Top storyline for each Week 11 NFL game

Heading into Week 11 of the NFL season, 15 of the 32 teams around the league have either four or five wins. With this type of parity comes some playoff drama and intrigue much earlier than in previous eras.

From Thursday night’s game between one surprising AFC South contender and another bottom feeder to a Sunday afternoon outing between the two top teams in the NFC North, there’s a lot to sift through regarding this week’s slate of NFL games.

As has been the case all season, here’s a look at the top storyline for each Week 11 NFL game.

Tennessee Titans at Jacksonville Jaguars: Actual playoff ramifications for the home team

If you look at the AFC South standings, there’s something ridiculous involved there. Outside of the fact that the two teams currently in first place boast losing records, these Jaguars are just one game out with seven remaining.

A last-minute field goal that shouldn’t have counted against the Baltimore Ravens has Jacksonville heading into Thursday night’s game against the Titans winners of two of its past three.

Considering the team was 4-21 in its previous 25 games, that’s a dramatic step in the right direction.

This game will be all about whether Blake Bortles and the Jaguars passing attack can somehow best the league’s third-ranked pass defense. Even in its win against Baltimore last week, Jacksonville put up a season-low 168 passing yards.

That’s going to have to change if Gus Bradley and Co. plan on remaining in the AFC South race moving forward this season. It starts with the team’s biggest regular season game since all the way back in 2007.

St. Louis Rams at Baltimore Ravens: Jeff Fisher looking for Case Keenum to save his job

Following a disastrous 37-13 home loss to the Chicago Bears last week, Fisher made the decision to bench starting quarterback Nick Foles. While that might make a ton of sense on the surface, it does seem to be a way for Fisher to turn Foles into a fall guy while attempting to save his job.

It wasn’t too long ago that the Rams were considered legitimate playoff contenders. They have followed that up with two consecutive losses and now find themselves tied with seven other NFC teams with four wins.

The benching of Foles, a player St. Louis signed to a three-year, $24.5 million extension back in August, couldn’t have come at a better time for Fisher. The quarterback is leading the league’s worst passing attack and has thrown just seven touchdowns in nine games.

However, replacing him with a journeyman backup in Keenum isn’t going to suddenly make the Rams passing attack something opposing defenses are going to fear. It’s a last-ditch effort to save what could be a lost season, which would inevitably lead to the ousting of Fisher as the Rams head coach come January.

We now get to see if the head coach blindly throwing darts at a dartboard is going to work. Based on what we have seen since Fisher took over in St. Louis, that’s not all too likely here.

Washington Redskins at Carolina Panthers: Statement game for the road team

Much like the Jaguars in the AFC, there’s yet another surprising team inching close to the top of the standings in its mediocre division in the NFC. The Redskins find themselves just a half game behind the New York Giants after winning two of their past three games.

With wins against St. Louis, Philadelphia, Tampa Bay and New Orleans, the Redskins have yet to beat a team that’s currently .500 on the season.

Taking on an undefeated Panthers team on the road, Washington’s ability to buck this trend will rely a great deal on how Kirk Cousins performs under center. He might have put up a career-best performance against the Saints last week, but taking on one of the best pass defenses in the NFL is going to be a completely different story.

More than that, the Redskins need to continue finding balance on offense. The trio of Alfred Morris, Matt Jones and Chris Thompson went for a combined 382 total yards (214 rushing) last week against New Orleans.

If that group is even able to come close to this number Sunday, it will bode well for the Redskins’ chances of pulling off that signature win.

Denver Broncos at Chicago Bears: John Fox and Jay Cutler versus former team

Fox never coached Cutler in Denver, but both were thrown away from the Mile High City likes scraps after having a decent amount of success with the Broncos. Both return to Denver with an opportunity to even the Bears’ record at 5-5 on the year.

The much-maligned Cutler was traded to Chicago following a Pro Bowl campaign in 2008. He responded with uneven play in the Windy City for much of his first six years with the Bears.

