NFL 2015 Week 17 Gameplan

16 more games left in the regular season!

Week 17 presents many wacky situations with 2 playoff spots open between 4 teams. The New York Jets and Pittsburgh Steelers are playing for a Wild Card spot, with the Jets getting in with a win or a Steelers lost. The Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts are in contention for the AFC South title, with the Texans needing a win to clinch. The Colts need more than a win and a Texans loss, which opens up the rest of the postseason field.

Colts win AFC South IF:
– Texans lose
– Colts win
– Falcons win
– Ravens win
– Bills win
– Dolphins win
– Broncos win
– Steelers win
– Raiders win

Yeah, good luck with that (speaking of luck, the Colts won’t even have Andrew Luck).

The NFC field is set, but the only team that is locked into their current position is Washington. The NFC North will be decided in prime time between the Vikings and Packers. The Cardinals have a shot at homefield advantage throughout the playoffs, but only if the Panthers lose.

There are three other games that don’t matter … but they still have some meaning. The loser of Lions at Bears will finish last in the division – but that means an easier schedule and a higher draft pick in 2016. The loser of Eagles at Giants will have to go to London in 2016. And Rams at 49ers will mark the final game at Levi’s Stadium until Super Bowl 50.

In another development: I clinched a super-.500 season with the NFL predictions. I went 11-5 in Week 16, my 6th straight week staying at least even. Here’s where things went the other way last week:

– Raiders K Sebastian Janikowski made both of his FG attempts, while Chargers K missed a 4th-quarter FG – and Raiders P Marquette King dropped 6 punts inside the 20, one of which set up a safety.

– The Falcons didn’t allow Carolina QB Cam Newton to complete a pass of at least 25 yards for the first time all season, a major factor in ending Carolina’s winning streak at 14 games.

– The Colts had a season-high 6 sacks in Miami, with OLB Robert Mathis’ 2nd sack coming on 4th-and-goal from the 5-yard line with less than a minute left to play.

– The Jets took advantage of receiving the overtime kickoff from the Patriots and saw QB Ryan Fitzpatrick throw his 1st overtime TD pass since his very first game in 2005.

– The Cardinals blew the Packers out by 30, and it wasn’t that close – it took Arizona QB Carson Palmer only 27 pass attempts to throw for 265 yards and 2 pass TD.

Here are the Week 17 picks – keep in mind, the last 11 Super Bowl champions all LOST at least one regular season game after December 1:

2015 #NFL Week 17 picks (11-5 in Week 16, +26 for 2015): ATL, BUF, PIT, CHI, CIN, DAL, HOU, IND, MIA, PHI, SEA, CAR, DEN, KC, SF, MIN #TheNU

— Law Murray (@LawMurrayTheNU) December 31, 2015

New Orleans at Atlanta:
Atlanta WR Julio Jones has an outside chance at some receiving records, and the last time the Falcons hosted the Saints (the worst pass defense of all time), Atlanta QB Matt Ryan lit them up for 448 pass yards and 3 pass TD.

New York Jets at Buffalo:
Buffalo head coach Rex Ryan may not come through with a playoff berth, but he’s a damn good spoiler, knocked off the Jets in Week 10, and he is 4-2 in Week 17 as a head coach.

Pittsburgh at Cleveland:
It would be great if the Browns could add to the list of sorry teams the perennially overpraised Steelers lost to since their last playoff win (AFC Championship), but Cleveland is trying to defend a desperate Steelers team with their worst pass defense in franchise history.

Detroit at Chicago:
The Lions have never won a road game in January in franchise history (0-9), while Bears OLB Willie Young should be able to beat Detroit’s OL multiple times.

Baltimore at Cincinnati:
The Bengals have allowed the fewest points in the NFL, and they’re going up against Baltimore’s 4th quarterback of the season (Ryan Mallett) at home.

Washington at Dallas:
Washington could be resting players, and even if they don’t, Dallas went on the road to beat them last month – the last time these teams lost/won.

Jacksonville at Houston:
Jacksonville QB Blake Bortles has a 1-12 record on the road as a starter, and Houston DE J.J. Watt had 3 sacks at home in Week 17 against the Jaguars last season.

Tennessee at Indianapolis:
It doesn’t matter who starts at QB for the Colts – the Titans have lost their last three games by 17+ points, and they’ve scored a total of 30 points during the losing streak while allowing at least 30 in all 3 games.

New England at Miami:
Patriots QB Tom Brady has a 6-7 record at Miami, and New England has been held to exactly 20 points in their last 2 games there, both losses.

Philadelphia at New York Giants:
The Eagles fired head coach Chip Kelly, but they have beaten the severely overpraised Giants 4 of the last 5 meetings – don’t be surprised if Philadelphia RB DeMarco Murray gets a chance to get his 2nd 100-yard rushing performance of the season (his 1st came against the Giants on Monday Night Football in October).

Seattle at Arizona:
This is the Game of the Week, with the Cardinals playing for a chance at homefield advantage throughout the playoffs; expect Seahawks QB Russell Wilson to do a better job against an Arizona secondary missing Pro Bowl FS Tyrann Mathieu.

Tampa Bay at Carolina:
The Panthers have scored at least 37 points in their last three home games; expect Carolina to stay on the field long enough to put Tampa Bay away with TDs from QB Cam Newton.

San Diego at Denver:
Denver QB Brock Osweiler will make his 7th start of the season, snapping a streak of 32 seasons with a Denver QB starting at least 10 games; the Broncos will support Osweiler against the Chargers with the top defense in the NFL.

Oakland at Kansas City:
Raiders S Charles Woodson began his NFL career with a loss at Arrowhead, and unless Oakland QB Derek Carr can snap out of his slump over the 2nd half of this season, Woodson will end his career with a loss at Arrowhead as well.

Saint Louis at San Francisco:
The 49ers have played much better defense at home this season, where they have allowed fewer than 2 yards per carry in their last 3 home games – they need that trend to continue against Rams rookie RB Todd Gurley.

Minnesota at Green Bay:
The Packers have beaten the Lions and Bears the past few weeks to win the NFC North in Week 17, but the Vikings are getting strong performances from QB Teddy Bridgewater to complement the NFL’s leading rusher (RB Adrian Peterson) and a defense that is becoming healthy and whole again.

Last time the Seahawks were in Arizona, they came up a yard short of their 2nd Super Bowl championship. Now they go for their 4th straight 10-win season, but they have to beat the Cardinals to do it. (PC: EliteDaily)