NFL Week 17 odds, picks: Vikings-Packers highlights three days of action

The holidays are filled with football action during the NFL’s busiest week of the season. Additional games on Christmas and a triple-header on Saturday means Week 17 features five days of games.

With 10 unique television viewing windows, it’s an ideal scenario for hardcore fans keeping up with the playoff picture and the conclusion of the fantasy football season.

The NFC North grabs the spotlight with the Minnesota Vikings hosting the Green Bay Packers on Sunday afternoon. Tied atop the NFC with Detroit, Minnesota must first hold off the rival Packers before a potential Week 18 showdown with the Lions.

On Saturday, the Cincinnati Bengals still have a small chance to make the playoffs when they host the Denver Broncos — one of the teams currently keeping them out of the postseason.

The NFC West race sees the Los Angeles Rams host the Arizona Cardinals, also on Saturday. A game behind the Rams in the West, the Seattle Seahawks are in must-win territory, facing the Chicago Bears on Thursday night to keep their playoff hopes alive.

Sunday Night Football delivers another matchup with playoff implications when the Washington Commanders host the Atlanta Falcons. Leaders of the NFC South, the Falcons own the tiebreaker over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after a season sweep.

But with the Bucs hosting the 4-11 Carolina Panthers, the pressure is on rookie quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and the Falcons to win a tough road game against a (nearly certain) future NFC playoff team.

—Scott Phillips

We have odds, previews, how to watch and expert picks for each game. But first, let’s review how our experts have done this season.

Picks leaderboard

The records below track up through the end of Week 16.

Rankings	Win %	Record
1. Josh Kendall	71%	170-68-0
2. Austin Mock	69%	146-66-0
3. Tashan Reed	68%	164-76-0
4. Larry Holder	68%	161-77-0
5. Ben Standig	65%	148-78-0
6. Chad Graff	65%	127-69-0
7. Nick Kosmider	62%	138-86-0
8. Josiah Turner	61%	127-81-0
9. Zac Jackson	61%	111-72-0

Odds from BetMGM (U.S.) and Betfair (U.K.) are updated live. Looking for NFL tickets? Find them here. For information on streaming, click here.

Seattle Seahawks at Chicago Bears (Thursday, Prime Video)

Trying to keep up with the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC West, the Seattle Seahawks travel to face the Chicago Bears on “Thursday Night Football.” One game behind the Rams, and with a matchup between the two teams looming in Week 18, Seattle needs a win after suffering consecutive losses to the Packers and Vikings. Losers of nine consecutive games, the Bears were blown out in three straight ugly defeats. With an impressive 5-1 record on the road this season, Seattle is favored by a field goal over Chicago.

The Seahawks have a dangerous passing attack when they protect quarterback Geno Smith and limit turnovers. Jaxon Smith-Njigba, DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett form an elite trio of receivers who have helped lift Seattle to fourth in passing yards per game.

But self-sabotage regularly kills momentum for the Seahawks. Smith is second in the league with 15 interceptions — including an NFL-high four picks in the end zone. Seattle’s poor offensive line surrenders too many sacks (23rd in sack rate) and doesn’t develop lanes for the team’s weak running game (30th rushing yards per game).

Seattle’s issues could be remedied by facing a lifeless Chicago defense. Since firing defensive-minded head coach Matt Eberflus, the Bears regularly give up big plays and allow 34 points per game.

The development of rookie quarterback Caleb Williams is the primary focus for Chicago during a lost season. Williams shows arm talent and limits costly throws (third in interception rate). But an injury-riddled offensive line has the rookie often scrambling for his life while taking a league-leading 60 sacks.

Running the ball remains an issue for Chicago. The Bears are only averaging 3.5 yards per carry in the last three games, with lead back D’Andre Swift unable to find room to run.

—Scott Phillips

Expert picks

It is very simple for the Los Angeles Chargers on Saturday — beat a 3-12 New England Patriots team that seems to be getting worse by the week and clinch a playoff spot in Jim Harbaugh’s first year as the team’s head coach. The Chargers are more than a field goal road favorite for Saturday’s game.

Even though the Chargers are coming off a huge come-from-behind win against the Denver Broncos, they have cooled off a bit in the second half and enter the week having lost three of their previous five games. The defense has become a little more vulnerable over the past few weeks and has allowed 67 points over its past two games.

