After Week 14, your AFC division leaders are New England, Tennessee, Kansas City (all at 9-4) and Baltimore (8-5). Your NFC division leaders are Arizona (10-2 going into Monday night), Green Bay, Tampa Bay (both 10-3) and Dallas (9-4). The wild card holders are the Chargers, Indianapolis and Buffalo in the AFC, along with the Rams, San Francisco and Washington in the NFC. What can we expect to see down the stretch?
Let’s take a closer look from a NFL betting perspective.
NFL News: Predictions for the Rest of the 2021 Season
Cleveland will Make the Playoffs
With a 7-6 record, the Browns are tied with Buffalo and Indianapolis but trail in terms of conference record. The team has had to deal with injuries to both starting running backs, both starting cornerbacks and wideout Jarvis Landry. Odell Beckham Jr was also on the shelf for a few weeks before the team sent him to the Rams. Both starting offensive tackles have missed time, and even signal-caller Baker Mayfield missed a start and has had to deal with shoulder problems in his non-throwing arm. Even so, the Browns still have the best interior offensive line in the league, and no team is better at scheming throws off the play-action. The Browns can cover in the back with its solid zone, while the front four, led by Myles Garrett, pressures quarterbacks. Down the stretch, the Browns have Las Vegas at home, a trip to Green Bay, a trip to Pittsburgh and a visit from Cincinnati. A 3-1 finish leaves the Browns at 10-7 and a solid shot at a wild card, given how badly Buffalo is stumbling down the stretch. The key will be knocking off Pittsburgh after losing ugly at home to the Steelers in their first meeting.
Tennessee and Kansas City Meet for the AFC Championship
You might wonder how this could happen for a team that has lost to the Jets and the Texans this year…with the Houston loss coming at home. First of all, there are no flawless teams in the AFC – or even the NFL – this year. Tennessee went into their bye on a two-game skid, including a 23-point loss at New England, but they came out with a 20-0 shellacking of Jacksonville. We’ll learn more in the next ten days, as they visit Pittsburgh and then host San Francisco on a Thursday night, but the team’s discipline on offense will continue to pay off, and then when Derrick Henry returns with fresh legs from his injury, the team will be right where it was during that epic run at the end of the 2019 campaign.
The Chiefs look to be clicking, putting up 70 combined points in their two games after the bye, including 48 in a home rout of Las Vegas. Even more importantly, the Chiefs have not permitted more than 17 points to anyone since October 24 (when they got routed by these same Titans) and have not permitted a touchdown in a game since November 14. The offense is picking up, but the defense is leading the way; in the team’s win over Las Vegas on Sunday, the defense opened the scoring with a fumble return for a touchdown on the Raiders’ first offensive play.
New England Wins the AFC East and Locks Up the Bye
Buffalo has basically imploded, and after the Patriots visit Indianapolis this week, they get the Bills at home, Jacksonville at home and finish in Week 18 at Miami. I think New England can shut down Jonathan Taylor and then skate through those last three, giving them a 13-4 record and the bye to the divisional round, and they would host that round and the conference championship if they get through. I do think they lose that divisional round game, because I don’t trust Mac Jones in a quarterback duel against Patrick Mahomes now that the Chiefs are clicking, and I don’t think the Patriots will be able to stop Derrick Henry.
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