Despite winning last week, the Broncos dropped in NFL power rankings entering Week 17.
Even after beating the Detroit Lions (3-11-1) 27-17 on Sunday, the Denver Broncos (6-9) still dropped two spots in Nate Davis’ latest NFL power rankings for USA TODAY Sports. Denver is now ranked No. 22 overall, considered one of the 11-worst teams in the league.
Here is Davis’ commentary with the Broncos’ ranking:
If not for defense’s early season bout with mono, they might’ve been a wild-card contender after going 6-5 since start of October.
There’s not a negative spin with Denver’s ranking so it seems to just be a case of other teams showing improvement and moving up, knocking the Broncos down a few spots. Denver is still considered the second-best team in the AFC West.
The Kansas City Chiefs (11-4, No. 4) are first in the division followed by the Broncos and then the Oakland Raiders (7-8, No. 23) and Los Angeles Chargers (5-10, No. 25). Denver will host Oakland in Week 17.
The Baltimore Ravens (13-2) are ranked No. 1 and the Cincinnati Bengals (1-14) are ranked No. 32. To view the complete rankings, click here.
When these two teams played each other in Week 1, Broncos QB Joe Flacco posted a QBR of 38.5 in a 24-16 loss.
The Oakland Raiders (7-8) will face the Denver Broncos (6-9) on Sunday at 2:25 p.m. MT at Empower Field at Mile High on CBS in Week 17 of the 2019 NFL season. Here’s our quick preview of the game.
Broncos’ keys to victory: When these two teams played each in Week 1, Broncos QB Joe Flacco posted a QBR of 38.5 in a 24-16 loss. Denver has since turned the offense over to rookie QB Drew Lock and he has provided a spark on offense. Lock should be able to air it out against an Oakland secondary that ranks in the bottom-10 of the NFL this season. On defense, OLB Von Miller will look to reach double-digit sacks for the sixth-straight year. Miller needs three sacks on Sunday to keep that streak alive and he will be facing QB Derek Carr, who has been sacked 18 times in 10 career games against Denver. A motivated Miller could be trouble for Oakland’s offensive line.
Raiders’ keys to victory: When these teams met in September, RB Josh Jacobs totaled 113 yards from scrimmage and scored two touchdowns. Jacobs is still battling a shoulder injury and his status for Week 17 is up in the air. If Jacobs recovers in time for Sunday’s game, Oakland should look to establish the run and take the pressure off Carr. On defense, the Raiders should double-team Broncos WR Courtland Sutton, who racked up over 1,000 receiving yards this year while playing with three different QBs. If Oakland can take Sutton out of Denver’s game plan, Lock might struggle to move the ball.
Matchup to watch: Raiders TE Darren Waller vs. Broncos LB Alexander Johnson. Waller caught seven passes for 70 yards against Denver in Week 1. Since then, the Broncos have continued to struggle covering TEs and Waller has surpassed the 1,000-yard receiving mark. Johnson wasn’t a starter in Week 1, though, and he has emerged as Denver’s best coverage linebacker.
Who wins? The Broncos will be looking to even the series after losing in Oakland earlier this year and the Raiders need a win to keep their playoff hopes alive. Losing would result in a better draft position but the players won’t be taking that into consideration. Denver will have momentum coming off a 27-17 win over the Lions last week. Broncos, 31-24.
Despite the additions of Marshawn Lynch and Robert Turbin, Seahawks rookie Travis Homer is likely to see the most touches against the 49ers.
The Seattle Seahawks made a number of roster moves on Monday, including signing running backs Marshawn Lynch and Robert Turbin to bolster the position following season-ending injuries to Chris Carson and C.J. Prosise.
Before the additions, Travis Homer was the lone running back on the active roster. Despite being a rookie, he remains the option with the most familiarity with the playbook heading into Sunday.
“Travis is ready to go,” coach Pete Carroll said Tuesday. “He’s knows everything. He’s been through all of our system for the whole year. He showed that he was ready to play football and he did a good job in the game. We lean on him because of his background with us and his toughness and his speed and his playmaking. We’re pleased to have that opportunity. That’s good fortune to have him ready to go.”
Carroll did say that both Lynch and Turbin should get some time against the 49ers but he needs to see how both respond on the practice field, first.
“We’ll just fit the guys in,” Carroll explained. “Give me a couple days here. This is like the first day.”
The Seahawks have Wednesday off for the Christmas holiday, so Lynch and Turbin will have just days to get ready to battle San Francisco.
Watch safety Eric Reid talk about potentially playing the spoiler this week.
