5 Best Storylines of NFL Week 15: Division titles and Wild Cards on the Line
By Andrew Garda
Cincinnati Bengals at Cleveland Browns
Let’s start at the reason most people outside of Cleveland and Cincinnati will be tuning into this game: Johnny Football.
After months of watching over Brian Hoyer’s shoulder, Johnny Manziel will get the start in Cleveland against a hated divisional rival. At this point, it’s a move that says Cleveland is already looking to next year, save for the fact that Hoyer had been among the worst quarterbacks in the NFL over the last month.
Manziel will have his ups and downs and he may not end up being an NFL-quality starter, but Cleveland will find out some of his ability starting Sunday.
How he plays will inform how the Browns do against the Bengals, who are holding onto their division lead by the skin of their teeth. Baltimore and Pittsburgh both have very winnable games, so if Cincinnati manages to lose there is a good chance they not only fall out of the number one spot in the division, but perhaps out of the playoffs altogether.
If Cleveland wins this game, they will still nominally be ahead of Cleveland for the last Wild Card spot, but having lost two games to the Browns, they will be in real danger of missing the playoffs.
Cincinnati will also be watching the next game we have on the docket very closely.
Next: Denver Broncos at San Diego Chargers