Week 16 of the NFL season has officially arrived. We are just three weeks out from the start of the postseason, which means it’s crunch time for a lot of teams. There are 19 teams still mathematically alive for the playoffs, and only one of them, the Dallas Cowboys, could be eliminated this week. That means no matter what, there will be at least 18 teams still vying for a spot in the postseason with just two weeks to go.

A lot can happen this week, and there are a ton of games that will go a long way towards determining not just the playoff picture, but the NFL draft order. I went through all 16 NFL games this weekend and asked one big question I want to see answered as we draw closer to the playoffs.

Chargers at Cowboys

Can Dallas stop LA from clinching a playoff spot?

The Dallas Cowboys are already virtually eliminated from playoff contention, but that doesn’t mean they can’t have a little bit of fun. The Los Angeles Chargers can secure a playoff spot this week with a win and an Indianapolis or Houston loss (and I have a strong feeling Indy is going to lose). So, can Dallas cause a little bit of chaos, even though they don’t have a real shot at the postseason?

The Chargers are definitely a better team than the Cowboys, but I guarantee you they are not excited about playing Dallas when they have a chance to secure a playoff bid. The Chargers have a great defense, but Dallas’ offense is very explosive and can put up points in a hurry. Justin Herbert is going to have to play his best game in a while to keep pace, so I want to see if Dak Prescott and Co. still have that fire in them to try and win and make LA sweat for another week.

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Packers at Bears

Can Chicago avenge their loss and take firm control of the NFC North?

Just two weeks ago, we were treated to a pretty thrilling matchup between the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears, which came down to the wire. Now, these two will face off again in the Windy City with the NFC North lead on the line.

In their first matchup, both of these quarterbacks played pretty well, but it was Jordan Love who really shone, throwing for 234 yards and three touchdowns. Josh Jacobs also had a pretty strong performance, rushing for 86 yards and one touchdown while averaging 4.3 yards per carry.

The key for Chicago in this game isn’t improving offensively, though that would still help, but improving defensively. They didn’t have much of an answer for the Packers’ offense in Lambeau, so they need to find a way to put pressure on Love and stuff the run. If they can just make minor improvements defensively, they can win this game and take firm control of the NFC North.

Steelers at Lions

Can Detroit’s defense finally come through for them?

The Detroit Lions and Pittsburgh Steelers are both 8-6, but they’re in very different positions. The Lions are sitting on the outside looking in on the NFC playoff picture, and it feels like they might need to win 11 games (in other words, win out) to make it. As for Pittsburgh, they can kind of do whatever they want these next two weeks, but as long as they beat Baltimore in Week 18, they’ll be in. Despite having identical records, this game means so much more to Detroit, and the only way they’re going to win this game is if their defense finally steps up.

I know the Lions have battled injury after injury to their secondary, and they’re currently down two of their best players, but that’s no excuse for how poorly they’ve played over the last month. The Lions’ offense has averaged 34.0 points per game over their last four, but they’re 2-2 over that span because their defense has allowed almost that same number, which over the season would put them dead last in the league.

The Lions’ main issue is their pass defense, but even their run defense, which has been very good at times, has slipped up in their two losses since mid-November. Pittsburgh’s offense isn’t as good as the Rams or Packers, but they showed last week that they’re still capable of putting up points.

Detroit’s defense needs to step it up, not just in this game, but for all of their remaining games, because if they don’t, it might cost them a spot in the playoffs.

Patriots at Ravens

Should Baltimore be the favorite?

The Baltimore Ravens are three-point favorites over the New England Patriots on Sunday Night Football, and I’m trying to figure out why. The Ravens are 7-7, and the Patriots are 11-3. I know New England hasn’t played many tough opponents this year, but are they not pretty obviously the better team? I know the Ravens are at home, but that usually equates to a two or three-point difference in the spread. So Vegas thinks this would be a pick ’em on a neutral field?

The worst part about it, if you’re a Patriots fan, is, according to Action Network, the line opened at Ravens -2.5 and has moved to -3, and 81 percent of the money is on the Patriots at +3. Typically, with a ton of money coming on the other side, the Ravens’ line would be moving down, not up. Vegas wants people to keep pouring money on the Patriots at +3, which is very, very scary.

On paper, the Patriots should win this game, but man, the betting trends don’t bode well for them.

Jaguars at Broncos

Can Trevor Lawrence play well enough to overcome Denver’s defense?

Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars have been playing out of their minds in recent weeks. They’re riding a five-game win streak, and Lawrence has been playing the best ball of his career. However, their offense is about to run into the brick wall that is the Denver Broncos’ defense.