They should have the potential for a couple of “get right” games to finish the season, playing the Patriots and Las Vegas Raiders in Weeks 17 and 18. Both teams are not only among the worst in the NFL overall, but they rank 29th and 30th in points per game.

If the Chargers simply take care of business, they have a chance to win 11 games for the first time since 2018 and just the second time since the 2010 season.

Offensively, everything for the Chargers runs through quarterback Justin Herbert. While his overall passing numbers are not as impressive as they have been in previous seasons, Harbaugh has him playing some of the most efficient and effective football of his career. Especially when it comes to protecting the football. With only three interceptions on 430 pass attempts he has the NFL’s lowest interception rate at just 0.7 percent.

The Chargers are 10-5 against the spread this season, including 5-2 on the road. While the Patriots have not won much this season, they are a little better against the spread (6-8-1).

Patriots games have also hit the over five times in six home games. The over/under for Saturday is 42.5 points.

—Adam Gretz

Expert picks

Denver Broncos at Cincinnati Bengals (Saturday, NFL Network)

The Bengals have fought the postseason reaper tooth and nail and, though they’re behind on points, have two rounds left to pull off the improbable. This week, they host the Broncos as narrow favorites in arguably the biggest game left on the NFL schedule.

A win for Denver puts them back in the playoffs for the first time in nearly a decade, having last seen January football in 2015 when Peyton Manning was their quarterback. A loss would turn Week 18 into a must-win scenario with three other AFC hopefuls right behind them.

Every game is all or nothing for Cincinnati, and given the Broncos have Kansas City as their final opponent, this is a one-seat-left-on-the-lifeboat type of matchup between the two.

The Bengals passing attack is the class of the NFL, with Joe Burrow leading all quarterbacks in yards, touchdowns and completions and Ja’Marr Chase way out in front of his fellow receivers in the same categories. While Tee Higgins and running back Chase Brown are both forbiddable in their own right, the Burrow-to-Chase formula is the lethal foundation upon which the Bengals have built their long-shot playoff charge.

The Broncos have a defense equipped to stop their attack, allowing the third-fewest pass yards per play and boasting the best opponent EPA per pass at -.20. But for all the unit’s strengths, the spotlight will be focused on Patrick Surtain II, perhaps the NFL’s premier shutdown corner and the Broncos’ best shot at neutralizing Chase. Surtain has the second-best coverage EPA in the league at -25.8 and forces quarterbacks to throw into a tight window 30 percent of the time. He’s allowed 256 yards receiving all year, the fewest of any corner with at least 300 coverage snaps (Surtain has 561). He has four interceptions and an additional five pass breakups, drags opposing quarterbacks’ passer rating down to 56 when targeted and allows the fewest yards after the catch of any cornerback.

The Bengals have other weapons, but Denver has the coverage unit to handle Higgins and a top-five rush defense to throw at Brown. Even with their inconsistencies, the Broncos offense has more than enough juice to score on Cincinnatti, who allows the fifth-most points in the NFL and are particularly susceptible to the short and intermediate pass game Bo Nix favors.

They’ll get their points, forcing Cincy to keep up, which means this game will likely come down to the battle between the league’s best receiver and the cornerback best equipped to stop him.

—J.J. Bailey

Expert picks

Arizona Cardinals at Los Angeles Rams (Saturday, NFL Network)

With a win Saturday night, the 9-6 Los Angeles Rams can claw to the brink of an improbable and spirited division title. They host the sputtering Arizona Cardinals (7-8) and are favored by a touchdown.

Los Angeles is 8-2 in its last 10 games, with a gutsy walk-off TD in Seattle and impressive home wins over the Bills and Vikings. Arizona has dropped four of its last five.

Sean McVay’s team was last in the NFC West at 1-4. Then its receivers got healthy, and its offensive line stabilized, while the defense bent without breaking to claim six of seven one-score games since the bye.

Veteran cornerbacks Darious Williams and Ahkello Witherspoon were two of the four Rams defenders who played every snap of Sunday’s 19-9 win against the Jets. They’ve been unassumingly awesome of late. This defense is full of unexpected breakouts, from first-time starting linebacker Christian Rozeboom to rookie Kamren Kinchens. Kobie Turner is a rising star on the front line with seven sacks and four pass deflections this year.

