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At a different time in my adult life, I was a Tournament Scrabble player. Yeah, that’s a thing. Sometimes, I’d spend a weekend playing games upon games, spinning my mind for hours and trying to scrape out every point I could.

At those long tournaments, I’d generally hope for a fair draw, an even draw. I don’t need all the breaks, just give me a fighting chance. I’ll find a way to make it work for 10 or 20 or even 31 games.

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Until the last round, of course. At that point, forget equity. In the finale, may the tile gods smile on me, may I run pure. Easier on the nerves and the stomach.

My fantasy ethos is the same. Give me a fair draw for the first 16 weeks; sounds good, I can work with that. In Week 17, I’m not opposed to getting lucky. Let’s build a lifetime memory in the championship round.

Derrick Henry managers can relate. Henry was a useful but unspectacular back for most of his age-31 season, sitting at RB11 entering this week. The Ravens didn’t have Lamar Jackson available Saturday at Green Bay, and the Packers needed the game, too. Henry was playable here, but far from a smash pick. His ECR sat at a modest RB12.

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And then Henry broke the slate — 36 carries, 216 rushing yards, four touchdowns. It’s a new personal best for carries, his second career four-touchdown game, his seventh date over 200 yards. It’s also the second-best fantasy game of his career by basic scoring, or his third-best game if you prefer a PPR lens.

Derrick Henry was a league-winner after all in 2025 — if you could navigate to the finals.

Jahmyr Gibbs managers don’t want to hear any of this. Gibbs looked like the best running back in football about a month ago, but his fantasy playoffs were a dud. He was held to the RB33 finish against the Rams in Week 15 (7.8 points), he was passable versus the Steelers (17.8 points, the late touchdown helped) in Week 16 and then bottled up on Christmas at Minnesota. When the Vikings had finished off the Lions, Gibbs was sitting on a modest 64 total yards, no touchdowns, just two catches. He lost a fumble, too. The result, a grand total of 5.4 fantasy points.

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The Minnesota defense was a dangerous matchup, but no rational person was going to rest Gibbs. The top echelon of offensive talent has to be started, no questions asked. But they pay the guys on defense, too.

Maybe the crumbling Detroit offensive line was too much to overcome. Gibbs didn’t top 4.0 yards per carry in any of the past five weeks. Sometimes his passing-game chops bailed him out, sometimes that wasn’t enough.

One additional reason to play Henry or Gibbs this week was that their teams were incentivized to win. We knew they’d at least leave it all on the field, do whatever it takes. Conversely, it can be risky to ride with non-contending teams at this time of the year. Sometimes they’ll rest a bunch of key players; other times, those teams will struggle with focus or motivation. We’d like to think no one ever packs it in for the year, but sometimes that’s the case, which leads me to …

A meaningless game in reality proves key for fantasy

I was hoping the Cardinals and Bengals could give us a pinball game Sunday, no matter that they’re not contending clubs. Jacoby Brissett had been pretty good for two months, although he slumped last week against Atlanta. Joe Burrow obviously returned to action just a month ago. Neither team has much on defense, so let’s line up the players and watch them score.

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The Bengals got the memo — heck, they dictated the memo for three hours. Burrow chucked for 305 yards and two scores, Ja’Marr Chase did his thing (7-60-2), Chase Brown turned 25 touches into 141 total yards and two scores. Cincinnati’s sleepwalking loss to Baltimore two weeks back shook our faith, but the Bengals posted 400-plus yards the next two games, en route to 82 total points. If you survived the fantasy regular season in Cincinnati, The Burrow Show came back just in time.

I wish Arizona had punched back more, although the concentration of the offense saved some fantasy managers. Brissett fell far short of the 400 yards I called for in our Week 17 bold predictions, but at least he threw for two scores and put up some garbage time production. Trey McBride (10-76-1) and Michael Wilson (5-89-1) continued to be volume monsters, absorbing 23 of the 35 Arizona targets.

Of course, it wasn’t all sunshine and lollipops. Marvin Harrison Jr. is still battling a heel injury and probably shouldn’t have played — he drew just one target, which fell incomplete and left the game early. The Cardinals couldn’t keep the game competitive, which crushed Michael Carter’s case (nine touches, 43 yards).

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There’s no perfect rule for the non-contending teams. For about nine weeks, Brissett was a right answer — but not the last two weeks. McBride was a monster all year, especially after the QB change, and had one of the best TE seasons in recent memory. Wilson proved to be a useful pickup, though he was easier to trust when Harrison wasn’t in uniform.

Other fantasy booms and busts

— It’s a shame the NFC South can’t send the Saints to the NFL playoffs, because it’s pretty obvious New Orleans is the best team in that division right now. New Orleans outscored the Titans, 34-26 and gave us a bunch of fantasy utility. Tyler Shough was super again (333 passing yards, two scores) and he kept pitching the ball to Chris Olave (8-119-1) and Juwan Johnson (4-95-0), just like we want. Olave merely needed a healthy season to pay off, and Johnson was a gettable fantasy sleeper if you focused on his sizable contract extension.

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There was one fantasy downside in the New Orleans huddle — the Taysom Hill number didn’t repeat. Apparently, his smash game last week was a hometown farewell thing, because he hardly played against Tennessee (just three touches). Meanwhile, Audric Estimé (14-94-1) lugged the mail and looked like the pile-mover he was at Notre Dame.

— It was a great day to have Patriots on your roster, as everything gloriously came in during a 42-10 romp of the hapless Jets. TreVeyon Henderson was healthy enough for 19 carries (82 yards), although we would have liked a touchdown. But Rhamondre Stevenson scored twice, and Stefon Diggs and Hunter Henry also had receiving touchdowns. Drake Maye had his way with the New York defense, throwing five touchdown passes against just two incompletions. And of course, the Jets didn’t manage an interception — they’re stuck on zero picks through 16 games, an amazing feat of incompetence. Maye is the QB2 on the week; 32.44 fantasy points with just two games left on the slate.

I told half the free world to bench Breece Hall in this likely blowout, but Hall wound up coming in with a 59-yard touchdown in garbage time. Given that the Patriots had a 32-point lead at halftime, I’m not sure how engaged New England truly was when Hall was ripping off his scoring run. But hey, it counts. It’s not the most sustainable business model, but it counts.

