NFL Game Recaps: Week 17, 2025

NFL Game Recaps of previous weeks and seasons can be found via links at the bottom of the page.

Cowboys 30, Redskins 23

The Cowboys entered this game as near-double-digit favorites, and they played that way in the opening half. They didn’t punt a single time, as they were able to convert a quartet of fourth downs. They scored 24 points in the opening half, with seven of the points coming via an 86-yard KaVontae Turpin deep touchdown.

The Redskins didn’t appear as though they’d be competitive, but that changed when Jacory Croskey-Merritt exploded for a 72-yard touchdown run in the third quarter. This tightened the score to 24-17. Washington’s defense did a much better job on Dallas in the second half, limiting the Cowboys to just six points following intermission. The key to this was the pressure the Redskins applies on Prescott, who took six sacks.

The Cowboys were up seven in the fourth quarter when they took more than six minutes off the clock on a drive that culminated with a field goal. The Redskins struck back quickly with a field goal of their own. With 2:03 remaining, the Redskins had three timeouts remaining, but couldn’t get off the field because they had issues stopping Malik Davis runs and a Prescott completion to George Pickens.

Vikings 23, Lions 10

The Lions needed four things to happen to make the playoffs, beginning with winning this game. They played like they were already eliminated, however, putting forth a completely lifeless performance against the energized Vikings.

Detroit struggled to do anything offensively, as Dan Campbell was outmatched by Brian Flores’ brilliance. The Lions wanted to make it a goal to run much better against the Vikings after failing to do anything on the ground last week, but neither Jahmyr Gibbs nor David Montgomery could eclipse 41 rushing yards. Not helping matters, Gibbs lost a fumble at midfield in the second quarter.

The Gibbs lost fumble was actually one of six turnovers the Lions committed in this game. It began when they lost a fumble on a botched snap, setting up an Aaron Jones touchdown. In the second half, Goff threw interceptions on consecutive drives and then was tagged with two lost fumbles. It was an atrocious performance from Goff, who didn’t get any help from an offensive line that lost Penei Sewell to injury in the second quarter.

Broncos 20, Chiefs 13

The Broncos were coming off a two-touchdown loss to the Jaguars last week, so a better effort was expected from them this week as they still were fighting for the No. 1 seed. We, however, did not see that effort, as the Broncos became the third road team on Christmas to have a lackluster performance.

Denver was the best of the three road teams on this holiday, or at least that’s what we were told. The Broncos had problems moving the chains all night, and it stemmed from Bo Nix’s poor quarterbacking. Nix’s passes were all over the place, with his receivers having no chance of catching the balls he wasn’t dinking and dunking. One horrendous pass of his was deflected and picked. The Broncos trailed the Chiefs and their skeleton crew roster, 10-7, at halftime.

The Broncos had a bit more success in the second half, but not by a wide margin. The game was tied at 13 when the Broncos received the ball with eight minutes remaining. They finally put together an impressive drive that seemed to stall at the 10-yard line. The Broncos appeared to line up to go for it on a fourth-and-2 in an obvious ruse to draw Denver offside, and Chris Jones, of all people, fell for it. A few plays later, Nix found R.J. Harvey in the end zone for the go-ahead touchdown to win the game.

Texans 20, Chargers 16

This looked to be a defensive struggle entering the game, but the Texans had other ideas. On their first two possessions, C.J. Stroud launched deep bombs to Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel for quick touchdowns. The Texans were up 14-0 in a blink of an eye, and it looked like this would be an absolute demolition, especially when Houston’s defensive line sacked Justin Herbert on numerous occasions to start the game.

It didn’t take Houston’s offense to regress back to the mean. The Texans didn’t score a single touchdown the rest of the way, as Stroud began making mistakes. He threw a couple of interceptions where he didn’t see Charger defenders in coverage, and he’s lucky he wasn’t picked more often. The Chargers, meanwhile, made their own blunders as well. Herbert was charged with an interception because Oronde Gadsen had a ball pop out of his hands and into the arms of a Charger player. Gadsen had another crucial drop, while Cameron Dicker missed a chip-shot field goal.

This missed field goal ended up seeming crucial at the end. The Chargers were down the entire game, but scored a touchdown on an Omarion Hampton run. This made the score 20-16, and it would’ve been 20-19 with an extra point pending had Dicker not missed. Dicker, however, also whiffed on the extra point. The Texans, up 20-16, needed a couple of first downs to ice the victory. They got one on a 19-yard completion to Nico Collins. An illegal contact penalty on third-and-long was the back breaker.

