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Jauan Jennings couldn’t resist having a little fun on Monday night at Lucas Oil Stadium.

The San Francisco 49ers wide receiver caught a short 3-yard touchdown catch from Brock Purdy to kick off the second half of their 48-27 win over the Indianapolis Colts on Monday, and immediately bolted toward a pair of fans sitting in the corner of the end zone. Jennings reached out with the ball, too, and seemed ready to hand it off to a woman sitting in the front row.

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But right as Jennings reached her, he ripped the ball back, turned and sprinted the other way to celebrate instead in what was an incredible troll job. The woman’s face, and outstretched hands, said it all.

Brutal. But, with Jennings in enemy territory, it’s hard to blame him.

The touchdown reception marked just the second catch that Jennings had made all night. It put the 49ers up 31-17 at the time. Jennings now has eight total touchdowns this season. The 28-year-old entered Monday night’s contest with 495 receiving yards on 44 catches.

The 49ers cruised to the 21-point win in the second half, and put the game out of reach after Dee Winters intercepted Philip Rivers and ran it back 74 yards for a touchdown. Brock Purdy went 25-of-34 for 295 yards and threw five touchdowns in the win for San Francisco. Christian McCaffrey had 117 yards on 21 carries, and another 29 yards and two touchdowns on six catches.

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Rivers went 23-of-35 for 277 yards with two touchdowns and an interception for the Colts. Jonathan Taylor had 46 yards and a score on 16 carries, and Alec Pierce had 86 yards and two touchdowns on four catches. The Colts are not yet out of the playoffs, but their odds at making it in are extremely diminished now with the loss.

San Francisco now sits at 11-4 on the season, which still has them second in the NFC West standings. The 49ers already clinched a playoff spot, however, and they are not out of the divisional race by any means. Wins in their final two games, against the Chicago Bears and the Seattle Seahawks, would give them the 1 seed in the NFC playoffs.

AFC East: Buffalo Bills | Miami Dolphins | New England Patriots | New York Jets
AFC North: Baltimore Ravens | Cincinnati Bengals | Cleveland Browns | Pittsburgh Steelers
AFC South: Houston Texans | Indianapolis Colts | Jacksonville Jaguars | Tennessee Titans
AFC West: Denver Broncos | Kansas City Chiefs | Las Vegas Raiders | Los Angeles Chargers

NFC East: Dallas Cowboys | New York Giants | Philadelphia Eagles | Washington Commanders
NFC North: Chicago Bears | Detroit Lions | Green Bay Packers | Minnesota Vikings
NFC South: Atlanta Falcons | Carolina Panthers | New Orleans Saints | Tampa Bay Buccaneers
NFC West: Arizona Cardinals | Los Angeles Rams | San Francisco 49ers | Seattle Seahawks

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When Derrick Henry scored his second touchdown of the game Sunday night, it put the Baltimore Ravens ahead 24-13 with 12:40 left. That was the last snap Henry played, and the New England Patriots came back to win.

Everything about the Ravens has seemed off this season, and that includes the coaching error of Henry not seeing the field for most of the fourth quarter even though he had 128 yards on 18 carries. For those ready for a change from the John Harbaugh era, the misuse of Henry was a major talking point in what has become a horrifically disappointing season. The Ravens fell to 7-8 and are on the verge of missing the playoffs.

Harbaugh, who is finishing his 18th season as Ravens head coach, was asked about his future Monday.

“Coaching at any level is a day-to-day job,” Harbaugh said, according to the team’s site. “Your job is to do the best job you can today. It’s never been about keeping a job. I try to do the job, not try to keep the job. Anything after today, I’m not thinking about.”

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The Ravens are eight seasons into QB Lamar Jackson’s career and have only three playoff wins to show for it. The criticism usually goes to Jackson, but maybe Harbaugh deserves some too. At very least, the inability to win multiple games in a postseason since the 2012 campaign doesn’t look great for Harbaugh. The Ravens will have to wrestle with the idea of parting ways with a coach who has won 61.5% of his games and has a Super Bowl championship. This season has been so bad, in multiple ways, that it certainly seems like the Ravens are backsliding. Jackson’s prime won’t last forever, and that will have to be taken into account. They can’t afford to waste any more seasons with Jackson, a generational talent at quarterback, without getting to a Super Bowl.

The Ravens came into this season with Super Bowl dreams. Unbelievably, it seems possible they start next season with a new coach.

On Sunday against the Texans, the Raiders were competitive for a change. It was good to see Ashton Jeanty finally show some flashes of greatness, but let’s not go overboard. There shouldn’t be much celebration over a two-win team playing decently and losing. The good news for the Raiders is they face the Giants and depleted Chiefs to end the season and could get wins. Though, given how much they could use the first overall pick of the 2026 NFL Draft, maybe that’s not a good thing.

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The Titans beating the Chiefs 26-9 would have been a startling headline a couple months ago. On Sunday, Tennessee caught a break facing a KC team that was without Patrick Mahomes and lost Gardner Minshew early in the game. Still, it’s better than losing to that Chiefs team. That win probably knocks the Titans out of the race for the first overall pick of next year’s draft, but winning games and gaining momentum is probably more important anyway. We probably heard the strongest endorsement of rookie QB Cam Ward, coming from Tennessee’s best player, Jeffery Simmons. “Cam has the right mindset. That’s the reason why I don’t want to go nowhere,” the star defensive lineman, who is often mentioned in trade rumors, said, per ESPN.com. “I see the competitive nature and the growth as a rookie of Cam.”

In Week 17, it’s Giants vs. Raiders in a meeting between the only two 13-loss teams in football. The intrigue, of course, is that the loser will be a heavy favorite to clinch the first pick of the 2026 NFL Draft. It gets interesting if it’s the Giants. It seems impossible to believe they’d draft a quarterback and move on from Jaxson Dart. But Dart was awful Sunday, with a passer rating of 27.4. If Dart has two more terrible games like that to end the season, would it at least be a conversation?

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The Jets might set an unbelievable NFL record. The fewest interceptions for a team in the Super Bowl era is two, by the 2018 49ers. The Jets, somehow, have zero interceptions. They also have just four takeaways; the record low is seven by those 2018 49ers. It’s even more baffling when you consider their head coach, Aaron Glenn, is known for his defensive acumen. Maybe the Jets will stumble into an interception or two the rest of the season (vs. Patriots and Bills), but it’s a remarkable drought that sums up their miserable season.