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— They say success has many parents but failure is an orphan, yet a lot of the fantasy duds could be traced to poor quarterback play. Bryce Young (54 yards, 2.3 YPA) sunk Tetairoa McMillan (one catch, five yards). Philip Rivers (147 yards, 4.7 YPA) and Aaron Rodgers (168 yards, 4.3 YPA) played like the 40-something quarterbacks they are. Jared Goff (five sacks) was harassed and confused by the Minnesota defense for three hours on Christmas. And of course, Detroit’s offensive struggles enabled Max Brosmer (51 yards passing) to be camouflaged on the other side.

— The Week 17 quarterback leaderboard was a mixture of mobile QBs and pocket guys. Maye’s five scores pushed him into the 30s, so his legs (22 yards) were just a garnish. Malik Willis, Trevor Lawrence and Jaxson Dart each rushed for two scores, and Bo Nix punched in a touchdown. The top real-life quarterbacks generally throw proactively for their best results, but mix in the running as a nice change-up. The running plays can be a key club in your bag, but you don’t want to hit it on every shot.

Maybe Matthew Stafford will win NFL MVP. He seems to be the sentimental choice, on top of his statistics that are certainly deserving for the award.

Whether or not Drake Maye wins MVP doesn’t matter to the New England Patriots. They’re set up at quarterback for a long time. And they might even be good enough to make it to the Super Bowl this season.

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Maye was phenomenal again Sunday in a 42-10 win over the New York Jets. That win, combined with the Buffalo Bills’ loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, clinched the AFC East title for the Patriots. It is the Patriots’ first division title since 2019, which was Tom Brady’s last season in New England.

Maye completed 19-of-21 passes for 256 yards and five touchdowns for a near-perfect 157 passer rating. Maye is the first quarterback since 1981 with five touchdowns and a completion percentage better than 90%, according to CBS’ broadcast. Maye put up those numbers despite sitting out the final 20:31 of the game because it was a blowout. Had head coach Mike Vrabel wanted to run up the score, Maye could have challenged the single-game record of seven touchdowns. It’s not like the Jets were going to stop him.

The Jets are barely a professional team this season, but it was still impressive to see Maye carve them up like he did. Last week he threw for a career-best 380 yards in a comeback win over the Ravens. In Week 17 he set a career high for touchdown passes in a game. He had never thrown for more than three in a game before Sunday.

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The MVP debate will be interesting. The one thing in Maye’s favor is the Patriots kept themselves in position to win the AFC East with Sunday’s win. A quarterback from a wild-card team hasn’t won MVP since Peyton Manning in 2008. Stafford seems to have the MVP lead, but team success carries a lot of weight with some voters. The Patriots still have a shot at the No. 1 seed as well, which would help Maye’s case.

[Get more Patriots news: New England team feed]

Theoretically Maye will have more opportunities to win MVP. This is a massive second-year breakout. The Patriots were in the quarterback abyss after Tom Brady’s retirement, but that lasted only a few years before they found their next star. Maye has had a great season and he continues to improve as it goes along. That’s a great sign for the future, and perhaps this postseason as well.

Here are the rest of the winners and losers from Week 17 of the NFL season:

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WINNERS

Vic Fangio: Last season the Philadelphia Eagles’ defense, along with Saquon Barkley, were the key strengths to a Super Bowl team.

If the Eagles have any chance of making another Super Bowl, it’s because of their defense, which has become one of the NFL’s best again in the second half of this season under Fangio’s leadership.

Philadelphia’s offense did practically nothing in the second half, but its defense held on for a 13-12 win. Josh Allen scored on a quarterback sneak with five seconds left, but when the Bills went for the 2-point conversion and the lead Allen missed an open Khalil Shakir in the end zone. The Eagles did a good job bottling up Allen for most of the game. Philadelphia shut out Buffalo in the first half, which was useful when its offense disappeared after halftime.

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The Eagles had just 16 yards in the second half. Philadelphia has a major problem on offense that seems unlikely to be fixed. But defense will keep the Eagles in games, if the offense decides to join the party in the offseason.

Joe Burrow: All it takes is some wins for negative narratives to fade away.

Burrow was unhappy a couple weeks ago and expressed that. Every comment he made was taken to mean he wanted to leave the Cincinnati Bengals, even when he said otherwise, which was unfair to Burrow, the franchise and Bengals fans too. Burrow’s state of mind will come up again in the offseason, but for now it’s on the back burner.

He followed up a solid Week 16 game and a win with another productive performance in a 37-14 Bengals win over the Arizona Cardinals. Burrow had two touchdown passes to Ja’Marr Chase in the first half, and that was enough against a depleted Cardinals team that has one win since Week 2. Burrow had 305 yards and those two scores when he was pulled with less than 12 minutes remaining in the blowout win.

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We haven’t heard the last about Burrow’s discontent. But it’s less of a hot topic when the Bengals win.

Cam Ward and Tyler Shough: It’s hard to judge Ward’s rookie season. There have been great highlights, but not much sustainable success. The Titans’ offense has been miserable, but how much of that is a miserable situation around him, including an interim coaching staff for much of the year?

The positive is that Ward is playing better late in the season. He had more of his highlight throws even though the Titans lost 34-26 to the New Orleans Saints. Ward had 251 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions in the loss.

The Saints have their own rookie success story. Second-round draft pick Tyler Shough has played very well in the second half of the season, and had 333 yards and two touchdowns Sunday. He has earned the right to be the team’s starter to begin the 2026 season. He still has a shot to take NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.

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Ward has shown promise too. The Titans’ record is still an awful 3-13, but they have played much better in the second half of the season, including Ward. There’s a lot of work to do in Tennessee but the Titans should feel good about the way their rookie quarterback is finishing the season.

LOSERS

DK Metcalf: Metcalf’s fit of anger over a fan in Detroit could cost the Pittsburgh Steelers a playoff spot.