Ravens 41, Packers 24

The Ravens suffered a fourth-quarter meltdown last week, largely because they seemingly forgot that Derrick Henry was on the roster. They surely remembered this time, as they fed Henry the ball over and over again throughout the evening.

This strategy worked incredibly well. Henry picked up chunks of yardage, helping the Ravens score 17 points on their first three possessions. As this was happening, the Packers struggled to sustain drives because of a Josh Jacobs stuffed run on fourth-and-1 and a lost fumble on a botched snap. Henry, meanwhile, reached the end zone on three occasions during the opening half alone. It looked like the Ravens would run away with a blowout victory, up 27-14 entering the break.

The Packers, to their credit, showed some life in the third quarter. Malik Willis, playing for the injured “No Cookie” Jordan Love, made some great throws, particularly to Christian Watson, and ran circles around Green Bay’s defense. Willis was able to trim Baltimore’s lead down to three, but suffered a shoulder injury. He went into the locker room, and following a Clayton Tune interception, Henry ran the ball down Green Bay’s throat en route to a 17-point victory.

Bengals 37, Cardinals 14

Joe Burrow said he wanted to go back to having more fun last week. He had a great second half versus Miami, and that carried over into this game. Burrow went down the field with ease on the initial two drives against an injury-ravaged Arizona defense. He threw a touchdown to Ja’Marr Chase after a previous big play from Chase, and then Samaje Perine ran into the end zone to put the Bengals up 13-0, thanks to a missed extra point.

The Cardinals struck back with a touchdown on a horrible tackling effort via a Michael Wilson deep pass. The Bengals, however, answered with a long kickoff return. This set up another Cincinnati touchdown where Burrow once again found Chase for the score to go up 23-7.

It was all Bengals after that. They went up 37-7 via two Chase Brown touchdowns. Toward the end of the game, Trey McBride was able to surpass Zach Ertz as the NFL’s record holder for receptions in a single season.

Seahawks 27, Panthers 10

The Seahawks entered this game as touchdown favorites, but didn’t seem as such for most of the afternoon, despite what the final score says. They managed to kick an early field goal, but couldn’t get anything going in the first half otherwise. Carolina’s defensive line hounded Sam Darnold, who managed to accumulate just 56 passing yards on his 13 first-half attempts. Darnold lost a fumble on a play where it looked like he released a pass, and he was lucky not to be intercepted on several occasions in the opening half.

Luckily for Darnold, his defense came through with some big plays. The Panthers mustered just a field goal prior to halftime, and it came following that aforementioned Darnold fumble. Seattle’s defense came up with a big stop to limit the Panthers to just three points following the turnover.

It looked like the Seahawks would be able to take the lead to begin the second half when Zach Charbonnet made a great play, but Darnold was picked on a throw to the end zone where he released a pass off his back foot. However, on the next play, Chuba Hubbard lost a fumble, allowing Seattle to take over in the red zone. Thanks to a Darnold pass to A.J. Barner, the Seahawks were able to punch the ball into the end zone via a Charbonnet run to go up 10-3. Seattle’s defense then made another big play, intercepting Bryce Young when the young quarterback stared down his receiver.

The Seahawks were able to take advantage of the Young take-away with a Darnold touchdown to Barner. The Panthers came back to trim the margin to seven again via a Young rushing score, but the Carolina defense couldn’t get off the field, with Charbonnet picking up some tough yardage and a second touchdown.

Browns 13, Steelers 6

The Steelers needed this game in the wake of the Ravens’ victory over the Packers on Saturday night, but it didn’t seem like they were aware of the result. The Steelers performed sluggishly, as if they couldn’t clinch the division with a win.

The Browns were able to establish a 10-3 lead when Shedeur Sanders threw a deep touchdown to Harold Fannin where it seemed as though Pittsburgh’s defense fell asleep on the coverage. Fannin got hurt on the play, however, and Cleveland had issues moving the ball after that. Sanders was eventually intercepted upon releasing the ball, but the defense stepped up, giving up no points. Aaron Rodgers, playing without both DK Metcalf and Calvin Austin, was incomplete on a fourth-down overthrow.

The Steelers couldn’t get anything going offensively the entire afternoon. Rodgers was just 3-of-15 on third downs and 0-of-3 on fourth downs, as Cleveland’s defensive line smothered him. The Steelers had a four-and-out late that allowed the Browns to kick a field goal to go up seven.

Pittsburgh had one more chance after that. Rodgers began the ensuing possession with a 15-yard pass to Scotty Miller to reach midfield. Following an incompletion, Rodgers hit Pat Freiermuth down the seam for a 29-yard connection. Another completion to Freiermuth, good for 11 yards, put the Steelers in the red zone. Rodgers, however, then took three shots into the end zone, all of which fell incomplete, giving the Browns the upset victory.

