NFL Week 15 – Buffalo Gore Lions In Detroit Surprise!
By Ian John
on December 18th, 2024
in bet365 Sports
In Week 14 of the NFL, a number of teams clinched playoff spots. That continued to be the case in NFL Week 15, as we now have seven of the 14 playoff berths confirmed with three weeks of the season remaining!
We already knew that the Kansas City Chiefs, Philadelphia Eagles, Detroit Lions and Buffalo Bills had clinched their playoff spots. This past week, the Pittsburgh Steelers, Minnesota Vikings and Houston Texans also confirmed their place in the post-season.
The Texans clinched their spot by virtue of a 20-12 victory over the Miami Dolphins combined with the Colts losing 31-13 to the Denver Broncos. That meant the Texans not only confirmed a playoff spot, but also clinched the AFC South divisional title too.
The NFL Week 15 all-Pennsylvania clash between the Steelers and Eagles went the way of Philadelphia who were hugely impressive in a 27-13 win. Despite the loss, the Steelers clinched a playoff berth this week. However, an injury to star Edge Rusher T.J.Watt may be more worrying to Mike Tomlin than the defeat to his inter-state rivals.
There was another potentially huge injury in the Kansas City Chiefs' 21-7 win over the Cleveland Browns. Patrick Mahomes turned his ankle late in the game while being sacked by two Browns defensive players and sat out the rest of the game. He is viewed as week-to-week and it is unlikely Mahomes will start the next game for the Chiefs with the playoffs already secured.
The Los Angeles Rams took a decisive step towards the playoffs, beating the San Francisco 49ers 12-6 on Thursday night. That combined with the Seahawks 30-13 defeat at the Green Bay Packers, saw the Rams move into top spot in the NFC West, which sees all four teams in with a chance of winning the division as we head into the final three weeks.
It is a similar story in the NFC South where three teams, the Buccaneers, Falcons and Saints all remain in with a chance of finishing top of the division and clinching a playoff berth after NFL Week 15.
The big story, though, came in Detroit, where the Bills offense produced an outstanding display to beat the Lions 48-42. That defeat could prove costly for Detroit with the Vikings now hot on their heels after seven straight wins following their 30-12 win over the Chicago Bears. Both teams are 12-2 and meet in the final week of the season.
As we head into the festive period, the NFL action continues unabated. Bet365 Sport will have betting available on every NFL game over the festive period, including the games taking place on Christmas Day.
And with plenty of teams still in contention for the playoffs, these are the regular season games that will really define whether a team's season is viewed as a success or a failure.
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NFL Playoff Picture (after NFL Week 15)
Teams shown in bold have guaranteed themselves a playoff spot.
Teams shown in italics are unable to qualify for the playoffs.
Teams marked in bold with an asterisk* have clinched their divisional title.
AFC – Current Seedings
Kansas City Chiefs (13-1)* (AFC West)
Buffalo Bills (11-3)* (AFC East)
Pittsburgh Steelers (10-4)
Houston Texans (9-5)* (AFC South)
Baltimore Ravens (9-5)
Denver Broncos (9-5)
Los Angeles Chargers (8-6)
In The Hunt
Indianapolis Colts (6-8)
Miami Dolphins (6-8)
Cincinnati Bengals (6-8)
Out of Contention
New York Jets (4-10)
Cleveland Browns (3-11)
Jacksonville Jaguars (3-11)
Tennessee Titans (3-11)
New England Patriots (3-11)
Las Vegas Raiders (2-12)
NFC – Current Seedings
Detroit Lions (12-2)
Philadelphia Eagles (12-2)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-6)
Los Angeles Rams (8-6)
Minnesota Vikings (12-2)
Green Bay Packers (10-4)
Washington Commanders (9-5)
In The Hunt
Seattle Seahawks (8-6)
Atlanta Falcons (7-7)
Arizona Cardinals (7-7)
San Francisco 49ers (6-8)
Dallas Cowboys (6-8)
New Orleans Saints (5-9)
Out of Contention
Chicago Bears (4-10)
Carolina Panthers (3-11)
New York Giants (2-12)
Teams ranked 1st in each Conference in the Seedings receive a Bye.
Teams ranked 2nd to 4th receive a home game on Wildcard weekend.