However, the strong-armed veteran has picked it up big time under Fox and first-year coordinator Adam Gase, who also departed Denver this past winter.

Overall this season, Cutler has thrown 13 touchdowns compared to just five interceptions for what would be a career-best 95.3 quarterback rating. He also has Chicago right in the midst of the NFC Playoff race heading into Week 11.

As it relates to Fox, his largely successful tenure as the Broncos’ head coach came to an unceremonious end after leading the team to the AFC West title in each of his four seasons with the team, including a Super Bowl appearance in 2013.

We know full well that Cutler and Fox want to exact revenge against an organization that threw them out the window like scraps. It also helps that the Bears have something to play for in mid November.

Dallas Cowboys at Miami Dolphins: Tony Romo back to save the Cowboys season?

No team has ever made the playoffs after losing seven consecutive to start the year. That’s the history facing Dallas as it gets its franchise quarterback back on the field in the first of a two games over a five-day period that will define the team’s season moving forward.

It starts Sunday against a Miami team that’s riding high following a narrow victory over the Philadelphia Eagles — a win that indirectly helped the Cowboys.

Most would assume that Romo will be a bit rusty in his first action since Week 2. While that still may very well be true, it’s important to note that he’s practiced with the team for the better part of the past two weeks. That should limit some of the rust we see Sunday.

If nothing else, this is a must win to keep the Cowboys minimal division title hopes alive. Despite a 2-7 record, Dallas is just two games back in the loss column in the NFC East.

A win here coupled with losses by both Philadelphia and Washington would put the Cowboys in a position to remain viable in the race moving into a Thanksgiving Day matchup with the Carolina Panthers.

In this, Romo needs to hit the ground running. He will have semi-healthy Dez Bryant to rely on in the passing game and what has been an ultra-productive running back in Darren McFadden.

Everything seems to be shaping up for the Cowboys to end their longest losing streak since 1989. It’s now up to the team to take care of business here.

Oakland Raiders at Detroit Lions: Must win for Jack Del Rio’s squad

In terms of what we have seen thus far this season compared to last year, Oakland is right up there with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as the most-surprising team in the NFL.

Unfortunately, this squad has lost two in a row and finds itself on the verge of falling out of the AFC Playoff race.

Detroit is coming off a surprising win against the Packers in Green Bay. It’s playing for nothing more than pride at this point, which can be a very dangerous thing for teams going up against Jim Caldwell’s squad.

And in reality, Detroit seems to have somewhat of an advantage here. Oakland’s pass defense has been disastrous throughout the season, something Matthew Stafford will want to take advantage of with Calvin Johnson and Golden Tate on the outside.

In order for the Raiders to right the ship here, they are going to need to get continued excellent play from Derek Carr under center in what might be a shootout. This means turning red-zone opportunities into touchdowns and avoiding turnovers. If that happens, the Raiders could very well even their record come Sunday afternoon.

New York Jets at Houston Texans: Playoff implications galore

New York is mathematically tied with the Buffalo Bills for the final wildcard spot in the AFC, one game ahead of four teams for that sixth seed.

One of those squads directly behind Buffalo are the Texans, who have won three of their past four. Meanwhile, Houston is tied with Indianapolis atop the AFC South.

As of right now, it looks like T.J. Yates will be under center for the Texans after Brian Hoyer suffered a concussion on Monday. That’s only magnified by the team picking up Brandon Weeden off waivers on Wednesday.

Without Arian Foster in the backfield, things are going to be incredibly difficult for the Texans’ offense against what is still a top-end Jets defense.

On the other side, Houston’s defense has not yielded a touchdown in 10 quarters of action. Improved play by the Jets offense is one thing. Being able to move the ball against a suddenly stout defense is a completely different thing. In all likelihood, Chris Ivory will be the man New York relies on in this one.

