After things cooled down from the College Football Playoff announcement, things quickly heat up in the NFL. There were seven to eight games that were close. One turned into a blowout eventually while the other went vice versa only to come up short. With a month left of the season, a few teams already clinched the playoffs and are battling for seedings. The rest are desperate for wins while maybe a few are “playing” for draft picks (and for Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter). While the Lions, the Eagles, the Chiefs, and the Bengals clinched, six AFC teams are eliminated, and one NFC team is eliminated (not the Panthers for now). Let’s see how the last month of football plays out.

10) DENVER BRONCOS

BYE

9) LOS ANGELES CHARGERS

Chargers did nothing in the first half before cooking in the second half ato take the lead for a good bit. Unfortunately, they didn’t manage the clock properly and gave Kansas City enough time to eat clock and win the game. Plenty of mistakes were made, including dropped catches from receivers and running backs. They have something going, but executing drives consistently against tough opponents is the only thing missing from their game.

8) GREEN BAY PACKERS

Green Bay fought about as hard as they could, but they were outplayed throughout the game. Time of possession hurt them, and they couldn’t stop the onslaught of Ben Johnson’s offense from start to finish. They suffered the sweep and are at risk of finishing third in the NFC North, playing for a playoff spot. Then again, this might be more beneficial than being at the top based on their recent playoff history.

7) BALTIMORE RAVENS

BYE

6) PITTSBURGH STEELERS

Pittsburgh marked their calendar for an equalizer against Cleveland. Jameis Winston’s prayer was appreciated, but it didn’t matter to them. Pittsburgh responded big with two interceptions and forced a couple of fumbles for one recovery that Kadarius Toney lost. After Chris Boswell missed a key field goal two weeks ago, Boswell went 2 for 2 at home while Browns’ kicker Dustin Hopkins was 0 for 2. Overall, it was a nice get back game, and now they’re in a race with Buffalo for the two seed.

5) MINNESOTA VIKINGS

It was a nice welcome return for Kirko Chainz after his long stint with Minnesota, but the team made life miserable for him. While Kirko was successful with 344 pass yards, he threw two interceptions with no touchdowns to account for. Brian Flores’ defense also did a great job containing the offense from big plays throughout the game. Sam Darnold carved up Atlanta’s defense for 347 yards and FIVE touchdowns! Wow, what a game for him!

4) KANSAS CITY CHIEFS

The Chiefs are still the Chiefs. Despite injuries, penalties, and struggles in the second half, that didn’t stop them from winning at the most opportune time. Sam Perine’s involvement in the offense furthers the complication of opposing teams that must deal with the physicality of him, Pacheco, Hunt, and Steele. That walk-off field goal kick was pretty odd, but it still ricocheted through. With the Bills loss, the Chiefs have a comfortable one and a half lead for the overall seed.

3) BUFFALO BILLS

Buffalo got blindsided on the west coast against the Rams. They were in a short back-and-forth game before the Rams controlled the majority of it. Defense was outplayed and penalties hurt them. What gave the Rams a leg up to hold off Buffalo was the punt block touchdown return. However, Josh Allen did possibly everything he could (scoring 6 total TDs) to get the team back in the game. Unfortunately, they came up short and hurt their chances of the two seed and could also lose their opportunity for the overall seed.

2) PHILADELPHIA EAGLES

Philly escapes against a seemingly motivated Panthers squad. A loss could’ve been really loud towards Sirianni again. But that simmered a bit after handing the ball off to Saquon Barkley and a bit of Kenneth Gainwell. Passing game wasn’t great and that’s what may have kept Carolina in for a while. The run game is their strength, but not sure if the limited passing was just one bad game or maybe something more to be aware of. AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith didn’t seem that content with it.

1) DETROIT LIONS

One man, two man, three man, four. Five man, six man, seven man, more…down from injuries and then some on defense. And yet, that never stopped Detroit from doing what they do best, play hard and grind out their opponent. The offense never stopped even when Green Bay tried their damnest to. The offense is so good and well-balanced enough to combat any adversity, and that Thursday Night proved that this team should still run the table for the Super Bowl. Can the defense just hold on for a few more weeks for the overall seed?

TEAMS CONSIDERED

11. SEAHAWKS

12. CARDINALS

13. BUCCANEERS

14. COMMANDERS