Key Injuries from NFL Week 15
DE – Sam Hubbard (Bengals) – Knee
RB – Nick Chubb (Browns) – Broken Foot
CB – Max Melton (Cardinals) – Shin
DL – Shelby Harris (Browns) – Elbow
RB – Jaleel McLaughlin (Broncos) – Quad
CB – Carlton Davis (Lions) – Jaw
DL – Alim McNeill (Lions) – Knee
CB – Khalil Dorset (Lions) – Ankle
LB – Quay Walker (Packers) – Ankle
QB – Patrick Mahomes (Chiefs) – Ankle
OL – Zion Johnson (Chargers) – Ankle
WR – Jaylen Waddle (Dolphins) – Knee
WR – Grant DuBose (Dolphins) – Head
LB – Christian Elliss (Patriots) – Head
RB – Alvin Kamara (Saints) – Groin
DB – Kool-Aid McKinstry (Saints) – Stinger
QB – Tommy DeVito (Giants) – Concussion
LB – Patrick Johnson (Giants) – Knee
S – Tony Adams (Jets) – Nose
CB – Michael Carter II (Jets) – Back
OL – Landon Dickerson (Eagles) – Knee
QB – Justin Fields (Steelers) – Abdomen
EDGE – JJ.Watt (Steelers) – Ankle
CB – Donte Jackson (Steelers) – Back
TE – Zach Ertz (Commanders) – Concussion
NFL Power Rankings – NFL Week 15
Power Rankings following NFL Week 15.
Philadelphia Eagles (2) 12-2 – Big win over the Steelers sees Eagles hit top spot.
Kansas City Chiefs (3) 13-1 – Key win over Cleveland sees Chiefs almost clinch home field.
Detroit Lions (1) 12-2 – Disappointing loss to Bills sees Lions drop two spots.
Buffalo Bills (6) 11-3 – Superb performance in Detroit sees Bills hit the top four
Minnesota Vikings (5) 12-2 – Seventh win in a row for the Vikings keeps pressure on Lions.
Green Bay Packers (7) 10-4 – Packers will make the playoffs in what has been a tough NFC North.
Pittsburgh Steelers (4) 10-4 – Big loss to the Eagles in the Pennsylvanian clash.
Denver Broncos (8) 9-5 – Good comeback win over the Colts keeps Broncos in good shape.
Baltimore Ravens (9) 9-5 – Ravens hit Giants for five TD’s in easy win.
Washington Commanders (10) 9-5 – Commanders snatch win by a single point.
The Rest…11-32
Houston Texans (12) 9-5
Los Angeles Rams (14) 8-6
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (15) 8-6
Seattle Seahawks (11) 8-6
Los Angeles Chargers (13) 8-6
Arizona Cardinals (16) 7-7
Atlanta Falcons (19) 7-7
Cincinnati Bengals (18) 6-8
San Francisco 49ers (17) 6-8
Indianapolis Colts (20) 6-8
Miami Dolphins (21) 6-8
Dallas Cowboys (22) 6-8
New Orleans Saints (24) 5-9
New York Jets (25) 4-10
Chicago Bears (23) 4-10
Cleveland Browns (26) 3-11
Carolina Panthers (27) 3-11
New England Patriots (28) 3-11
Jacksonville Jaguars (29) 3-11
Tennessee Titans (30) 3-11
Las Vegas Raiders (31) 2-12
New York Giants (32) 2-12
NFL Week 16 – Fixtures
Week 16 starts with a crucial Thursday night game as the Chargers (8-6) and Broncos (9-5) face off in a crucial AFC West clash. The Chiefs have wrapped up the division but both these teams are in the playoff spots and a win for either would likely confirm a place in the Wildcard games.
There's two key games on Saturday too as the Texans meet the Chiefs followed by a huge AFC North clash as the Steelers meet the Ravens. If the Steelers can win this game then they will clinch the division having already beaten the Ravens earlier in the season.
The key games on Sunday include the Eagles at the Commanders, with Philadelphia able to clinch the division if they avoid defeat in this game. The Vikings and Lions are also in action, against the Seahawks and Bears respectively.
New England Patriots (3-11) @ Buffalo Bills (11-3)
Jacksonville Jaguars (3-11) @ Las Vegas Raiders (2-12)
San Francisco 49ers (6-8) @ Miami Dolphins (6-8)
Monday December 23rd – 1.20am
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-6) @ Dallas Cowboys (6-8)
Tuesday December 24th – 1.15am
New Orleans Saints (5-9) @ Green Bay Packers (10-4)
All teams have now had their bye week.
NFL Week 15 proved to be an exciting one, with some big wins in key clashes between the top teams. With just three weeks of the season to go, half of the playoff spots remain open. It promises to be an exciting conclusion to what has been an already spectacular NFL season so far!
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