The playoff implications are real here. New York is firmly in the wildcard mix, but it already loses the tiebreaker to both the Buffalo Bills (with one game remaining between the two) and Oakland Raiders.

Todd Bowles squad cannot afford to find itself in position to best the records of a ton of teams when it comes to the overall tiebreaker at the end of the year.

As it relates to the Texans, they are in the odd position of being tied for first place while remaining one-game back in the wildcard race.

Taking the AFC South out of the equation for a second, falling to 4-6 while losing the tiebreaker to the Jets, Kansas City Chiefs and Miami Dolphins would likely close off that avenue to the playoffs.

Indianapolis Colts at Atlanta Falcons: Two struggling teams in need of a big win

Indianapolis will have to fend off Houston and Jacksonville in the mediocre AFC South without the services of Andrew Luck for at least the next couple weeks.

It will have to do so with a change at offensive coordinator and no real previous success behind Matt Hasselbeck at quarterback.

Meanwhile, the Falcons are coming off their bye week after losing three of their past four. Now a full three games behind Carolina, Atlanta needs to turn its attention to the wildcard race in the NFC — a race that has it just two games ahead of six squads for that final spot.

Both teams have struggled much more than anticipated on the offensive side of the ball. Indianapolis ranks 19th in the NFL in scoring and in the middle of the pack in total offense. It’s also turned the ball over a whopping 17 times in nine games.

After a hot start to the season, Atlanta’s offense has cooled off considerably. It’s coming off a disastrous performance against a previously fledgling San Francisco 49ers defense and hasn’t put up more than 21 points in any of its past four games.

That’s the bread and butter for these two playoff contenders. If their offenses continue to struggle, it’s unlikely they will find a way to the postseason. Taking on mediocre defenses this week, the expectation is that both the Colts and Falcons will find some success on offense.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Philadelphia Eagles: Tampa’s continued progression

At 4-5 on the season, Tampa Bay finds itself stuck between continuing to build for the future and potentially contending for a playoff spot. A win against an Eagles team with the same record would pretty much tell us where the Buccaneers are headed moving forward this year.

Tampa Bay’s recent success can be defined by fundamental overall football. Jameis Winston has thrown exactly two interceptions in the five games since being picked off four times against Carolina back in Week 4.

Overall, the Buccaneers have committed six turnovers in those five games while forcing 10 turnovers themselves. That will be enough to mask inexperience and a lack of talent throughout the season.

Things haven’t gone nearly as swimmingly for the Eagles of late. A close loss to the Dolphins last week was marred by a Sam Bradford injury and a subsequent late-game interception from Mark Sanchez.

With the former unlikely to go this week due to a separated shoulder and concussion, Sanchez should find himself under center.

Taking on a Bucs defense that’s been playing some ball-hawking football, Philadelphia’s backup will have to avoid the dreaded mistakes that have plagued him throughout his career.

If that doesn’t happen, the Eagles might very well fall victim to yet another inferior team, potentially marking the exact moment this team fell out of the playoff race for good.

Kansas City Chiefs at San Diego Chargers: Continued momentum for the Chiefs?

Here’s another team that’s riding a recent hot streak to potential playoff contention. With three consecutive wins, Kansas City is now just one game back in the hunt for the final wildcard spot in the AFC.

The key during Kansas City’s three-game winning streak has been turnover margin. Its defense has forced 10 turnovers while Alex Smith and Co. have not coughed it up once. Quietly, Smith himself is having one of his best seasons.

He may be on pace for less than 20 passing touchdowns, but he’s also put up nearly 2,200 yards in nine games and hasn’t thrown a pick in 228 pass attempts. Say what you want about Smith being a game manager, but that’s rather impressive right there.

For the Chargers, it’s all about playing out the string. Losers of five consecutive (all by one score), San Diego is completely out of the playoff race. It remains to be seen whether the team can get up against an opponent that has a whole heck of a lot to play for.

Green Bay Packers at Minnesota Vikings: Can the Vikings stake claim to the NFC North?