The Cardinals’ injury list is ridiculous. On Sunday they saw defensive tackle Walter Nolen, defensive end Josh Sweat and cornerback Garrett Williams leave with injuries. That’s the team’s first-round draft pick, their big free-agent addition and a starting cornerback. Nolen (knee) and Williams (Achilles) are done for the season. The Cardinals’ biggest goal for the remainder of the season might be surviving it without any more major injuries.

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Cleveland had a shot to beat Buffalo on Sunday. They had three possessions in the fourth quarter, trailing by six points, and all they could get was a field goal, turnover on downs and a punt. There have been some horrible performances from the Browns this season, but also enough good efforts to keep them from being the Raiders. The hard news Sunday was a horrible leg injury to promising rookie running back Quinshon Judkins. Hopefully that doesn’t affect him into next season.

The idea of having well traveled 39-year-old Josh Johnson in your quarterback room is great, until he has to play. Johnson produced almost nothing when he had to play Saturday after Marcus Mariota exited due to injury. And we all might get to watch Johnson start against Dallas on Christmas Day if Mariota’s hand and quad injuries don’t heal in time. It doesn’t matter much. The Commanders are having a horrendous season and should be happy when it’s over.

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The Dolphins got a glimpse of their 2026 future Sunday. After benching Tua Tagovailoa, the Dolphins lost 45-21 with Quinn Ewers at quarterback. If the Dolphins cut Tagovailoa, the salary cap hit will be so severe that they won’t be able to pay a decent veteran QB. It’ll probably be a year of Ewers or another rookie. This season has been rough in many ways, and it’s hard to see how it’s not significantly worse next season.

The version of the Chiefs we’re about to watch the final two weeks will be depressing. They wouldn’t have been great with Gardner Minshew at quarterback, but with Minshew done for the season too with a knee injury, the Chiefs will presumably turn to Chris Oladokun. It’s unlikely most fans had ever heard Oladokun’s name before he came in the game Sunday against the Titans. The Chiefs were blown out by those miserable Titans and it’s unlikely to get better. If these are the last few games of Travis Kelce’s career, it’s an unceremonious way to end a great run.

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The Saints are getting some very good play from rookie quarterback Tyler Shough. They have won three straight and it seems like Shough will be their 2026 quarterback. “Tyler’s played some really good football,” Saints head coach Kellen Moore said, via NOLA.com. “Our team has played much better football as the season’s progressed, so those things certainly don’t go without the guys around him and everyone kind of stepping up and playing better.

“Tyler’s brought a really positive spark to us, some consistency. … I love where he’s at.”

Joe Burrow played well and said he was having fun, which might buy Bengals fans a week of not having to hear about how Burrow wants out of Cincinnati, even though he has never said that. Or close. There was bound to be speculation about what was behind Burrow’s unhappiness the past couple weeks, but the rush to say it must mean he dislikes the Bengals was irresponsible. Hopefully for Bengals fans, that talk will die down for a while.

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The Falcons will be in an interesting place with Kirk Cousins next offseason. He has played reasonably well since becoming the starter, following Michael Penix Jr.’s injury. Penix is no sure thing to be ready for the season opener in 2026. The Falcons also can’t keep Cousins at a $57.5 million cap number in 2026. Cousins had an interesting offseason this year, and it’ll be complicated again in 2026.

The Ravens can’t blame Lamar Jackson’s injuries for the fall of their defense. Baltimore is 17th in EPA (expected points added) per play and when its defense needed to come up big Sunday night with Jackson out due to a back injury, the unit allowed Drake Maye to throw for 380 yards. Maye had never thrown for 300 in an NFL game before. The list of things Baltimore needs to fix this offseason is long.

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The only good news for the Cowboys might be that George Pickens bounced back with 130 yards and a touchdown, which might help ease any concern they might have had about paying him in the offseason. But the defense is still bad. It gave up 452 yards to the Chargers on Sunday, which is more ammo against coordinator Matt Eberflus, a subject of critique from team owner Jerry Jones. This never was a good team, although the constant overreaction to all things Cowboys had people talking about them as a playoff contender for a short time a few weeks ago.

You can’t blame Monday night’s loss to the 49ers on quarterback injuries. While it will seem over time like Daniel Jones’ injury was the reason the Colts’ season fell apart after a 7-1 start, the swoon has been for multiple reasons. The run game has slowed way down and as we saw Monday night, the defense has taken a big step back too. It’s a rough end to the season after a fantastic start.

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The Buccaneers are probably ranked too high. They have lost six of seven and fell out of first place in the NFC South. And yet, they’re still not in a terrible spot. If they beat the Dolphins in Week 17, they will play the Panthers in Week 18 with the NFC South championship on the line. But can Tampa Bay beat Miami, much less beat the Panthers in the finale? The defense hasn’t been good enough and Baker Mayfield’s play has fallen apart. His passer rating over the past six weeks is a paltry 72.6. Tampa Bay is alive, but far from well.

The Vikings still have a shot at finishing above .500, which is not what Minnesota was shooting for coming off a 14-3 season, but it would be a positive in an otherwise frustrating season. The problem is that J.J. McCarthy will either be out or playing through a hand injury. That won’t make it easy to win one remaining game, much less both of them. But playing well late should give the Vikings the belief that they can be a playoff team in 2026, as long as the quarterback play improves.

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There has been angst about the officiating, but what were the Lions doing making it that close against the Steelers at home? And, to go a step further, how did the Lions get themselves in a position to need to beat Pittsburgh to realistically stay alive for the playoffs? This season has been an utter disappointment. They’re 4-6 since Week 5. And with many massive contracts on the books with more big extensions to come, it’s possible we’ve already seen the peak for this Lions core.

Since the start of October, the Panthers have won seven games. Six of them have come by exactly three points, and the other one was a seven-point win over the Jets. All those close wins pile up though, and the Panthers lead the NFC South with two games to go. They might still need to beat the Buccaneers at Tampa Bay in the season finale, but it’s still a great spot for Carolina to be in after seven straight losing seasons.

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The Steelers just have to beat the Browns in Week 17 to clinch a division title. Or, they might clinch beforehand if the Ravens lose to the Packers on Saturday night. Either way, it feels like a long time ago that Steelers fans were chanting to fire Mike Tomlin (though many Steelers fans will want Tomlin out unless they win a championship this season). Aaron Rodgers isn’t just along for the ride either; the last three games he has four touchdowns, no interceptions and a passer rating of 106.4 as the Steelers have gone 3-0. It’s a remarkable story.

