NFL: Preseason-Dallas Cowboys at San Diego Chargers
Aug 13, 2015; San Diego, CA, USA; A helmet from a San Diego Chargers player in a preseason NFL football game against the Dallas Cowboys at Qualcomm Stadium. The Chargers won 17-7. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports
Home » Blog » NFL Week 16 reaction: Notes and observations

NFL Week 16 reaction: Notes and observations

Matt Verderame NFL

We have the NFL Week 16 reaction with notes and observations, starting with a wild playoff picture in both conferences. 

– The Los Angeles Chargers are falling apart. After losing to the Kansas City Chiefs last Thursday night, the Chargers had to regroup for what should have been an easy win against the Houston Texans. Instead, Los Angeles gave up 41 points in what was a horrific loss, potentially costing it the postseason. If the Chargers indeed miss the playoffs, this is one of the worst losses in team history.

– It’s time to clean house for the Seattle Seahawks. After losing to the lowly Chicago Bears on Sunday, there’s no reason to dance around the subject anymore. The Seahawks are employing the second-oldest head coach in football with Pete Carroll, and have a quarterback in Russell Wilson who both has been in trade rumors for a year and would fetch a huge return. If Seattle has any sense, it would get a bunch of draft picks, a young coach and a new page turned in the Pacific Northwest.

– The AFC East was settled in Foxboro on Sunday, and not in the way the home fans were hoping. After winning seven straight games, the New England Patriots lose consecutive games at the worst time, including a 32-21 defeat this weekend to the Buffalo Bills. At 9-6, the Patriots are still a very strong bet to reach the playoffs, but it’ll almost certainly be as a wild card forced to go on the road for the duration.

– The NFC West now runs through the Los Angeles Rams, who were able to go to Minneapolis and beat the Vikings, 30-23. Combined with the Arizona Cardinals’ loss on Saturday night, the Rams are a game ahead in the division and can clinch it with a victory over the Baltimore Ravens coupled with the Cardinals losing to the Dallas Cowboys in Week 17.

– With their win over the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday night, the Tennessee Titans are keeping tabs on the AFC’s top seed. Tennessee is now 10-5 and trying to chase down the Kansas City Chiefs, who they trail for the No. 1 spot by one game, but also have the tiebreaker over. The Titans need to likely beat the Miami Dolphins and Jacksonville Jaguars, and get a loss from Kansas City to either the Cincinnati Bengals or Denver Broncos over the final two weeks of the regular season.

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