NFL Games Today: Mahomes, Lamar Jackson and Eagles reshape playoff race with statement wins

The NFL games today did not just fill the schedule, they shook the playoff picture from top to bottom. Patrick Mahomes carved up another secondary, Lamar Jackson turned a tight game into a personal highlight reel, and the Eagles reminded everyone why January in Philly is a nightmare road trip. By the time the late window wrapped, the NFL Games slate had redrawn the race for home-field advantage, the wild card chase and the MVP race in one furious burst of football.

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Mahomes flips the switch, Chiefs offense finally looks like January football

The story of the early window started in Arrowhead. After weeks of questions about whether the Chiefs offense had lost its bite, Mahomes answered with a vintage performance: efficient from the pocket, ruthless on third down and lethal in the red zone. Kansas City marched to touchdowns on its first two drives, and from there the game felt like a controlled demolition.

Mahomes finished with over 300 passing yards and multiple touchdowns, but the raw numbers barely capture how in command he looked. He manipulated safeties with his eyes, extended plays with subtle pocket movement and hit his receivers in stride on deep crossers that simply were not there earlier this season. You could feel the sideline relax; this was the version of the Chiefs that defensive coordinators stay up all night for.

Andy Reid said afterward, in essence, that this was the rhythm they had been chasing. The play-calling leaned back into quick-game concepts early, forcing the defense to defend horizontally before uncorking the vertical shots. Once the run game started to churn out chunk yards against light boxes, the rest of the field opened wide. For one Sunday at least, the Chiefs looked again like a legitimate NFL Super Bowl Contender, not just a team living on its defensive reputation.

Lamar Jackson and the Ravens crank up the intensity

If Mahomes set the tone in the AFC, Lamar Jackson answered it with a reminder of his own MVP-caliber ceiling. In a game that started as a field-position slugfest, Jackson ripped it open with a dual-threat stretch that felt like peak Ravens football. A scrambling third-and-long conversion, a laser inside the numbers for a touchdown and a back-breaking read-option keeper in the red zone turned a one-score grind into a two-possession cushion.

Jackson finished the day with north of 250 passing yards, added significant damage on the ground and, most importantly, played clean football: no giveaways, no panicked throws into double coverage. His command of the Todd Monken offense continues to level up. The timing on outbreaking routes was crisp, and you could see the trust between Jackson and his receivers growing with every back-shoulder completion.

Defensively, Baltimore dialed up pressure at key moments, forcing hurried throws and closing out drives with sacks in the two-minute drill. It felt like one of those classic Ravens games where the defense bends early, hunts in the second half and lets Lamar slam the door. In the big-picture AFC playoff race, this win keeps Baltimore firmly in the mix for the No. 1 seed and puts even more heat on teams lurking just behind them in the standings.

Eagles win a street fight, Hurts guts out another W

On the NFC side, the Eagles once again turned a regular-season game into a playoff-level brawl. Jalen Hurts did not have a perfect box score, but he had the moment that mattered. Late in the fourth quarter, with the game teetering and the offense stuck in mud, Hurts strung together a drive that showcased every piece of his profile: composure at the line, toughness on designed runs, and the chemistry with A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith on option routes.

Philly’s offensive line took over down the stretch, leaning on the run game and giving Hurts just enough time to work through his progressions. A clutch third-down strike between two defenders set up the go-ahead score, and the now-iconic QB sneak in the red zone pushed the ball across the goal line. If you want to understand why the Eagles remain near the top of every NFL League Position power ranking, this was the tape.

The defensive side was choppy early, with communication issues in the secondary leading to chunk plays and quick scores. But as the game moved into situational ball — red zone stands, third-and-medium, two-minute defense — the Eagles tightened up and forced field goals instead of touchdowns. That bend-but-don’t-break identity is not pretty, but when combined with their late-game offense, it is brutally effective.

Cowboys, 49ers and Dolphins send mixed messages

Around the rest of the league, the other would-be contenders delivered a mixed bag. The 49ers leaned into their formula: a physical run game, motion galore and Brock Purdy dealing in rhythm. When Christian McCaffrey is churning out yards after contact and Deebo Samuel is terrorizing defenses on jet motion, the Niners offense looks like a cheat code. The defense added its usual mayhem, collapsing pockets and forcing hurried decisions.

