The penultimate week of the 2023 NFL season is here. Despite there only being two weeks left in the regular season, there’s still a lot to be sorted out with 24 teams still alive in the playoff race entering Week 17.
Which of this week’s games will have the biggest impact on the eventual playoff picture? Let’s take a look at the biggest and best matchups over the next few days.
5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-7) at New Orleans Saints (7-8)
Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET on FOX
Could the Buccaneers head to the playoffs in the first year of the post-Tom Brady era? That will happen if they go into the Superdome and beat the Saints on Sunday.
This season has been a roller coaster ride for the Bucs. They started 3-1, but then lost six of seven games out of their bye week. They’ve since won four games in a row, including convincing wins over the Green Bay Packers and Jacksonville Jaguars. Now they just need a win over a Saints team they beat back in Week 4 to officially punch their ticket to the postseason. They should be able to take care of business.
4. Pittsburgh Steelers (8-7) at Seattle Seahawks (8-7)
Sunday, 4:05 p.m. ET on FOX
These teams are in different conferences but share the same goal heading into this game: stay alive in their respective wild card races.
The Steelers are on the outside looking in at the AFC playoff picture. At 8-7 they’re in a four-way tie with the Colts, Texans, and Bengals for the final playoff spot in the conference, but don’t have the tiebreakers necessary to get to the top right now. This week they’ll have Mason Rudolph back at quarterback. Rudolph replaced Mitch Trubisky last week and led the Steelers to a surprise blowout win over the Bengals to keep Pittsburgh’s playoff hopes alive.
Seattle controls its own destiny in the NFC playoff picture and currently holds the seventh seed in the conference. The Seahawks can’t fully clinch a playoff spot with a win on Sunday, but with a matchup against the 3-12 Cardinals on the docket for Week 18 they’d be in very good shape. They may need it though, if the Steelers can play a similar game to last week.
3. Cincinnati Bengals (8-7) at Kansas City Chiefs (9-6)
Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET on CBS
Here we have two AFC teams battling for playoff position trying to bounce back from bad divisional losses. The Bengals got trounced by the Steelers last week, while the Chiefs offense was held uncharacteristically at bay by the Raiders in Arrowhead Stadium.
For the Bengals, this game is a must-win for their playoff hopes. They’re currently the fourth of the four 8-7 teams, and don’t have the tiebreakers necessary to make the playoffs just by winning out.
The Chiefs are in better shape with a two-game lead in the AFC West. They can clinch the playoffs this week with either a win or losses by both the Broncos and Raiders. However, playoff positioning is key. They can still drop to the fourth seed in the AFC, which would likely mean a trip to Baltimore in the Divisional round if they make it that far. Back at home this is a great spot for Kansas City to get right – we’ll see if they can do it.
2. Detroit Lions (11-4) at Dallas Cowboys (10-5)
Saturday, 8:15 p.m. ET on ABC/ESPN
As the Eagles struggle to finish the season strong, can the Cowboys capitalize? Dallas is one game back in the NFC East standings and is still in play to win the division. While the Cowboys wouldn’t be eliminated from division contention with just a loss (Philadelphia would need to win too), it would significantly dampen their chances.
Meanwhile, the Lions are still vying for the top spot in the NFC playoffs. Coming off of the emotional high of clinching the division last week, the Lions head into Week 17 tied with the 49ers and Eagles for the best record in the NFC.
This game is also a great chance for a young Lions team to prepare for a tough environment against a playoff-caliber team. Will the veteran Cowboys teach them a lesson in Dallas?
1. Miami Dolphins (11-4) at Baltimore Ravens (12-3)
Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET on CBS
The only two teams to clinch a playoff spot in the AFC so far meet in the easily the game of the week. Not only are both teams already locked into the playoffs, odds are one of the two will end up with the top seed and first round bye in the conference. Pending something very unexpected, that should go to the winner of this game.
Baltimore is coming off of one of the most impressive wins for any team in the NFL this season, having gone into Levi Stadium and blown out the San Francisco 49ers last week. Miami also took down a tough team last week, beating the Cowboys 22-20.
Will Baltimore continue its dominance in the AFC? If they can replicate the kind of aggressive defensive effort they put forth last week, they should be able to take care of business at home.
