{"id":424313,"date":"2025-12-04T15:05:35","date_gmt":"2025-12-04T15:05:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/424313\/"},"modified":"2025-12-04T15:05:35","modified_gmt":"2025-12-04T15:05:35","slug":"its-getting-close-to-crunch-time-in-the-nfl-season-here-are-5-things-to-watch-from-a-loaded-week-14","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/424313\/","title":{"rendered":"It\u2019s getting close to crunch time in the NFL season. Here are 5 things to watch from a loaded Week 14"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n Week 14 of the NFL<\/a> season is here, and suddenly everything feels a little heavier.\n <\/p>\n

\n For some teams, it\u2019s win or wave goodbye to the playoffs. For others, it\u2019s a chance to grab hold of their destiny before the calendar flips to crunch time.\n <\/p>\n

\n Either way, the stakes are real \u2014 and rising fast.\n <\/p>\n

\n Here are five things to know heading into a loaded Week 14:\n <\/p>\n

Chiefs\u2019 last stand<\/p>\n

\"Patrick<\/p>\n

\n If the postseason started today, the Chiefs wouldn\u2019t just miss the playoffs \u2013 they wouldn\u2019t even be close. At 6-6, Kansas City sits 10th in the AFC, trailing the Pittsburgh Steelers (6-6), Houston Texans (7-5) and Buffalo Bills (8-4) for the final wild card spot.\n <\/p>\n

\n Sunday night against Houston is as close to a \u201cmust-win\u201d as the Patrick Mahomes era has seen. A loss drops the Chiefs to 6-7 and hands the Texans the head-to-head tiebreaker. Kansas City has already lost tiebreakers to the Bills and Jacksonville Jaguars, so the margin for error is basically gone.\n <\/p>\n

\n And this isn\u2019t great timing for a must win if you\u2019re KC. Houston\u2019s defense \u2013 powered by Will Anderson Jr. and Derek Stingley Jr. \u2013 ranks No. 1 in yards allowed and points allowed per game. The Texans don\u2019t just stop you. They smother you.\n <\/p>\n

\n Can Mahomes muster enough magic for one last stand? The Chiefs have reached at least the AFC championship game every year he\u2019s been the starter. The last time Kansas City missed the playoffs was 2015.\n <\/p>\n

\n The dynasty\u2019s back is officially against the wall.\n <\/p>\n

\"Indianapolis<\/p>\n

\n The Indianapolis Colts opened the season red hot at 8-1. Now? They\u2019ve dropped three of four and are watching the division slip through their fingers. A loss Sunday to Jacksonville could knock Indy out of first place and potentially out of the playoff picture entirely if the Texans win.\n <\/p>\n

\n Quarterback Daniel Jones is still battling through a fractured fibula but plans to play. But how well will Jones be able to move around? His mobility was a big reason for the Colts\u2019 hot start.\n <\/p>\n

\n For the Jaguars, this is one of the biggest home games in recent memory. A win puts them firmly in control of the AFC South before a Christmas-week rematch in Indianapolis. Jacksonville has only won the division twice in its history: 2017 and 2022.\n <\/p>\n

\"Chicago<\/p>\n

\n When the Bears and Green Bay Packers renew their rivalry Sunday at Lambeau Field, Chicago has a chance to make history.\n <\/p>\n

\n In more than a century of battles, the Bears have never won at Lambeau twice in the same calendar year; Chicago beat the Packers on January 5 to end last season.\n <\/p>\n

\n Green Bay leads the all-time series 107-95-6, but this meeting comes with even more on the line: first place in the NFC North.\n <\/p>\n

\n The Bears enter on their first five-game winning streak since 2018, and Ben Johnson\u2019s debut season could not be going better. Chicago hasn\u2019t felt this energized since the team\u2019s Super Bowl run nearly two decades ago.\n <\/p>\n

\n The Packers, meanwhile, are rested and riding momentum after a 31-24 Thanksgiving win over the Detroit Lions. These two teams will be sick of each other by Christmas \u2013 Sunday is the first of two matchups in the next three weeks.\n <\/p>\n

\"Joe<\/p>\n

\n Joe Burrow returned last week for the first time since his Week 2 toe injury \u2013 and immediately delivered a shocker, leading the Cincinnati Bengals to a 32-14 Thanksgiving night upset of the Baltimore Ravens.\n <\/p>\n

\n Because the AFC North is currently the worst division in football \u2013 no team has a winning record \u2013 the 4-8 Bengals are somehow still alive. Barely. To make the playoffs, Cincinnati likely needs to run the table.\n <\/p>\n

\n That starts with their toughest remaining test: a trip to Buffalo to face the Bills. After that, the schedule softens \u2013 Ravens at home, then the Miami Dolphins, Arizona Cardinals and Cleveland Browns.\n <\/p>\n

\n It\u2019s been a chaotic season in Cincy, but if Burrow rattles off six straight to get the Bengals to 9-8 and into the postseason, it\u2019ll be one of the wildest turnarounds in recent memory.\n <\/p>\n

\"Pittsburgh<\/p>\n

\n The Ravens and Steelers enter Sunday deadlocked at 6-6 and locked in what feels like a season-defining showdown in the AFC North.\n <\/p>\n

\n Steelers fans weren\u2019t shy about their frustrations last week, booing the team off the field after a 26-7 loss to the Bills \u2013 Pittsburgh\u2019s fifth defeat in the past seven games. Mike Tomlin didn\u2019t dodge it, saying he agreed with the fans and the team \u201chas to play better.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n Aaron Rodgers turned 42 this week, and the hits he took on Sunday made him look every bit of it. He\u2019s dealing with an injured non-throwing wrist, and over his past three games he\u2019s totaled just 394 passing yards and two touchdowns.\n <\/p>\n

\n Is a late-season Rodgers revival still possible? The Steelers desperately need one. Otherwise, their season \u2013 and maybe the division \u2013 could slip away in Baltimore.\n <\/p>\n

\n Ravens fans, meanwhile, are still trying to figure out what\u2019s going on with Lamar Jackson. The two-time MVP threw just one touchdown in the entire month of November and never looked fully comfortable. Is he more banged up than the team is letting on?\n <\/p>\n

\n Baltimore will need a vintage Lamar performance if the Ravens want to beat Pittsburgh on Sunday and keep the Bengals at arm\u2019s length in the AFC North.\n <\/p>\n

\n Away @ home\n <\/p>\n

\n Thursday<\/strong>\n <\/p>\n

\n Dallas Cowboys @ Detroit Lions, 8:15 p.m. ET\n <\/p>\n

\n Sunday<\/strong>\n <\/p>\n

\n Tennessee Titans @ Cleveland Browns, 1 p.m. ET\n <\/p>\n

\n Seattle Seahawks @ Atlanta Falcons, 1 p.m. ET\n <\/p>\n

\n Indianapolis Colts @ Jacksonville Jaguars, 1 p.m. ET\n <\/p>\n

\n Washington Commanders @ Minnesota Vikings, 1 p.m. ET\n <\/p>\n

\n Cincinnati Bengals @ Buffalo Bills, 1 p.m. ET\n <\/p>\n

\n New Orleans Saints @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 1 p.m. ET\n <\/p>\n

\n Pittsburgh Steelers @ Baltimore Ravens, 1 p.m. ET\n <\/p>\n

\n Miami Dolphins @ New York Jets, 1 p.m. ET\n <\/p>\n

\n Denver Broncos @ Las Vegas Raiders, 4:05 p.m. ET\n <\/p>\n

\n Los Angeles Rams @ Arizona Cardinals, 4:25 p.m. ET\n <\/p>\n

\n Chicago Bears @ Green Bay Packers, 4:25 p.m. ET\n <\/p>\n

\n Houston Texans @ Kansas City Chiefs, 8:20 p.m. ET\n <\/p>\n

\n Monday<\/strong>\n <\/p>\n

\n Philadelphia Eagles @ Los Angeles Chargers, 8:15 p.m. ET\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Week 14 of the NFL season is here, and suddenly everything feels a little heavier. For some teams,…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":424314,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[1232,62,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-424313","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nfl","8":"tag-nfl","9":"tag-sports","10":"tag-united-states","11":"tag-unitedstates","12":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/424313","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=424313"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/424313\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/424314"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=424313"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=424313"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=424313"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}