Last year, the Panthers scored a consolation prize victory Week 17 against a Saints team that was resting its stars for the playoffs. This year, Carolina is carrying another long losing streak (currently seven games) into the last week of the season. Their chances of upsetting New Orleans are not good. The Saints opened as 12.5-point favorites despite playing on the road.
As daunting as that sounds, the Panthers were able to compete with their division rivals earlier this season, losing by three points in New Orleans thanks to some kicker issues. Watch safety Eric Reid talk about potentially playing the spoiler this week.
Reid hasn’t been bad exactly but he’s played an unexceptional season.
Like the rest of Carolina’s secondary he has made too many mistakes in coverage, allowing explosive plays. Reid posted a season-high 11 solo tackles Week 12 against the Saints and he has a career-high 118 total so far but that’s more a sign of the first two levels of the defense not making stops rather than Reid doing something special.
The New Orleans Saints have already punched their playoff ticket, but several clinch scenarios depend on the Packers, 49ers, and Seahawks.
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The New Orleans Saints have already punched their ticket for the NFC playoff tournament, but they didn’t get any help from the Minnesota Vikings on Monday night. The Vikings, sunk by an awful performance from franchise quarterback Kirk Cousins, put in a pathetic effort against the Green bay Packers and made New Orleans’ path to a top-two playoff seed (and the bye week it carries) much more difficult.
Winning that first-round bye or securing homefield advantage throughout the playoffs are well within reach for New Orleans, but they’ll need plenty of help. Fortunately, the NFL is here to clear things up. Here are each of the playoff clinch scenarios relevant to the Saints in Week 17.
Saints clinch first-round bye
Saints beat Panthers, and Packers lose/tie Lions OR
Saints beat Panthers, and 49ers lose/tie Seahawks OR
Saints tie Panthers, and Packers lose to Lions OR
Saints tie Panthers, and 49ers lose to Seahawks OR
49ers lose to Seahawks, and Packers beat or tie Lions
Saints clinch No. 1 seed in NFC
Saints beat Panthers, Packers lose/tie Lions, and 49ers lose/tie Seahawks OR
Saints tie Panthers, Packers lose to Lions, and 49ers lose to Seahawks
Complicated as that all may be, it’s kind of what we expected: the Saints have to beat the Panthers on Sunday to reach their easiest path to the playoffs. After that, things move out of their hands. The Saints don’t need both the Packers and 49ers to trip up and lose in Week 17, either of them doing that is enough to clinch a playoff bye. And that’s really what’s most important, even if homefield advantage would be nice. The Saints have gone 6-1 on the road in 2019, and their road record speaks for itself — they’ve won 17 of their last 24 away games, going back to the 2017 season, including 13 of their last 15. New Orleans has built a team that can travel well and beat any team in any venue in the league. But they could sure use an extra week to rest up and prepare before making their playoffs debut.
Opening betting odds suggest the New Orleans Saints are a popular bet to overwhelm the reeling Carolina Panthers in the NFL’s Week 17 finale.
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For the second year in a row, the New Orleans Saints and Carolina Panthers are scheduled to close out the NFL regular season in a maybe-meaningful Week 17 game. Sure, circumstances aren’t the same as last season — the Saints won’t be resting their starters and putting Teddy Bridgewater under center, and the Panthers won’t have longtime head coach Ron Rivera at the wheel — but the fact remains that this game means more for one team than the other.
But with the Saints in position to claim a top-two seed in the NFC playoff standings (with some help) and the Panthers looking to play spoiler, both squads are going to give their best effort. Per the opening odds from BetMGM, that’s going to be futile for Carolina. The Saints are favored by 12.5 points on the road this week, with an over/under set at 47.5. That implies a finish in the neighborhood of Saints 30, Panthers 18.
With rookie quarterback Will Grier expected to start again, the Saints defense will have opportunities to go into the playoffs on a high note. That’s despite a pair of recent losses in the secondary, after free safety Marcus Williams and cornerback Eli Apple exited Sunday’s game with the Tennessee Titans with injuries. We’ll learn the extent of those issues when the Saints release their first injury report on Wednesday.
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After losing to the Arizona Cardinals, the Seattle Seahawks have dropped out of the top five in Touchdown Wire’s Week 17 NFL power rankings.
The Seahawks have taken a tumble in the power rankings after their devastating loss to the Arizona Cardinals. Down four spots entering the final week of the regular season, Seattle has fallen from No. 2 to No. 6, no longer a top-five powerhouse in Touchdown Wire’s lineup.
“Just about all season long, the Seahawks were cruising,” writes Doug Farrar. “They entered Sunday with the lead for the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs and what seemed like an easy game against the Cardinals. So what happened? The Seahawks lost to Arizona, and they may have lost a lot more. Running backs Chris Carson and C.J. Prosise were injured, and coach Pete Carroll said both are done for the year. Left tackle Duane Brown needs knee surgery and could be done for the year.”
