NFL TV Schedule 2014: Week 17 Coverage Map Listings for Every Game: This is it. The final week of the NFL season is upon us. While some of us are excited for whats to come and cant wait to see how the playoff picture is going to unfold, others may be hoping for a do-over. Regardless of your stance, its been an extremely exciting and unpredictable season. Heading into Week 17, 10 of the 12 playoff spots have already been claimed, as only one remains in both the AFC and NFC. Four teams—the San Diego Chargers, Baltimore Ravens, Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs—are set to duke it out for the AFCs final wild-card spot, while the Carolina Panthers and Atlanta Falcons will meet to determine who will be crowned the NFC South champion and claim the NFCs final seed. Not only are teams fighting simply to gain entrance to Januarys action, but there are ongoing battles within the postseason ranks as well. After all, the New England Patriots are the only team in either division that has already claimed a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. Youre not going to want to miss a moment of this compelling week on the gridiron, so lets take a look at the full Week 17 schedule and highlight a couple of the biggest games to watch. Full television info via nationwide coverage map can be found at 506 Sports. Top Games to Watch Carolina Panthers at Atlanta Falcons The NFC South has been a disappointment in terms of production this season, but both the Panthers and Falcons are getting hot at the right time and are poised to deliver an exhilarating showdown to determine the division champion. Carolina has won its last three games thanks to a resurgent defense and strong running game. This team is finally starting to slightly resemble its 2013 form. Atlantas offensive line has played much better of late, giving quarterback Matt Ryan time in the pocket to torch opposing secondaries. The Falcons have gone just 2-2 over their last four games, but dont let that record fool you—theyve been playing extremely well. Three of those four contests were against teams that have now clinched playoff berths, and the last was a pivotal showdown with the New Orleans Saints. Atlanta defeated New Orleans 30-14 in the teams most convincing performance of the season. Firing on all cylinders, the team racked up 403 yards of offense, as Ryan connected with 10 different receivers en route to completing 30 of his 40 passing attempts for 322 yards, one touchdown, zero interceptions and a 106.5 passer rating. The Falcons defense had its best showing this year, pressuring Drew Brees early and often, sacking him five times and forcing two interceptions and two fumbles, recovering one. Also stout against the run, Atlanta shut down dangerous ball-carrier Mark Ingram, allowing just 2.9 yards per clip. Heres a look at the final stats from that contest, via Sunday Night Footballs Twitter account: Carolina enters the game on a three-game winning streak. The teams defense has finally come around, and it has propelled the team to quickly jump back into contention for the division. Over the last three games, the Panthers have allowed 17 points or fewer, culminating with a 17-13 victory over the Cleveland Browns. The Panthers only allowed a total of 228 yards of offense and eight first downs to the Browns in that contest. Clevelands only touchdown came on an 81-yard catch-and-run by tight end Jordan Cameron. The Browns couldnt get anything going on the ground, either, as running back Isaiah Crowell averaged just 3.4 yards per carry. Offensively, Jonathan Stewart has been the teams catalyst of late. He carried 24 times for 122 yards, adding a short receiving touchdown against the Browns. The teams only concern is getting consistent play out of quarterback Cam Newton, who completed 18 of his 31 passing attempts for 201 yards, one touchdown and one interception for a passer rating of 74.8 despite the absence of Clevelands best cornerback, Joe Haden. The winner of this contest will claim the NFC South and earn the conferences No. 4 seed for the playoffs, making this a critical game for the NFLs postseason picture. Cincinnati Bengals at Pittsburgh Steelers The AFC North all comes down to a Week 17 clash between the Bengals and Steelers at Heinz Field. Both of these teams have already clinched playoff berths, as Cincinnati enters the game at 10-4-1, while Pittsburgh stands at 10-5. These teams last met in a Week 14 showdown that saw the Steelers come away with a 42-21 victory on the heels of a 25-point performance in the fourth quarter. Pittsburgh won its last two games since and is riding a three-game winning streak coming into Week 17. Cincinnati rebounded from that performance in a big way, winning its next two games by a combined score of 67-28. Cincinnatis Week 16 win may have been its most impressive of the season. The Bengals needed a Monday Night Football victory over the Denver Broncos to earn a playoff berth. That was a tall order for this team, as it routinely struggles in prime time and had never beaten Peyton Manning in eight attempts. That all changed on Monday night, as the Bengals rode a ball-hawking defense and a dangerous running game to a 37-28 victory. Running back Jeremy Hill has been a revelation for the Bengals this season, and he carried 22 times for 147 yards and a score against Denver, which included an 85-yard scamper to get the Bengals on the board in the first quarter. Hill has now eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark on the season, accumulated nine touchdowns and is averaging 5.1 yards per carry. Utilizing Hill allows the Bengals to control the pace of the game and keep offenses off balance. That was exactly the case against Manning, as he looked out of sync and threw a season-high four interceptions as a result. Cincinnatis secondary has been playing some great football of late and is clicking at the right time. The Bengals will need Hill to be at his best against Pittsburgh due to a recent arm injury to prolific wide receiver A.J. Green that has led to an uncertain status for Week 17. Although, according to Coley Harvey of ESPN, Green will attempt to give it a go: The Steelers have been winning games with offense this season, which is a bit of a change from normalcy for this team. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is leading the leagues second-ranked passing attack, averaging 300.5 passing yards per game. His biggest asset has been wide receiver Antonio Brown, who enters this contest with 122 receptions for 1,570 yards and 12 touchdowns on the season. Pittsburghs passing attack is balanced perfectly by running back LeVeon Bell. Hes really come into his own this year and has rushed for 1,341 yards and eight touchdowns while averaging 4.8 yards per carry. Even more impressive is that Bell has yet to fumble this season. On the defensive side of the ball, the Steelers have been stout against the run, ranking sixth in the league in that category. However, they must be on point in Week 17, as the Broncos entered Week 16 ranked second in the league yet were torched by Hill and Co. for a total of 207 yards. If the Bengals win this contest, they are assured of at least the No. 3 seed and could potentially earn a first-round bye with a Denver loss. A loss by Pittsburgh would keep it in the No. 5 seed due to a conference-record tiebreaker over the San Diego Chargers. Should the Steelers win, they would move into the No. 3 seed due to a head-to-head tiebreaker over the Indianapolis Colts; however, they are unable to clinch a first-round bye. A loss by Cincinnati would drop it to the No. 5 seed. All playoff scenarios courtesy of CBSSports and current as of December 24. Read more NFL news on BleacherReport #NFL #Opinion
Posted on: Thu, 25 Dec 2014 13:36:42 +0000
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