This week is packed full of games that will influence the AFC Playoff picture. If you've got RedZone – this may be a great week to turn it on.

Here’s Week 15’s edition of which games we want to go which way.

Game by Game

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• Raiders vs Chargers: Win/Win

• Priority: Monitor

Reasoning: Both teams are fighting to stay in the wildcard race, and both are 5-8. Whichever way this lands, one team is another game behind (and likely out of) the wildcard race.

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• Texans @ Titans: Texans
• Priority: Very High

Reasoning: …

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• Bengals vs Vikings: Vikings
• Priority: High

Reasoning: Bengals are a primary AFC Wildcard competitor, and we want them to be knocked down a game by an NFC team.

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• Colts vs Steelers: Win/Win
• Priority: Monitor

Reasoning: We are lucky this matchup is happening now. These are two primary wildcard competitors and one of them getting knocked down a game is significant for us.

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• Lions vs Broncos: Lions
• Priority: High

Reasoning: Broncos are a primary AFC Wildcard competitor, and we want them to be knocked down a game by an NFC team.

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• Dolphins vs Jets: Jets
• Priority: Low

Reasoning: A Jets win would knock down an AFC Playoff team a notch as well as give us a better Strength of Schedule tiebreaker.

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• Packers vs Bucs: Bucs
• Priority: Very Low

Reasoning: Very unimportant but a Bucs win gives us a better Strength of Victory rating for a tiebreaker.

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• Saints vs Giants: Saints
• Priority: Very Low

Reasoning: Very unimportant but a Saints win gives us a better Strength of Victory rating for a tiebreaker.

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• Panthers vs Falcons: Irrelevant
• Priority: N/A

Reasoning: Two NFC Teams that we lost to – our Strength of Schedule remains the same no matter who wins and who loses.

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• Browns vs Bears: Bears
• Priority: High

Reasoning: Browns are a primary AFC Wildcard competitor, and we absolutely want them to be knocked down a game by an NFC team. Additionally, our draft capital improves with the Browns record worsening.

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• Patriots vs Chiefs: Patriots
• Priority: Low

Reasoning: This is an AFC Playoff team vs an AFC Team that has been eliminated from playoffs. Patriots winning drops down the seeding potential for the Chiefs a notch, and they are surprisingly closer to our record than we would have likely expected.

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• Cardinals vs 49ers: Cardinals
• Priority: Very Low

Reasoning: Very unimportant but a Cardinals win gives us a better Strength of Victory rating for a tiebreaker.

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• Rams vs Commanders: Irrelevant
• Priority: N/A

Reasoning: 2 NFC Teams not on our schedule. 0 Playoff implications for us.

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• Bills vs Cowboys: Cowboys
• Priority: High

Reasoning: Bills are a primary AFC Wildcard competitor, and we absolutely want them to be knocked down a game by an NFC team.

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• Jaguars vs Ravens: Ravens
• Priority: High

Reasoning: The AFC South becomes very winnable with one more Jaguars loss. While on paper we would technically benefit from a Jags win as well, the chances of the Texans overtaking the Ravens in playoff position is so small that I don't view it as a realistic benefit. The AFC South being open would be a welcome situation amidst a crowded AFC Wildcard race. We want a Jags loss here.

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• Seahawks vs Eagles: Irrelevant
• Priority: N/A

Reasoning: 2 NFC Teams not on our schedule. 0 Playoff implications for us.

How do we end the week with a playoff spot

The Texans still control their own destiny for getting into the playoffs. However, the margin for error has become incredibly small following the loss to the Jets.

At the end of this week, we can still be anywhere from outside looking in on the playoffs, to slotted in the 5th seed.

There are a LOT of different possible scenarios that impact that in all of the listed games, to the point where it's not simple enough to list out desired results for each seed position because each game result depends on how 2-3 others go.

That being said, one thing is consistently true this week – if the Texans lose, we are on the outside looking in on the playoff race. There is no scenario this week where the Texans lose and they are slotted into a playoff position.

Most Critical Games and Desired Outcomes

• Texans over Titans
• Vikings over Bengals
• Colts vs Steelers
• Lions over Broncos
• Bears over Browns
• Cowboys over Bills
• Ravens over Jaguars

Recommended Football Viewing Schedule

• Thursday Night: Chargers @ Raiders

• Sunday at Noon: Texans @ Titans

• Sunday Afternoon: Cowboys @ Bills

• Sunday Night: Ravens @ Jaguars