Winners of seven of their past eight, the Vikings control their own destiny in a division that seemed to be primed to be controlled by Green Bay. A win against the struggling Packers at home, and Minnesota will find itself two games up with six remaining.

The key here for Minnesota will be to continue with what was a dominating run game against a previously stout Oakland Raiders run defense last week. Adrian Peterson went for 203 yards and a touchdown on 26 attempts. It was his third consecutive 100-plus yard performance since being held to 98 yards by the Detroit Lions back in Week 7.

With Teddy Bridgewater struggling to get much going in the passing game, Peterson will have to continue his stellar recent performances if the Vikings are going to pull off a eighth win in nine games and take a stranglehold on the division. If not, Green Bay will be able to right the ship and tie Minnesota atop the division standings. It really is that simple.

San Francisco 49ers at Seattle Seahawks: Surprising battle for last place

About this time last season, San Francisco and Seattle took one another another in Santa Clara with both teams clearly in contention for the playoffs. This came immediately after these two squads met in the NFC Championship game the previous January.

Fast forward 12 months, and they are playing for last place in the NFC West.

While San Francisco’s regression from Super Bowl contender to bottom-feeder status has been months in the making, Seattle’s struggles couldn’t have been foreseen just a few short weeks ago.

Seattle boasts an offense that ranks 27th in the NFL in passing yards, 20th in scoring and dead last in red zone touchdown percentage. In fact, Seattle has scored 15 offensive touchdowns this season — a number that ranks 31st in the NFL.

A lot has been made about how the Legion of Boom has struggled closing out games, but there’s been a tremendous amount of pressure on that unit due to the lack of any type of success on offense.

Going up against an inferior opponent that’s likely going to be running out a starting backfield of Blaine Gabbert and Shaun Draughn, the Seahawks simply need to impose their will at home on Sunday. If that doesn’t happen, any thoughts of a playoff appearance can pretty much be thrown out the window.

Cincinnati Bengals at Arizona Cardinals: Potential Super Bowl preview

Cincinnati may be coming off a dud of a performance against the Houston Texans on Monday, but it’s still 8-1 on the season and in the driver’s seat for a first-round playoff bye.

Meanwhile, Arizona finds itself three games up in the NFC West and in clear contention for a first-round bye after a comeback performance against Seattle last week.

Up to this point in the season, Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer has to be considered one of the top contenders for the MVP. He’s coming off a 363-yard, three-touchdown performance against Seattle and has thrown 23 touchdowns compared to just seven picks on the season.

Even with what has to be considered one of the top-10 defenses in the NFL, the Cardinals will go as far as Palmer’s right arm takes them. Taking on a darn good Bengals secondary should be a good test on Sunday.

For the Bengals, it’s all about rebounding from a disastrous performance last week. The team put up just six points while converting on 4-of-14 third-down opportunities. That might be enough to keep the game close against Houston, but a repeat performance will spell doom on Sunday.

Both Cincinnati and Arizona have their respective divisions on lock right now. Short of something unforeseen happening both will, at the very least, host a playoff game. This one matchup could determine who actually earns home-field advantage when the playoff come calling.

Buffalo Bills at New England Patriots: Brady’s bunch in trouble after Julian Edelman injury?

As one of the two remaining undefeated teams in the NFL, everything seems to be going just fine in New England. That’s magnified by the continued stellar play of one Tom Brady.

Unfortunately, the game’s best quarterback will have to play without his favorite wide receiver for the remainder of the regular season after Edelman suffered a broken bone in his foot last week.

Last week saw Danny Amendola step up in Edelman’s stead. He recorded 10 receptions on 11 targets en route to helping New England to a late-game win over the New York Giants.

Patriots receivers are a product of the team’s system and its future Hall of Fame quarterback. In this, Brady’s ability to get water from a rock at wide receiver is nearly unmatched in NFL history. Even then, to expect no regression with Edelman out of action would be foolhardy.