“All three losses are significant, but the injury to Carson could be devastating,” Farrar continues. “He had rushed for 1,230 yards and seven touchdowns and was one of the focal points of the offense. It’s impossible to replace someone like Carson. The Seahawks are going to have to tweak their offensive philosophy. They need to put more responsibility on the plate of quarterback Russell Wilson, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing.”
Previewing the NFL NFC champion futures odds with 1 week left in the regular season, with NFL futures, betting odds, picks and best bets
Battle-tested will be an appropriate adjective for whichever team makes it out of what should be a grueling NFC playoffs. We know five of the six NFC playoff teams but who gets a bye, home-field advantage and the winner of the NFC East are all still up for grabs heading into Week 17. Here are my top three bets to win the NFC Championship.
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1. San Francisco 49ers (+250)
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo (Photo credit: Cary Edmondson – USA TODAY Sports)
Currently the second favorite to come out of the NFC, the 49ers head into their Week 17 matchup against the Seattle Seahawks needing a win to clinch a first-round bye and home-field advantage through the NFC playoffs.
When healthy the 49ers defense could be the best unit in all of football. The 49ers completely overwhelmed the Green Bay Packers in their 37-8 beatdown in Week 12, holding the Packers to just 198 total yards. They kept future MVP, QB Lamar Jackson, and the world-beating Baltimore Ravens in check during their slugfest 20-17 loss to the Ravens in Week 13. The value isn’t great at +250 and there are injury concerns in the aforementioned defense but the 49ers should be ready to roll come playoff time given they’ve played a number of high-intensity games recently, including a three-week stretch against Green Bay, Baltimore, and New Orleans. The latter two games were on the road, too.
2. Philadelphia Eagles (+1400)
Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz (Photo credit: Matthew Emmons – USA TODAY Sports)
Obviously, the long odds of +1400 are the selling point here but if the Eagles can win the NFC East title by beating the New York Giants in Week 17 then every NFL bettor should entertain the Eagles’ chances to win the NFC. The Eagles are elite along the offensive line, defensive line and at quarterback. On their run to winning Super Bowl LII, the Eagles coaching staff ran trick plays, played its home-field advantage perfectly and ultimately coached up then backup quarterback, Nick Foles, to a Super Bowl-MVP performance.
Also, all we need is for the Eagles to make the NFC Conference Championship to earn money on this wager. If the Eagles make it to the NFC title game, you can hedge your Eagles to win the NFC futures ticket by betting the other side. So if you placed a $100 wager, which earns a profit of $1,400, betting whoever the Eagles are playing in that game—even if it’s at a juiced-up moneyline—will guarantee a profit.
3. New Orleans Saints (+185)
New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (Photo credit: Chuck Cook – USA TODAY Sports)
Again we aren’t in love with the Saints value here at +185, but they are the most complete team heading into the playoffs. Quarterback Drew Brees, ranks first in completion percentage (75.3%), second in QB Rating (115.7), third in QBR (73.7) and third in touchdown percentage (6.9%). His number one target—WR Michael Thomas—is now the record holder of most catches in a season and is a legitimate MVP contender. Everyone expects their offense to be elite, but a sneaky tough defense could make the 2019 Saints special. They rank No. 3 in sacks (49), fifth in rushing yards allowed per game and 14th in total yards heading into Week 17.
Currently the 3-seed, the Saints can still clinch a first-round bye if they win plus the 49ers or Packers lose. Playing in New Orleans gives the Saints a home-field advantage few teams have as Mercedes-Benz Superdome is a scary place for any opposing team. Getting the bye and at least two home games will be crucial for a Saints team that has a 74-38 record at home since Sean Payton took over as head coach in 2006.
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Previewing Sunday’s New York Jets at Buffalo Bills sports betting odds and lines, with Week 17 NFL betting picks, tips and best bets.
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The New York Jets (6-9) will be trying to send the AFC East-rival Buffalo Bills (10-5) into the postseason with one more loss as the two sides meet at New Era Field Sunday of Week 17. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET. We analyze the Jets-Bills odds and sports betting lines, while providing sports betting tips and advice on this matchup.
Jets at Bills: Week 17 preview, betting trends and notes
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The Bills claimed a 17-16 road victory when the two sides met in Week 1. Bills QB Josh Allen threw for 254 yards, while Jets QB Sam Darnold passed for 175 yards. The Jets rushed for just 68 yards as a team.
New York enters off of a 16-10 home win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Jets are 5-2 since Week 10.
Buffalo fell by a 24-17 count to the rival New England Patriots Saturday of Week 16.
