We have nearly reached the end of this NFL season and I’d like to give everyone a big thank you for joining and hanging in again this season. While there have been some turbulent events in and around the league (and elsewhere!) it’s been a pleasure to bring this pool to you again this year. Running this through a blog has been a learning curve but something I hope to expand in the next season.
All that aside, Week 18 promises to be an interesting week, in the sense that a vast majority of the matchups feature one team in the playoffs (or in the hunt) and another team that has little to play for. You can see the playoff scenarios on the blog (pinned for your convenience!) but they’ll also be sorted here by time and ranked by level of importance, ranked from the most important game (1) to the least important game (16). You probably don’t need to many guesses to figure out #1
Here is the schedule, with the write-up underneath
| Time | Date | Away | Home | Winner | Conf | Pick Due | Time |
| 4:30 | 08-Jan | Kansas City | Denver | 08-Jan | 4:30 PM | ||
| 8:15 | 08-Jan | Dallas | Philadelphia | 08-Jan | 8:15 PM | ||
| 1:00 | 09-Jan | Pittsburgh | Baltimore | 09-Jan | 1:00 PM | ||
| 1:00 | 09-Jan | Cincinnati | Cleveland | 09-Jan | 1:00 PM | ||
| 1:00 | 09-Jan | Washington | NY Giants | 09-Jan | 1:00 PM | ||
| 1:00 | 09-Jan | Chicago | Minnesota | 09-Jan | 1:00 PM | ||
| 1:00 | 09-Jan | Tennessee | Houston | 09-Jan | 1:00 PM | ||
| 1:00 | 09-Jan | Indianapolis | Jacksonville | 09-Jan | 1:00 PM | ||
| 1:00 | 09-Jan | Green Bay | Detroit | 09-Jan | 1:00 PM | ||
| 4:25 | 09-Jan | NY Jets | Buffalo | 09-Jan | 1:00 PM | ||
| 4:25 | 09-Jan | New Orleans | Atlanta | 09-Jan | 1:00 PM | ||
| 4:25 | 09-Jan | Carolina | Tampa Bay | 09-Jan | 1:00 PM | ||
| 4:25 | 09-Jan | San Francisco | LA Rams | 09-Jan | 1:00 PM | ||
| 4:25 | 09-Jan | New England | Miami | 09-Jan | 1:00 PM | ||
| 4:25 | 09-Jan | Seattle | Arizona | 09-Jan | 1:00 PM | ||
| 8:20 | 09-Jan | LA Chargers | Las Vegas | 09-Jan | 1:00 PM |
It should be noted that most of these games are fierce divisional rivalries and have inherent importance, so while they may have some added juice for that reason, that will play little into the importance factor. Also, ratings are based somewhat on other mitigating factors – for instance, the expectation is that the Colts will win comfortably, so the rating of the Steelers-Ravens reflects that. If the Jaguars can be competitive in their game, the significance of Steelers-Ravens shoots up significantly.
SATURDAY
Chiefs at Broncos, 4:30 pm ET
Importance: 8
The Chiefs need a win and a Titans loss for the 1 seed. A loss could put them as low as fourth.
The Broncos are out of the playoffs and have nothing to play for, aside from pride.
An interesting choice for ESPN but they likely didn’t have a lot of sway here. There weren’t a lot of big games that had limited implications elsewhere.
Cowboys at Eagles, 8:15 pm ET
Importance: 11
The Cowboys have locked up the division and the Packers have already locked up the bye. They may be motivated to win to get out of the four seed to avoid the Cardinals or Rams… but that is no certainty.
The Eagles have clinched a playoff spot, which will be either sixth or seventh in the NFC. Will they care which seed they get? I’m guessing no.
Two teams already in the playoffs may not be inclined to play their starters or play very close to the vest. Or maybe they’ll go all out.
SUNDAY
EARLY AFTERNOON GAMES
Steelers at Ravens, 1:00 pm ET
Importance: 10
Technically, both teams will go into this game with something to play for. The Colts-Jaguars game takes place at the same time and both teams will be hoping (but can’t really be expecting) the Jaguars to make that game competitive and the Steelers and Ravens will be going all out, at least until the Colts put the other game away.
The Steelers may have some added urgency as this will likely be Ben Roethlisberger’s last game.
Colts at Jaguars, 1:00 pm ET
Importance: 4
Since it was alluded to above, the Colts-Jaguars game has much in the way of knock on value to a number of the other games played this weekend, though that might not be apparent in the play in this one.
If the Colts do not win, they’ll need to rely on the Ravens, Raiders, and Dolphins to all come out victorious in their games to make the playoffs. But really, if they can’t beat the Jaguars in a must-win, are they really a team that deserves the playoffs?