The Steelers needed to beat the Cleveland Browns on Sunday to clinch the AFC North after the Baltimore Ravens won Saturday night to stay alive. But the Steelers’ offense sputtered without Metcalf, their best receiver who was suspended two games for going to the stands and taking a swing at a fan who was taunting him. The Steelers lost 13-6 to a Browns team that did a fine job playing spoiler.

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Pittsburgh’s Week 18 game against the Ravens will be for the division title. And Metcalf will miss that one, too.

The Steelers had a chance at the end when they got to the 7-yard line in the final seconds trailing by a touchdown. Aaron Rodgers threw incomplete four straight times and the Browns had the upset win. Metcalf might have been the difference in that goal-to-go situation. But he was at home watching, as he will when the Steelers try to make the playoffs next week.

New York Giants fans: The reaction on social media from Giants fans over the team’s win Sunday seemed to be almost unanimous. They’d have much rather seen a loss.

The Giants couldn’t help but beat a Las Vegas Raiders team that is completely inept and also was putting star players on IR to ensure they wouldn’t play in Sunday’s game that had major draft implications. The Giants would have clinched the first pick of the 2026 NFL Draft with a loss, but they won easily, blowing out the Raiders.

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You can’t tell coaches and players to not try, and the Giants were clearly the better team, which says way more about the Raiders’ situation than anything good about the Giants. New York will still have a top-seven pick in next year’s draft. Giants fans wanted the top pick as a consolation for a miserable season, but the Raiders will clinch that if they lose next week against the visiting Chiefs.

NFC South: Nobody wants to win the NFC South. Certainly, nobody wants to see that division’s champion in the playoffs.

The NFC South is sputtering to a sad but dramatic finish. The division will come down to Week 18. On Sunday the Tampa Bay Buccaneers suffered their seventh loss in eight games, this time a 20-17 defeat to a Dolphins team that is being quarterbacked by Quinn Ewers. That opened up the possibility of the Carolina Panthers clinching the division with a win, but they fumbled that away against the Seattle Seahawks, who went on the road and won 27-10 to maintain their lead in the NFC West and for the No. 1 seed in the NFC.

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Carolina’s loss means the Panthers-Buccaneers game in Week 18 will likely be for the division championship. There is a scenario in which the Falcons win their final two games (they play the Los Angeles Rams on Monday night), the Buccaneers win in Week 18 and the Panthers take the division title because they have the three-way tiebreaker with Tampa Bay, Carolina and Atlanta all finishing 8-9. The Buccaneers win a two-team tiebreaker with the Panthers.

Either way, no team from the NFC South deserves to make the playoffs. At least the Seahawks are a quality team and the Panthers losing to them isn’t embarrassing. The Buccaneers are losing to everyone lately. There was a report from NFL Media that entirely dismissed the idea that Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles is on the hot seat, but that makes no sense if you’ve seen Tampa Bay play lately. It’s an awful team.

The Panthers aren’t great either, but someone has to win the division. It will be an 8-9 team if Tampa Bay wins next week. Can that team save our time and opt out of the postseason?

Houston Texans: For a while Sunday, it looked like the Texans might control their path to an AFC South title.

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The Indianapolis Colts played hard and well against the Jacksonville Jaguars and led 17-14 late in the third quarter. The Texans, who won Saturday, need the Jaguars to lose one of their final two games to win the division. But the Jaguars stayed calm and got three field goals down the stretch to beat the Colts 23-17. That could be the last start of Philip Rivers’ career; there were reports that Riley Leonard will start Week 18. The Colts were eliminated from playoff contention Saturday with the Texans’ win.

The Texans now need to hope the Titans can pull off an upset of the Jaguars in Week 18. Jacksonville will win the division with a win over Tennessee or a Texans loss to the Colts. They almost got the result they needed in Indianapolis on Sunday.

The Buffalo Bills will not be AFC East champions.

Against one of the best teams in the NFC on Sunday, they looked little like Super Bowl contenders.

A daunting Eagles defense stifled the Bills then held off a late rally for a 13-12 win in Buffalo. The loss combined with a runaway New England win over the New York Jets earlier Sunday secured the AFC East title for the Patriots.

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Dramatic late rally falls short

After being held off the scoreboard for the first 54 minutes of the game, the Bills rallied to score two touchdowns in the final 5:11. But they trailed 13-12 after the second touchdown thanks to a blocked extra point on their first.

At that point, with both teams exhausted and the game clock almost expired, the Bills opted to gamble with a 2-point conversion attempt instead of kicking an extra point for overtime. The gamble failed when Josh Allen’s pass fell incomplete in the end zone. Fittingly, Allen threw the ill-fated pass under duress from Philadelphia’s pass rush.

The Eagles, meanwhile, entered Sunday locked into the NFC East title and out of the No. 1 seed in the NFC. They didn’t have much to play for. But they improved their chances of moving past the Chicago Bears from the No. 3 seed to No. 2 with Sunday’s win.

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And, perhaps, more importantly, their defense was overwhelming in a game that was billed as a potential Super Bowl preview.

The Bills have long operated as a second-half team and entered Sunday’s game leading the NFL in second-half point differential (+109). They added to that differential with a 12-0 advantage after halftime. But it wasn’t enough to secure the win after a dominant effort from Philadelphia’s defense through most of the game.

Josh Allen spent Sunday under pressure

The Eagles limited the Bills to three punts and a fumble in the first half en route to a 13-0 lead. They set the tone early with a sack of Allen that forced a fumble that bounced from the Buffalo 30-yard line into Philadelphia territory.

Philadelphia recovered and converted the turnover into a Jalen Hurts touchdown pass to Dallas Goedert for a 7-0 lead. From there, the Bills were playing on the their heels against a Philadelphia defensive front that dominated their offensive line.

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When the Bills punted to conclude the opening drive of the second half after a scoreless first, fans who weathered cold rain in the Buffalo stands responded with boos.

Bills squander second-half scoring chances

The Bills didn’t broach the red zone until the final five minutes of the third quarter. When they got to fourth-and-goal, they didn’t convert.

Allen took off for the end zone when he couldn’t find an open receiver in the end zone. He escaped pressure only to be met by multiple Eagles defenders at the goal line. Zack Baun tackled him short of the goal line to force a turnover on downs.

