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The Titans keep finding ways to win. At 8-4, you’d think Marcus Mariota was having a banner season, but his stats are actually rather pedestrian. It hasn’t mattered, and they lead the AFC South. The Cardinals have lost Carson Palmer for the season, but, at 5-7, their woes involve more than an aging quarterback. Houston gets to watch this game, along with the teams’ respective markets.
No one wants to watch this game. Not even their own fans. The Jets are 5-7 while the Broncos are 3-9. Both teams have major questions at quarterback, but Jets have gotten better quarterback play out of Josh McCown than the Broncos have from Trevor Siemian. The poor souls in both teams’ markets will be condemned to see this on CBS.
Washington has to finally decide what to do about Kirk Cousins this offseason. The team has continuously franchise tagged him rather than sign an long-term deal, and financially that’s no longer feasible. Cousins’ play this season has been more pedestrian than in past years, so you’d expect his price tag to come down, but we’ll see. The Chargers are in the first season in LA, and have managed a .500 record. The game’s on CBS, but Texans outside of DFW won’t be seeing it.
Most of us expected the Seahawks to do well. They’ve got a good team, a dependable quarterback and a defense that can control games. The Jaguars? This is a shock. In seemingly one season, the Jags (and Titans) have taken over the AFC South, leaving the Colts and Texans trailing behind. This may be a fluke season, but for now, the Jags sit at 8-4. The game’s on Fox if you’re in their markets.
If you’re fortunate, this is the game you’ll be watching. It’s hard not to call the 10-2 Eagles the frontrunners to represent the NFC in the big game, and the 9-3 Rams are proving their issues over the past few years had more to do with coaching than actual talent on the roster. Both of these teams are lighting up their respective divisions, and are getting much-deserved praise and attention. It’s on Fox, and you’ll have to endure Joe Buck and Troy Aikman, but that’s a small price to pay to see these teams in action.
Five games. At most, two will be worth the time. Chit-chat in the comments below.