American Football

NFL Week 16 Saturday Games Open Thread

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Cincinnati Bengals v New England Patriots
Photo by Nick Grace/Getty Images

We have an unusually large slate of Saturday games on tap this week in the NFL

For this week only Saturday has the bulk of NFL action, with seven 1 pm games, a highly unusual 2 pm game, a couple of 4 pm games, an 8:15 prime time matchup, and a partridge in a pear tree on tap.

In the 1 pm games, perhaps the best matchup features Joe Burrow and the 10-4 Cincinnati Bengals taking on the 7-7 New England Patriots in a game the Jets need the Bengals to win to keep their slim playoff hopes alive. Also at 1 pm the 8-5-1 New York Giants face off against the 11-3 Minnesota Vikings; the 11-3 Buffalo Bills visit the 3-11 Chicago Bears in frozen Chicago; the 7-7 Detroit Lions try to keep their improbable playoff run going against the 5-9 Carolina Panthers, who are still just one game back in the race for the NFC South title; the 7-7 Seattle Seahawks take on the 11-3 Kansas City Chiefs; the 5-9 New Orleans Saints visit the 6-8 Cleveland Browns in a game the Saints need to keep the dreams of an NFC South crown dancing in their heads; and the 5-9 Atlanta Falcons visit the Baltimore Ravens, with the Falcons also improbably still vying for the woeful NFC South title. At 2 pm, in a game delayed due to power outages in the wake of the recent winter storm, the 1-12-1 Houston Texans battle the 7-7 Tennessee Titans.

In the 4 pm games we have the 13-1 Philadelphia Eagles visiting the 10-4 Dallas Cowboys in a game that Jalen Hurts unfortunately will miss due to injury. Gardner Minshew will get the start in Hurts’ stead. Also at 4 pm the 7-6-1 Washington Commanders visit the red hot 10-4 San Francisco 49ers in a game the Commanders need badly to keep pace in the NFC wild card race.

Finally in the prime time game at 8:15 pm, the 6-8 Las Vegas Raiders clash with the 6-8 Pittsburgh Steelers in a rematch of the famous “Immaculate Reception” game 50 years and 1 day ago, a game that launched the Steelers’ dynasty.

Enjoy the games everybody. Use this thread to comment on whichever Saturday games catch your fancy.

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