With a ton on the line in the postseason picture for Week 14, there were plenty of key matchups that could influence how the season's final month plays out. An underrated affair came in Orchard Park as the Bengals built a big lead on Buffalo entering the game's final quarter, which could've put them in the mix for a stunning AFC North comeback while putting the Bills' postseason hopes in a bit of peril.
Josh Allen wasn't daunted by the stage, delivering some heroic moments to help Buffalo rally for a massive win that kept them alive in the AFC East while potentially delivering a final dagger to Cincinnati's season.
NFL Winners And Losers From Week 14
Winner - Josh Allen
A thrilling snow game in Buffalo looked like it would not go the way of the home team as Joe Burrow threw four touchdowns to help Cincinnati build a 28-18 lead early in the fourth quarter. Allen went full Superman after that, sandwiching two touchdown drives around a pick six for Bills' corner Christian Benford as part of a run of 21 unanswered points in a span of 4:30 to put Buffalo ahead for good in a 39-34 victory.
The highlight of Allen's day was a 40-yard dash through the snow for a touchdown, capping an afternoon where he threw for 251 yards and ran for 78 while racking up four total touchdowns. That fourth quarter flurry helped Buffalo improve to 9-4 on the season and sets up a potential first place showdown with New England in Foxboro in Week 15.
Loser - Cincinnati Bengals
The losing end of that contest in Buffalo falls again on the Bengals, who saw their defense cough up another late lead in what has become the theme of their season. The pick six from Burrow in the fourth was a back-breaker as it allowed the momentum to completely steamroll in Buffalo's favor, completing another horrendous collapse in a game the Bengals had a 91.6 percent chance of winning with 8:44 to go.
The defeat dropped Cincinnati to 4-9 on the season and ensures they cannot finish above .500, which will make it nearly impossible to win the AFC North with Pittsburgh already at 7 wins and Baltimroe at 6. Burrow's return simply came too late for the Bengals, who will now have to spend the offseason wondering how to fix their defense again to avoid wasting more of their star quarterback's prime.
Winner - Mike Tomlin
The vultures have been circling around Mike Tomlin in Pittsburgh, whose remarkable run of avoiding losing seasons appeared to be in jeopardy after the Steelers' sluggish play over the past six weeks. With a first-place showdown looming against Baltimore, Tomlin's group looked more ready to play than John Harbaugh's as Pittsburgh won 27-22 to regain control of the division.
Aaron Rodgers turned back the clock with a strong effort, completing 23-of-34 passes for 284 yards and a touchdown while adding a rushing score for good measure. The defense also made a big play down the stretch as Joey Porter Jr knocked the football out of Isaiah Likely's hands on a potential go-ahead touchdown, which allowed the unit to come up with a critical stop that snuffed out a late Ravens' rally.
Loser - Baltimore Ravens
While Lamar Jackson did look more like himself in Baltimore's 27-22 defeat, he still threw for only 219 yards and tossed a critical interception in the second quarter that set up a short field Pittsburgh capitalized on for a touchdown. The Ravens' late rally also fell short as Jackson came up short twice, missing Mark Andrews on a potential go-ahead touchdown and taking a sack on the final play of the game deep in Steelers' territory.
There is no question that the Ravens were hosed on a very questionable overturn on the Likely touchdown and it cost them a chance to go ahead in the final stretches of a critical divisional game. If Baltimore misses the postseason, they may look directly at a blown call in Pittsburgh as the reason why, which is a shame.
Winner - J.J. McCarthy
It has been a very slow build for J.J. McCarthy, who has delivered some of the worst quarterback play the league has seen in years to drag down a talented Vikings' roster. With a friendly matchup in Week 14 against Washington's struggling defense, McCarthy was much more efficient, throwing three touchdowns and averaging 7.1 yards per attempt as Minnesota shut out the Commanders 31-0.
That effort is a positive step for McCarthy, who has missed a ton of time due to injury, and seeing good results against an NFL defense is important. The season won't end with a postseason berth for Minnesota, but if the Vikings can see McCarthy finish strong they will have something to work with as they try to reload for 2026.
Loser - Jayden Daniels
With the Commanders nearly out of the postseason hunt, their decision to bring Jayden Daniels back just over a month after a bad elbow dislocation seemed very risky. The worst-case scenario nearly materialized for Daniels as he injured his elbow again, landing awkwardly on it and departing the contest as Marcus Mariota finished out a shutout loss that eliminated Washington from the postseason.
Head coach Dan Quinn downplayed the severity of Daniels' injury after the game, saying it was a coach's decision to hold him out given the context of the game. It is encouraging to see that Quinn learned a lesson from the last time he left Daniels in too long, but the Commanders have to be very careful with Daniels down the stretch so he doesn't suffer another injury that could impact his availability for next season.
Winner - Carolina Panthers
Sitting on the couch turned out to be a good thing for Carolina, who got to rest on their bye week and picked up a key result as Tampa Bay was upset at home by New Orleans. The loss dropped the Buccaneers to 7-6 on the season and pulled them into a first place tie with Carolina, although the Bucs have the edge for now based on a better record in common games.
The two NFC South rivals face off twice in the final three weeks of the season, but this was a win for the Panthers as it looked highly unlikely for a Bucs' home game against a two-win team to go in their favor. The Saints' victory here may end up mattering a lot if Carolina is able to snap Tampa Bay's run atop the division.
Loser - Tanking
There are a lot of bad teams in the NFL and most fans assume that any squad eliminated from the postseason at this juncture is simply mailing it in. The games still count and individuals playing for bad teams don't care about the chance of a draft pick that won't help them this season, so seeing New Orleans and Tennessee pick up Week 14 victories is a victory against the concept of tanking.
The Titans and Saints are bad teams that will lose games naturally, but fans who watch from the comfort of home don't appreciate how draining it is to go to work as a professional athlete and constantly lose games. Draft picks are essentially lottery tickets so seeing two teams in the doldrums score victories, including one that could have major playoff ramifications like New Orleans' victory in Tampa, is a good sign that the NFL won't ever devolve into full on tanking like the NBA does.
Winner - Green Bay Packers
It has been a long time since the Packers-Bears games were meaningful for postseason purposes and the atmosphere in Lambeau Field was electric for a first place showdown in the NFC North. The contest was a back-and-forth thriller that Green Bay won 28-21 with the Packers intercepting Caleb Williams in the end zone in the final minute to deny yet another late Bears' comeback.
The victory was the fourth in a row for Green Bay, which has now climbed past Chicago to grab the division lead and the No. 2 seed in the NFC. The two teams meet again at Soldier Field on Saturday night of Week 16, but making a statement here gave the Packers the inside track to a division crown.
Loser - Indianapolis Colts
We may be witnessing a full on collapse from the Indianapolis Colts, which lost their third straight game to drop to 8-5 on the season. While the loss in Jacksonville extended a stunning run of ineptitude for Indianapolis in Duval County (where they haven't won since Andrew Luck's third year in the league in 2014), they also took on a bigger loss as Daniel Jones left the game with an Achilles injury.
If Jones is out the rest of the way it could be a death blow for the Colts, who had to turn to Riley Leonard to finish the game. With a brutal final four games left (at Seattle, San Francisco, Jacksonville, at Houston) and no proven quarterback on the roster, there is a strong possibility a Colts team that led the AFC a few weeks ago finishes below .500.