Buffalo’s next possession started at Philadelphia’s 41 after the Eagles punted from their own end zone. It ended with another punt after Allen lost 19 yards on a third-down sack.

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Again, Allen couldn’t find any open receivers. This time he ran backward in a failed effort to buy time from the Eagles’ pass rush before Jalyx Hunt took him down for his second sack of the day.

Philadelphia’s offense was somehow worse in a second half that produced just 17 yards from scrimmage. But the Bills mustered too little too late after failing to score until an Allen touchdown sneak with 5:11 remaining.

Buffalo’s defense gave Bills a chance.

The Bills mounted their late, last touchdown drive after forcing the fourth straight Philadelphia three-and-out of the second half. And they kept hope alive with a fourth-and-10 hook-and-lateral that set up a deep pass from Allen to Brandin Cooks to get into the red zone.

But Philadelphia’s defense ultimately came up with one last stop on the 2-point conversion to secure the win.

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When the day was done, the Eagles had sacked Allen five times for a loss of 51 yards. They hit him six other times and kept the pressure on almost every time he dropped back. And they came up with stops when it mattered most.

The offensive woes that have plagued Philadelphia for much of the season continued as the Bills outgained the Eagles, 330-190. But the defense that anchored the Eagles’ 10-5 start was good enough to secure win No. 11 on Sunday.

Jose Alvarado and Mark Williams threw punches in a very heated altercation on the court Saturday night in New Orleans.

Now, both players are facing a suspension.

The NBA suspended Alvarado for two games on Sunday night, and hit Williams with a one-game suspension, after their fight during the Phoenix Suns’ 123-114 win over the Pelicans at the Smoothie King Center on Saturday.

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Alvarado and Williams got into it late in the third quarter of the contest after Alvarado tried to get around a screen Williams set on him at the 3-point line. Alvarado shoved Williams — who is a good 13 inches taller than him — with both hands to try and get through it, but he was called for a foul.

Alvarado started to complain to the official, but he suddenly turned to then confront Williams. Almost instantly, things escalated to a fistfight. Several punches were thrown by both players, and Alvarado looked like he hit Williams directly in the face before the two were eventually separated.

Both players were ejected from the game.

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Williams had 10 points and eight rebounds off the bench when he was ejected. The 24-year-old, who is in his first season with the Suns, entered the game averaging 13.3 points and 8.2 rebounds per game. Alvarado had seven points and three assists for the Pelicans. He’s in his fifth season with New Orleans, and just signed a two-year, $9 million extension with the team that kicked in before this season.

Though the Pelicans got within a possession late, the Suns led for the entire second half and held on to grab the nine-point win.

Things got chippy again after the final buzzer sounded. Royce O’Neal appeared to confront Zion Williamson near half-court, though that fizzled out quickly.

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Devin Booker led the Suns with 20 points in the win, which pushed them to 18-13 on the season. They’ve won four of their last five now, including back-to-back wins over the Pelicans in New Orleans. Dillon Brooks added 18 points, and Collin Gillespie finished with 17 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists.

Trey Murphy III led the Pelicans with 24 points after he went 6-of-9 from behind the arc. Williamson added 22 points off the bench, and Derik Queen finished with 21 points and 11 rebounds. New Orleans has lost three straight and sits at 8-25 on the year.

Alvarado will be eligible to return on Friday night when the Pelicans host the Portland Trail Blazers. Williams will miss Monday night’s game against the Washington Wizards, and will be able to return on Wednesday when the teak takes on the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Maybe the marriage of head coach John Harbaugh and quarterback Lamar Jackson is coming to an end. Maybe the Super Bowl window as the Baltimore Ravens have known it is closing. And maybe 2025 will be remembered as one of the least productive seasons despite having the most abundant talent.

But not yet.

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Pushed to the brink of playoff elimination only months after many had exalted them as a Super Bowl favorite, the Ravens now have their whole world back in their hands. And while it was the Cleveland Browns who delivered that fate Sunday — by virtue of a 13-6 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers — it’s now on Baltimore’s familiar pillars to make the opportunity stand up. That means it’s on Harbaugh and Jackson to embrace each other in the midst of a reality that the Ravens’ playoffs start in Week 18 against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

On the road.

At a time when there is reportedly friction in their relationship.

It’s certainly not ideal, but this is the hand Baltimore earned with a commanding win over the Green Bay Packers and then was gifted by the Browns in their win over the Steelers. All delivering the franchise to a reality that cuts through a considerable amount of drama. Despite the slog of injuries and disappointment that have consumed the Ravens for much of the season, and in the face of a maelstrom of outside noise and speculation in the past week, the team is still poised to chase the Super Bowl that once seemed so achievable back in September.

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Of course, it would mean having to beat the Steelers on the road and then fistfight through a field of AFC playoff teams that will all finish with better regular-season records than Baltimore. Achieving a Super Bowl win while trekking through that kind of adversity is the kind of story that has made the NFL a platinum-wheeled entertainment vehicle. And there is precedent for it being possible.

[Get more Ravens news: Baltimore team feed]

In 2011, the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys were both 8-7 and tied for the NFC East lead, pitting the two franchises against each other in an all-or-nothing game in the final week of the season. Like next weekend’s tilt between the Ravens and Steelers, the winner of the Giants-Cowboys matchup would move on to host a playoff game in the wild-card round and the loser would go home. The Giants beat the Cowboys to punch their postseason ticket, then went on to beat the 10-6 Atlanta Falcons, knock out the 15-1 Packers and 13-3 San Francisco 49ers (both on the road), and in a feat of wild improbability, topple the 13-3 New England Patriots in the Super Bowl.

That 9-7 Giants team was the weakest regular-season team (with a 56.3 winning percentage) to ever win a Super Bowl. If the Ravens were to beat the Steelers next week and run to a Super Bowl win, they’d take over that crown with a 52.9 winning percentage.

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To get there, it’s going to take the Ravens either resolving or setting aside whatever internal consternation is happening when it comes to both Harbaugh and Jackson collectively, and both men individually. And it’s hard to know exactly where that is at this point because there continues to be a void when it comes to the Jackson side of the narrative.