If the Packers recover an onside kick, we’re talking about them beating the Bears on the road with their backup quarterback, and what a remarkable job Matt LaFleur did to guide the win. One bad break can change the entire narrative for a team, and in the Packers’ case, it changed the trajectory of their season. Green Bay is down to a 12.4% shot to win the NFC North, via DVOA. With little shot at the No. 5 seed, their most likely playoff path starts at Chicago or at Philadelphia, not against the much weaker NFC South champion. Blowing that game might haunt the Packers.

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Hey, remember when some wondered if Mac Jones should take the 49ers’ starting job from Brock Purdy? Purdy needed a little time to warm up after he missed time due to injury, but he was great Monday night, with five touchdowns. The defense still isn’t great, after allowing Philip Rivers to look half his age, but what Kyle Shanahan has done this season is nothing short of incredible.

The Broncos’ loss to the Jaguars on Sunday was huge for Los Angeles. The Chargers are just a game behind the Broncos in the AFC West race, and if they beat the Texans on Saturday (or Denver loses to Kansas City on Thursday), a Week 18 game at Denver will be for the division title. The Chargers already have a win over Denver and a win in the finale would give them a season sweep and the tiebreaker. There’s even a small path for the Chargers to get the No. 1 seed. Week 16 was really good for the Chargers.

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The Texans didn’t deserve to drop that much after barely beating the Raiders, but Jacksonville had to move ahead of them after the Jaguars continued their hot streak with a great win at Denver. Also, it was startling to see the Texans’ offense do almost nothing against the Raiders and the defense allow 21 points to a team that had just 75 yards the week before. The Texans are fine, but now that the path to the AFC South title is much harder, they get downgraded a bit.

Maybe we all should have taken a 35-6 win by Jacksonville against the Chargers in Week 11 a little more seriously. The Jaguars haven’t lost since then, and a 34-20 win at Denver on Sunday should make everyone take notice. Trevor Lawrence legitimized his hot streak by doing it against a very good Broncos defense. If the Jaguars win at the Colts in Week 17 (or if the Texans lose at the Chargers), all that would stand between them and an AFC South title would be a home win over the Titans in the finale. Liam Coen might end up stealing NFL Coach of the Year.

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The Bills played with fire on Sunday. They were outgained by the Browns 294-259, and the Browns had 22 first downs to 16 for Buffalo. Cleveland could have easily won that game, which wasn’t a great look for a Bills team that everyone seems to be convincing themselves can win the AFC out of a wild-card spot. It was a tough game for the Bills to get up for, but Buffalo’s deficiencies are not going away. There isn’t much on offense aside from Josh Allen and James Cook. The defense is 24th in DVOA. It’ll be tough for them to win three straight road games in the AFC playoffs.

The Eagles have clinched the division and have almost no chance to get the No. 1 seed in the NFC. That means the next two weeks can be used for a combination of rest and fixing the ongoing issues with the offense. The offense has looked better lately, with 60 combined points in the last two games, but that came against the Raiders and Commanders. At least the Eagles get a couple games out of the spotlight before the playoffs start.

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The win Saturday night was great, one of the best for the Bears in many years. Nobody in Chicago will want to hear this part, but it came against a Packers team without several key players, including Jordan Love and Micah Parsons, and required an onside kick and fourth-down touchdown just to get the game to overtime. The Packers, with Malik Willis, outplayed Chicago for 58 minutes. Ultimately it doesn’t matter because that win makes it very likely the Bears will be your NFC North champions.

It’s not like the Patriots blew out the Ravens, who didn’t have Lamar Jackson for most of the game, but a loss would have made things a little more worrisome for them in the AFC East race. The Patriots won and their chances to win the AFC East race are at 80.9% with two games to play, via DVOA. They still have a 31.3% shot at the No. 1 seed too. It wasn’t the easiest win, but Drake Maye’s monster 380-yard game saved them from a rough loss.

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We’re not going to overreact. Denver is now 11-1 in its past 12 games. Just because the loss came in Week 16 doesn’t mean it should fall in these rankings. As long as the Broncos beat a Chiefs team down to their third quarterback and then beat the Chargers at home in the finale, they’ll be the No. 1 seed in the AFC. The Broncos are a very good team, and losing for the first time since Sept. 21 doesn’t change that.

The Rams might forever regret that loss at Seattle. They were a near lock when they intercepted Sam Darnold, leading 30-14 with 9:39 left in the fourth quarter. As we know, the Seahawks had a historic comeback to win. With that, the Rams went from having a comfortable lead in the race for the No. 1 seed to having just a 19% shot at the top seed, via DVOA. It’s not like the Rams couldn’t win three straight road games to win the NFC out of a wild-card spot, but that’s a lot different than winning two home games as the No. 1 seed.

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As promised in this space last week, the Seahawks move up to the No. 1 spot after beating the Rams. Though it would also be fair to keep the Rams at No. 1. Seattle got outplayed for most of that game at home. But it got the win and are now two wins from getting the No. 1 seed. Another big development was Sam Darnold rebounding from a bad start to have a great finish in a big game, which should quiet some of the skepticism around him and give him some confidence entering the playoffs. That might be as important as the win itself.

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Welcome to our third edition of the ‘Fantasy Playoffs Trust Meter’ with Justin Boone and Matt Harmon. The dynamic duo asks the question for some of the most important players we’ve been relying on all season: Can we trust them in the fantasy playoffs? The two put them through the meter ahead of Week 17.

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(1:00) – Matt’s MNF solo recap: 49ers 48, Colts 27

(21:50) – Justin Boone joins the show

(24:00) – Trust Meter intro

(25:00) – Trust Meter: Josh Allen, Trey McBride, Josh Jacobs, DK Metcalf, Kenneth Gainwell, Drake London, Amon-Ra St. Brown

(53:30) – Trust Meter: Asthon Jeanty, Kenneth Walker, Rhamondre Stevenson, Tyjae Spears, Zay Flowers, Parker Washington, Quinten Johnston, DJ Moore

(1:22:00) – Trust Meter: Bucs offense + Carolina Panthers RBs

(1:36:30) – Waiver Wire adds for Week 17

🖥️ Watch this full episode on YouTube

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Philip Rivers is a fun story. On Monday night, everyone seemed to rally around the tale of a 44-year-old who was coaching high school football coming back to the NFL for the first time since the 2020 season, and actually playing well against the San Francisco 49ers.

With all the hoopla for Rivers, you might not have realized the Colts didn’t win the game.