Denver has one of the best defenses in the NFL, which is led by one of the most efficient pass rushes in NFL history. We know Jacksonville has struggled to protect Lawrence at times (he’s taken the eighth-most sacks in the league), so they’re going to need to find a way to limit Nik Bonitto and company if they want to have success.

This game is going to come down to Lawrence. Can he keep up this MVP-level of play? Or will Denver’s defense get the best of him?

Chiefs at Titans

What does Kansas City’s offense look like without Patrick Mahomes?

Patrick Mahomes tore his ACL last week and has been ruled out for the remainder of the season. Gardner Minshew is set to replace him as the Kansas City Chiefs’ starting quarterback, so my question is, what does Kansas City’s offense look like without Mahomes?

The Chiefs have one of the lowest pass-to-run ratios in the NFL. Will that change this week? Do they give Isiah Pacheco, Kareem Hunt, and Brashard Smith more work? Or do they trust Minshew enough to throw it 30+ times to Rashee Rice, Travis Kelce, and the rest of his receivers?

Luckily, Tennessee’s defense doesn’t pose much of a threat, so they should be able to win this game, but as a Rashee Rice fantasy owner who’s in the semifinals of the playoffs, I’m extremely worried about how this offense will look this week.

Buccaneers at Panthers

Does either team want to win this division?

Does anybody actually want to win the NFC South? Seriously, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Carolina Panthers have been trying to give this thing away for weeks, and the other refuses to take it.

Six weeks ago, it looked like the Buccaneers were the runaway favorites to win the South. They were 6-2, and even though the Panthers were playing well, they’re, well, the Panthers. Nobody was really afraid of them. Then, the Buccaneers decided maybe they don’t actually want to win the South anymore, so they lost their next three games, bringing them to 6-5 while the Panthers advanced to 6-6.

Heading into Week 15, both teams were sitting at 7-6 and were facing their much inferior NFC South rivals, the Saints and Falcons. Both the Panthers and Buccaneers had a lead in their respective games before the Saints and Falcons clawed their way back and won on a game-winning field goal in the closing seconds.

It seems like nobody wants to win the South, but someone has to win this week and take control of the division. I think it’ll be Tampa, because they’re fully healthy again, but we’ve seen them piss down their leg quite a few times this year, so we’ll see.

Eagles at Commanders

Is Philadelphia’s offense really back? Or was last week a fluke against a bad team?

The Philadelphia Eagles have been struggling offensively over the past month and a half, but dropped 31 points on the Las Vegas Raiders last week. Jalen Hurts and the offense looked really good, but I’m not convinced they’re fully back just yet. The Raiders are one of the worst teams in the NFL, so I need to see Philly do it again before I’m convinced.

Unfortunately, the Eagles get another easy matchup this week against the Washington Commanders, who have one of the worst defenses in the league. However, they will pose more of a challenge than the Raiders did, so we should get a bit of an idea of whether or not last week was a fluke.

If the Eagles come out and drop 30+, I’ll be impressed. I might not be ready to say they’re back to playing Super Bowl-caliber offense, but it will be encouraging as the postseason keeps creeping closer and closer.

Bills at Browns

Can Buffalo make Shedeur look foolish again?

The Shedeur Sanders experience has been an absolute roller coaster. He was okay in his first two starts, then played really well in his third start, throwing for 300+ yards and scoring four total touchdowns, but he stunk it up last week against Chicago, tossing three picks and scoring three points in the blowout loss.

What version of Shedeur will we see this weekend? The Buffalo Bills have one of the worst run defenses in the NFL, but they have been very, very good against the pass. It will be Shedeur’s toughest test yet, and I’m not quite sure he’s up to the challenge. Yes, he played well against Tennessee, but that was the 2-12 Titans, not the 10-4 Bills.

Can Shedeur make some magic this week? Or is he going to keep digging himself into a hole he may never be able to climb back out of?

49ers at Colts

Do the Colts go to Riley Leonard at some point?

The Philip Rivers experiment was fun for one week, but I don’t really need to see it again. I mean, how bad can Riley Leonard be? You’re telling me he can’t hand the ball off and make throws within five yards of the line of scrimmage all game? I just don’t believe it, and at least Leonard gives you some mobility and downfield options.

San Francisco’s defense may not be as good as it once was, especially with their injuries this year, but they’re going to put eight men in the box and force Rivers to beat them downfield. And you know what? He’s not going to be able to do it. He doesn’t have the arm strength, but you know who does? Riley Leonard.

Do I think Leonard is a better intellectual quarterback than Rivers? No. Do I think he gives the Colts a better shot to win, because he can diversify the offense and make the 49ers think twice about loading the box? Absolutely.

Will we see Leonard at all this week? Or is Shane Steichen ready to go down with Rivers as his quarterback?

