There are five teams who lost this week that have real playoff implications and hurt their chances dramatically.
Cincinnati Bengals:
One of the biggest losers this week is the Bengals. Despite Joe Burrow throwing for 356 yards and three TDs, and the combo of Tee Higgins and Ja’Marr Chase catching 16 passes for 223 yards and those three Burrow TDs, it wasn’t enough. The Bengals lost another heartbreaking game, and even though they aren’t mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, stick a fork in them. At 4-7, they’d have to win out…and hope.
Atlanta Falcons:
The division should be gift-wrapped for the Falcons, but they just keep losing games. They are still one game in the loss column ahead of a depleted Tampa Bay Buccaneers team, but they have now lost two in a row and only sitting at 6-5. Not only did they lose, but they were embarrassed against the Broncos in Denver. Kirk Cousins was bad. He only threw for 173 yards with an interception. And their vaunted running game only managed 50 yds.
Kansas City Chiefs:
The Chiefs have been dancing threw the raindrops all season. They had trailed in seven of their nine wins leading up to this game, and Patrick Mahomes has looked mortal for much of the season. They just could not overcome an early interception and a two-score deficit this time. Mahomes threw two interceptions, and Travis Kelce only caught two passes. They will surely right the ship next week in Carolina.
San Fransisco 49ers:
The 49ers are the most curious team in the league at this point. Every time it seems they are back, they fall back and lose. They were all set to take flight and start their run towards the playoffs. But another inexplicable loss at home has them back at 500 with the Seahawks and Rams. And if the playoffs began today, they’d be out. Although Brock Purdy completed 75% of his passes, he barely cracked 150 passing yards and threw an interception. And Christian McCaffrey isn’t his old self yet, only combining for 106 total yards and again not finding the endzone.
Washington Commanders:
On Thursday, the Commanders lost a tough divisional game against the Eagles, only able to put up 18 points. Jayden Daniels was a very pedestrian 22-32 with 191 passing yards. He threw an interception and only rushed for 18 yards. And their offense only gained a total of 284 yards. It will be interesting to see how they finish their last six games of the season. Currently, they are perched with the No. 7 seed in the NFC…and although not many predicted they’d be a playoff team this year, at this point, if they fall short, it will be a huge disappointment.