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The San Francisco 49ers are a pretty good story too. They have battled injuries all season, including season-ending ones to their two best defensive players in Nick Bosa and Fred Warner. Monday night’s 48-27 win improved their record to 11-4.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan has done a phenomenal job this season, and was excellent on Monday night calling an offense that picked apart the Colts and nullified Rivers’ surprisingly productive night. Brock Purdy wasn’t the quarterback everyone was talking about during the game but he was really good, throwing for five touchdowns.

The Colts’ loss clinched playoff spots for the Jacksonville Jaguars, Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Chargers in the AFC. The 49ers had already clinched their spot in the NFC, and the win keeps them alive for an NFC West championship and a shot at the No. 1 seed in the playoffs. That’s not exactly Rivers coming off his couch to captivate everyone on Monday night, but it’s remarkable in its own right.

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Philip Rivers had a good game. Brock Purdy had a GREAT game.

The main attraction Monday night was Rivers, and he delivered a throwback performance in his second start this season.

Rivers started the game by floating a pass — most of his passes float at age 44 — to Alec Pierce in the end zone for a 20-yard touchdown. That gave the Colts a 7-0 lead and everyone confidence in the passing game with Rivers running it.

Rivers didn’t slow down for the rest of the half. He finished the first two quarters 14-of-21 passing for 175 yards and two touchdowns. To put that in perspective, the most TDs over an entire season by a 44-year-old quarterback other than Tom Brady was five, by Vinny Testaverde in 2007. What Rivers was doing, after five years off, was amazing.

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The problem for the Colts wasn’t the quarterback, but that the opposing quarterback was lighting them up. Purdy was even better than Rivers. When he hit Jauan Jennings for a 3-yard touchdown early in the third quarter, it was already his fourth touchdown pass of the night. The 49ers led 31-17 at that point.

The story of the Colts’ season will ultimately be how they started 7-1 but quarterback injuries derailed them. That might be true, but there has been more to Indianapolis’ steep fall than that.

49ers take control, get a pick 6 on Philip Rivers 

The Colts eventually faded Monday night after a good start, which sums up their season as a whole.

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Indianapolis has lost six of its past seven games after a dream start to the season. Daniel Jones was out for only two of those games. There have been many factors in the Colts’ unfortunate decline. Jonathan Taylor cooled off after a blistering start to the season. Injuries to key players like DeForest Buckner and Sauce Gardner affected the defense, which played well at Seattle in Week 16, has been a liability for most of the late-season swoon and couldn’t stop the 49ers on Monday night.

The Colts scored to cut San Francisco’s lead to 34-27 in the fourth quarter, but Shanahan and Purdy went right back to work. The 49ers went downfield and Purdy threw his fifth touchdown of the game, his second to McCaffrey, to restore a double-digit lead. The 49ers put it away on Rivers’ first big mistake of the night, an interception that went right to linebacker Dee Winters and was returned for a 74-yard touchdown. 

The 49ers still have issues, such as a defense that gave up a lot of yards and points to a 44-year-old quarterback on Monday night. The offense can cover up a lot of those issues, especially if Purdy stays in a groove like the one he was in against the Colts.

It says something about the 49ers’ front office and their coaching staff that they have 11 wins given all the injury adversity through the season. A division championship in a very tough NFC West along with the NFC’s No. 1 seed would be unfathomable, but the 49ers somehow still have a shot at it.

Live coverage is over32 updates

• Mon, December 22, 2025 at 5:13 PM PST

  Kate Magdziuk

• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 8:26 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  And that’s final. The 49ers have run out the clock on a 48-27 win to take control of the path to No. 1 seed in the NFC with two weeks remaining. If they win next week against the Bears and again in Week 18 against the Seahawks, the No. 1 seed is theirs.

  And their offense looks unstoppable. An impressive win that spoiled a strong night for Philip Rivers in his second game back from a five-season absence.

• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 8:13 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  Just as they’d found new life with a Brock Purdy interception, the Colts gave the ball right back.

  After driving into 49ers territory, Philip Rivers threw a pass into traffic over the middle. Linebacker Dee Winters picked it off and returned it 74 yards for a 48-27 49ers lead that will ice the San Francisco win with 3:26 remaining.

  The 49ers will come out of tonight’s game in control of the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs. The Colts’ long-shot hopes of rallying for the postseason just got slimmer.

  It was in impressive night for Philip Rivers, who threw for two touchdowns and led the Colts on another touchdown drive. But that’s a tough way to ice the game for the opposition.
• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 8:10 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  After five touchdowns, Brock Purdy just threw his first interception of the night with the 49ers in field goal position and a chance to extend their lead to three possessions.

  Instead, the Colts have the ball back, down 41-27 with the clock under five minutes. That’s exactly the break they needed to give themselves a chance.
• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 8:05 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  Philip Rivers got off to a strong start, but San Francisco has taken control in the second half. The 49ers just forced the Colts to punt out of their own end zone and have the ball back in Indianapolis territory with a 41-27 lead and 6:20 remaining.

  The Colts need a miracle to come back from this.

• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 8:00 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  Make that another Brock Purdy TD. Purdy’s fifth touchdown of the night was his second to Christian McCaffrey.

  And it marked a new career high for the 49ers quarterback. San Francisco’s offense has carved of the Colts defense, and the 49ers are back up two scores at 41-27 with 7:37 remaining.
• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 7:47 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  Philip Rivers just went 6-for-6 including a 19-yard sideline throw to Tyler Warren to drive the Colts into the red zone. There, Jonathan Taylor capped off the drive with a 1-yard touchdown, and the Colts have cut the 49ers’ lead to 34-27 with 12:41 remaining in regulation, keeping the pressure on.
• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 7:37 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  George Kittle is limping on the 49ers sideline with an ankle injury. He’s officially questionable to return.

  Kittle’s been big for the 49ers tonight with 115 yards and a touchdown.

• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 7:32 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  San Francisco’s lead is back up to two touchdowns. Their second drive of the half stalled out at the Indianapolis 19, and Eddy Pineiro kicked his second field goal of the night to extend the 49ers’ lead to 34-20.

  Philip Rivers and the Colts need to find the end zone again to get back in this.

• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 7:23 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  The Colts answered the latest 49ers touchdown with a field goal and have cut their deficit to 31-20 with 8:16 remaining in the third quarter. They’re gonna have to pick up the pace against a San Francisco offense that’s been virtually unstoppable tonight.

• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 7:21 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  Jauan Jennings offered a gift up to a Colts fan after scoring a touchdown. Then he took it right back. Jennings here with the Grinch move of the NFL weekend to troll an unsuspecting fan.
• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 7:13 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  The 49ers opened the second half with a 64-yard touchdown drive and have extended their lead to 31-17. They did so with Brock Purdy’s fourth touchdown throw of the night to a fourth different receiver.