Allen doesn’t have a 300-yard passing game on the season. Darnold has two. The Jets allow 236.2 passing yards per game while the Bills rank third in the NFL with 195.9 pass yards allowed per game.
The Bills rank second with just 16.4 points per game surrendered. The Jets have given up 23.5 PPG.
Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott hasn’t yet decided which starters, if any, will be resting for Week 17 with the AFC’s top wild-card spot already secured.
The Bills are set to visit the Houston Texans in the wild-card round. The Jets are projected to pick ninth overall in the 2020 NFL Draft.
The BILLS (-125) are the better team overall and should be the pick regardless of who starts and sits this week. Matt Barkley could draw the start in place of Allen, but the Bills are still deep enough at the other skill positions and have one of the NFL’s top defensive units. They’re a good pick at the early-week odds, and will be worth doubling down if they shift to slight home dogs with the potential inactive ruling for Allen.
The Bills are 4-3 at home while the Jets are just 1-6 on the road.
The better number for the BILLS (-1.5, -110) comes on the spread where they’ll need to win by 2 or more points for a bet to cash. Buffalo is a league-best 9-4-2 against the spread overall and covers the line by 3.6 points per game. New York has covered the spread in just six of 15 games and falls an average of 0.8 PPG below the cover line.
New to sports betting? A $10 bet on the Bills to win by at least 2 points and cover the spread returns a profit of $9.09 while the same wager for the outright win on the moneyline returns a profit of $8.
Take the UNDER 36.5 (-110). The projected total is the lowest of the week. The Bills are 4-11 against the Over/Under and fall an average of 4.1 points below the line. The Jets are 7-8 and come up 1.4 PPG shy of the projections. The Bills haven’t scored 20 points in any of their last three games.
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Previewing Sunday’s Pittsburgh Steelers at Baltimore Ravens sports betting odds and lines, with Week 17 NFL betting picks, tips and best bets.
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The Pittsburgh Steelers (8-7) will make their final bid for a postseason berth Sunday of Week 17 against the AFC North-rival Baltimore Ravens (13-2) at M&T Bank Stadium. The game will kick off at 4:25 p.m. ET. We analyze the Steelers-Ravens odds and sports betting lines, while providing sports betting tips and advice on this matchup.
Steelers at Ravens: Week 17 preview, betting trends and notes
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The Ravens beat the Steelers 26-23 in overtime in Pittsburgh in Week 5. Ravens QB Lamar Jackson passed for 161 yards and rushed for 70. His 3 interceptions were a single-game season-high.
The Steelers enter Week 17 off of back-to-back losses to the Buffalo Bills (17-10) and New York Jets (16-10).
The Tennessee Titans (8-7) hold the tie-breaker over the Steelers for the second wild-card spot based on strength of schedule.
The Ravens have won 11 straight games with seven of those being decided by at least two scores. They clinched home-field advantage through the AFC playoffs.
Steelers third-string QB Devlin Hodges will get the Week 17 start after Mason Rudolph (shoulder) suffered an injury in Week 16.
Baltimore will rest Jackson and RB Mark Ingram (calf) in the regular-season finale, along with several veteran defensive starters.
QB Robert Griffin III will start for the Ravens. He appeared in six games this season, going 12-for-17 through the air with one touchdown and one pick. He hasn’t started a game since 2016.
The Ravens (18.1) and Steelers (18.3) rank third and fourth, respectively, in scoring defense. They’re two of the five teams in the NFL allowing fewer than 310 yards of offense per game.
Steelers at Ravens: Key injuries
Ingram is the main injury concern for Baltimore, but he was likely to rest this week regardless.
Steelers RB James Conner (thigh) may join Rudolph on the shelf for Week 17 after he left the Week 16 contest.
Steelers at Ravens: Odds, betting lines and prediction
Take the value with the RAVENS (+110). Even though they’ll be resting stars, they’re still the deeper and more talented group on offense. Baltimore is 6-1 at home this year while Pittsburgh (-133) is just 3-4 on the road. Hodges threw six interceptions against just a single touchdown over the Steelers’ last two losses and they briefly switched back to Rudolph last week.
The spread is set at 2.5 points with -110 odds on either side. Stick with the hosts on the moneyline rather than taking lower odds for just 2 points of insurance in the event of a loss. PASS on the spread.
New to sports betting? A $10 bet on the Ravens to win outright on the moneyline returns a profit of $11. Backing them to cover +2.5 on the spread and stay within 2 points in a loss, tie or win outright would return $9.09 in profit.
The best play is the UNDER 38.5 (-110). It was going to be a strong defensive battle even if both sides were fielding full rosters. Look for both QBs to struggle and Baltimore’s backup defenders to prove their worth in a defensive slog.
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