The Jaguars secure the first overall pick in the NFL Draft with a loss and, while the players may be motivated to win or at least put together some positive tape, a lot of them haven’t been doing that to this point, so why expect it now?
Titans at Texans, 1:00 pm ET
Importance: 6
If the Titans win this game, they are guaranteed the first round bye and homefield advantage throughout the playoffs. If they lose, the Chiefs, Bengals, or Patriots could pass them. They’ll know what the Chiefs do before this game but will be expected to go full strength in this one regardless.
The Texans have played with fire at times to close out a lost season, and beat the Titans in Nashville in Week 11. They should be up for this one, so it should (hopefully) be entertaining at least.
Bengals at Browns, 1:00 pm ET
Importance: 12
The Bengals still have a shot at securing the first round bye in the AFC, though they’ll know the Chiefs result by now. If the Chiefs win, the Bengals have no shot at the bye and will be playing for seeding. As the 5-7 spots will be more or less interchangeable, this may not be a big game from their point of view. The importance factor varies wildly based on Chiefs-Broncos.
The Browns have been eliminated from the playoffs and just laid an egg against the Steelers. They may be up for this one though.
Packers at Lions, 1:00 pm ET
Importance: 14
The Packers have secured a first-round bye in the postseason, so many players should be expected to sit this one out.
The Lions have been competitive for much of the last half of the season, biting kneecaps and all, and should play their traditional rival hard, even if the Packers are undermanned. They would get the first overall pick with a loss and a Jags win but I find it hard to believe they’d play to lose. That said, this game is only for pride for both teams.
Bears at Vikings, 1:00 pm ET
Importance: 15
This may be the last game for the head coaches, Matt Nagy and Mike Zimmer. Will that carry any additional weight? No idea but this game could be a slog.
WFT at Giants, 1:00 pm ET
Importance: 16
Not wasting any more keystrokes than necessary on this one.
LATE AFTERNOON GAMES
Niners at Rams, 4:25 pm ET
Importance: 2
The second-most important game of the week pits a team needing the win to make it against a team looking to wrap up the division. Adding intrigue to this is that the Niners have won the last five games against the Rams.
This is a must-win game for the Niners. If they lose the Saints could pass them if they beat the Falcons, and while the Falcons may be up for the divisional showdown, it’s no certainty.
The Rams could really use this win to secure the division, vanquish the Niners finally, and potentially to get Cooper Kupp the 171 yards he needs to be the first receiver to crack 2000 yards (or just the 136 to pass Calvin Johnson’s 1964 yards).
Saints at Falcons, 4:25 pm ET
Importance: 3
The Saints need a win here and the Niners loss to make the postseason following a tumultuous season in which they lost their starting QB Jameis Winston to a torn ACL, and suffered through substandard play from the other THREE QB’s they’ve need to use.
The Falcons were officially eliminated last week and the week before they won their first game in their home stadium in a full calendar year. They will likely play hard against their division foes.
Seahawks at Cardinals, 4:25 pm ET
Importance: 5
This is a rare lost season for the Seahawks, who nevertheless just put up 51 points against the Lions last week. Will they be up for this one? Is this Pete Carroll’s last game in the Pacific Northwest? Is it the last for Russell Wilson?
The Cardinals need a win here and a Rams loss to take back the NFC West that they’ve led for almost the whole season. A win would certainly be good for playoff morale, especially after they beat the Cowboys in Dallas last week.
Patriots at Dolphins, 4:25 pm ET
Importance: 9
By this time, the Pats will know whether they can get the 1 seed, but if the Jets can do the improbable and beat the Bills in Orchard Park, the Patriots would win the division if they beat the Dolphins, which has been no easy feat in the Belichick era.
The Dolphins have nothing to play for as they’ve been eliminated. They could alter the AFC playoff race with a win, but will that be enough motivation? Motivation would likely come in the form of wanting to beat their division rivals to prevent another Pats AFC East division title.
Jets at Bills, 4:25 pm ET
Importance: 7
Much like the Colts-Jags or Titans-Texans, this game is important for the Bills, though they should have little trouble beating their division rival. A loss by Buffalo opens up the AFC East for the Patriots.
The Jets, as with the Texans and Lions, have been pesky in recent weeks and should be that way here.
Panthers at Buccaneers, 4:25 pm ET
Importance: 13
The Panthers are playing like a team running out the clock.
There are seeding implications for this game, but would expect that the Bucs will take a very cautious approach to playing their starters here, especially those like Mike Evans that are somewhat banged up right now.
SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL
Chargers at Raiders, 8:20 pm ET
Importance: 1
There is little that needs to be said to drum up interest in this game. The Chargers and the Raiders are both 9-7, and a win means a postseason berth is assured for the winner. If the Colts win their game earlier on Sunday, it also means that the loser of this game will not make the playoffs (and will know by kickoff time).