  This time, it was Jauan Jennings with his first catch of the night in the end zone on third-and-goal.

  Philip Rivers has been impressive. But this is a steep hill to climb for any quarterback.
• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 7:06 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  Yes. Yes she does. The renowned NBA halftime performer took her talents to Indianapolis for halftime of Monday’s game. Impressive.
• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 7:02 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  The Colts and 49ers have put on a show for the last “Monday Night Football” broadcast before Christmas. And Philip Rivers and Brock Purdy are dueling.

  Rivers, in his second game back from a nearly 5-season NFL absence, appears to have full use of the playbook and is moving the offense with his arm. But Purdy’s moving the 49ers offense a little bit better thanks to big efforts from Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle.

  Colts
  Philip Rivers: 14 of 21 for 175 yards, 2 TDs, 0 turnovers
  Jonathan Taylor: 7 carries for 24 yards; 3 catches for 33 yards
  Alec Pierce: 3 catches for 53 yards, 2 TDs
  Josh Downs: 5 catches for 65 yards

  49ers
  Brock Purdy: 13 of 17 for 165 yards, 3 TDs, 0 turnovers
  Christian McCaffrey: 11 carries for 67 yards; 4 catches for 17 yards, 1 TD
  George Kittle: 5 catches for 78 yards, 1 TD
  Demarcus Robinson: 1 catch for 22 yards, 1 TD

  Team offense:
  Colts: 194 yards on 6.5 yards per play, 11 first downs
  49ers: 250 yards on 7.6 yards per play, 16 first downs

  Colts turnovers: 1
  49ers turnovers: 0

• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 6:51 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  Eddy Piñeiro’s first miss of the season was an impressive effort.

  With 3 seconds left before halftime, the 49ers gave Piñeiro a shot at a would-be career-long 64-yard field goal attempt. He kicked the ball dead center, but just short as it bounced off the cross bar and back into the field of play.

  Before that kick, Piñeiro was 26 of 26 for the season on field-goal attempts. The 49ers take a 24-17 lead into halftime and will have the ball first in the third quarter.
• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 6:46 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  The 49ers appeared to have a third-down stop with 59 seconds remaining in the half and a chance to get the ball back. But officials called pass interference for this to give the Colts a first down.

  Indianapolis drove into field-goal range from there and Blake Grupe connected from 39 yards to cut San Francisco’s lead to 24-17 with 17 seconds remaining in the half.
• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 6:37 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  The 49ers drove into the red zone again, but Brock Purdy’s pass to George Kittle in the end zone on third down fell incomplete. The 49ers kicked a field goal to extend their lead to 24-14 with 1:51 before halftime.

  Up next, Philip Rivers in a 2-minute drill.

• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 6:30 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  In case you weren’t aware, Philip Rivers is a high school football coach when he’s not playing NFL football.

  His St. Michael football team in Fairhope, Alabama is back home cheering on his remarkable start on “Monday Night Football.”
• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 6:25 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  The 49ers came up with the first stop of the game.

  Philip Rivers found Michael Pittman on third-and-12, but the pass only picked up 10 yards, and the Colts have punted back to the 49ers. San Francisco leads 21-14 and has the ball midway through the second quarter.

• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 6:19 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  The 49ers and Colts are putting on a show. Brock Purdy just threw his third touchdown in three possessions, this time to tight end George Kittle.

  Purdy rolled out to buy time then found Kittle in a tight window for an 11-yard connection. Christian McCaffrey and Demarcus Robinson have San Francisco’s other two touchdowns.

  The 49ers lead, 21-14 early in the second quarter, and each possession for each team has ended in a touchdown with the exception of Ameer Abdullah’s fumble on a kickoff return.
• 

  Mon, December 22, 2025 at 6:02 PM PST

  Jason Owens

  The limits are off. Philip Rivers is throwing the ball downfield and leading touchdown drives.

  Rivers just found Alec Pierce for their second touchdown connection in two Colts possessions. This one was a 16-yard dart in a tight window to tie the game at 14-14. Rivers is putting on a show under the “Monday Night Football” lights.

  In two possessions, Rivers is 10 of 15 for 137 yards with 2 touchdowns. What’s he been doing these past 5 years?

Golden State Warriors veteran Draymond Green left Monday night’s win over the Orlando Magic early after he got into an argument with head coach Steve Kerr.

Green and Kerr were seen in a heated discussion during a timeout in the third quarter of the Warriors’ 120-97 win over the Magic, though it wasn’t clear what that argument was about. It was, though, extremely animated on the bench. At one point, it looked like Moses Moody tried to step in and calm Green down, but he later gave up and sat back down.

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Eventually, Green walked off the floor and went back to the locker rooms at the Chase Center.

“Tempers spilled over and I just thought it was best that I get out of there,” Green said after the game, via ESPN’s Anthony Slater. “I don’t think that was a situation where it was gonna get better. So, it was just best to remove myself. That’s it.”

Kerr declined to reveal what their tiff was actually about, but reiterated that Green leaving the floor was a personal choice. He didn’t send Green to the locker room.

“We got into it, obviously. … We had it out a little bit, and he made his decision to go back to the locker room to cool off,” Kerr said. “That’s all I’m gonna say about it, everything is private. I’ve got nothing further to add.”

Green did return to the Warriors’ bench before the end of the game, but he did not take the floor again. He wasn’t going to, Kerr said.

“Well, he left,” Kerr said plainly. “He went back to the locker room.”

Green finished with nine points and seven rebounds in 18 minutes on Monday night. He’s averaged eight points and six rebounds per game this season, his 14th in the league.

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Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 26 points in the win, which pushed the team to 15-15 on the season. Jimmy Butler added 21 points, and Moody finished with 20 points. Paolo Banchero led the Magic with 21 points and 12 rebounds in the loss, and Desmond Bane added 20 points. The Magic shot just 7 of 27 from the 3-point line as a group, and now sit at 16-13 on the season.

Though Green has been known to get into some heated altercations throughout his career, he’s appeared to have had a great relationship with Kerr. The Warriors selected Green in the second round of the 2012 NBA Draft, and he’s spent his entire career with the franchise. Kerr took over as the team’s head coach ahead of the 2014-15 campaign, and Green has been a key part of the four championships they’ve won at Golden State.

