The Kansas City Chiefs and the Indianapolis Colts are among four NFL teams who must hit the panic button if they lose in week 15.
Four NFL Teams Who Face Must Win Games in Week 15
Kansas City Chiefs (6-7)
The Chiefs take on the Los Angeles Chargers at home in a must-win game on Sunday. Simply put, the Chiefs must win out and even need some help to make the playoffs in the AFC. They have to beat the Chargers because the Chargers are a current wild-card team, and somebody they will need to overtake to get in the dance. The Chargers already beat them once in week one, so the Chiefs must not only beat the them but also win out to have any chance at the playoffs.
The Texans, Chargers, Jaguars, and Bills all have tiebreakers over Kansas City, even if they finish with the same record, so the Chiefs’ playoff hopes are in dire straits.
Indianapolis Colts (8-5)
After starting the season 8-2, the Colts are now 8-5 and find themselves in a dog fight to make the AFC playoffs. For much of the season, the Colts maintained a stranglehold on the AFC South division and frequently shifted between the first and second seeds in the AFC. Now, they currently find themselves on the outside looking in.
In recent weeks, Indy has dropped games to the Jaguars, Chiefs, and Texans. All these teams are vying for playoff positioning in the AFC, and that stretch of losses could be what did the Colts in if they don’t make the playoffs. Things got a lot more difficult for the Colts after losing starting quarterback Daniel Jones to a torn Achilles tendon after having somewhat of a resurgence with the team.
They host the Seattle Seahawks in week 14 at home in a must-win game, and what makes the season even more interesting is that the Colts signed 44-year-old future Hall of Famer Phillip Rivers to potentially start the game for them. Rivers last played in an NFL game in 2020. It seems to be a last-minute Hail Mary attempt for a Colts team that is quickly watching this season slip through the drain.
Baltimore Ravens (6-7)
After dropping two straight games to the Bengals and Steelers, the Ravens have smashed the panic button. The Ravens only have one path to the playoffs, and that’s to win the AFC North division. Both the Ravens and Steelers are tied at 6-7, but because the Steelers won in week 14, the Steelers have the current tiebreaker over the Ravens for the division.
Both teams will see each other one more time this season, but that game might not matter if the Ravens can’t knock off the Bengals on Sunday. These two last played a couple of weeks ago on Thanksgiving night, and the Bengals got the best of the Ravens, so it’s not totally crazy for the Bengals to get a sweep against the Ravens this year, especially. The Ravens simply need to win out.
Detroit Lions (8-5)
The Lions are one spot out of the NFC playoff picture and are facing maybe their stiffest competition yet in week 15. Detroit will head to Los Angeles to face the Rams, who may be the hottest team in the NFL right now. Both the Rams and Lions have something to play for, as the Rams are trying to secure the No. 1 seed in the NFC, and the Lions are simply trying to make the playoffs.
Detroit will need to beat LA, or their playoff chances will continue to dwindle in what has been an up-and-down season for the team.
Main Image: Amy Kontras-Imagn Images
