Source: EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – JANUARY 08: A detail of the official National Football League NFL logo is seen painted on the turf as the New York Giants host the Atlanta Falcons during their NFC Wild Card Playoff game at MetLife Stadium on January 8, 2012 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Nick Laham/Getty Images)
After 17 long weeks, we have finally arrived at the final regular season week of the NFL season.
The Indianapolis Colts and the Houston Texans enter the final week with everything on the line. The two divisional rivals will face off Saturday night in prime time. Win, and you’re in the playoffs. Lose, and you go home. The Colts beat the Texans in Houston all the way back in Week 2, but that was an eternity ago. Both teams have undergone drastic changes since then. Personally, I think C.J Stroud gives the Texans the edge, but the Colts are a resilient team. Expect this to be a close, hard-fought battle between two long-time rivals.
During Thursday’s edition of The Ride With JMV, Zak Keefer of The Athletic joined the show. Zak gave his thoughts on the key to the Colts beating the Texans will be running back Jonathan Taylor
“This is why you pay him! I don’t think he’s ever lost to the Texans, there was a tie last year we don’t need to get into that, but this is a dude. They have an advantage at quarterback obviously with C.J Stroud over Minshew, you have a huge advantage with Taylor. He needs to go off.”
Meanwhile, the Tennessee Titans can play spoiler (and help out either the Texans or Colts) if they upset the Jacksonville Jaguars in Nashville. If the Jaguars lose, whoever wins the Colts-Texans matchup will take the AFC South crown. If they win, they win the division outright.
Finally, the potential game of the week is the final regular season game of the season. The Miami Dolphins will face the surging Buffalo Bills in a game with plenty on the line. If Miami wins, they are the two-seed in the AFC and win the AFC East. If they lose, they could drop to the 6th-seed. For the Bills, a win means they win the division and the two-seed. A loss could see them out of the playoffs entirely.
Here are my FINAL regular season picks for the NFL season!
SATURDAY
(9-7) Pittsburgh Steelers @ (13-3) Baltimore Ravens: 19-16 Steelers
(9-7) Houston Texans @ (9-7) Indianapolis Colts: 20-17 Texans
SUNDAY
(8-8) Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ (2-14) Carolina Panthers: 21-10 Buccaneers
(11-5) Cleveland Browns @ (8-8) Cincinnati Bengals: 20-13 Bengals
(7-9) Minnesota Vikings @ (11-5) Detroit Lions: 27-14 Lions
(6-10) New York Jets @ (4-12) New England Patriots: 13-10 Patriots
(7-9) Atlanta Falcons @ (8-8) New Orleans Saints: 23-20 Saints
(9-7) Jacksonville Jaguars @ (5-11) Tennessee Titans: 21-17 Titans
(8-8) Seattle Seahawks @ (4-12) Arizona Cardinals: 27-17 Cardinals
(7-9) Chicago Bears @ (8-8) Green Bay Packers: 24-18 Packers
(10-6) Kansas City Chiefs @ (5-11) Los Angeles Chargers: 17-14 Chiefs
(8-8) Denver Broncos @ (7-9) Las Vegas Raiders: 24-20 Raiders
(11-5) Philadelphia Eagles @ (5-11) New York Giants: 22-19 Eagles
(9-7) Los Angeles Rams @ (12-4) San Francisco 49ers: 28-24 49ers
(11-5) Dallas Cowboys @ (4-12) Washington Commanders: 31-14 Cowboys
(10-6) Buffalo Bills @ (11-5) Miami Dolphins: 35-31 Bills
Listen to JMV’s full conversation with Zak Keefer and others down below, as well as his NFL Week 18 picks, and tune into The Ride With JMV weekdays from 3-6pm on 93.5/107.5 The Fan!
