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play0:45Which Bears RB can you start in fantasy Week 14?Field Yates explains why he favors D’Andre Swift slightly in the Bears’ backfield as a starting option against the Packers.
Saturday: Colts’ loss to Texans is a bad sign (0:49)Jeff Saturday and Domonique Foxworth explain why the Colts’ loss to the Texans is troubling amid injuries. (0:49)
Which Bears RB can you start in fantasy Week 14?Field Yates explains why he favors D’Andre Swift slightly in the Bears’ backfield as a starting option against the Packers.
Field Yates explains why he favors D’Andre Swift slightly in the Bears’ backfield as a starting option against the Packers.
No division winners will be crowned this week in the NFL, but three games Sunday could go a long way toward deciding who wins the NFC North and a pair of divisions in the AFC.
The three Week 14 first-place showdowns are the Chicago Bears (9-3-1) at Green Bay Packers (8-3) in the NFC North, Indianapolis Colts (8-4) at Jacksonville Jaguars (8-4) in the AFC South and Pittsburgh Steelers (6-6) at Baltimore Ravens (6-6) in the AFC North.
How critical are these divisional games? Since 2002, of the 159 teams that were leading their division through Week 14, when the NFL went to eight divisions, 139 of them won their division. That’s 87.4%.
It’s also worth noting that all three of these games will have rematches in the coming weeks. The Packers and Bears have their second meeting within a three-game span in Week 16. The Jaguars and Colts play again in Week 17, and the Ravens face the Steelers in the regular-season finale.
Overall record: 6-6 Division record: 2-1 AFC North position: Tied for first place with Ravens Odds: Win division (+285), make playoffs (+260)
Injury update: Not only have the Steelers been managing Rodgers’ wrist injury, but they also enter Sunday’s game without rookie first-round pick Derrick Harmon. Harmon is missing his second consecutive game because of a knee injury sustained in Chicago. The Steelers’ defense has dealt with injuries throughout the season, including a season-ending hyperextended knee to safety DeShon Elliott and ACL tears to veteran depth defensive linemen Dean Lowry and Daniel Ekuale.
Overall record: 6-6 Division record: 2-1 AFC North position: Tied for first place with the Ravens Odds: Win division (-240), make playoffs (-220)
Overall record: 8-4 Division record: 2-1 AFC South position: Tied for first with Jaguars Odds: Win division (+145), make playoffs (-310)
What they’re saying: “We’re playing really good teams now. So, we’ve got to be more on point with some of those things than maybe we did earlier in the season. We’ve got a hard stretch coming up. We got a big game this weekend, so perfect time to get back on track,” Josh Downs said.
Overall record: 8-4 Division record: 32-1 AFC South position: Tied for first with Colts Odds: Win division (+145), make playoffs (-550)
QB situation: Trevor Lawrence has been up and down all season, as evidenced by his past two games: Four turnovers against Arizona, followed by none and his highest passer rating (111.5) of the season against Tennessee. However, that’s partly due to coach Liam Coen encouraging Lawrence to “let it rip.” The addition of Jakobi Meyers at the trade deadline has given Lawrence a sure-handed receiver and he has become the receiver Lawrence trusts the most in just four games (18 catches on 21 targets).
Injury update: Lewis (their top cornerback), Lloyd, Cleveland, Thomas and Strange are back, and Murray is likely to return Sunday. WR Parker Washington (hip) and LT Walker Little (concussion) were hurt last week and their availability is in doubt. Walker hasn’t practiced since getting hurt Nov. 16, so he might not play, either. Armstead is a question, too. Those last two are some of the Jaguars’ better pass rushers, but also critical players on the run defense tasked with limiting Taylor.
Key to winning Sunday: It starts with keeping Taylor in check. The Colts are 3-4 in games in which Taylor has rushed for fewer than 100 yards, including the past two (losses to Kansas City and Houston). Surprisingly, Taylor has not had much success in Jacksonville. In four games at EverBank Stadium, he has failed to rush for more than 77 yards, and the Colts — who haven’t won in Jacksonville since 2014 — are 0-4 in those games. — Michael DiRocco
What they’re saying: “We come back, we prepare the same way that we always have, especially this last couple of weeks, keep our focus internally, go out there and play our brand football, we’ll win this game,” defensive end Josh Hines-Allen said.
Overall record: 9-3 Division record: 1-2 NFC North position: First Odds: Win division (+175), make playoffs (-270)
What they’re saying: “The significance of it at the moment isn’t much,” tight end Cole Kmet said of the Bears currently being the NFC’s No. 1 seed. “Look, I know how this all is. We’re on the so-called mountain top right now, but those things change quickly week to week. … It’s on us to stick to our process on stuff. But to see where we’ve gone as a team, specifically offensively from Weeks 1 and 2 to now, it’s really cool to see and see our identity take shape, especially in the run game.”
