Week 18 will kick off Saturday afternoon from Tampa where the Buccaneers (7-9) and Carolina Panthers (8-8) will square off with the NFC South division title and the conference’s No. 4 postseason seed on the line.

The host Buccaneers are seeking to become the first NFC team to win (but will still have to wait for Saints-Falcons result on Sunday) five consecutive division titles since the 1990s’ Dallas Cowboys dynasty (1992-1996), and in doing so, they would own the longest division title streak by any NFC South team since the 2022 divisional realignment. The visiting Panthers are seeking their first playoff appearance since 2017 and their first division title since 2015 when they won the NFC and played in Super Bowl 50. 

Both squads enter the final week of the regular season stumbling into their division-deciding matchup. Tampa Bay is on a four-game losing streak and has lost seven of its last eight games after a 6-2 start. Meanwhile, Carolina has been a rollercoaster all season, going 10 consecutive games alternating a win and a loss, which is tied for the fourth-longest such streak of all time. 

NFL Week 18 odds, predictions, expert picks: Can Panthers win NFC South? Who wins NFC West showdown?

Tyler Sullivan

It’s worth noting this game is only a win-and-in situation for the Panthers, who can clinch the division with a win or a tie. The Buccaneers need to win and have the New Orleans Saints beat the Atlanta Falcons in order to clinch the 2025 NFC South title. Even if Tampa Bay wins, should the Falcons win,…

..

[ad_2]

Read More

NFL teams always insist that they would never tank to get a better draft pick. But teams with a high draft pick on the line can and do choose to give plenty of playing time to inexperienced backups, and that’s exactly what the Raiders will do on Sunday, with the first pick in the draft on the line.

If the Raiders lose to the Chiefs, they will pick first overall in the 2026 NFL draft. Raiders coach Pete Carroll said he plans to give playing time to everyone on the active roster, including both backup quarterbacks, Aidan O’Connell and Kenny Pickett.

Advertisement

“Everybody’s gonna play and I’m hoping it works out well,” Carroll said. “It doesn’t always, good plans don’t always come through, but we’ve got plans for these guys to get in there and get their playing time. Really excited to see them. Excited to see them play.”

Among the Raiders who won’t play are starting quarterback Geno Smith, and the Raiders’ two best players, defensive end Maxx Crosby and tight end Brock Bowers. They’re out with injuries, although Crosby has made clear that he wants to play through his knee injury and the Raiders shut him down against his will. If there’s one player on the team who would play to win in any game, it’s Crosby. But the Raiders won’t let him play.

As long as the draft is ordered by giving the highest pick to the team with the worst record, teams will be incentivized to lose. If the NFL wanted to, it could change the draft order in ways that would incentivize teams out of the playoff race continuing to win. For example, the non-playoff teams that ended the regular season with the longest winning streaks could get the highest picks. That would generate plenty of interest in Sunday’s Saints-Falcons game: Both teams are out of playoff contention, but the Saints are on a four-game winning streak and the Falcons are on a three-game winning streak. Reward teams with high picks if they keep playing hard after they’re out of the playoff race, and the NFL would both eliminate…

..

[ad_2]

Read More

The final week of the 2025 NFL regular season is finally here. There are two games on Saturday and a full slate of 14 games the following afternoon and evening. 

Because it’s the final week of the season, there is more to detail than usual when it comes to injury reporting. Teams that have either clinched the playoffs or locked in their draft positioning will often rest key players for the last game of the year, and this year appears to be no different.

With that and more in mind, in the space below, we’ll dive into the final injury reports across the league and detail who is in, out, and whose status is up in the air.

The Panthers have some issues to contend with defensively, especially if Wharton is out in addition to Cherelus. Hunt’s potential absence would hurt the running game as well. 

Dean’s absence could affect Tampa’s efforts to cover Tetairoa McMillan. Kancey could be on the verge of a return from his pectoral injury after upgrading to a full practice on Thursday.

Cross’ absence will affect the protection in front of Sam Darnold, while Bryant potentially missing the game would affect the coverage on the back end of the defense.

George Kittle seems on the verge of a return for San Francisco. Pearsall played last week despite his injuries. White is one of San Francisco’s top pass rushers in the wake of all the injuries the Niners have been dealing with and his potential absence could be a blow on that front.

The Saints will be without their top two offensive playmakers for the regular season finale. They could also be without one of their top defenders in Davis, who was limited throughout the week. 

Kirk Cousins could be without each of his top three passing game weapons if if none of London, Pitts or Mooney can suit up. They were all limited in practice throughout the week.

The Browns will be down a pair of star rookies on Sunday, and both of their top…

..

[ad_2]

Read More

When my editor told me to write a “Way-too-early bold prediction” piece, at first I thought it was going to be a cake walk. After all, ya boy loves thinking outside the box and challenging group think. Easy peasy, I’ll knock this out in like an hour tops….

But then I do what I do and start going down rabbit holes… I start looking at projected cap space… examining pending free agents… postulating team needs, schematic fits, inside/outside run rates, slot/wide alignment, wait, what about potential OC changes??? And what about win totals? Should we really be investing in bad teams… Next thing you know, it’s New Year’s Day and I’ve spent about four hours researching the entire league for no good reason at all.

Advertisement

It’s a long way of saying, it would’ve been easy to just throw smashed bananas on the wall and come up with bold predictions that don’t make sense and could never happen, but what’s the fun in that? Here are five bold predictions for 2026 based on plausible spending and team needs:

Breece Hall signs with Pittsburgh, explodes for 1,500 yards and 10 TDs

Kenneth Gainwell only signed a one-year deal and while it’s possible the team re-signs him given his productivity, I wonder if they make a splashier move at a position that has been critical for Mike Tomlin-led teams. Interestingly, Jaylen Warren is a potential cut candidate given his contract.

Per Spotrac, Pittsburgh currently has the eighth-most projected cap space and you have to think they will spend some of that at running back.

Advertisement

A juiced-up version of Gainwell, Breece Hall is a perfect fit for the predominantly outside run scheme Arthur Smith deploys. And while Kenny G was good as a pass catcher too, Breece is down right electric as a receiver out of the backfield.

And let’s not forget, Tomlin is a legit king maker for this position. Le’Veon Bell, Willie Parker, Najee Harris, Rashard Mendenhall, James Conner and Deangelo Williams all posted seasons with…

..

[ad_2]

Read More