It harkens back to 2022 and 2023, when ankle and knee injuries ended Jackson’s seasons early, setting off a wave of speculation about how serious the health issues were and whether his absence was tied to his next contract extension. Much like the past week, the offseasons following the 2022 and 2023 injuries ran rampant with questions about Jackson’s future in Baltimore, his relationship with Harbaugh, his insular training regimens and how he was managing his health and diet. Very little of it was debated in a meaningful way in the media, largely because Jackson has always lacked the type of team around him that typically weighs in when an NFL star finds themselves at a crossroads in their career.

Often, it gets noted in the media that Jackson lacks the necessary agent presence that star players utilize to either rebut or even out the balance of information that is floated about them — info that typically comes from inside a team’s coaching staff or front office. But it’s not that Jackson lacks an agent. Aside from his own social media platforms, which he has utilized directly and cryptically at times, Jackson has often lacked any type of consistent conduit between himself and the outside narratives that get shaped around him.

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That hasn’t changed in 2025. That’s because it has never had to up to this point.

Throughout his career, Jackson has molded himself as a player and shaped his contracts without any real downside — aside from failing to win a Super Bowl. He’s won two league MVPs, been a first-team All-Pro three times, and signed an extension in 2023 that briefly made him the league’s highest-paid player in annual average salary. This all happened through the teeth of all manner of outside criticisms that he beat back with his performance, from his ability to win games from the pocket to the punishment he took as a running quarterback to how he communicated with the team when it came to contract negotiations.

Some residue of that history has always remained with Jackson and particles of it always seem to resurface when he struggles on the field, fails to win playoff games or suffers injuries that jeopardize portion of the Ravens’ seasons. Often, there is an underlying current of whether Jackson is doing everything he needs to do to resolve or avoid issues he’s facing either physically or with his on-field play.

So why is that surfacing again with this latest back injury? Part of it is because the Ravens still have a season that is hanging in the balance, which naturally draws into question his health status and whether Baltimore’s season is going to conclude with him on the field. But there’s also a lingering backdrop of his contract in all of this, too. Jackson has two more years remaining on a deal that now pays him the league’s 10th-highest average salary ($52 million) at the quarterback spot. It lags significantly behind the $60 million average of the Dallas Cowboys’ Dak Prescott. Of the nine players ahead of him, only the Buffalo Bills’ Josh Allen has captured a league MVP award — and Jackson has two of them.

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The issue in play is that the Ravens have been inclined to adjust Jackson’s contract heading into this next offseason. But the way it is addressed would be via another contract extension. The problem with that is there are now growing concerns about the totality of punishment Jackson has taken over the course of his career and how that may have impacted his body this season. Complicating matters further is that sources in the last regime of the NFL Players Association had suggested that Jackson would seek a fully guaranteed contract when he engaged in his next extension. If that’s the case — and once again, Jackson lacks an agent who could speak to it specifically — it’s going to be a difficult move, largely because although Jackson turns only 29 next month, his running ability will eventually be looked upon as a depreciating asset in his repertoire and a potential liability that causes his body and play to decline rapidly (see: Cam Newton).

How this all relates to Harbaugh’s future as head coach ties into what he and Jackson can continue to achieve together. Over the expanse of his career, Harbaugh has earned the reputation among former players as being a head coach who can push you to a breaking point — but also a coach who is seen as fair and likely to get as much out of your performance as possible. If he holds a double standard for Jackson, it’s not something that is constantly harped on by former Ravens players who would be the likely candidates to complain about it. If anything, what the people in the orbit of Harbaugh and Jackson relationship describe is typical of many coaches and quarterbacks who have been with each other over many years and gone through success and failure. There are ups and downs when it comes to frustration, but both Jackson and Harbaugh have been adept at keeping it tamped down over the years while also being outwardly supportive of each other.

The question now is whether that will hold through the latest round of smoke. Certainly there’s no indication Harbaugh has lost the locker room. Especially not after the Ravens’ commanding road win over the Packers, with Tyler Huntley at quarterback and a seemingly rejuvenated Derrick Henry running the football with a ferocity that is reminding everyone of the 2024 season. But what happens now is going to matter. If Jackson’s back contusion sidelines him against the Steelers — and potentially beyond if the Ravens win — it will be the second time in four years that a late-season injury has taken him out of the mix in the postseason (including 2022).

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Conversely, if Jackson plays against the Steelers and Baltimore fights back into the playoffs, the surrounding roster is still at a level that immediately makes the Ravens a threat in the AFC. A Super Bowl run would not be out of the question, especially if the Henry who pounded the Packers in Week 17 is the Henry the Ravens carry into the postseason. Winning and consistency has kept Harbaugh in Baltimore for 18 years. Failing to carry that into the playoffs is what has his future in question now. But the same can be said for Jackson, too.

Right now, both need each other. In Week 18 against the Steelers and any potential playoff ride after it.

T.J. Watt started Sunday with his shared single-season NFL sack record at risk as his Pittsburgh Steelers faced Myles Garrett and the Cleveland Browns.

The Steelers held Garrett without a sack of Aaron Rodgers, and Watt’s record of 22.5 sacks that he shares with Michael Strahan remains intact. But the Steelers suffered a loss to the last-place Browns and squandered a chance to secure the AFC North title.

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Garrett said after the game that he thinks the Steelers prioritized their game plan around stopping him over actually winning the game. He believes that it cost them in Cleveland’s 13-6 win as the Steelers failed to score a touchdown and didn’t score at all after halftime.

“To an extent, I feel like they were more worried about keeping me away from Aaron than getting the win,” Garrett said. “I think that’s what came back to bite them.”

What Garrett says Steelers did to preserve record

So what exactly does Garrett believe the Steelers sacrificed in order to focus on him?

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He pointed to Rodgers’ quick release and tendency to roll out away from him in addition to the Steelers lining up multiple players specifically to slow him down.

“They kind of fell under the same line of thinking that the Packers did,” Garrett said. “We’ll just throw everything at him. … That’s their M.O. But, of course they’re gonna throw even quicker when I’m lined up. On that side, they had a chipper there, sometimes two chippers.

