Buffalo, NY CNN —
Here are 5 things to ticker arsenic the NFL enters the last play of the regular season.
The monolithic groundswell of enactment for Damar Hamlin volition emergence adjacent higher erstwhile the last regular play games get underway.
There whitethorn beryllium immoderate uncertainty, doubts, and fears astir players taking the tract for the archetypal clip since the Buffalo Bills defender suffered a life-threatening wounded during their crippled earlier this week. There volition beryllium plentifulness of disposable emotion, and immoderate signs of injuries volition beryllium met with bated breath.
However, Bills manager Sean McDermott says games this play volition correspond “a solemnisation of life,” arsenic Hamlin has shown continued signs of progress. NFL players and fans volition spot his #3 highlighted successful Buffalo Bills Blue oregon Red connected 30-yard lines successful stadiums crossed the country. Players volition deterioration “Love for Damar 3” shirts earlier the game, and Bills players volition besides person a #3 spot connected their game jerseys.
Top of the league fight: We whitethorn witnesser history. For the archetypal time, a league rubric crippled being played connected a neutral site.
The Buffalo Bills crippled with the Cincinnati Bengals successful which Hamlin was injured volition not beryllium completed. It means the 2 teams volition decorativeness the regular play with 1 less crippled than the different playoff teams, affecting their quality to unafraid location tract vantage should they beforehand to the AFC Championship game. So, if either oregon some of those teams marque it to the rubric game, depending connected varying circumstances, we could spot the rubric crippled played astatine a neutral location. The Kansas City Chiefs are atop the league astatine 13-3. The Bills are astatine 12-3 and the Bengals are astatine 11-4.
Scratching to get in: The New England Patriots are successful the driver’s spot for the last chaotic paper spot successful the AFC. If they bushed the Bills, the Patriots are in, but they’ll person to bash it connected an highly affectional time successful Buffalo. If they lose, the Miami Dolphins would get the archetypal ace astatine the last spot with a location triumph implicit the New York Jets.
If the Patriots and Dolphins some fall, the Pittsburgh Steelers would vault each the mode up to 7th and last spot if they bushed the Cleveland Browns astatine home. It would besides mean caput manager Mike Tomlin would not person a losing play for the archetypal clip successful his 16-year career.
The AFC South rubric is connected the enactment Saturday nighttime successful Jacksonville. The red-hot Jaguars big the reeling Tennessee Titans. The victor secures the 4th effect and hosts a archetypal circular playoff crippled adjacent week.
The Philadelphia Eagles are hoping a 3rd clip is simply a charm for them to clinch the NFC East and the apical effect successful the NFC playoffs. To bash it, they request to bushed oregon necktie a New York Giants squad which has already secured the 6th effect and volition commencement the playoffs connected the road. If the Eagles autumn again, the Dallas Cowboys instrumentality the NFC East crown with a triumph implicit the Washington Commanders and the Eagles would gaffe to a Wild Card.
The 7th and last spot’s a three-team contention betwixt the Green Bay Packers, the Detroit Lions and the Seattle Seahawks. The Packers and Lions play each different Sunday nighttime astatine Lambeau Field. For Green Bay, it’s simple: triumph and you’re in. The Lions and Seahawks some request to triumph and immoderate assistance to get successful the postseason party.
The extremity of each play means there’s 1 past accidental for players to enactment their names into the grounds books. Let’s commencement with the QB’s.
Patrick Mahomes needs 430 yards passing to interruption the single-season passing grounds of 5,477 acceptable by Peyton Manning successful 2013.
Tom Brady needs 8 completions to interruption the all-time single-season grounds for astir completions successful a play of 485 completions acceptable successful 2021 by… Tom Brady. Surprise!
Justin Jefferson needs 194 receiving yards to interruption the azygous play grounds of 1,964 yards acceptable successful 2012 by Calvin Johnson. The Minnesota Vikings prima has topped the people erstwhile this season, against the Lions successful Week 4.
Ryan Stonehouse has a accidental to go the champion single-season punter of all-time. The Titans prima tin interruption the grounds for highest punting mean successful a play of 51.4 yards acceptable by Sammy Baugh each the mode backmost successful 1940. Stonehouse’s existent mean is 53 yards per punt.
The last crippled of the regular play is immense not conscionable for players connected playoff-contending teams, but for players who tin marque ample sums of wealth successful the signifier of incentives, sometimes with a azygous catch. Here are immoderate of those players according to phantasy shot and sports betting analyst, Sal Vetri.
Christian Kirk needs 2 catches for a $500,000 bonus, and 91 yards to trigger a $500,000 bonus.
Zay Jones needs 2 catches for a $250,000 bonus, and 98 yards for a $500,000 bonus.
Za’Darius Smith needs 1 sack to gain $750k,000.
Preston Smith needs 1.5 sacks to gain $1 million
Tyler Higbee needs 13 yards to deed a $500,000 bonus.
Gerald Everett needs 5 catches to currency successful $250k,000.
Everett deed 5+ catches successful 50% of his games.
Jamaal Williams needs six rushing yards to deed 1,000, which would gain a $250,000 bonus.
Correction: This communicative has been updated to close the fig of completions Tom Brady needs to interruption the all-time single-season grounds for astir completions successful a season.
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