Clearly, Green and Kerr weren’t on the same page Monday. Though he didn’t fully get into the root of the argument, it was just the game that set Green off.

“Basketball. It’s what we do, we play basketball,” Green said when asked what caused their argument. “It’s an emotional game, people lose their emotions sometimes. It happens, it is what it is.

“We’ve been at this now for a long time. So, sometimes when you with people for a long time, there’s a level of comfort and s**t happens. We move forward.”

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While the incident was out of character, both Green and Kerr seem confident that they can move forward.

“We need Draymond. He’s a champion,” Kerr said. “We’ve been together for a long time. … It’s unfortunate what happened, but it happened.”

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Philip Rivers was markedly better in his second game back after a five-year NFL hiatus. The. 44-year-old made some big throws against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 16, though was unable to lead the Colts to a victory.

Given his age and time away from the game, Rivers’ first game back was viewed as somewhat of a novelty. His second start made it clear, however, that the Colts didn’t see it that way. Rivers was truly brought in to help the Colts salvage the season and make the playoffs.

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That reality sunk in more after the team’s 48-27 loss to the 49ers on Monday. Rivers had conflicting emotions when asked about his return following the loss. While the veteran is having fun, he knows he was brought in to help the Colts win games, and that hasn’t happened yet, per ESPN.

“I’m torn on how to express it, because it’s been a blast,” Rivers said of his return to the NFL after nearly five years away. “It’s been a blast to prepare and to go stinking get ready and go out there and warm up and do all that with these guys again. But, again, the name of the game is not go have a good time. It’s help find a way to lead your team to a win. And we’ve come up short.”

The Colts are 0-2 in Rivers’ starts. Neither loss has been Rivers’ fault, but that’s hardly a consolation to the quarterback.

Following Monday’s loss to the 49ers, the Colts find themselves sitting at 8-7 with just two weeks to go in the regular season. While the team hasn’t been eliminated from the postseason just yet, it would need a lot of help to get in. The Colts have just a 3% chance of rallying to make the playoffs, per NFL.com. The team needs to win out, but also needs the Houston Texans to lose their final two games. The Colts have some influence there, as both teams play in Week 18. If the Colts win in Week 17 and the Texans lose in Week 17, that would set up a win-and-in situation for both teams in the final week of the regular season.

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Setting up that scenario is going to take some work. The Colts take on the surging Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 17, which won’t be an easy matchup. After performing well Monday, Rivers will likely get the start in that contest, though Anthony Richardson should be inching closer to full health following his return from an eye injury.

Despite the losses with Rivers under center, it’s tough to criticize the Colts for the way things worked out. The veteran quarterback has played much better than expected after five years out of the NFL. He might be disappointed with the lack of wins so far, but he shouldn’t be upset about his performance, especially after being out of the game for so long.

The K is coming for sports … and we’re not just talking strikeouts.

If you’ve spent any time perusing financial news lately … first, congrats on an iron constitution, but second, you’ve surely seen the ever-increasing references to a “K-shaped economy.” Briefly put, it’s a way of describing how the rich are getting richer — as in, net worth is moving up and to the right — while the poor are seeing their line decline.

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The K-shaped economy lives in sports, too, and for the exact same reason: Money is flowing toward, and consolidating around, a few key teams, programs and individuals in each sport, leaving the others to fend for whatever scraps are left. There have always been haves and have-nots in the sporting universe: the Yankees and the White Sox, the Lakers and the Wizards, Ohio State and Rutgers. But we’re in a new, flush era now … great news for a few, bad news for most.

The infusion of broadcast revenue, franchise buy-in fees, billionaire owners, private-equity infusions, and willing-or-not fan spending — more on that last one in a bit — a tidal wave of wealth is unbalancing entire sports. We’re already seeing the effects on championship chases … and we’re seeing the cracks along the margins, too.

Let’s dive in. Bring your wallet.

No sport has demonstrated the delirious, destabilizing effects of torrents of money more than college football. Presented with the opportunity to gorge themselves at the trough of broadcast revenue, programs and conferences happily abandoned longtime rivalries and traditions. Given the opportunity to chase NIL cash through the penalty-free transfer portal, players jumped from program to program looking for the best deal. Seduced by massive contract offers, coaches ditched their prior schools — sometimes even in the middle of playoff runs — and left wreckage in their wake. Programs spent ungodly sums of money on facilities, talent and coaches trying to keep up with the top dogs … and like everyone who got a credit card in college and immediately went hog-wild soon learns, the bill’s coming, and it’s going to be hell to pay.

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Wise investments can pay immediate dividends, though. Never has the old cliché “The best team money can buy” been more true than in Chavez Ravine right now. The back-to-back world champion Los Angeles Dodgers had a 2025 payroll of $321.3 million — more than the entire payrolls of the White Sox, Rays, Marlins and Athletics combined. Yes, money alone can’t win you titles — the Mets had the highest payroll last year, and they were, well, the Mets — but money, and the total lack of a salary cap, sure makes life a lot easier. Hope those small-market teams enjoyed those titles when they had them; they’re likely not coming around again anytime soon.

Over in golf, the sport continues to react to the sudden arrival of Saudi-backed LIV Golf four years back, as purses have increased to a degree inconceivable even during prime Tiger Woods era. Scottie Scheffler won his first PGA Tour tournament only in 2022 … and he’s already ranked third on the Tour’s career money list, behind just Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy. New plans for the sport — see if this sounds familiar — would consolidate most of the sport’s prize money among its top stars. Good work if you can get it.

Labor negotiations dominate the WNBA and, soon, MLB

The bill has come due in the WNBA, which exploded in popularity (and revenue) in 2024, only to have its players demand a more sizable share of the good tidings. The W and its players are currently enmeshed in a labor battle that began with harsh words on both sides of the table, a battle that threatens to undo much of the progress the league has made in recent seasons. At the same time, upstart offseason leagues such as Unrivaled and the potential new Project B are luring players with promises of larger paychecks and equity.

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Baseball isn’t yet in one of its periodic labor brawls, but it’s coming. The sport’s current collective bargaining agreement expires in less than a year, meaning players and owners are on the clock to find common ground or risk yet another work stoppage. And they must do so in an environment in which baseball’s broadcast rights packages are trending more niche and local, less national and lucrative.

