We’ve reached the final portion of the regular season football calendar as the NFL Week 18 schedule approaches, giving us 16 matchups to preview. All 32 teams are on the schedule, providing plenty of action to look forward to. Below, we dive into one bold prediction for each game on the Week 18 NFL schedule, including intriguing matchups between the Cincinnati Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers, plus the Minnesota Vikings and Detroit Lions.
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Browns lose to Ravens by 20+ points
The Browns are expected to play both Dorian Thompson-Robinson plus Bailey Zappe. Meanwhile, the Ravens are still going for the AFC North Division crown, which means they’ll bring their ‘A’ game. We expect the Ravens to dominate the Browns on Saturday.
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Joe Burrow has another 400-yard game as Bengals beat Steelers
Joe Burrow leads the NFL in passing yards by over 200 yards, and we don’t expect the Bengals offense to slow down as they make one final push to claim a playoff spot. Burrow will do everything in his power to drag the Bengals into the playoffs, which could mean the third 400-yard game of his season.
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Michael Penix has first 300-yard game of his career in Falcons win over Panthers
We’re still waiting to see what Michael Penix is fully capable of. What better time than when the Falcons are making their final attempt to snag a playoff spot? Penix hasn’t had a 300-yard game yet, but we could see the Falcons take a pass-heavy approach into the regular season finale.
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Rico Dowdle has career-high 150 rushing yards in Cowboys win over Commanders
Rico Dowdle looks like the Cowboys’ RB of the future, topping 1,000 yards while averaging 4.7 YPC. If he wants to make sure Dallas doesn’t make a strong investment into their backfield, the former undrafted running back could go out with a bang, topping 150 rushing yards for the first time in his career.
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Bears score season-high 37 points in loss to Packers
The Chicago Bears fired their offensive coordinator nine games into the season. They haven’t gotten better production since. In fact, they’ve topped 20 points just once. If the Bears want to make a strong final impression, they’ll get a season-high in points, helping make this vacancy even more enticing.
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Will Levis tops 250 yards in Titans win over Texans
The Titans are expected to play both Mason Rudolph and Will Levis in the regular season finale. Rudolph has no future with the team, but Levis is still under contract for two more seasons. At the very least, Levis can begin the 2025 season in a competition to become the starter, and a strong showing with over 250 yards would help his case.
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Colts top 30 points in win over Jaguars
The Colts have heated up as of late, scoring 38 and 33 points in the last two weeks. They’ll be up against another backup quarterback this week in Mac Jones. But Shane Steichen always has a strong gameplan that takes advantage of whoever his quarterback is. Whether it’s Joe Flacco airing it out for 300 yards or Anthony Richardson running through defenses, we like the Colts’ chances to top 30 points against the Jaguars.
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Drake Maye scores 4 TD in Patriots loss to Bills
Drake Maye flashes signs of being a franchise quarterback, and while the Patriots need to get him more protection help and playmakers capable of taking a game over, the Bills might not be at full strength either. This could help Maye get the first four-touchdown game of his career.
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Saquon Barkley breaks Eric Dickerson’s rushing record in Eagles win over Giants
Saquon Barkley needs just 101 rushing yards to break Eric Dickerson’s single-season rushing record. We’re guessing he does it, and the best part is it will take place against his former team with all his former teammates watching. If that’s not enough to get Giants GM Joe Schoen fired, we don’t know what is.
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Mike Evans ties Jerry Rice’s record with 11th-straight 1,000-yard season
Jerry Rice is the only receiver to record 11 consecutive 1,000-yard seasons. With 85 more yards on Sunday, Mike Evans can join the greatest receiver in NFL history. Baker Mayfield and Evans are motivated to get the job done, and they’ll need each other to be at their best to clinch the NFC South.
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Carson Wentz has 300-yard game in Chiefs win over Broncos
The Kansas City Chiefs are banged up, with nothing to play for in Week 18 as they already have a first-round playoff bye secured. This means Patrick Mahomes will be sidelined as Carson Wentz gets a chance to impress ahead of free agency. Wentz has fallen off the map in recent years, but Andy Reid can put together some of the best gameplans in the NFL, and we’re betting he has something special in store for his backup this week too.
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Aidan O’Connell tops 300 yards in Raiders win over Chargers
Antonio Pierce recently said Aidan O’Connell can be an NFL-caliber starting quarterback, and after winning his past two starts, maybe he’s right. The Raiders will once again be searching for a franchise solution this offseason, but another win from AOC could make him the frontrunner to start in 2025.
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Jared Verse and Braden Fiske combine for 3.5 sacks in Rams win over Seahawks
These two are competing to win Defensive Rookie of the Year. So far, Jared Verse is the frontrunner, even though Braden Fiske has eight sacks compared to Verse’s 4.5. They both want their name on the trophy, so we could see them trying to outshine each other in the regular season finale, combining for a total of 3.5 sacks.
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Aaron Rodgers goes out with a bang, tops 300 yards in Jets win over Dolphins
Aaron Rodgers has one last chance to make a strong impression as he pines for another starting opportunity in 2025. He’s delivered mixed results, but last week was so bad that he got pulled for Tyrod Taylor after falling behind 40-0. He can’t afford another dud this week, so we’re expecting a special performance from the four-time MVP.
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Marvin Harrison Jr. tops 150 yards in Cardinals win over 49ers
Believe it or not, Marvin Harrison Jr. only has two 100-yard games to his name thus far. He came close last week, finishing with 96 yards. This time, the Cardinals have nothing to play for, so we could see Kyler Murray and MHJ have fun playing backyard ball, leading to a new career-high 150 receiving yards for the Cardinals’ star receiver.
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Justin Jefferson has 200 yards as Vikings claim first-round playoff bye in win over Lions
The Sam Darnold to Justin Jefferson connection has come alive as of late, with the Vikings receiver ranking second in receiving yards. But he still hasn’t had that massive game like we saw late last season from Jefferson after Kirk Cousins got hurt. Jefferson’s season-high is 144 yards, but the Vikings-Lions matchup could be a shootout, which could mean a big game from employee No. 18.
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