Dallas, meanwhile, flashed the highs and lows that make them such a polarizing watch. Dak Prescott put up strong numbers and connected on explosive plays, but the Cowboys still struggled in some key situational spots — penalties in the red zone, stalled drives after big gains, and one or two throws that hung in the air a beat too long. They got the win, but it did not fully quiet questions about how this offense will look against elite postseason defenses.

The Dolphins, for their part, showed once again how fast their offense can flip the field. Tua Tagovailoa diced up soft zones with quick timing throws, and Tyreek Hill continued his assault on coverage schemes with another day full of explosive plays and yards after the catch. Still, inconsistencies in pass protection and red-zone execution left points on the field. Against top-tier opponents, those empty trips can be the difference between hosting a playoff game and flying on Wild Card weekend.

Updated playoff picture: who owns the driver’s seat?

With this latest slate of NFL Games in the books, the standings tightened in both conferences. The top seeds are still in sight for multiple teams, but the margin for error is shrinking fast, especially for those hovering around the wild card line. Here is a snapshot look at the current division leaders and the most heated wild card races, based on the latest NFL standings across trusted sources like NFL.com and ESPN.

Conference	Seed	Team	Status
AFC	1	Ravens / Chiefs tier	Fighting for No.1 seed and home-field
AFC	2-4	Dolphins, Jaguars, other division leaders	Solid hold on divisions, chasing bye
AFC	5-7	Wild Card pack	Separated by one game, tiebreakers critical
NFC	1	Eagles / 49ers tier	Top seed race, slight edge on record and tiebreaks
NFC	2-4	Lions, Cowboys, division leaders	Comfortable but not clinched
NFC	5-7	Wild Card logjam	Multiple teams within a game of each other

Every one of the top contenders helped define the NFL Playoff Picture and the Wild Card Race with this week’s results. That No. 1 seed in each conference is not just a talking point; it is the golden ticket, with the only bye and the guarantee of staying home until the Super Bowl. Right now, the Ravens and Chiefs are trading blows in the AFC, while the Eagles and 49ers are matching wins in the NFC like heavyweight boxers trading jabs deep into the championship rounds.

Below them the chaos is real. A cluster of AFC teams is separated by a single game, which means tiebreakers — conference record, common opponents, head-to-head results — will be the silent deciders in January. In the NFC, one misstep from the current wild card holders could open the door for a surprise run from a team that is just now finding its identity on offense or getting healthier on defense.

MVP race: Mahomes, Lamar and the rest of the field

The MVP conversation has felt like a moving target all season, but the NFL games today pushed two names right back to the front: Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson. Both played like quarterbacks who fully understand their margin for error is gone. Every possession mattered, every snap had stakes, and both delivered.

Mahomes posted over 300 yards, multiple touchdowns and no interceptions while carving up a defense that had been playing its best ball of the year. The eye test matched the stat line. He threw with anticipation, attacked tight windows and shredded blitz looks with hot routes and quick adjustments. When he is seeing it that cleanly, the entire Chiefs playbook opens up. It is the kind of performance that voters remember when they fill out their MVP ballots.

Jackson, meanwhile, piled up passing yards with decisive reads and then crushed the spirit of the opponent with his legs. A handful of scrambles moved the sticks on third down, and his red-zone decision-making was surgical. When the game script demanded a drive to put things away, he led it. For a player already holding one MVP trophy, this looked like another signature line on the resume: dynamic production combined with full control of the offense.

Elsewhere, Jalen Hurts strengthened his case with yet another clutch finish, even in a game where the box score will not jump off the page. Hurts’ combination of short-yardage dominance on sneak situations, intermediate accuracy and calm in the two-minute drill is the backbone of Philly’s success. In a year where no one is running away with the award statistically, his stack of close-game wins matters.

Tyreek Hill remains the non-quarterback wild card in this MVP Race. His weekly assault on coverage schemes and his pace in receiving yards keep him right on the fringe of the conversation. If he continues to threaten single-season marks and Miami keeps stacking wins, it will get harder and harder to ignore him.