Overall record: 8-3-1 Division record: 3-0 NFC North position: Second Odds: Win division (-140), make playoffs (-900)
Injury update: The Packers have lost three starters to season-ending injuries: tight end Tucker Kraft (knee), center Elgton Jenkins (leg) and, most recently, defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt (ankle). They could get a boost from the return of receiver Jayden Reed, their leader in the past two seasons in catches and receiving yards. Reed hasn’t played since Week 2 because of collarbone and foot injuries.
Key to winning Sunday: The Packers have a top-10 run defense, but it will be tested mightily by the Bears’ running back duo of Monangai and Swift, who each rushed for more than 100 yards in last week’s win over the Eagles. Wyatt’s injury against the Lions won’t help, but the Packers will have to keep the Bears from running all over them. “It’s going to be a great challenge,” LaFleur said, “because they’re the best in the league right now in doing it.” — Rob Demovsky
How did the Steelers get here? Thanks to a hot start and injuries for the rest of the AFC North teams, the Steelers appeared to be running away with the division, holding a 2½-game lead going into the Thursday night game against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 7. But Ja’Marr Chase and Joe Flacco picked apart the Steelers’ defense and handed Pittsburgh a loss, kicking off a stretch during which the Steelers have lost five of their past seven games. In that span, the Steelers’ defense has allowed an average of 122.7 rushing yards per game, while the offense has struggled to move the ball consistently with Mason Rudolph or Aaron Rodgers at quarterback.
QB situation: Rodgers fractured his left (non-throwing) wrist late in the first half during the rematch with the Bengals three weeks ago and was sidelined for the subsequent six quarters. Rudolph took his place in the second half and started against the Chicago Bears. During that stretch, Rudolph completed 36 of 47 attempts for 298 yards with 1 touchdown, 2 interceptions and a lost fumble. Rodgers, meanwhile, started struggling even before his wrist injury, beginning with a dismal night in the loss to the Chargers on Nov. 9, when he completed 51% of his attempts and took a sack for a safety. Coming off another subpar outing against the Bills on Nov. 30, when he completed just 47% of his attempts and split the bridge of his nose on a strip-sack, Rodgers is in line to start his second straight game with the fractured wrist Sunday.
Key to winning Sunday: It all comes down to stopping the run. The Steelers didn’t do that in their wild-card loss to the Ravens last season, allowing Baltimore to rush for 299 yards as Derrick Henry exploded for 186. The Steelers’ run defense has been inconsistent this season, giving up a season-worst 249 rushing yards to the Buffalo Bills in its last game. But there is some reason for hope: Earlier this season, the Steelers’ run defense held Jonathan Taylor, the NFL’s leading rusher, to 45 yards on 14 carries in the win against the Colts. — Brooke Pryor
What they’re saying: Cameron Heyward on the late-season grind and what the team has left in the tank: “A lot left in the tank. You sign up to play football. You don’t sign up to count heartbeats. We got to do whatever it takes to get the job done. You’ve seen teams, you look at that Super Bowl [the Steelers won at the end of the 2005 season, beating Seattle], they had to have a string of games late to really qualify for the playoffs. So, one, you got to get off the field when you can, but two, whatever comes in front of you, you got to go out and attack it.”
How did the Ravens get here? The preseason betting favorite to win the Super Bowl, the Ravens have yet to produce one complete game this season in which every unit was clicking. The Baltimore defense struggled mightily during a franchise-worst 1-5 start, giving up an NFL-high 32.3 points per game. When the Ravens rebounded to win five of their next six games, their offense sputtered repeatedly on third down (34.7%) and in the red zone (48%), both of which rank in the bottom quarter of the league. With game changers such as quarterback Lamar Jackson and do-it-all safety Kyle Hamilton, the Ravens’ players said this week that they feel there is still time for this team to hit its stride and live up to its championship potential.
QB situation: Lamar Jackson hasn’t looked like Lamar Jackson. After throwing 15 touchdown passes and one interception in his first six starts, Jackson has hit the worst slump of his career, producing zero touchdowns in three straight games. Injuries and indecision have led to the two-time NFL MVP putting up some uncharacteristic numbers. He hasn’t completed more than 60% of his passes in four consecutive games for the first time in his eight-year career, and he’s averaging a career-low 29.3 yards rushing per game. The Ravens need Jackson to flip into MVP mode if they want to win a third straight AFC North title.