“Getting it out quick, sometimes they were rolling away. They were doing a little bit of everything. I’ve come to expect that. I know they didn’t want me to be the one to break it against them.”

Tomlin denies that he considered sack record in game plan

Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin was asked about the speculation in his postgame news conference. He denied game-planning to keep Garrett from breaking Watt’s record.

“We didn’t do anything against Myles that we don’t normally do against Myles,” Tomlin said. “The sack record’s irrelevant.

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“We’ve got to minimize him if we want to engineer victory. We did the same thing the last time we played him. I didn’t think that he had any sacks in that game either. So we didn’t take a different approach because of the gravity of the record. It’s just standard business when you’re playing these guys and him.”

The Steelers didn’t clinch the AFC North because of the loss. They’ll now face a winner-take-all game against the Baltimore Ravens next weekend. The winner will win the division and its only playoff berth. The loser’s season will be done.

Garrett (22 sacks), meanwhile, remains a half sack behind Watt’s and Strahan’s shared record. He’ll have one more chance to tie or break it in Cleveland’s season finale against the Cincinnati Bengals.

All-Pro left tackle Trent Williams left Sunday’s showdown against the Chicago Bears with a hamstring injury, leaving the San Francisco 49ers without one of their most important players.

Williams was initially listed as questionable after leaving in the first quarter. The 49ers ruled him out at halftime.

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Williams sustained the injury on San Francisco’s first drive. He was noticeably limping on the sideline and removed his gear to have a seat on the bench after spending several minutes undergoing evaluation in a sideline medical tent.

The injury, if significant, has the potential to impact the 49ers not just for Sunday’s game but as they attempt to secure the No. 1 seed in the NFC and into the playoffs. The severity of Williams’ injury wasn’t initially clear, but hamstrings have the potential to linger as multi-week injuries.

A four-time All-Pro, Williams is one of the best to ever play his position. He earned his 12th Pro Bowl selection this season and remains one of the game’s best at 37 years old. He’s critical to San Francisco’s success in both the run and pass games.

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San Francisco entered Sunday’s game already down a key offensive player with All-Pro tight end George Kittle sidelined by a sprained ankle. Kittle sustained the injury in Monday’s win over the Indianapolis Colts and was questionable on Sunday before being ruled out prior to kickoff.

The 49ers have plenty at stake over the remainder of their season. They entered Sunday’s game at 11-4, having already clinched a playoff berth. But with wins over the Bears Sunday night and next week against the Seattle Seahawks, they’d clinch the NFC West and No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs that comes with it.

The bye would be that much more valuable if Williams is facing a multi-week injury. It would also be more difficult to attain.

Entering the regular-season finale a year ago, Sam Darnold was complicating the Minnesota Vikings’ grand quarterback plan.

The franchise that had drafted then-rookie J.J. McCarthy 10th overall and signed Darnold with the expectation he would be their bridge or backup quarterback. A season-ending injury to McCarthy in training camp gave Darnold the keys to start instead.

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And 16 games in, Darnold had ratcheted up the speedometer. His 68.1% completion percentage, 35 touchdowns and 106.4 passer rating were on track for career bests. His 14 wins doubled his previous single-season high. The win threshold also doubled the Vikings’ total from a year earlier.

So team had to extend quarterback, right? How could the Vikings let walk the Pro Bowl player who had helped them clinch a playoff spot and set them up for a regular-season finale that dangled the prize of the NFC’s top playoff seed and a first-round bye?

[Get more Seahawks news: Seattle team feed]

Two losses later, the Vikings parted ways. A touchdown-less Darnold performance in a 31-9 loss to the Detroit Lions and a nine-sack, 27-9 wild-card loss to the Los Angeles Rams were sufficient for Minnesota to opt for its rookie’s contract rather than Darnold’s price point.

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The Seahawks pounced. And now, quarterbacking the Seahawks to 13-3 entering Week 18, Darnold finds himself in the exact same position.

With Seattle’s 27-10 win over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday, Darnold is yet again preparing for a win-and-you’re-No. 1 game in Week 18. This time, his Seahawks will face the San Francisco 49ers, who also have a shot at the No. 1 seed after beating the Chicago Bears on Sunday Night Football.

Teammates know what Darnold is doing is not normal.

“I’ve never been in this position before,” seventh-year safety Julian Love said. “You got to kind of love it. You got to just approach this next week… with just gratitude of like, ‘Man, we’re in a position to really punch our ticket in a great way.’ And so yeah, I just think the whole team is fired up.

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“I haven’t had too many of these moments in my career, and so I’m ready to just take it.”

In the last two seasons, Darnold has rewritten his narrative to the tune of consecutive Pro Bowl berths after six years in search of his footing. He is the only quarterback to win at least 12 games with different teams in consecutive seasons, per Next Gen Stats (Tom Brady held the previous record, at 11).

And Sunday, he bumped the record he already held to 13.

So as the Seahawks face the 49ers next weekend, Darnold’s next chance to step beyond last year’s success awaits. He won’t need to carry the bid for win No. 14 himself.

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“It takes 100% of everybody all the time, every week,” Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald said. “So nothing changes this week. But one of our goals is to win the division, and it’s going to come down to, if we win the game, win the division.

“So we’ll hit the next goal.”

For Seahawks and Darnold, ‘complementary football all season long’

Against a Carolina defense that had upset the Rams and intercepted 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy three times earlier this season, Darnold’s game was rocky.

He completed 66.7% (18 of 27) of his pass attempts for 147 yards, one touchdown and one interception.

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The Seahawks’ offense did not find its footing until halfway through the third quarter.

An intentional grounding penalty killed one first-quarter drive while a sack for a loss of 10 yards set up third-and-15 to threaten another. On third-and-5 with 5:33 to play in the second quarter, Panthers linebacker Nick Scourton hit Darnold’s arm, and defensive tackle A’Shawn Robinson then swatted and recovered a fumble. Darnold tackled Robinson to jar the ball loose, but Panthers inside linebacker Christian Rozeboom recovered. The Panthers scored three points off the turnover. After a Seattle turnover on downs, the score was tied at half.