Gambling scandals explode even as gambling’s roots spread wide

The barely checked spread of sports gambling channeled a new gusher of revenue to leagues and media, and in 2025 we started seeing the potential cost of that revenue. In October, several major NBA figures, including Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, were arrested as part of federal investigations into alleged insider-info gambling and illegal poker rings. Two Cleveland Guardians pitchers were arrested in connection with prop betting. College basketball players for both Fresno State and San Jose State had their eligibility revoked for their roles in a prop betting scandal. Sports betting advocates will say these arrests and identifications are proof that gambling detection systems are working; skeptics might wonder whether these incidents are less outliers and more harbingers.

Guess who’s paying for all this?

All of the new money flowing through sports has to come from somewhere, and much of it in the coming years will come from you. You’ve already seen how tricky it is to watch, say, the NFL — you need subscriptions to half a dozen streaming services to keep up with the sport. And you’ve also surely seen how these streaming services tend to raise their rates with disturbing frequency … because where else are you going to go?

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The questions now facing the sports industry: How much more will fans pay? How many more streaming services will they subscribe to in order to follow their favorite sports — like, for example, Formula 1 moving from ESPN to behind the Apple paywall? How many more “donations” must they make to continue to buy seats for their alma mater’s college football games? How many more times will they attend games as the price for a family of four escalates ever higher into the three figures?

With all the tech-enabled access of the 2020s, it has never been a better time to be a sports fan, but it has never been a more expensive time, either.

The joy of victory remains

The reason sports can command these ungodly sums is because of their capacity to awe us, to inspire us, to thrill us. Yes, the Dodgers might be breaking baseball, but their path to a World Series victory was a stunning one, from Shohei Ohtani’s three-homer, 10-strikeout gem in Game 4 of the NLCS to the Fall Classic heroics of Freddie Freeman’s 18th-inning walk-off homer in Game 3 to Will Smith’s extra-innings homer in Game 7. And yes, golf is addicted to revenue to an unhealthy degree, but Rory McIlroy’s Masters victory to end a decade of frustration and complete a career grand slam was one of the year’s most powerful scenes.

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There were so many more. Carlos Alcaraz’s comeback from two sets down to win the French Open, Lando Norris’ dethroning Max Verstappen from his F1 throne, Alex Ovechkin’s goal to pass Wayne Gretzky on the NHL’s all-time list, Lindsey Vonn’s World Cup victory after seven years away from the sport … all of these and so many more moments, so many more celebrations, so many more titles helped make 2025 a magnificent year for champions and their fans.

Is that joy worth the cost? Over the coming years, we’ll see how many teams, universities and fans stick around to find out.

Early in the season, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were dealing with many injuries but winning in spite of it. It made logical sense to think that when they got healthy, they could be one of the NFL’s most dangerous teams.

The Buccaneers did get healthier. And they can’t win a game anymore.

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The Buccaneers’ season has been strange. They were 6-2 going into their bye week, winning while Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, Jalen McMillan, Bucky Irving and Tristan Wirfs missed games. The only losses were against the Lions and Eagles, which at the time weren’t bad losses. There were many very close wins, and that luck was going to eventually going to run dry. But that should have been mitigated by getting key players back. In theory, anyway.

[Get more Buccaneers news: Tampa Bay team feed]

The Bucs are 1-6 since the bye. That’s despite the return of every player listed above. Tampa Bay has gone from a stranglehold on the NFC South to a game behind the Carolina Panthers with two games to go.

Baker Mayfield’s severe drop is baffling. Mayfield had a 99.2 passer rating, with 16 touchdowns and two interceptions, in Tampa Bay’s first nine games. Over the last six games he has seven touchdowns and six interceptions with a 72.6 passer rating. We know Mayfield is playing despite suffering a sprained AC joint in his left non-throwing shoulder, and perhaps he’s dealing with other undisclosed injuries that would explain the significant and sudden drop in his play. The Buccaneers had a chance to at least tie the Panthers late in Sunday’s game, but Mayfield threw an interception right to Panthers safety Lathan Ransom with no Buccaneers receiver around. Mayfield said it was a miscommunication with Evans. Ultimately, all that mattered was it was a big mistake in a huge game.

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The Buccaneers’ defense hasn’t been very good all season (bottom 10 in points and yards allowed), the running game has been inconsistent and the special teams have been mediocre too. But the most stark difference in the Buccaneers’ hot start and their steep decline has been Mayfield’s play.

The Buccaneers aren’t finished. If they beat the Dolphins in Week 17 and the Panthers in Week 18, they will win the NFC South. But if they don’t win the division, a lot of questions will be asked moving forward.

The first one will be if coach Todd Bowles should return. It was inevitable, after losing offensive coordinators Dave Canales and Liam Coen to head coaching jobs, that the Buccaneers wouldn’t hire an offensive coordinator that was instantly among the NFL’s best. Josh Grizzard, this season’s offensive coordinator who was promoted after Coen left, has come under fire. But if Bowles needs a great offensive coordinator to succeed, maybe ownership would question if he’s the right head coach.

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The more complicated question might be with Mayfield. He was much better in his first two Tampa Bay seasons. It’s hard to imagine the Buccaneers moving on, but Mayfield will be 31 years old next season and his cap number goes from almost $26.5 million this season to just under $52 million next year.

All of the questions probably get pushed to the side if the Buccaneers win out and make the playoffs. But it’s becoming harder to believe Tampa Bay can win two in a row.

Panic meter: It’s going to be a long offseason if the Buccaneers don’t figure things out fast

Did the Broncos get exposed?

There’s generally no room for patience or long memories in NFL analysis. All that matters is what just happened. The league is treated like everyone is playing 17 one-week seasons.

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But critics have been skeptical of the Broncos for weeks, so their Week 16 loss was some confirmation bias on top of recency bias.

The Broncos lost 34-20 to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday. It wasn’t pretty but it happens, especially this NFL season in which no team has separated itself. The Broncos had won 11 straight before that. It was the first time the Broncos were soundly beaten; their first two losses came on field goals with no time left on the clock. Denver is still a very good team. We just found out Sunday they’re beatable, like everyone else.

Panic meter: Let’s not forget the Broncos are tied for the best record in the NFL

Is the Lions’ dream dead?

The Detroit Lions need a near-miracle to make the playoffs this season after falling to 8-7 with a loss to the Steelers. So this season is practically done. A rebound next season isn’t guaranteed.

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The Lions have ended up missing coordinators Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn, and they’ll have to make decisions about what to do at those spots next offseason. A lot of the Lions’ big contracts will start to affect their cap soon too, and 2023 draftees like running back Jahmyr Gibbs, linebacker Jack Campbell, tight end Sam LaPorta and safety Brian Branch. are eligible for huge extensions next offseason. That will make the cap challenges, and trying to add any talent via free agency, even tougher.