Raiders at Texans

Will Vegas score a single point?

I mentioned it earlier, but the Raiders are the worst team in the league, and it’s by a pretty wide margin. They were never very good, but it feels like they’re only getting worse as the season goes along, especially on the offensive side of the ball.

This week, the Raiders have to go to Houston to play one of the best defenses the NFL has seen in the past decade. And the worst part is, it feels like Houston is only getting better each week. I’m very concerned for this Raiders offense this week (and fantasy owners of Ashton Jeanty and Brock Bowers). I’m not trying to be funny with this question, but I’m genuinely concerned the Raiders might not score a point for the second consecutive week. I mean, Kenny Pickett threw for 64 yards last week against a defense that’s good, but not comparable to the Texans.

This game is going to be ugly. I’m not sure Raiders fans will even turn on the TV.

Jets at Saints

Can Tyler Shough keep the good times rolling in the Big Easy?

Tyler Shough is balling out right now. And for all of you box score watchers out there saying, “Actually, he has six touchdowns to five interceptions 🤓,” go watch some film and get back to me. He’s been the starter in New Orleans for six weeks now, but he already has more wins than any other rookie quarterback this season, including Jaxson Dart and Cam Ward.

This week, Shough gets to play the New York Jets, who have the 30th-ranked scoring defense in the NFL. They have been decent against the pass, but that’s largely due to their inability to stop the run, and with Alvin Kamara and Devin Neal out, the Saints are going to rely heavily on Shough to win them this game.

So, can Shough help them win their third game in a row and keep the good times rolling in New Orleans? Or will he start coming back down to Earth? For my sake, I hope it’s the former, but we’ll have to wait and see.

Bengals at Dolphins

How will Quinn Ewers perform in his first NFL start?

Mike McDaniel has decided to bench Tua Tagovailoa this week in favor of rookie quarterback Quinn Ewers. The former five-star recruit wasn’t the superstar he was supposed to be in college, but he’s made it to the NFL, and now it’s his time to shine.

Ewers is talented. There’s a reason he was a five-star recruit and led Texas to the College Football Playoffs last season. However, he’s only played in one game this year, and it was a blowout where he completed five of his eight attempts for 53 yards. He hasn’t played a meaningful snap in the NFL, and now McDaniel is putting his career in Ewers’ hands.

Luckily for the rookie, the Cincinnati Bengals are quite literally the best team he could’ve been put up against in his first start. They are the worst defense in the league, giving up over 30 points per game, and he has two electric playmakers in De’Von Achane and Jaylen Waddle to throw to.

I’m very curious to see how Ewers fares in his first start. Will he show any sort of promise and potentially put himself in the conversation to be the starter next year? Or will he look bad and doom himself to being a backup for the rest of his career?

Vikings at Giants

Has J.J. McCarthy actually found his stride?

J.J. McCarthy looked AWFUL for two weeks in early November. Against the Bears and Packers, McCarthy completed 28 of his 51 pass attempts for 237 yards, zero touchdowns and four interceptions. He was genuinely playing like the worst quarterback in the league, but he’s since bounced back with a couple of solid games.

Over his last two outings, McCarthy has thrown for 413 yards, five touchdowns and one interception, but there needs to be a bit of an asterisk next to it, because he played two of the worst pass defenses in the NFL in Dallas and Washington. This week isn’t much tougher with the New York Giants coming to town, but another strong outing could give him the confidence he needs to finish the year strong against Detroit and Green Bay.

Has McCarthy actually found his stride? Or is he just taking advantage of bad defenses? This week will give us a bit of an idea, but the following two weeks will be the real test.

Falcons at Cardinals

Can anyone stop Trey McBride?

Trey McBride is having one of the best seasons we’ve ever seen from a tight end. He’s caught 105 passes, which is 15 shy of the NFL record for most receptions by a tight end in a single season, for 1,071 yards (on pace for 1,300, which would rank eighth among tight ends all-time) and 10 touchdowns (on pace for 12, which would put him tied for third among tight ends in a single season). So, it has to be asked: can anyone stop him?

Just to give you a little perspective, right now, the gap between Travis Kelce (fantasy TE2 on the year) and David Njoku (fantasy TE29 on the season) is 93 points. The gap between McBride (fantasy TE1 on the year) and Kelce is also 93 points. Kelce is closer to being TE28 on the year than he is TE1.

Nobody has really been able to contain McBride all year, especially since Jacoby Brissett took over as the starter, so there’s no reason to think Atlanta can. But if they want to win, they can’t let McBride go for 100+ yards and multiple touchdowns. That just can’t happen. It will be interesting to see how they scheme things up to try to stop him.