“I dropped the ball,” Darnold said of the fumble. “I feel like I was still in the pocket so I had a good base to make that throw. The defense just made a good play. Got their hand on my forearm or elbow, and it kind of is what it is …

“As a quarterback, I don’t want to be making tackles out there. But it was kind of a throwback there to high school when I was playing linebacker.”

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As a quarterback, Darnold also doesn’t want to be throwing interceptions. But less than three minutes into the third quarter, he chanced an end-zone ball to Jaxon Smith-Njigba that Carolina cornerback Mike Jackson picked.

The Seahawks avoided major damage when DeMarcus Lawrence forced a fumble the next play. At that point, the momentum would be Seattle’s to stay.

“I’ve just got to move on in my progression,” Darnold said. “Or at least make it an us-or-nobody throw where Jaxson can go up, and get it or it’s incomplete. So our defense has had our back all year and vice versa. When we feel like we need a spark, our offense has stepped up in big ways as well.

“It’s complementary football all season long and this one especially.”

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Complementary football meant that key plays in key times from the offense were enough to send a stellar defensive performance and solid special teams day over the hump.

After recent work on third-and-longer plays, per Darnold, the Seahawks converted four third downs of 9+ yards. Their 56.3% third-down conversion rate (9 of 16) whomped the Panthers’ 9.1% (1 of 11) to keep drives alive. And in the third quarter, the Seahawks boat-raced the Panthers to the tune of two takeaways and two touchdowns.

By the time Carolina found the end zone for the first time in the fourth quarter, Seattle’s cushion was strong. And unlike earlier-season drives in four-minute scenarios, the Seahawks ran in another touchdown to put the game out of reach.

“Credit to them, they made adjustments,” Panthers quarterback Bryce Young said after throwing for just 54 yards and an interception to pair with 27 rushing yards and a ground score. “They came out with a game plan, did a better job of executing than we did.

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“You’re going to go up against different schemes. People are going to make adjustments. And we didn’t do a good enough job of being able to react to that and encounter it.

“But that’s the NFL.”

After win ‘wasn’t Sam’s best game,’ will Darnold do enough for Seahawks to secure bye?

In the season opener against the 49ers, Darnold threw for just 150 yards and no scores as the Seahawks lost, 17-13. In their season finale, they arrive with a different reputation.

The Seahawks’ defense has shown that in Macdonald’s second year coordinating, they’re much readier to navigate the complex schemes of a coach who at least one former colleague calls “the Sean McVay of defense.” Smith-Njigba has blown past his 1,130 yards and six touchdowns last season to the tune of a league-best 1,709 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns.

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The Seahawks rank second in scoring offense and defense; seventh in offensive yards and sixth in yards allowed.

They’re talented across levels. And yet, whether Darnold can carry his team is unclear.

Sure, it was Darnold throwing on the run while needling an 18-yard completion to Smith-Njigba on the sideline in the fourth quarter Sunday. And it was Darnold who found tight end A.J. Barner for 16- and 17-yard completions in the third quarter, including a touchdown.

But it was also primarily because of Darnold that, as Macdonald worried, the Seahawks watched “the ball being in jeopardy.” A defense that forced Carolina into checkdowns and 163 yards from Seattle’s running game overcame Darnold’s late start.

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“I know it wasn’t Sam’s best game of all time and the stats reflect that, but there’s some big-time third-down throws with pressure in his face,” Macdonald said. “We threw one to Jax, that route to Cooper [Kupp]. I mean, those are some big-time throws in the face of pressure that we need to be able to make and they’re not easy to make.”

Defensive teammates said they’ll keep doing their part.

“Offense make a mistake, defense helps,” Lawrence said. “Defense make a mistake, offense is right there to have our back.

“Just the dynamic of taking care of each other. Fighting for each other.”

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And next weekend, they’ll fight for the No. 1 seed.

The implications for Darnold’s narrative will be there. The unlikely chance to redo his NFL playoff narrative in such similar circumstances so quickly awaits.

Darnold, like his head coach, will downplay it.

“It’s just the next game,” Darnold said. “Obviously it’s a big game, but we’re excited about that opportunity. We’re going to enjoy this one a little bit and then get focused on it tomorrow.”

Maybe Brock Purdy and the San Francisco 49ers can outscore everyone on the way to the Super Bowl.

The 49ers are scoring at will lately. Purdy is playing as well as any quarterback in the NFL. Niners head coach Kyle Shanahan is the hottest play-caller in the league. The defense … well, the defense might be a problem in the playoffs, but San Francisco’s offense looks unstoppable.

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The 49ers gave up 38 points Sunday night and still won a wildly entertaining and crucial game against the Chicago Bears. Purdy accounted for five touchdowns, including a 38-yard score to Jauan Jennings with 2:15 remaining to give the 49ers the lead.

Caleb Williams, who had a big game, drove the Bears downfield and had the Bears on the 2-yard line with four seconds to go. The 49ers forced an incompletion on the final play to hang on to a 42-38 win.

The 49ers will host the Seattle Seahawks on Saturday night with the NFC West and the No. 1 seed in the NFC on the line.

The highlight of the night for Purdy came in the third quarter, when he avoided the pass rush as he rolled left, split two defensive linemen to step up and tossed it to Kyle Juszczyk for the touchdown. Purdy has been on fire the past few weeks and he was fantastic Sunday night. The 49ers didn’t have tight end George Kittle, who was out with injury, and they lost offensive tackle Trent Williams on the first play of the game with a hamstring injury. It didn’t matter because Purdy and Christian McCaffrey, who had 181 total yards, were dominant.

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With the win, the 49ers set up a huge home game for Week 18. Since Super Bowl LX will be in Santa Clara, a win next weekend means the 49ers will not play another road game this season.

Scoring explosion in first half for both teams

The first half was one of the most eventful of the season.

It started with Bears linebacker T.J. Edwards picking off Purdy on the first play of the game and returning it 34 yards for a touchdown. Unfortunately for Chicago, that was one of the few things its defense did right in the first half.

Purdy had a passing touchdown and a rushing touchdown by the end of the first quarter. Williams had a 35-yard touchdown pass to Luther Burden III in the first quarter. It was the first NFL game this season in which both teams scored two touchdowns in the first quarter, NBC said on its broadcast.