The offense has the marquee names, of course. Matthew Stafford has had a sneakily good season under center, already with the most play-action yardage of his Rams tenure. Kyren Williams has 15 total touchdowns and more than 1,400 scrimmage yards with two games to go. And Puka Nacua has been fearless in his return from a knee injury.

Arizona was eliminated from playoff contention with last week’s overtime loss in Carolina. This is still a respectable opponent — fifth in rushing, 11th in total yardage, 12th in points for and 14th in points against. But Kyler Murray has five touchdowns to six interceptions across his last seven games and the defense was gashed by the Panthers, of all teams, for 36 points last Sunday.

—Steven Louis Goldstein

Expert picks

Every once in a while, the NFL schedule gives you a late-season game where the fan bases of both teams are cheering for their own team to lose because of what it might mean for draft position. The Tennessee Titans vs. Jacksonville Jaguars game on Sunday is one of those games. The Jaguars are a very slim home favorite and looking to complete a season sweep of a Titans team that enters on a four-game losing streak.

The stakes for this game could not be clearer.

With matching 3-12 records they are both currently positioned to have a top-four pick in the 2025 NFL Draft (Jacksonville at No. 3 overall and Tennessee at No. 4 overall). The loser will pretty much all but guarantee itself a top-five pick and potentially even a top-three pick. The winner could take itself out of the top five.

It is important to keep in mind in discussions like this that the players and coaches could not care less about draft position. They are playing for jobs and pride, and they do not get to the highest level of the sport by not trying to win every game. They are playing to win.

That includes Titans quarterback Mason Rudolph, who has taken over the starting job and is looking to show teams that he might be worth taking another chance on this offseason in free agency. He has four touchdown passes and 461 yards over the past two games but has struggled to protect the football since taking over for second-year quarterback Will Levis. Players like Rudolph aren’t thinking about a draft draft pick that will get made after they find a new team.

But the fans? Viewers? The outside world? People with money on the line? That is a different story, and the 2025 NFL Draft implications are the only thing that is going to make this game interesting to anybody not playing in it, including the fans of the Titans and Jaguars.

—Adam Gretz

Expert picks

Carolina Panthers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (CBS)

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ playoff hopes will be on the line when they host the Carolina Panthers in Week 17. The Buccaneers are favored at home over their NFC South rivals.

Tampa Bay (8-7) came up painfully short in a 26-24 road loss to the Dallas Cowboys this past Sunday night. This has the Bucs on the verge of elimination as they trail the Washington Commanders by two games in the wild-card chase and are also on the wrong end of the divisional tiebreaker with the Atlanta Falcons.

Tampa Bay defeated the Panthers (4-11) a few weeks ago, but the 26-23 overtime outcome is indicative of how competitive Carolina has been over the last two months. Last week, the Panthers eliminated the Arizona Cardinals from playoff contention, improving to 3-4 since the calendar turned to November.

The Bucs piled up 445 total yards in Week 13 against Carolina, with more than half (236) coming on the ground. The Panthers are dead last in the NFL in rushing defense and have given up 200-plus yards in four straight games. Expect Tampa to lean on the ground game once again, especially with Baker Mayfield taking plenty of hits the last few weeks.

Carolina has a formidable ground threat in Chuba Hubbard. He’s sixth in the league with 1,195 rushing yards and is coming off a 152-yard, two-touchdown performance against the Cardinals. The Bucs held Hubbard to 43 yards on 12 carries the first time, so he’ll need to improve upon that production.

The Panthers also have to be encouraged by Bryce Young’s recent play. He had two touchdown passes and a rushing score in last week’s win and was both productive (season-high 298 passing yards with two total touchdowns) and mistake-free (no turnovers) in the first meeting with Tampa. The Bucs’ defense gave up too many big passing plays to the Cowboys, so that will be an area to watch on Sunday.

—Mark Ross

Expert picks

If the season ended right now, the 2-13 New York Giants would be holding the top pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. Much to their chagrin, there’s still more football to play, and six other teams are still in contention for the worst record. New York is, of course, the heavy underdog on Sunday, hosting the Indianapolis Colts — who, at 7-8, still have an outside chance at cracking the playoffs.

