NFL: Tips Week 11: Rams! Chiefs! Who wins the shootout?

Week 11, and of course everything is in the shadow of the Monday Night Game: The Chiefs meet the Rams in a game that should be an offensive spectacle. But elsewhere it’s playoff survival: The Packers must win in Seattle, the Ravens must receive the Bengals and the Eagles must go to New Orleans. SPOX takes a quick look at all games of the upcoming matchday – including the forecast by NFL editor Adrian Franke, the Sunday games are as usual in the RedZone conference live on DAZN.

Bye-Week: Bills, Browns, Dolphins, Patriots, Jets, 49ers.

Must-win game for both teams to keep the wildcard chance alive. Seattle’s approach is put to the test once again in this game: just like against the rams, the Seahawks might be able to score against Green Bay via the run game – but is that enough in the end? The Packers should have the upper hand on the Line of Scrimmage against an average Seahawks Pass rush and give Rodgers time, which makes the task for Seattle’s Secondary much more difficult. And Green Bay will also be able to walk through Aaron Jones.

Tip: Seahawks vs. Packers 23:24.

Can the Lions season still be saved? If you look at the last three games, it takes a lot of fantasy to imagine a corresponding scenario. Rather, the Offense seems to have completely lost the rhythm found in the meantime, while the Defense doesn’t scare anyone either in the pass-rush or in coverage. The Panthers on the other hand had three days more time since the debacle in Pittsburgh and should be able to win with Newton, the short pass game and the run game.

Tip: Lions vs. Panthers 20:31.

Absolutely critical duel for the Colts! A win here and Indy is right in the middle of the AFC wildcard race – if they had gone bankrupt against their division rivals, they would probably have lost. Thus the central question is: Is the titanium open eye really permanently improved? Or is she good for another desolate game? At least that wouldn’t be due to the Colts defense, Indianapolis is very vulnerable on this side of the ball. At the same time, however, Indy has undoubtedly been the better offense at the moment and should be able to eliminate Tennessee’s pass-rush, which may eventually result in the decisive question: Who can win a shootout sooner? And in that case I’ll hold my own with the better quarterback and the (much) more constant passing game.

Tip: Colts vs. Titans 30:27.

At least for the time being it remains the Ryan Fitzpatrick show in Tampa – renewed quarterback exchange during the game not excluded. Dirk Koetter has taken over the offensive play calling again, why exactly is unclear; and this game is a grab bag. The Giants have once again given an offensive sign of life against the 49ers, against the harmless Bucs-Pass-Rush and Tampas absolutely susceptible Secondary is a continuation definitely in the realm of the possible. If the Buccaneers add turnovers at the wrong time, the game could go in a completely different direction than one would have thought two weeks ago.

Tip: Giants vs. Buccaneers 27:24.

Washington make few mistakes within their means, so the Redskins win matches against teams that make (too many) mistakes themselves – like the cowboys, the Giants or the Bucs. The injuries in the Offensive Line – which are likely to hurt a lot against Watt and Clowney – and in the Receiving Corps as well as the style of Alex Smith still place clear limitations on the Passing Game, however, the central question in this game is rather: can Washington’s Pass-Rush Houston’s susceptible Offensive Line dominate in a way that it decides the game? If Deshaun Watson, DeAndre Hopkins and Co. manage to catch Washington’s defense for some big plays, the way back into the game could be too stony for the Redskins.

Tip: Redskins vs. Texans 17:23.

This Jaguars team has arrived in nowhere. Defensively, Jacksonville can’t build on the spectacular early season, and offensively Blake Bortles is always able to play well – but that can’t be the identity of this team. Now it’s against a Steelers team whose offensive line should neutralize the pass rush of the Jaguars as far as possible and also open holes in the run game; while at the same time Pittsburgh’s defense is good enough to pose major problems for the Jaguars line.

Tip: Jaguars vs. Steelers 17:27.

The next Must-Win-Game this week, and this concerns especially the Ravens. They come from their Bye Week and it is still unclear whether the battered Joe Flacco or Rookie Lamar Jackson plays. That makes this game a veritable wonder bag, but one thing is clear: Cincinnati’s Offense – in which A.J. Green will be missing again – is currently a bit headless, and that is not a good prerequisite against a still good Ravens defense. Defensively, Cincinnati is very static and not very contemporary; can Baltimore take advantage of that? In that respect, would it perhaps even be better to play a completely different offense with Lamar Jackson? Even if Flacco can run up, Harbaugh has already indicated that he wants to see Jackson on the field longer.

Tip: Ravens vs. Bengals 17:13.

The Raiders are the worst team in the NFL, and Oakland’s biggest weaknesses should be particularly significant in the game: the Cardinals didn’t have many clear mismatches in their favour this season on paper, their own edge rush against the Raiders tackles falls into this category. This should make for another game in which Derek Carr is under a lot of pressure and throws many (too) short passes. On the other hand, Oaklands Pass-Rush is so toothless that Josh Rosen may finally get some time behind the desolate offensive line – in that sense it will be an exciting test for Arizona to perhaps finally see a more consistent game of their own offense.

Tip: Cardinals vs. Raiders 20:10.

Denvers Defense has caused more problems for both Chief and Rams Defense this season than most other opponents. In this respect, this game will not be a self runner for the strong Chargers-Offense, which could get problems especially at the Line of Scrimmage. But as in every Broncos game, you have to ask the question immediately afterwards: can the offense sufficiently support your own defense? The answer to this question has too often been a clear no in recent weeks.

Tip: Chargers vs. Broncos 27:17.

The Eagles have their back to the wall after their bankruptcy against Dallas, and a trip to New Orleans isn’t exactly the best way to free yourself. The already fragile and now also injured Secondary – the retirement of Ronald Darby is added – will have enormous problems against this Saints-Offense, especially as the own Pass-Rush with the Saints-Line gets a real opponent in front of his nose. And Philly’s Offense? There are still several weak points here, starting with the offensive line. That’s not a good prerequisite for a duel with the Saints-Pass-Rush either.

Tip: Saints vs. Eagles 30:21.

After a few compulsory victories, the Vikings fresh from Bye Week will be a real test for the Bears. A central duel: can Minnesota’s Offensive Line withstand Chicago’s Pass-Rush? If the Bears completely dominate the game here, then it will be a very hard job for Minnesota and Cousins must deliver once again under constant pressure. Conversely, you still want to see a really convincing game by Mitch Trubisky against a good opponent in view of the Bears. Against a recently improved Vikings defense, which is increasingly reminiscent of the previous year’s version, he gets the opportunity to show this.

Tip: Bears vs. Vikings 21:24.

Absolutely fantastic game – which was moved to Los Angeles due to the bad court conditions in Mexico! Two differently grand offenses cross the blades in a game that should exceed the 65-point mark. But you have to worry about the rams defense, still without Aqib Talib, the bigger concerns – the Chiefs have stabilized noticeably on this side of the ball recently. Then L.A. has to absorb the loss of Cooper Kupp, while Kansas City comes with a full band. In the end, the question is: which defense will get the 1.2 critical stops? Right now, it seems like KC’s a little bit ahead.

Tip: Rams vs. Chiefs 34:37.