NFL Week 13 kicked off with the new normal in the AFC East as the Buffalo Bills took out the New England Patriots without much trouble to regain first place in the division.
A division that belonged to the Patriots for so long – they won it all but one year between 2003 and 2019 – has gone to Buffalo two years straight, and the odds are on Josh Allen and company making it three – though the Miami Dolphins may have something to say about that.
On paper, the rest of the Week 13 slate is the most intriguing in weeks, with a handful of games you could see being repeated in January.
Here’s what to expect from the televised games, predictions for every matchup and what to look out for on RedZone this week.
Games of the week
Tennessee Titans @ Philadelphia Eagles (6pm, Sky Sports NFL)
AJ Brown was hurt when the Titans decided to trade him away during this year’s draft, rather than pay him the type of contract he believed he deserved. The kind of contract he sat and watched peers like Deebo Samuel and DK Metcalf be awarded by their own teams.
The Eagles were more than happy to pay that contract, and Brown now finds himself on a team with a 10-1 record catching passes from one of his closest friends in Jalen Hurts.
Brown facing off against his former team is the biggest story of this game, but a more important factor to the outcome might be in the run game. Everyone knows the Titans’ offence flows through Derrick Henry, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to learn the Eagles brass had one eye on this game when they went out and signed veteran run stuffers Ndamukong Suh and Linval Joseph after rookie DT Jordan Davis went down injured. Davis is working his way back, but may not be able to feature much here.
Stopping Henry is a must for any team facing the Titans, but even if the Big Dog has his day, Philadelphia should have enough firepower to notch their 11th win of the campaign.
NFL Week 13 predictions
- Tennessee Titans 21-24 Philadelphia Eagles
- New York Jets 17-20 Minnesota Vikings
- Washington Commanders 17-20 New York Giants
- Cleveland Browns 27-16 Houston Texans
- Denver Broncos 10-24 Baltimore Ravens
- Jacksonville Jaguars 30-27 Detroit Lions
- Green Bay Packers 24-21 Chicago Bears
- Pittsburgh Steelers 18-17 Atlanta Falcons
- Miami Dolphins 26-24 San Francisco 49ers
- Seattle Seahawks 27-16 Los Angeles Rams
- Kansas City Chiefs 27-24 Cincinnati Bengals
- Los Angeles Chargers 26-20 Las Vegas Raiders
- Indianapolis Colts 14-28 Dallas Cowboys
- New Orleans Saints 17-23 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Kansas City Chiefs @ Cincinnati Bengals (9.25pm, Sky Sports NFL)
Patrick Mahomes vs Joe Burrow is a very new rivalry, but it is already growing into one of the best and most compelling battles of the modern NFL era. The pair have only faced off twice, but both have been thrillers. The first was a 34-31 win for the Bengals in Week 17 last year, before they won again, 27-24 in overtime, to claim the AFC Championship.
Mahomes is not used to being bested, and is helming the league’s most prolific offence this season. The Chiefs are scoring just under 30 points and are also number one in Football Outsiders’ DVOA rankings. The Bengals aren’t far behind – fifth in scoring – and are set to get star receiver Ja’Marr Chase back this week after a few weeks out with a hip injury. Chase had 11 catches, 266 yards and three touchdowns in the Week 17 game last year. Running back Joe Mixon will also return from a concussion.
This one has all the makings of a shootout between two quarterbacks who could, once again, find themselves staring each other down come play-off season.
Indianapolis Colts @ Dallas Cowboys (1.20am, Sky Sports Main Event and NFL)
Staying up late into the night to watch the Indianapolis Colts? A slightly more inviting prospect than it was a few weeks ago, now that Matt Ryan is back under centre, but still one only for the diehards and the insomniacs.
Only the Houston Texans have a worst offensive DVOA than the Colts, and only Houston and Denver (oof) are scoring fewer points. The biggest issue has been the offensive line, which after losing a number of starters has gone from a strength to the team’s most glaring weakness. Enter Micah Parsons, who could absolutely feast on an immobile Ryan. Dallas’ young, hungry defence could have a field day here.
That won’t leave Dak Prescott with too much to do on offence. He simply needs to manage the game well, feed his most dynamic weapons and be efficient. That’s exactly how Prescott has played since returning from injury. He’s been able to unleash CeeDee Lamb and Tony Pollard, while Michael Gallup is showing signs of growing into the offence as he works his way back from last year’s ACL injury. Expect nothing but a comfortable Cowboys victory.
3 things to look out for on RedZone
The return of Deshaun Watson
There is a very good argument Watson should not have seen an NFL field this season. There’s a good argument he should never have seen one ever again. But the league’s punishments when it comes to cases of alleged sexual assault have always felt like something of a bad joke, especially when compared to bans for performance-enhancing drugs, for example.
Whether we like it or not, Watson’s return is one of the stories of the week, and of course, it comes against his old team, the Houston Texans. Not only does this give Watson a bizarre type of revenge narrative – he and the team fell out before the allegations against him even came out – but it is also the easiest welcome back to the league Watson could have asked for.
After two years sat on the sidelines, we’ll have to see whether he still possesses the same elite skills that persuaded the Browns to mortgage their future for him, but it’s hard to see past this being anything but an ill-tasting triumphant return.
Testing Miami’s mettle
Are the Dolphins legitimate Super Bowl contenders? This test against an ascending 49ers team might be the perfect way to find out. If Miami can take care of business here they will regain top spot in the AFC East, and also enter the conversation as one of the very best teams in the league.
They should be in that conversation already – they have still won every game that Tua Tagovailoa has started and finished, and their young quarterback is, statistically, playing more efficiently than any other signal caller. A year after being sporadically benched for Ryan Fitzpatrick he is earning legitimate MVP consideration. Beating the Niners if their own building would be an enormous statement. Let’s see if they’re up to the task.
Can Trevor Lawrence kick on?
Lawrence had the defining drive of his young career in Week 12 as he orchestrated a perfect two-minute drill, going 91 yards down the field and hitting Marvin Jones in the end zone to tie the game up against the Ravens with seconds remaining. He then found Zay Jones on a ballsy two-point conversion to give the Jags an unlikely victory over one of the NFL’s best teams.
The former number one overall pick has taken a step forward this season, freed from the suffocating grip of Urban Meyer, and now has the perfect opportunity to build on last week as he faces a Lions defence that gives away points like they’re on a Black Friday offer. Another big game and the hype will start to escalate around Lawrence and the Jaguars’ future.