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Neither offense was done. Williams had a 36-yard touchdown pass to Colston Loveland. McCaffrey scored on a touchdown run, and then Purdy had another rushing touchdown. There were 49 points in the first half alone.

Last week, the 49ers scored on seven of their first eight drives against the Indianapolis Colts, and the other drive was a missed field goal. The game before that against Tennessee, San Francisco scored on seven of eight drives, with a fumble ruining a shot at a perfect game. The Bears did force one punt in the first half, and it was San Francisco’s first punt since Nov. 30. Their offense has been on a tear, and it continued against Chicago.

Bears, 49ers make NFL history

The points kept coming in the second half. The game was tied 7-7, 14-14, 21-21, 28-28 and 35-35. It’s the first time in NFL history that has happened. Both offenses were putting on a great show, but both defenses looked like a potential roadblock to making a playoff run.

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The 49ers finally got stopped in the second half. They had a fourth-and-7 on the Bears’ 43-yard line in a tie game. Shanahan could have gone for it, but he punted. The trust in his defense was misplaced. The Bears drove downfield, but the 49ers held the Bears to a field goal. Chicago led 38-35 with 5:22 left.

The way the 49ers’ offense had moved the ball most of the night, getting at least a field goal to tie the game seemed inevitable. Purdy hit Jennings on a crossing route and Jennings took it the rest of the way for a 38-yard score. It was Purdy’s fifth touchdown of the night, with three passing and two rushing. The only problem seemed to be that the 49ers’ defense had to hold for 2:15 to win the game.

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The Bears got into 49ers territory with more than a minute to play. Williams hit Burden for a huge 14-yard gain on third-and-10 to keep the drive going. The Bears then faced a fourth-and-5 with 33 seconds left and Williams hit Loveland for the first down. A hook-and-ladder play got the Bears to the 2-yard line, giving them just one more play after spiking the ball. Williams couldn’t find anyone open as he scrambled around and threw incomplete into the end zone.

The 49ers know their defense will have to get some stops to win a championship. But their offense is no question at all.

Live coverage is over43 updates

• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:47 PM PST

  Ryan Young

  The winner of this contest on Saturday night will not only claim the NFC West title, but will also get the No. 1 seed in the conference and the bye in the first round of the playoffs.

  Seattle Seahawks at San Francisco 49ers

  Time: 8 p.m.
  Location: Levi’s Stadium | Santa Clara, California
  TV: ABC/ESPN
• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:39 PM PST

  Ryan Young

  After recording a team-high 138 yards and a touchdown on eight catches, Luther Burden is now being carted off the field. He went down on that final play.
• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:37 PM PST

  Ryan Young
• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:36 PM PST

  Ryan Young

  The path to the No. 1 seed in the NFC is firmly in San Francisco’s control. If the 49ers beat the Seahawks next week, the bye is theirs.

  The Bears, however, can no longer claim the top seed.

• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:35 PM PST

  Ryan Young

  San Francisco came up with one last stop, and this incredible “Sunday Night Football” matchup is theirs.
• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:34 PM PST

  Ryan Young

  Caleb Williams came so close there after scrambling up the left side, but Walker couldn’t quite make the grab. San Francisco has pulled off a wild win.

• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:33 PM PST

  Ryan Young
• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:31 PM PST

  Ryan Young

  The Bears have converted the first down after Williams found a wide open Loveland in the middle of the field. They’ve got 26 seconds left to get into the end zone.

• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:30 PM PST

  Ryan Young

  Caleb Williams couldn’t get it to Luther Burden there on the sidelines, so the Bears are looking at a fourth down with 33 seconds left. Here we go…

• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:29 PM PST

  Ryan Young

  The Bears are driving and slowly getting into scoring position…
• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:15 PM PST

  Ryan Young

  The Bears will have all three of their timeouts, and the two minute warning, when they get the ball back. But a field goal won’t cut it.

  Let’s see if Caleb Williams can pull off another game winning drive…

• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:14 PM PST

  Ryan Young

  Brock Purdy just found Jauan Jennings cutting across the middle of the field there, and he broke all the way down 38 yards to the end zone.

  The 49ers are up 42-38 now with 2:15 to go.

• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:04 PM PST

  Ryan Young
• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 8:04 PM PST

  Ryan Young

  For the first time tonight, we have a field goal.

  The Bears got all the way inside the 10 yard line — thanks to a huge 32-yard gain from Loveland — but their drive stalled out. The 49ers nearly intercepted Caleb Williams there on third down, too.

  So Cairo Santos came out to hit a 29-yard field goal, and the Bears are up 38-35 with 5:22 left in the game.

• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 7:53 PM PST

  Ryan Young

  This scoring run has finally been broken up. The Bears got to Brock Purdy there and forced an awkward missed throw on third down, so the 49ers have to punt for the second time tonight.

  The Bears will take over from their own 11 now with 11:23 left in the game.

• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 7:48 PM PST

  Ryan Young

  This stat from the NBC broadcast sums up the game perfectly. For the first time in a regular season NFL game, we’ve been tied at 7, 14, 21, 28 and 35 tonight.

  That’s only happened one other time in NFL history, in a playoff game back in 2013 between the Ravens and Broncos.

• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 7:46 PM PST

  Ryan Young

  D’Andre Swift broke through the line and pulled off a 22-yard run to tie this game up on the first play of the fourth quarter. That’s his second touchdown of the night, and we’re tied up once again.

  This game is not slowing down…
• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 7:42 PM PST

  Ryan Young

  The Bears could have attempted a field goal there on fourth down, but they opted to go for it from five yards out and pulled it off. They’re in scoring position once again when we come back.

• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 7:32 PM PST

  Ryan Young

  Brock Purdy somehow managed to avoid the sack there, and then stepped up to find an open Kyle Juszczyk in the end zone! Naturally, Purdy started dancing immediately.

  San Francisco is in the lead again, 35-28, with 4:52 left in the third quarter.

• 

  Sun, December 28, 2025 at 7:18 PM PST

  Ryan Young

  And we’ve picked up right where we left off. D’Andre Swift capped a 10-play drive with a 2-yard touchdown run to open the third quarter, and this game is tied once again.