Indianapolis needs to win to stay in the postseason mix. It really couldn’t have picked a better final two opponents than the Giants and Jaguars. This team has alternated wins and losses across the past six weeks, but those losses — to the Lions, Bills and Broncos — are understandable. Still, there’s enough to be worried about here. Anthony Richardson (questionable) hasn’t topped 200 air yards in a full month and has an unsightly 12 interceptions to eight passing touchdowns this year.

Jonathan Taylor and this offensive line are the ones pacing the offense. Taylor is averaging 94 rushing yards per game on 4.96 yards per touch. He was on a heat check last week, with multiple breakaway runs and three touchdowns. He’s fantastic, as is his protection — fourth in run block win rate, with Quenton Nelson and Ryan Kelly ranking first and third among individual interior linemen.

The Colts have a formidable defensive front as well. DeForest Buckner and Grover Stewart are both top-five in DT run stop win rate. And Kwity Paye has been menacing off the edge lately, with 5.5 of his seven sacks coming since November.

The Giants are a dreadful watch in every phase of the sport. They’re last in scoring and total offense. The secondary has three interceptions to 19 touchdowns allowed. New York is on a 10-game losing streak, already looking to next spring.

—Steven Louis Goldstein

Expert picks

You can’t blame the Raiders’ players for wanting to win, but their Week 16 victory had to have the Vegas front office in tears. Beating the 3-12 Jaguars dropped them from the likely second pick in the draft down to sixth, a crushing blow to their chances of getting the type of franchise-altering quarterback they desperately need. Now they head to New Orleans as coin-flip underdogs against a fellow team stuck in record purgatory.

This section of the NFL schedule is always littered with such games: Two franchises who have lost too much to be relevant but won enough to damage their draft position facing off in the no-man’s land between pride and practicality.

The Raiders have no quarterback, a backfield of former backups and a prospect who is now on the IR after four games, and a receiving corps whose best member is 28 years old and never had a 1,000-yard season.

Their best weapon is rookie tight end Brock Bowers, who proved in his first season he could alter the fortunes of any offense and will do so in Las Vegas as soon as there is some semblance of an offense deserving of fortunes. The Raider defense is in better shape, especially with the coverage unit becoming one of the tougher matchups down the stretch, but could badly use a front-seven playmaker to help all-world defensive end Maxx Crosby and linebacker Robert Spillane.

All this is to say they have a heap of team needs and every incentive to keep their win column right where it is for the sake of their draft fortunes.

The Saints have much better immediate prospects on paper, but their two electric wideouts are question marks in 2025, with Rashid Shaheed undergoing knee surgery and Chris Olave on IR with the latest and most severe in a string of concussions. Quarterback Derek Carr has been hurt several times this season, and star running back Alvin Kamara only has so many miles left on the tires.

New Orleans spent big this offseason but was never in contention after the injuries began. Winning only hurts their already middling draft slot, but seven victories sit better than five after all that cash went out the door. After Monday’s drubbing in Green Bay, however, they don’t look like they have the horses to beat even the Raiders at this point.

Luckily for them, and anyone chasing the under, Las Vegas shouldn’t be trying all that hard.

—J.J. Bailey

Expert picks

New York Jets at Buffalo Bills (CBS)

The playoff-bound Buffalo Bills will look to keep things rolling at home against the New York Jets. The Bills are heavy home favorites for this Week 17 AFC East matchup.

The Bills (12-3) can secure the No. 2 seed in the AFC bracket with an 11th straight win at home. Buffalo also has won nine out of its last 10 games, a stretch that started with a 23-20 victory over New York back in Week 6. The Jets (4-11) are stumbling to the finish line with just two wins in their last 10 contests.

Buffalo saw its NFL-record-tying eight-game streak of 30-plus points end last week but still got the job done, defeating New England 24-21. Josh Allen didn’t put up big numbers, but he got plenty of help. James Cook ran for 100 yards and the defense forced three turnovers, one of them resulting in a score.

Allen has put together an MVP-worthy season. He’s accounted for 38 total touchdowns (26 passing, 11 rushing and one receiving) and is second in the league with a 76.8 quarterback rating. Allen also is 7-2 against the Jets since 2020, when the Bills won the first of their five straight AFC East titles.

While Allen has thrived, the opposite is true for Aaron Rodgers. Questions about his future are swirling as he puts the finishing touches on one of the worst seasons of his Hall of Fame career. He needs to win out just to avoid posting the fewest wins in a full season (he went 6-10 in 2008), and his 90.8 passer rating is the lowest of his career.

