There currently are seven NFL teams with 7-6 records, all flirting with the playoffs as we hit the home stretch. Five of those teams will be in action on Saturday in NFL Network’s tripleheader (also available to stream on NFL+) and all three games will help shape the eventual playoff field in a major way.
The Vikings and Bengals, both of whom were left for dead not long ago, kick off the action at 1 p.m. ET with the first of two all-backup QB games. It would have been hard to imagine a Nick Mullens-Jake Browning matchup carrying so much weight — or happening at all, for that matter — but here we are.
There also will be a lot on the line in Indianapolis, where the Colts host the Steelers in the middle game. They sit at seventh and sixth, respectively, in the AFC playoff field, but the loser could tumble considering the glut of teams with matching records.
Then to cap off the night, it’s a meeting of former coworkers as Dan Campbell’s Lions host Sean Payton’s Broncos at 8:15 p.m. ET. Campbell was an assistant on Payton’s Saints teams, but their current clubs are headed in opposite directions — with the Broncos hot and the Lions hoping to stop the bleeding.
These three games will set the table for another loaded week of action in Week 15, with playoff spots on the line.
Here are six things to watch for when NFL Network brings you three critical games this Saturday:
