CINCINNATI, OHIO - NOVEMBER 10: Lamar Jackson #8 of the Baltimore Ravens runs with the ball during ... [+]
Here are the best games for the 11th weekend of the NFL season.
Jacksonville Jaguars (4-5) at Indianapolis Colts (5-4), 1 p.m. ET
This is a big game in the jumbled AFC South, with both teams on the heels of the first-place Houston Texans. Both teams will have their starting quarterback in the lineup, with the Jaguars’ Nick Foles returning from a broken collarbone and the Colts’ Jacoby Brissett returning after missing last week with a knee injury.
Foles came off the bench to lead Philadelphia to a Super Bowl win over the Patriots a couple years ago. The offensive coordinator of that team was Colts coach Frank Reich.
“He’s a guy that I admire more than anything,” Foles said. “He’s a guy that has impacted my life so much, and he’s going to be on the opposing sideline, so that’s going to be fun.”
Jacksonville’s offense is led by running back Leonard Fournette, who leads the NFL with 853 scrimmage yards the last six games. Indianapolis’ defense, on the other hand, has allowed just 18.3 points per game the last five games.
Without Foles, Gardner Minshew kept the Jags afloat but the team is 4-0 against teams with a losing record but 0-5 against teams with a winning record. The Colts, on the other hand, have played nothing but close games, with all nine contests decided by seven points or less.
Arizona Cardinals (3-6-1) at San Francisco 49ers (8-1), 4:05 p.m. ET
The 49ers are coming off an overtime loss to Seattle last week and have a showdown against Green Bay next week that could decide home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs. Might they be looking past the Cardinals?
San Francisco’s offense performed miserably in the loss to the Seahawks with a season-low 87 rushing yards, five sacks allowed and three turnovers. Perhaps that unit will get better against an Arizona defense that is 31st in total defense and passing defense, 30th on third down and 27th in scoring. On the other hand, Arizona quarterback Kyler Murray is coming off his fourth game of 300-plus passing yards. He’ll face a 49ers defense that is second with 14.3 points allowed per game.
San Francisco edged Arizona 28-25 in Week 9.
"I don't think we played our best game," Murray said. "I know personally, if we just go out and execute – they know what we do, we know what they do – we should be in good shape."
New England Patriots (8-1) at Philadelphia Eagles (5-4), 4:25 p.m. ET
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - FEBRUARY 04: Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots in action against the ... [+]
This is a rematch of Super Bowl LII, won by the Eagles 41-33. In the loss, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady set a Super Bowl record with 505 passing yards.
"That's a lot of mental scar tissue from that year," Brady said during his weekly appearance on Boston radio station WEEI. "That was a tough game. In a lot of ways, we learned from that year and we came back stronger the next year. We won the Super Bowl in '18. … We've had a lot changes, they've had a lot of changes. It's totally different circumstances. Huge game for us. Big game for them. The better team is going to win."
The key matchup will be Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz against the Patriots’ pass defense. In four home games, Wentz has seven touchdowns vs. zero interceptions. The New England pass defense, on the other hand, has been dominant. It’s allowed an opponent passer rating of 45.8 – almost 23 points better than any other team and about 45 points better than the league average.
The Patriots can clinch a 19th consecutive winning season. Only the Dallas Cowboys, who posted 20 consecutive winning seasons from 1966 through 1985, have a longer streak at in NFL history. In the other major professional sports leagues, a franchise has posted at least 19 consecutive winning seasons seven times: baseball’s New York Yankees (39, 1926-64), hockey’s Montreal Canadiens (32, 1951-52 to 1982-83), hockey’s Boston Bruins (29, 1967-68 to 1995-96), baseball’s New York Yankees (27, 1993-2019), hockey’s Detroit Red Wings (24, 1991-92 to 2015-16), basketball’s San Antonio Spurs (22, 1997-98 to 2018-19) and basketball’s Utah Jazz (19, 1985-86 to 2003-04).
Chicago Bears (4-5) at Los Angeles Rams (5-4), 8:20 p.m. ET
CHICAGO, IL - DECEMBER 09: Aaron Donald #99 of the Los Angeles Rams gets past Bryan Witzmann #78 of ... [+]
Defenses will take center stage on Sunday night in what might be a must-win for both teams.