The Jets’ offensive woes are not all Rodgers’ fault. The team is second to last in the league in rushing offense (88.7 yards per game) and has scored eight times on the ground. Contrast that to Buffalo’s NFL-high 29 rushing touchdowns and it’s pretty clear why these teams are separated by eight games in the standings.

—Mark Ross

Expert picks

One of the sport’s oldest and fiercest rivalries renews Sunday, with the 12-3 Philadelphia Eagles playing home favorites to the 7-8 Dallas Cowboys. The former harbors Super Bowl aspirations, while the latter is at least thankful to salvage some of its dignity this season.

Philadelphia pins its contender status on Jalen Hurts, who did not practice earlier in the week after suffering a concussion last Sunday. The fact that the Eagles are still sizably favored is a testament to Philly’s thrilling ground game and a ferocious, disciplined defense.

Saquon Barkley is enjoying a historic first season in midnight green — comfortably leading the league with 122 rushing yards per contest on a Madden-esque 5.9 yards per carry and a real shot at Eric Dickerson’s single-season record. In establishing the run, Philly has run up at least 26 points in eight of its last 10 games.

Meanwhile, Vic Fangio’s defense is for real. It is fifth in points allowed, first in yards against and second in net passing. Seven Eagles have at least three sacks, with Josh Sweat leading at eight.

The Eagles can clinch the NFC East with a win Sunday after failing to do so in last weekend’s grinder with Washington. The Cowboys have been eliminated from playoff contention, but they can still play spoiler to one of their historic enemies.

Despite otherworldly bad vibes for most of 2024, Dallas has somehow won four of its last five games. Rico Dowdle is averaging 100 rushing yards in that span. And Cooper Rush threw for 292 yards, with a touchdown and no picks, in Sunday night’s upset over the Buccaneers.

At 39.5, this matchup opens as the second-lowest point total of Week 17. Only the lowly Raiders-Saints game is projected for less.

—Steven Louis Goldstein

Expert picks

The Browns officially called it a season when they switched to Dorian Thompson-Robinson under center, which is good news for the heavily-favored Dolphins as Miami needs to keep winning if they want a prayer at the postseason.

Miami still needs losses from those ahead of them, but a disincentivized Browns team is a great draw compared to the other bubble teams in AFC contention.

Like fellow playoff hopefuls Cincinnati, the Dolphins are much better than their record. Their offense was forced into hiatus with Tua Tagovailoa’s extended IR stay, and it took two games to reacclimate once he returned. Since then, they have looked as they were designed to, even with Tyreek Hill clearly hampered by injury. Tight end Jonnu Smith has blossomed into a top-tier receiving threat, and running back De’Von Achane has continued to torment defenses with his versatility and explosive speed.

Their defense, thrown into the fire during Tagovailoa’s absence, was forged into one of the league’s best run-stopping units. They allow four rush yards per play, which is third in the league, and have the NFL’s best run stuff rate by a wide margin (25 percent). That’s bad news for Cleveland’s best offensive attribute, Jerome Ford, who has looked rejuvenated and claimed the backfield in Nick Chubb’s absence. With Thompson-Robinson throwing, the Dolphins can load the box. Tight end David Njoku is unlikely to be there to help draw linebacker attention, which means Ford will have an uphill battle all day.

Points will be hard to come by, and even with Cleveland’s disruptive pass rush (number one in pressure rate), it’s hard to see the Browns covering. With them in line for the fourth pick in the draft and in desperate need of cost-controlled talent, it’s harder to see why they’d try to.

—J.J. Bailey

Expert picks

Green Bay Packers at Minnesota Vikings (FOX)

Even though the Green Bay Packers can no longer win the NFC North, they can still play a pretty big role in deciding who wins it, thanks to a massive divisional game against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday. The Packers are actually a very, very small road favorite against a Vikings team that enters the week tied with the Detroit Lions for the top spot in the division.

This is the third time this season the Vikings have found themselves as a home underdog. They are 2-0 in the previous two games, both against the spread and outright. The Packers are 2-2 against the spread as road favorites.

The Packers know they are going to be a wild-card team, but this is still something of a measuring stick game for them.

They know they can beat the second- and third-tier teams in the NFL. But their four losses have all come against the Eagles, Lions (twice) and Vikings. Three of those losses have been by one possession or less, including two games decided by a field goal. They know they can hang with them. Now they have to show they can beat them.

