The NFL schedule is sure to get a little wacky in Week 16.
To be sure, Sunday is distinctly light on marquee matchups. But much of that is a function of the league trying to push into the Saturday spotlight, with two major tilts – the Houston Texans at the Kansas City Chiefs and the Pittsburgh Steelers at the Baltimore Ravens – taking place that afternoon, putting the league in direct competition with the first round of the College Football Playoff. Those four teams, of course, will also reconvene on Christmas for two rare midweek showdowns. It’s all a reminder that NFL fans will need to keep their calendars open for the next several weeks as the final pieces of the playoff picture come together.
Here are bold predictions for NFL Week 16:
Mike Evans will clown on the Cowboys
Sure, it’s only so ‘bold’ to predict the Bucs star receiver will have a big night at Jerry World on Sunday. The Cowboys have allowed the third-most points in the NFL (380), which includes 33.4 points per game at home this season. And the last high-profile wideout to visit – Cincinnati’s Ja’Marr Chase – went off for 14 catches, 177 yards and 2 TDs, including the 40-yard game-winner, on a Monday night in Week 14. Besides, the Dallas defense is now without cornerback Trevon Diggs, done for the season by knee surgery. Yet with Tampa Bay (8-6) inspired to win to hang onto first place in the NFC South and red-hot quarterback Baker Mayfield declaring that he wants to do his part to help Evans notch an 11th straight 1,000-yard season – despite missing three games with a hamstring injury, he’s just 251 yards away – the table is set for another big prime-time showing. So, expect nothing less than a 100-yard game with 2 TDs from Evans. Last weekend, the Bucs faced a Chargers D at SoFi Stadium that was tied for allowing the fewest points per game in the NFL and they hung 40 on L.A., with Evans posting a season-high 159 yards with 2 TDs on nine catches. And now they visit a place that has been so inviting to visitors. Get your popcorn ready.
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– Jarrett Bell
MVP race heats up after Lamar Jackson has four total touchdowns in win
The Steelers have been Jackson’s kryptonite. He has a career 2-5 record versus Pittsburgh. Jackson will turn the tide at home on Saturday. Jackson has 3,580 passing yards, 34 touchdown passes and just three interceptions this year. Plus, he’s produced 743 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns. Jackson will pass for three touchdowns and run for another in what will be a comfortable Ravens win. Jackson’s performance will make him the first player in NFL history with at least 35 touchdown passes and three or fewer interceptions in his first 15 games of a season. Additionally, he will be the first player ever with at least 40 combined passing and rushing touchdowns with three or fewer interceptions in their first 15 games.
Cue the Jackson MVP chatter after Sunday’s performance in Charm City.
– Tyler Dragon
Patrick Mahomes takes no more than one sack in leading Chiefs past Texans
Houston Texans defensive tackle Tim Settle provided some fun midweek banter when he pointed out the trouble that might be posed by the combination of the Kansas City Chiefs’ recent struggles up front and Patrick Mahomes’ ankle injury, saying, ‘Pat better make good decisions. I ain’t making no threats, I’m making promises.” Seems unwise to rile up the two-time NFL MVP who still remains capable of tilting an entire game on any given play. But Mahomes, who has taken a career-high 35 sacks this season in just 14 games, might need to have an even quicker trigger than usual to stave off Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter, who have combined for 22 ½ sacks.
Steering clear of the league’s premier edge-rushing duo is no easy feat, especially not for a player who has taken multiple sacks in 11 games this year and will be without D.J. Humphries, the late-season addition at left tackle who remains sidelined with a hamstring injury. But with Marquise ‘Hollywood’ Brown expected to make his regular-season debut for the Chiefs after suffering a sternoclavicular shoulder joint injury in the preseason, Mahomes could have more favorable looks for quick-developing plays in the short to intermediate areas. Expect Kansas City and its star signal-caller to minimize risk as the team closes in on another potential No. 1 seed for the AFC playoffs.
– Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz