The final week of the NFL regular season is upon us. In just a few hours, the Carolina Panthers and Tampa Buccaneers will kick off the weekend in a game that will decide (or at least play a big role in deciding) which team makes it to the postseason. After that, there’s one more playoff-deciding game, but there are tons that will determine the seeding.

I know there aren’t a whole lot of interesting matchups, but every game has something in it, even if you have to dig deep to find it, that’s intriguing.

Here’s one big question looming over every NFL Week 18 game.

Panthers at Buccaneers

Who represents the NFC South in the playoffs?

There’s only one real question for this game: who represents the NFC South in the playoffs? The South has been the weakest division in the NFL all year, but someone has to get in despite both of these teams’ best efforts to lose the division. We could very well end up with a sub-.500 playoff team. If the Buccaneers and Falcons win, the 8-9 Panthers would get in. If the Buccaneers win and the Saints win, the 8-9 Buccaneers would get in. The only way for one of them to be above .500 entering the postseason is if Carolina wins outright.

This should be a pretty close ball game, just like their first matchup, and I’m excited to see how it shakes out.

Seahawks at 49ers

Can the 49ers pull off the upset and secure the 1-seed?

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I don’t know how big of an upset this would be, but the San Francisco 49ers are underdogs in this game. Seattle is currently the 1-seed in the NFC, but a loss to San Fran would drop them all the way down to the 5-seed, because of the NFL’s seeding rules with division winners taking 1-4. If you asked me this weeks ago, I would’ve told you Seattle will win this game for sure, but San Fran is one of the hottest teams in the league, so I really wouldn’t be surprised at all if they end up with the first-round bye.

Ravens at Steelers

Who takes the AFC North?

The only other playoff-deciding matchup this week is the Baltimore Ravens vs the Pittsburgh Steelers. The AFC North is still up for grabs, and whoever wins this game will earn the 4-seed in the AFC playoffs. Lamar Jackson’s health is in question, so right now, the scales have to be tipped in Pittsburgh’s favor, but if Lamar can go, that changes everything. This should be one of the best and hardest-fought games of the entire weekend, and I’m excited to see how it plays out.

Cowboys at Giants

Can Jaxson Dart make a final push for Offensive Rookie of the Year?

Jaxson Dart was getting all the attention in the early part of the season, but after he got hurt and missed a few games, his production hasn’t quite been where it was earlier in the year. Still, he’s had a terrific season, throwing for 2,042 yards and 13 touchdowns while rushing for 455 yards and nine more scores in 11 games. Despite that, he’s pretty far off the Offensive Rookie of the Year favorites in terms of betting odds.

Right now, Tyler Shough is the favorite, with Tetairoa McMillan not far behind, and then it’s Dart a pretty good ways off. Dart does get to play the Cowboys, who have the worst passing defense in the league, so he may be able to make one final push for the award.

Browns at Bengals

What will Shedeur Sanders do in his last game?

Shedeur Sanders has one more game to show the Cleveland Browns that he should be their starting quarterback in 2026. His rookie year hasn’t been great, throwing for 1,289 yards and seven touchdowns with 10 interceptions while also taking 17 sacks in seven games. He’s shown some flashes, but he’s going to need a really big showing against one of the worst defenses in the league to give the coaching staff (if they’re even still around next year) any hope that he can be their franchise guy.

Jets at Bills

Can the Bills climb at least one spot in the playoff seeding?

The Buffalo Bills are currently the 7-seed in the AFC playoffs, but they have a chance to climb this week. They need help from others, but if they beat the Jets and the Chargers and/or Texans lose, they could climb as high as the 5-seed. The Chargers will be without Justin Herbert and have to play a Denver team that’s fighting for the 1-seed, so they’re likely going to lose, opening the door for Buffalo to at least climb to the 6-seed. But if Houston also loses to Indianapolis, they could be the 5-seed and get a date with the AFC North winner. There’s a lot at stake for Buffalo, but it all starts with them winning against the Jets.

Packers at Vikings

Will Justin Jefferson finally get involved?

This game means nothing for either of these teams. The Packers are locked into the 7-seed, and the Vikings are eliminated from the playoffs, but if I’m a Vikings fan, there’s one thing I want to see in this game, and that’s the ball in Justin Jefferson’s hands. He’s had a down year, largely due to his quarterback play, and if J.J. McCarthy really is going to be their franchise quarterback, he needs to build a connection with Jefferson. This offense is so much better when he plays well, so all I want to see from Minnesota is McCarthy getting him the ball often.

Chiefs at Raiders

Is this Travis Kelce’s last game?

