playoffs for the first time since 2022 and only the second time since 2018. Coach Jim Harbaugh’s team ranks sixth in the AFC behind Baltimore and ahead of AFC West neighbor Denver. (Buccaneers at Chargers, 4:25 p.m. ET Sunday.)
The Seattle Seahawks picked up a big win last week as they knocked Arizona down a notch and secured sole possession of first place in the NFC West. Now QB Geno Smith and company, winners of four straight, will try to keep this thing rolling and return to the playoffs after missing the cut last season.
Since Week 11, the Seahawks defense has dominated, limiting foes to only 15.5 points and 297.3 yards per game. This week’s test: Keeping Jordan Love, Josh Jacobs and the Packers in check. Green Bay is eager to get things back on track following a 34-31 loss last week to Detroit. Before that defeat, the Packers had won three straight and seven of their last eight (with that one loss also to the Lions). Jacobs tallied three touchdowns last week and has fond memories of playing against the Seahawks. The last time he faced them (with the Raiders, on Nov. 27, 2022), he set career highs in scrimmage yards (303) and rushing yards (229) and ripped off an 86-yard, game-winning touchdown run in overtime.
For the season, the Seahawks have allowed 126.5 rushing yards per game, and they have allowed foes to rush for 130 or more yards six times. So, slowing Jacobs could pose quite the test. An ability to run the football has translated into success for Green Bay, which is 8-2 in games it topped the 100-yard mark. Green Bay ranks sixth in the NFC playoff race and needs a win to remain ahead of the Washington Commanders, who are 8-5 and face the battered New Orleans Saints. (Packers at Seahawks, 8:20 p.m. ET Sunday.)
(Top photo of Jahmyr Gibbs: Alex Slitz / Getty Images)
