Falcons at Saints, 1
Line/OU: Saints by 6; 52½
The Falcons have won five of their past six and also have won three straight vs. the Saints, including earlier this year in Atlanta. But they trail the Saints and Panthers by one game in the NFC South. Atlanta has been getting balanced performances on both sides of the ball, from WR Julio Jones to rookie DE Takkarist McKinley. Ranked first in offense, the Saints are the only team with three players who have surpassed 1,000 scrimmage yards: RB Mark Ingram has 1,420, rookie RB Alvin Kamara has 1,336 and WR Michael Thomas has 1,085. Kamara leads all rookies with 12 TDs. The winner clinches a playoff spot. New Orleans takes the South with a win and a Panthers loss to the Bucs. "This is definitely a type of game that we’d love to win and roll on to the playoffs," said DE Cam Jordan, one of the main reasons the Saints are atop the division. "It’s crazy to think that 10 wins doesn’t (necessarily) get you in. … But we’ve got our work cut out for us."
Rams at Titans, 1
Line/OU: Rams by 6½; 47
A vital game for both. The Rams clinch their first NFC West title since 2003 with a win. Otherwise, losses by Atlanta, Carolina and Detroit give Los Angeles a playoff berth. The Titans move closer to a playoff spot with a win and a loss by Buffalo, though Baltimore’s win means they can’t clinch. To get a victory, Tennessee must slow a Rams team tied for the league lead in scoring (438 points, same as Philadelphia). Todd Gurley last week became the first running back since 2010 with three-plus TDs rushing and a TD receiving in the same game. Jared Goff is averaging 261.7 yards passing and has five TDs and no INTs in his past three games vs. the AFC. Rams rookie Cooper Kupp has 323 yards receiving in the past four games. Kupp leads all rookies with 804 yards receiving and is first among rookie receivers with 58 catches.
Bills at Patriots, 1
Line/OU: Patriots by 11; 47
QB Tom Brady has a 27-3 regular-season record against the Bills, his highest win total over any opponent. He has also thrown for more TDs (66) against the Bills than any other foe. But the Bills have extra incentive: Buffalo is in contention to break a 17-year playoff drought, the longest active streak in North America’s four major pro sports. "Of course, the big picture’s there, but you can’t move too far ahead," QB Tyrod Taylor said. "Take it one practice at a time, empty your tank into one day, getting better that day and going out and executing … on game day." The Patriots won a record ninth consecutive AFC East title with last week’s win over Pittsburgh. They grab a first-round bye today with a win combined with either a Pittsburgh or Jacksonville loss. If the Pats win and both of those teams lose, New England will secure homefield throughout the playoffs.e_SClBDolphins at Chiefs, 1
Line/OU: Chiefs by 10½; 43½
Despite their midseason swoon, the Chiefs stand ready to clinch the AFC West they led all the way. A win or a Chargers loss does the trick; they have never won successive AFC West titles. The Dolphins have won seven of their past 10 against KC, and their last loss at Arrowhead Stadium was in 2002. Most dangerous to Kansas City’s chances is Dolphins WR Jarvis Landry, who has 98 catches, second only to Pittsburgh’s Antonio Brown (101).
Lions at Bengals, 1
Line/OU: Lions by 3; 44
While Cincinnati bungles its way toward the end of the schedule, the Lions have a strong chance of winning out. Whether that will be enough to make the postseason depends on other teams’ results. The Bengals have won five straight and eight of nine in this series. But Detroit, led by Pro Bowl CB Darius Slay with an NFL-high seven picks and QB Matthew Stafford, is 5-2 on the road.
Chargers at Jets, 1
Line/OU: Chargers by 6½; 42½
Even winning out might not be enough to get LA into the playoffs. Still, after an 0-4 start, what the Chargers have done is impressive. Philip Rivers to Keenan Allen has become as dangerous a passing combination as any, and the duo of DEs Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram makes opposing QBs antsy. New York tends to play good teams close, but not win.
Browns at Bears, 1
Line/OU: Bears by 6½; 38
A year ago, with the same abysmal record, the Browns beat the Chargers to avoid matching Detroit’s 0-16 of 2008, the worst single season in league history. Considering they finish at Pittsburgh, this probably is their only shot at finding the victory column. If coach John Fox has any job security left, it would likely disappear by falling to Cleveland.
Broncos at Washington, 1
Line/OU: Washington by 3; 40½
After an eight-game slide, Denver has won two straight, but against the Jets and Colts. The Broncos have 32 consecutive victories when winning the turnover battle, the longest active streak in the league. Undermanned Washington comes off a victory against Arizona as LB Preston Smith became the first Washington player with a sack, fumble recovery and INT in the same game since LB Monte Coleman in 1993.
Jaguars at 49ers, 4
Line/OU: Jaguars by 4½; 42
Although Jacksonville has lost eight straight in the Pacific Time Zone by an average of 20.9 points — the last win out west was Jan. 2, 2005, at Oakland — these are different Jaguars. They take their first AFC South title since 1999 with a win, which would be a fifth road victory of the season after winning five in the previous four seasons combined. The Niners no longer are pushovers with Jimmy Garoppolo at QB. He passed for 381 yards last week, the first 49ers QB with back-to-back 300-yard games since Jeff Garcia in 2000. Garoppolo joined Hall of Famer Y.A. Tittle as the only Niners QBs to win their first three starts.
Seahawks at Cowboys, 4:25
Line/OU: Cowboys by 5; 47
The loser here is out of contention. Considering the hopes with which both franchises began this year, that’s stunning. RB Ezekiel Elliott returns to the Dallas backfield after serving his six-game suspension — the Cowboys went 3-3, winning the three most recent outings. The Seahawks have made the playoffs five straight years but have dropped their past two and are ravaged by injuries, penalties and a lack of on-field discipline.
Giants at Cardinals, 4:25
Line/OU: Cardinals by 3; 40
This season can’t end quickly enough for the tumult-ridden Giants or injury-ravaged Cardinals. New York allowed 106 points combined in losses to NFC West teams 49ers (31-23), Rams (51-17) and Seahawks (24-7) so far. An Arizona loss would clinch a second straight losing season after three winning years since coach Bruce Arians arrived.
Steelers at Texans, 4:30 Monday
Line/OU: Steelers by 9; 45½
The Steelers already won the AFC North but blew it big-time in the overall conference race when they fell to New England last week. That defeat likely cost them homefield throughout the playoffs, and they could fall to the third seed if they don’t stay ahead of Jacksonville, which won at Heinz Field this season. Even without star WR Antonio Brown, this shouldn’t be much of a test for Pittsburgh, unless it has a letdown. Houston has lost four straight and seven of eight.
Raiders at Eagles, 8:30 Monday
Line/OU: Eagles by 9; 47½
QB Nick Foles replaced injured Carson Wentz and kept the Eagles flying. Still, look for Philly to try to win this on the ground. The Eagles ranks second running the ball, first against the rush. Oakland is 25th in rushing. Philly already has a first-round bye, the sixth time that has happened since 1970. Oakland’s Derek Carr joined Dan Marino, Peyton Manning, Russell Wilson and Andrew Luck as the only QBs with at least 100 TD passes in first four pro seasons.
Times wires
CBS
Fox
NBC
ESPN