Chicago is fourth in the league with 17.4 points allowed per game, third with 4.92 yards allowed per play and fourth with 3.66 rushing yards allowed per play. Los Angeles is in the middle of the pack with 21.2 points allowed per game but sixth with 4.97 yards allowed per play and second with 3.33 rushing yards allowed per play.
In a game at Chicago last December, the Bears smothered the high-flying Rams 15-6 by holding running back Todd Gurley to just 28 rushing yards and the Rams to 214 yards overall.
“They were a great defense, period. They still are a great defense,” Rams coach Sean McVay said.
That game against Chicago last season marked the only time the Rams scored less than 23 points last season. They’ve been held to less than 23 points three times this season.
Kansas City Chiefs (6-4) “at” Los Angeles Chargers (4-6), 8:05 p.m. ET (Monday)
Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes returned from a dislocated kneecap to throw for 446 yards and three touchdowns against Tennessee last week but the Chiefs lost for the fourth time in six games following a 4-0 start.
The Chargers are coming off a loss, too. A week after what appeared to be a statement win over Green Bay, Philip Rivers tossed three interceptions, including a pick-six, in a 26-24 loss to Oakland.
In the aforementioned loss at Tennessee, Mahomes made his 25th career start. With 8,007 career passing yards and 68 career touchdowns, he has more passing yards and touchdowns through 25 starts than any quarterback in NFL history. He has six touchdown passes and zero interceptions in two career starts vs. the Chargers.
According to Inside Edge, the Chargers have scored on 46.4 percent of their drives this season — third-best in NFL. The Chiefs, on the other hand, have allowed scores on 46.7 percent of opponent drives this season — second-highest in NFL.
This Monday night game will be played in Mexico City, with an elevation of 7,201 feet above sea level. The Chargers spent the week practicing at the Air Force Academy. The elevation in Colorado Springs is 6,035 feet.
"Going from sea level to 7,300, I didn't feel comfortable doing that," Chargers coach Anthony Lynn said. "It's a little bit of an ease of mind for players. It has a mental effect, I believe."
Houston Texans (6-3) at Baltimore Ravens (7-2), 1 p.m. ET
LONDON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 03: Deshaun Watson #4 of the Houston Texans jumps over Ronnie Harrison ... [+]
Two of the NFL’s young-gun quarterbacks will square off in a game with playoff implications in the Game of the Week.
For the second time in NFL history, a game will feature two starting quarterbacks less than 25 years old with triple-digits passer ratings. Houston’s Deshaun Watson is fourth in the league with a 107.1 passer rating. Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson, who last week became the second quarterback in NFL history with two max passer ratings of 158.3 in the same season, is ninth with a rating of 101.7.
With Jackson leading the way with 702 rushing yards, The Ravens have rushed for at least 130 yards in 16 consecutive games. That’s tied with the 1975-76 Steelers for the longest streak in the Super Bowl area, according to STATS.
Watson has not thrown an interception in back-to-back games and is 13-4 when not throwing one to the other team. Meanwhile, recently added Ravens cornerback Marcus Peters has a pick-six in back-to-back games.
The Texans are 0-5 all-time at Baltimore but have won four of their last five overall and are coming off their bye.
"It's a good spot," Watson said. "Halfway through the season, (there's) a lot to look back over the past weeks to correct, and then a lot to actually build on. So, the biggest thing is really getting everyone healthy, getting everyone rested up for a long stretch and for us to be able to try to make a run."
Extra points
– Dallas running back Ezekiel Elliott has 4,836 career rushing yards. Against Detroit on Sunday, he will play in his 50th game. Eric Dickerson, Earl Campbell, Jim Brown and Terrell Davis – all Hall of Famers – are the only players with 5,000 rushing yards in their first 50 games.
– Saints receiver Michael Thomas has 86 catches in the team’s nine games this season. Marvin Harrison and Julio Jones, with 89 apiece, hold the record for the most receptions through 10 games.
– The Redskins have dropped three straight, 9-0 to San Francisco, 19-9 to Minnesota and 24-9 to Washington. That’s three consecutive games with less than 10 points – a dubious first for the franchise since 1961. No team has scored less than 10 points in four consecutive games since the 2013 Giants.
