Find out which NFL teams are on upset alert in Week 15.
It’s hard to believe there’s only three more weeks left in the 2014 NFL regular season, but do you want to know the one good thing about that? It means the playoffs are coming.
In order for teams to get to the playoffs, though, they need to take care of business during the regular season, and the two games that are included in this column could have huge playoff implications when it comes down to tie breakers and overall division record for playoff seeding.
Thursday night’s game may have been a snore to some–no touchdowns were scored and six field goals were made–but the results of Arizona’s win against the St. Louis Rams will ultimately affect playoff seeding.
Let’s examine two other matchups this week where we could see upsets and division shakeups.
*All spreads via Yahoo Sports.
Cleveland Browns (-1.0) vs. Cincinnati Bengals
The Cleveland Browns may be a surprising 7-6 this season, with one of those seven wins coming in a 24-3 road blowout of the Cincinnati Bengals, but I’m not putting much stock in Cleveland this time around.
Johnny “Football” Manziel will make his first career NFL start this Sunday against the division rival Bengals, and I think Manziel will quickly learn that NFL defensive ends and linebackers are a lot quicker than the ones in college.
Johnny Manziel has officially been named the starting QB for the Cleveland Browns http://t.co/KzGKKqEVKI pic.twitter.com/AeO3XPaBMJ
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) December 9, 2014
The speed of an NFL game is a heck of a lot faster than that of a college game, so it’s going to be an adjustment for the rookie QB. Aside from that, Cincinnati has won three of its last four, and it now boasts a dangerous rushing attack with the likes of Giovani Bernard and Jeremy Hill. Combine that with a healthy A.J. Green–who went for 11 receptions, 224 yards and a TD last week–and the Browns’ will find themselves in some trouble in Week 15. Having lost in back-to-back games, I’m a little baffled to see the Browns as favorites with a rookie making his first career start, and that’s ultimately what’s making me go with the Bengals in this game. Cincinnati wins this game and continues to stay atop the AFC North.
Philadelphia Eagles (-3.5) vs. Dallas Cowboys
I know the Dallas Cowboys were man-handled by the rival Philadelphia Eagles on Thanksgiving Day, but Sunday night will see a different outcome. These two teams are heading in opposite directions entering this one, with the Cowboys putting up 41 points on the Chicago Bears, while the Eagles took a 24-14 loss to the Seattle Seahawks at home. I don’t think Mark Sanchez is the quarterback to lead Philly to glory, and I think that’s going to start to show down the stretch, beginning with the Seattle game.
Even if Sanchez is able to manage the game against Dallas, Tony Romo is healthier than he was against the Eagles the first time around, and the Eagles can’t stop the run. Philadelphia allowed 188 rushing yards against the Seahawks last week, and with DeMarco Murray coming off a 179 rushing yard night–and 11 100-yard rushing games overall this season–things don’t look bright for the Birds. Murray’s impressive season has him right up there with another Dallas great.
DeMarco Murray's 11 games with at least 100 rushing yards tie Cowboys single-season record, set by Emmitt Smith in 1995
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) December 5, 2014
In the end, I think Dallas’ big three of Romo, Murray, and Dez Bryant are too much, and Sanchez will make a mistake or two that will ultimately be the back breaker for the Eagles.
Look for the ‘Boys to take the lead in the NFC East with a big win against Philadelphia on Sunday Night Football.