The Lions still have plenty of talent. But with every year that passes, making the first Super Bowl in franchise history becomes tougher.

Panic meter: There should be some worry that the Lions’ best chance at a Super Bowl has already come and gone

Jaxson Dart struggles badly

In the first half on Sunday, Dart had a passer rating of 0.0. That’s hard to do.

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The Minnesota Vikings made the New York Giants’ rookie quarterback look bad. He ended up with just 33 yards passing and a 27.4 passer rating in a 16-13 loss. It was by far his worst game of the season.

It’s fine to give Dart a pass. Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores runs a complex scheme and Dart isn’t the first quarterback to get overwhelmed by it. If Dart has two more terrible games, there could be a discussion over what happens if the Giants get the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft and whether taking a quarterback is on the table. But that’s a long way off, even after Sunday’s debacle.

Panic meter: Dart has been good as a rookie, and one game doesn’t erase that

The NBA is considering enacting a number of new measures after the illegal gambling arrests that rocked the league earlier this season. After reports Friday suggesting the NBA would alter injury-reporting rules and betting policies, the league will reportedly continue down that path and consider new ways to prevent tanking, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.

The idea of the league adopting new anti-tanking measures was introduced in Friday’s report, but Charania provides specific examples Monday of how the league might look to restrict tanking in the future.

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Multiple ideas were introduced by the league, its owners and general managers to reduce tanking, per Charania, some of which include:

• Limiting pick protections to either top four or 14 and higher, which would eliminate the problematic mid-lottery protections.

• No longer allowing a team to draft in the top four two years in a row.

• Locking lottery positions after March 1.

All three proposals are aimed at discouraging teams from deliberately sitting talented players down the stretch in hopes of securing a better draft pick.

It’s unclear whether any — or all — of those proposals will be adopted by the league. And there’s no current timeline on when any of those proposals, if adopted, would go into effect.

The league is looking to crack down on both gambling and tanking following the arrests of Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and former Cleveland Cavaliers assistant coach and player Damon Jones by the FBI in connection with alleged illegal gambling.

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Tanking played a role in the FBI’s investigation, as an individual known as “Co-Conspirator 8” reportedly told one of the defendants that the Portland Trail Blazers intentionally sat some of the team’s best players during a 2023 game against the Chicago Bulls in order to get a better draft pick.

Despite the absence of some of the team’s best players, the Trail Blazers actually won the contest.

A number of other NBA teams have been accused of tanking in recent seasons. The Dallas Mavericks were fined by the NBA in 2023 after holding out some of their best players in a game against the Bulls down the stretch.

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In March, the Utah Jazz were fined $100,000 for holding Lauri Markkanen out of games.

Following Friday’s report, the NBA did enact new injury-reporting guidelines. As a result, teams submitted injury reports much earlier than usual Monday, per Charania.

Given the overlap between injury reports and tanking — and the fact that both can be exploited by gamblers — the NBA has plenty of motivation to cut down on both issues. The league already made strides in one area, and will now attack the other.

The NFL tried its best for Christmas. But when you put together a schedule before May, it’s hard to predict what will happen by the end of the NFL season.

There are three games on Christmas, and all of them looked like good matchups in the spring. Quarterback injuries and disappointing teams led to all three games having almost no impact on the playoff picture. Instead of Patrick Mahomes and Jayden Daniels, we might get Chris Oladokun and Josh Johnson. But, we’ll still watch. And probably bet on it too.

Here are the top betting storylines going into Week 17 of the NFL season, with all odds from BetMGM:

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A massive Chiefs underdog

While we all understand what is going on with the Chiefs, the spread for their Christmas game is still startling.

The Chiefs are 13-point home underdogs against the Broncos. The Chiefs haven’t always been one of the NFL’s best teams, but it has been almost 50 years since Kansas City was this big of a home underdog.

Again, it’s understandable. The Chiefs aren’t just down Patrick Mahomes, but his backup Gardner Minshew II is on injured reserve with a knee injury, too. Chris Oladokun got his first significant snaps in the NFL last week against the Titans, and the Chiefs lost to Tennessee 26-9. Meanwhile, the Broncos are the one team playing on Christmas with something tangible to play for (technically the Lions are still mathematically alive too), as they try to chase the AFC’s No. 1 seed. This is not the matchup anyone expected.

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The other Christmas games

Cowboys-Commanders is a pretty good traditional rivalry, but it doesn’t have much juice this season. The Cowboys are 6-8-1, the Commanders are 4-11 and both are eliminated from the playoffs. For the Commanders, Jayden Daniels has been shut down and Marcus Mariota is dealing with hand and quad injuries and his status is uncertain. The Cowboys are 7-point favorites for this ugly game.

At least the 8-7 Lions are mathematically alive for a playoff spot. And the 7-8 Vikings are playing hard lately. But Minnesota has questions about quarterback J.J. McCarthy, who has a right hand injury that forced him out of the Vikings’ Week 16 game. Max Brosmer would start if McCarthy can’t. That’s why the Lions are a 6-point road favorite.

Rams still Super Bowl favorites

The Seahawks’ massive comeback win over the Rams in Week 16 didn’t flip the Super Bowl favorite.

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The Rams are still favored to win the Super Bowl even though Seattle is favored to win the NFC West. The Rams are +450 to win the championship, while the Seahawks are second at +600. That differs from the division odds. Seattle is -105 to win the NFC West and the Rams are +200. The 49ers (+350) are still very much alive to win the division too.

Not many tight divisional races

With two games left, there isn’t much intrigue for division championship races.

The Eagles have clinched the NFC East. Among the other seven divisions, five have large favorites: Steelers (-1100), Jaguars (-550), Patriots (-550), Broncos (-300) and Bears (-1000). That leaves two real division races. The NFC South has the Buccaneers at -160 and the Panthers at +135. The Bucs win the division if they beat the Dolphins this week (they are 5.5-point favorites) and the Panthers at home in Week 18. And then there’s the three-team race in the NFC West, which could come down to the Seahawks-49ers game in the finale.

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But in general, it doesn’t look like there’s much playoff drama with two games left.

The 1st overall draft pick bowl

The Giants-Raiders game on Sunday has more intrigue that most of the slate. That’s because they are the only two 2-13 teams in the NFL. The loser of this game will have a great shot to get the first overall pick of the 2026 NFL Draft. All they’ll have to do is also lose the finale, and these two teams are adept at losing. The Raiders are a 1-point favorite over the Giants. It’s the rare game where both fanbases will be rooting hard for the other team.