People have been speculating Travis Kelce’s retirement for a while now, and there’s a very real chance he hangs it up after this year. He’s getting married to Taylor Swift this year, and it’s been a tough season for the Kansas City Chiefs, who missed the playoffs and have just six wins. I don’t necessarily believe it’ll be his last game, but if he gets force-fed the ball a lot in this game, I might have some concerns for the 36-year-old.

Lions at Bears

Can Detroit play spoiler and drop the Bears to the 3-seed?

The Detroit Lions are out of the playoffs, but that doesn’t mean they can’t play a little bit of spoiler to their NFC North rivals. Right now, the Chicago Bears are the 2-seed in the NFC and will play the Packers, who are pretty clearly the weakest of the NFC Wild Card teams. If the Bears win, they lock up the 2-seed, but if they lose and Philly beats Washington, they’ll drop to the 3-seed and have to play either the Rams or 49ers, which would be a nightmare. Detroit has the talent to pull this one off, but Chicago will do everything in their power to ensure they maintain their grasp on the 2-seed.

Dolphins at Patriots

Can Quinn Ewers put himself in the conversation for Miami’s 2026 starting QB?

Quinn Ewers made his first NFL start a couple of weeks ago and did not look good, throwing two interceptions in a 45-21 loss. Then, he bounced back last week with a really solid 172-yard, two-touchdown performance. This week he faces a really tough New England defense, but if he can play well, he could put himself in the conversation to be Miami’s starter next year. We all know he has the talent – he was a five-star for a reason – but he just needs to put it all together. This week will tell us a lot about Ewers’ future.

Chargers at Broncos

Can Denver lock up the 1-seed?

The Denver Broncos have the chance to lock up the 1-seed in the AFC for the first time since 2015, when they last won the Super Bowl. All they have to do is beat the Justin Herbert-less Chargers. Sounds easy, right? Well, maybe not. The Chargers may be without their starting quarterback, but they still have an elite defense. Bo Nix can’t just expect to show up to the stadium and win; he’s going to have to play hard and score some points. They should be able to get it done, but it may not be as easy as people think.

Colts at Texans

How will Riley Leonard fare against the toughest test in football?

The Indianapolis Colts have pulled the plug on Philip Rivers and are set to start Riley Leonard on Sunday. The former Notre Dame quarterback will make the first start of his career on Sunday, but he has to do it against the best defense in the league. We’ve seen Houston shut down some of the best signal callers in the league, so I’m curious how Leonard will fare, because I don’t think it will be pretty.

Also, Rivers was 104 yards away from passing Ben Roethlisberger for the seventh-most all-time. Should’ve given him a half to try and do it, in my opinion.

Saints at Falcons

Can Tyler Shough keep it up?

Tyler Shough has taken over as the favorite to win the Offensive Rookie of the Year award. He’s been playing lights out and is coming off his best performance of the season, where he threw for 333 yards and two scores in a win over Tennessee. With one game left in the season, I want to see him do it again. As a Saints fan, I’m already irrationally optimistic about next season, but another big game from QB1 would put me over the edge. Atlanta’s defense isn’t super stout, but they’re not a pushover either. It should be a good challenge for the rookie out of Louisville.

Commanders at Eagles

Can the Eagles’ offense pick it up?

The Philadelphia Eagles might be the least convincing 11-5 team of all time. They beat up on Washington and Vegas, but when they played a real team in the Bills last week, they struggled mightily offensively, scoring 13 points. To put it into perspective, the Eagles have played six teams that are currently in the playoff picture. They have scored 20+ points in those games one time, which came in Week 3 against the Rams. Since then, they’ve scored 17 against Denver, seven against Green Bay, 15 against Chicago, 19 against Los Angeles and 13 against Buffalo. Their defense has stepped up, helping them win two of those five games, but this offense is not good, but a big game against Washington could give them some momentum in the playoffs.

Cardinals at Rams

Can LA get back on track before the playoffs?

The Los Angeles Rams looked like the runaway favorites for the 1-seed in the NFC, but they’ve gone into a rut. They’ve lost their last two games in pretty embarrassing fashion – a blown 16-point lead in the fourth, and a three-point loss to the Falcons – and are now guaranteed to go on the road for at least their first playoff game. Luckily, they have a very easy game in front of them against Arizona, so this is the perfect opportunity to get back on track, but can they? I need to see a dominant outing. I’m talking 40-10 win with Matthew Stafford throwing 3+ touchdowns and their pass rush getting after Jacoby Brissett.

Titans at Jaguars

Can Cam Ward put together one last good showing?

Cam Ward has gotten better pretty much every single game. He’s playing some great football lately, especially when you consider the weapons (or lack thereof) he has. He’s made some magical plays that only he can make, and with just one more game left this season, I want to see if he can impress me one more time. Jacksonville’s defense has really come together recently and is playing very well, so a special performance this week would be huge for his confidence heading into 2026.