Admin December 24, 2024
Commanders stun Eagles, Bengals keep playoff hopes alive
Mackenzie Salmon reacts to the biggest storylines from Week 16 in the NFL.
Sports Seriously
Shedeur Sanders and Cam Ward should postpone looking for real estate in Las Vegas.
Hopes of the two standout college quarterbacks landing with the Raiders in the next NFL draft might be out the window after last week’s 19-14 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Raiders won their first game in three months, breaking a 10-game losing skid with owner Mark Davis celebrating in the locker room after the game. Raiders coach Antonio Pierce was also fiery after the game when asked about the ramifications.
“We don’t do this to lose,” Pierce told reporters. “We don’t do this for anybody’s fantasy football team or draft projections. None of that [expletive] matters to us. The only thing that matters is winning, that’s all we want to do.”
But the Raiders lost focus on the real prize.
USA TODAY Sports’ NFL overreactions for Week 16 begin with the Raiders, who will regret their third win of the season in the long run because they dropped from the No. 2 position in the 2025 NFL draft to the No. 6 spot with two weeks left in the season.
Instead of being in the Top 2 with the New York Giants (2-13), Las Vegas is in a group of five three-win teams at the top of the draft order. The worst part: The Raiders have the highest strength of schedule, a tiebreaker for the draft order.
The Top 6 of the 2025 NFL draft order with two weeks left: Giants, New England Patriots, Jaguars, Tennessee Titans, Cleveland Browns, then the Raiders.
Quarterback is one of several missing pieces in the Raiders’ rebuild, and could continue being the case in 2025 if the draft order holds up. The Raiders visit the Saints in Week 17, and host the Chargers in the season finale. And any more wins will only drive the historic, but floundering franchise further away from the quarterback they need to be in contention again.
Cowboys might run it back again with Mike McCarthy
Look away, Cowboys fans.
With wins in four of their last five games, Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy may have saved his job in Dallas for at least another season.
Two of those wins came against the Commanders and Buccaneers, potential playoff teams, after Dallas started the season losing 7 of 10.
Cowboys fans may not like the idea of Jerry Jones sticking with McCarthy, but the template to retool next season’s team is clear: Improve the run game, the run defense, add depth at receiver and the secondary, and hope the injury bug isn’t as severe in 2025.
Even with the Eagles and Commanders surging, the Cowboys could easily become competitive again next season with their current setup.
The Ravens will win AFC North
Baltimore’s 34-17 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers last week opened the window for the Ravens to seize the AFC North title again.
Both teams are tied at 10-5 atop the division, but Baltimore appears to have the more favorable matchups in the final two games compared to Pittsburgh.
Baltimore heads to Houston on Christmas Day, and ends the season hosting the Browns – two games the Ravens need to win to secure the division and a home game to start the playoffs.
Pittsburgh hosts the Kansas City Chiefs, who own the best record in the NFL despite Patrick Mahomes’ lingering ankle injury, on Christmas Day. Then, the Steelers host the Bengals in a game both teams need to secure their playoff berths (if Cincinnati is still standing in the final week of the season).
As disappointing as Baltimore’s five losses have been this season, including a 18-16 loss to the Steelers Nov. 17 that put them in this position, they will win the division title and avoid being road warriors during the postseason.
It’s just a hiccup in the quest for Lamar Jackson and the Ravens to reach a second consecutive AFC title game, and potentially the Super Bowl this season.