Injury report and the hidden cost of Week-to-Week battles

As always, the NFL Injury Report pouring out of this weekend carries as much impact on the playoff chase as any final score. Multiple contenders saw key starters limp off or play through obvious pain. In some cases, players returned with heavy tape jobs; in others, they headed straight to the locker room and never came back.

Offensive lines took a beating: a couple of starting tackles on playoff teams either left the game or played limited snaps, forcing backups into pressure situations against aggressive pass rushes. One starting wide receiver on a playoff hopeful landed awkwardly at the sideline and spent the rest of the afternoon on the bench with trainers. Defensively, there were a few notable nicks to starting corners and a top-tier pass rusher who left after a non-contact scare before later jogging back onto the field.

Teams will downplay the severity until the midweek practice reports hit, but nobody inside locker rooms is fooled. This is the time of year when a single high-ankle sprain or hamstring tweak can flip the balance of a game or a series. Depth charts are being stress-tested; practice squad players are a snap away from deciding seasons. For some franchises, the next MRI will say more about their NFL Super Bowl Contender status than any power ranking or analytic model.

Coaching heat check: who is safe, who is sweating?

Alongside the playoff push runs the less glamorous, more brutal storyline: job security. After another round of flat offensive performances and blown leads, a couple of head coaches and offensive coordinators are edging closer to the hot seat. In at least one building, the postgame press conference had that familiar tone: vague answers, references to "evaluating everything" and a clear frustration from veterans who know the window is closing.

On the other sideline, staffers who have been under the microscope just bought themselves breathing room. A defensive coordinator who had been hammered for soft zone calls responded with an aggressive, blitz-heavy game plan that produced sacks, takeaways and, most importantly, a win. An embattled special teams unit finally swung field position with smart returns and clean execution in the kicking game.

Front offices around the league are already juggling two timelines: the current playoff hunt and the future of their coaching staffs. A strong December finish can save jobs; a collapse from a team still in the Wild Card Race can trigger sweeping change.

Looking ahead: must-watch games on the next slate

The immediate payoff of the NFL games today is drama in the standings. The long-term payoff is a next-week schedule that looks absolutely loaded. A potential AFC playoff preview looms with Mahomes facing another top defense in prime time, a chance to strengthen both his MVP candidacy and the Chiefs’ bid for the conference’s top seed.

Lamar Jackson and the Ravens draw a divisional rival that knows their scheme and their tendencies as well as anyone. It is a classic trap spot on the calendar, the kind of game that separates true No. 1 seeds from talented teams that settle for hosting on Wild Card weekend. Expect Baltimore to lean on its running game early and then unleash play-action shots once linebackers start biting.

Over in the NFC, the Eagles and 49ers are on a collision course with opponents that can expose any lingering weaknesses. Philly faces another physical front that will test their offensive line depth and Hurts’ pocket presence. San Francisco gets a high-variance opponent that can score in bunches but also hand over short fields with turnovers. Both games will have massive implications on the NFL League Position at the top of the conference, especially for tie-breaking scenarios.

And do not overlook the so-called middle-tier matchups. Games between teams hovering at .500 are, in reality, elimination games. One more loss knocks them back into the pack; one more win keeps them in shouting distance of the seven seed. For fan bases dreaming of sneaking into January, every snap from here on out feels like a fourth-quarter drive.

Final whistle: where the league stands after a wild Sunday

By the time the lights went out on this NFL Sunday, a few things were clear. The NFL games today reaffirmed that Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, the Eagles and the 49ers all belong at the center of any Super Bowl conversation. Their quarterbacks delivered, their stars flashed and their coaches pressed the right buttons when the game tightened.

Behind them, the chase is frantic. The NFL Playoff Picture is a living, breathing thing right now, with every result nudging teams up or down a line that will soon read "IN" or "OUT" on every graphic. Injuries, tiebreakers and a few season-defining fourth quarters will determine which fan bases get to book January flights and which start reading mock drafts.

If this week is any indication, the stretch run will be a rollercoaster. Strap in, check the latest scores and standings on the official league hub at NFL.com, and do not blink. The next round of NFL Games today and in the coming week will shape everything we think we know about this season.