There’s not one more week left on the NFL schedule, and a big decision as to which game to feature in the Sunday Night Football slot comes in Week 18.
We’ve come into the final week of the NFL season and the list is shaping up to be a whirlpool.
The schedule has been closed since last spring, but the times have been intentionally left blank by the league so that the specific scenario being played now can work for the NFL. There are at least four games scheduled for Sunday that can determine whether division winners or whether a team makes the playoffs, and the league will take the entire Monday to try to decide the best possible slate of games for fans to enjoy.
The bigger question is what game will be shown in the coveted Sunday Night Football slot?
There is one potential match already off the board. The NFL has announced that the Jaguars-Titans game will take place next week in prime time on Saturday nights.
This was one of the more interesting choices, as it is a de facto playoff game for the Jaguars and Titans. It’s not quite a win-or-stay-at-home situation, as the Jaguars have a path to the playoffs even with a loss, but it is a game that will decide the AFC South title.
When you stack up against the rest of the potential high-stakes showdown next weekend, awarding the Jaguars-Titans game to Joe Buck and Troy Aikman on ABC and ESPN seems like a really easy and smart decision.
NFL schedule: Which game will join the SNF in Week 18?
Beams vs. Black
This is obviously a 1B option, but it’s one that NFL Sunday Night schedule makers can bend and not screw up before Monday Night ends.
We need to take a moment to think about how crazy it is that Detroit and Green Bay are playing a meaningful game against each other late in the season. The Packers are on a warm-up, winning four straight games and going from 4 to 8 to become in control of their destiny. Meanwhile, the Lions have bounced back from a slow start and are chasing the playoffs – pretty impressive for this franchise.
The final NFC Wild Card spot can be decided by this game, making it an actual playoff game and one with Lambeau Field as its backdrop. Aaron Rodgers is at home with a chance to complete a miracle comeback or the insanely likable Dan Campbell Lions realize their potential and make it to the playoffs.
The sales space doesn’t have to be much longer.
The only thing that complicates this is if the Seahawks win on Sunday. This will eliminate the lions, but it will not destroy the meaning of the game as the players will still be in a position to win the playoffs.
Giants vs. Eagles
Perhaps this is the most dangerous of the possible flexible options, albeit one full of intrigue.
Green Bay-Detroit may be slightly affected by the results of the games earlier in the day, but the Giants-Eagles game could become completely meaningless based on what happened on the previous rosters on Sunday.
Here’s what makes this game so resilient: If the Cowboys and 49ers win Sunday, the Eagles will need to beat the Giants to clinch the top seed or risk falling deeper into the wild card abyss.
Therein lies the risk. If the Cowboys or the 49ers lose—or if they both lose—the Eagles clinch the first seed without having to lift a finger. New York is already trapped in the No. 6 seed, so there’s no incentive to play any rookie before even considering whether the game is meaningful for the Eagles. It doesn’t make much sense for Giants, which really puts this game’s review at a disadvantage.
Will the Giants use Week 18 as their de facto bye week, or will they try to play to knock the Eagles out of the top seed if given the chance? Doing so would effectively ensure the two teams never meet in the playoffs unless it’s in the NFC Championship Game, as the Giants could take on the Eagles in the Divisional Round if things stay the way they are.
Bills vs. Patriots
This is a bit of a wild card, no pun intended.
The NFL has already flexed the Chiefs-Raiders game until Saturday noon, which means Kansas City could tag the AFC’s top seed. Buffalo has a head-to-head tiebreaker over the Chiefs, but in that scenario they would need a win in Week 18 to clinch the lead.
In order to prevail, Buffalo would need to beat New England which has its own playoff scenario next Sunday. If the Patriots win, they punch the final AFC ticket to the postseason and book the No. 7 seed in the bracket. In doing so, Bill Belichick would knock out a top-seeded opponent and bump the Bills into Wild Card Weekend.
It’s risky, given it depends on what happens tonight and in the Chiefs game on Saturday, but it would arguably be the only matchup capable of holding a candle to what everyone has already identified as a flexing dream option in Week 18.
Bengals vs. Crows
that’s it; This is the dream. If everything breaks the way it should, this is a slam dunk wrapped in grand slams and delivered as a hole-in-one.
Cincinnati and Baltimore meet Sunday night The football game with the AFC North Championship on the line is truly The Good Stuff, and deserves a patriotic audience. There are the de-facto playoffs, as mentioned, and then there’s the heavy fighting dripping with football narratives to indulge in.
for example:
- The winner is the AFC North Champion, the loser falls to the Wild Card
- A playoff game on the field is at stake
- Lamar Jackson can make a triumphant comeback after missing the past four weeks
- Joe Burrow and the Bengals can reverse course from a slow start and begin their AFC title defense with a win against the No. 3 seed.
There’s more, but the velvety richness of those narratives is enough to send any football fan into a frenzy. Showdown is the name of Sunday Night Football, and the season finals don’t get more exciting than two AFC rivals facing insane playoff fallout on the line.
If Cincinnati loses to Buffalo, don’t even think about flexing. If the Bills stumble in some way – and fall in the process from the top seed – it will be hard to argue against bending the Packers-Lions on high-stakes gambles like the Giants-Cowboys.
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