Packers quarterback Jordan Love has been playing his best football of the season over the past two months, entering this weekend with nine touchdown passes to only one interception in his previous six games. He has had a passer rating of 107.0 or higher in five of those games.

The Vikings, meanwhile, are still very much alive in the NFC North race (and the race for a bye week), thanks to a looming Week 18 game against the Lions. Winning Sunday’s game would be extraordinarily helpful in keeping those hopes going.

Quarterback Sam Darnold has been playing some of his best football down the stretch. He has 15 touchdowns to only one interception in his past six games with two No. 1 wide receivers (Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison) to distribute the ball to each week. Both of them have been game-changers.

—Adam Gretz

Expert picks

Atlanta Falcons at Washington Commanders (NBC, Peacock)

The Atlanta Falcons and Washington Commanders face off in a Week 17 matchup of teams on the cusp of making the playoffs. The Commanders are road favorites for this primetime showdown that features rookie quarterbacks.

Both teams also will be keeping a close eye on Tampa Bay on Sunday. Washington (10-5) needs a win/tie or a loss/tie by the Buccaneers (vs. Carolina) to punch their postseason ticket, while the Falcons (8-7) can claim the NFC South title with a victory and a Tampa loss.

The Commanders have won three in a row, capped by last week’s thrilling, come-from-behind 36-33 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles. Quarterback Jayden Daniels sparkled against the Eagles, throwing a season-high five touchdown passes and adding a team-high 81 rushing yards.

If there’s any concern, it’s that Daniels has thrown six interceptions over the last five games. Atlanta’s defense has been particularly stingy recently, holding Las Vegas and the New York Giants to a combined 16 points and 483 yards with seven sacks and six takeaways in the last two games. However, there’s a big difference between those teams and a Washington attack that’s top five in the league in scoring offense (28.8 points per game) and total offense (373.5 yards per game).

The big story for the Falcons has been the switch at quarterback from Kirk Cousins to Michael Penix Jr. The latter made his first NFL start last week, going 18-of-27 for 202 yards with an interception in the 34-7 rout of the Giants. The Commanders are fourth in passing defense (185.5 yards per game), although they have allowed 24 touchdowns compared to six interceptions.

This may be a matchup of quarterbacks that were top-10 draft picks this year but don’t forget about Bijan Robinson. Atlanta’s second-year back is fifth in rushing with 1,196 yards, and Washington has had trouble stopping the run. The Commanders have surrendered 164 or more rushing yards on five different occasions this season.

—Mark Ross

Expert picks

Detroit Lions at San Francisco 49ers (Monday on ABC, ESPN)

Can the Detroit Lions go just one week without a dispiriting and critical injury report? At full strength, Dan Campbell’s group looks like the best in the league. Even as the misfortune mounts, the 13-2 Lions are road favorites against the 6-9 San Francisco 49ers, who have endured a harrowing injury streak of their own.

Detroit is first in points scored and seventh in points against. It’s No. 1 in Football Reference’s simple rating system and has looked like a world-beater since Week 1. Now, to the team’s injured reserve — Aidan Hutchinson, Alex Anzalone, Marcus Davenport, Carlton Davis III, Alim McNeill and Malcolm Rodriguez are all out for this defense, while David Montgomery is unavailable for at least the next few weeks.

Good stuff still abounds. Jared Goff is 10th in attempts but second in passing yardage. Jahmyr Gibbs has already smashed his stellar rookie production, and Amon-Ra St. Brown has his third consecutive 100-catch, 1,100-yard campaign.

They’ll look to get right against a bruised Niners squad that has dropped five of its last six games. This has been a deeply strange season for Kyle Shanahan — the 49ers somehow lost three divisional games that they were leading at the two-minute warning.

If San Francisco is to pull off the Monday night upset, it’ll need a colossal game from its defense. Leonard Floyd leads all pass rushers with 8.5 sacks. Fred Warner is still a menace at linebacker. And the secondary is third in passing yardage allowed.

While the Niners are officially out of the postseason conversation, the Lions still need this game — not only for the conference’s top seed but for the NFC North title, with the Vikings also at 13-2.

—Steven Louis Goldstein

Expert picks

(Photo of Sam Darnold: Steph Chambers / Getty Images)