Saints 34, Titans 26

The Saints have been playing impressive football lately, but many of those games occurred in the Superdome. They would be playing outdoors in Tennessee, and things didn’t exactly go their way in the elements. We saw this when recent hero Charlie Smyth missed a 43-yard field goal to begin the game. The New Orleans defenders then showed a miserable tackling effort on a Chig Okonkwo touchdown.

The Titans were able to establish a 13-3 lead, but New Orleans’ defense made a big play when Chase Young ripped the ball out of Cam Ward’s hands and ran back for a touchdown. The Saints, however, surrendered another touchdown to Ward, who was described by the announcers as a quarterback who made several “magical acts” in this game with some inexplicable plays to keep the chains moving. The Titans went into the break up 20-10.

The magic pixie dust wore off Ward, however, as his carriage transformed into a pumpkin in the second half. Ward managed to lead to just six points following intermission, while the Saints scored 24 in the second half. Tyler Shough was incredible, launching a 60-yard pass to Chris Olave on one instance to set up a score to Kevin Austin. The Saints eventually went up eight, but Ward had one more chance. He made another one of his magical acts when he heaved a pass for a first down on fourth-and-10 while scrambling and falling down, but with the pixie dust gone, replay review ruled that Ward was down by contact, effectively ending the game.

Jaguars 23, Colts 17

This was the Murphy’s Law of games for the Jaguars, at least for a while. Inexplicable things allowed the Colts to build a lead that they maintained for most of the first half. It began right away with the Colts getting a long kickoff return to set up a field goal. The Jaguars then entered the red zone, but on a designed play, Jakobi Meyers pitched the ball backward to Travis Etienne, but the two were not on the same page, and a fumble occurred. The fumble variance went to the Colts on another play, as the ball popped in the air on a Philip Rivers throw that landed in the lap of someone named Will Mallory.

Despite all of this, the Jaguars had a chance to take the lead just prior to halftime when they were down 10-7, but another red zone turnover, a Trevor Lawrence interception on a pass into the end zone, allowed the Colts to enter intermission with the lead. The Colts then scored another touchdown following the break, as another long return set up a score. During the drive, Josh Downs was ruled to make a reception along the sideline. It was obvious that he had one foot inbounds, but replay review inexplicably couldn’t overturn the call.

The Jaguars, to their credit, continued to fight through the BS, and they tied the game via a Lawrence touchdown rush. The defense then made a big play, as Jarrian Jones jumped the route on a Rivers pass and intercepted it to set up a field goal. The Colts then had grand aspirations of winning the game on the next drive because on a fourth-and-11, they inexplicably went for it despite having all three timeouts and 3:30 on the clock. The fourth-and-11 failed, allowing the Jaguars to clinch the victory with a field goal.

Patriots 42, Jets 10

Drake Maye heard MVP chants in Baltimore last week, and that continued to be the case at the Meadowlands. Maye throttled the Jets, scoring against their defense with ease. Maye completed his first nine passes on three drives, and it’s not like he was dinking and dunking. Maye made a ridiculous throw to Stefon Diggs along the sideline where he displayed precise accuracy.

As this was happening, the Jets weren’t doing much offensively. Brady Cook threw an ugly interception into double coverage and had some other potential picks that were not converted.

Maye, meanwhile, continued his onslaught. He completed 90 percent of his passes, all while throwing five touchdowns. This game was so lopsided that Maye took a seat on the bench midway through the third quarter. The Patriots could have scored 70 points if they wanted to do so.

Dolphins 20, Buccaneers 17
By Charlie Campbell – @draftcampbell

EDITOR’S NOTE: The Buccaneers had Liam Coen and Dave Canales in the building, and they opted to remain with Todd Bowles. Yikes!

The Buccaneers needed to win against Miami and against Carolina next week to win the NFC South. With the Panthers losing to Seattle, the Bucs’ hopes remain alive despite a loss to the Dolphins. Tampa Bay entered this game 0-7 when Baker Mayfield threw an interception, and they were 7-1 when Mayfield avoided throwing a pick. Mayfield threw two picks and fumbled the ball away, while Dolphins rookie quarterback Quinn Ewers managed the game well to lead Miami to their seventh win of the season. Both teams stand at 7-9 heading into the season finale.

The Bucs took their opening drive down the field, and it ended with Mayfield connecting with Chris Godwin for a short touchdown. The lead did not last long as Jamel Dean blew coverage on Theo Wease Jr. to let him get wide open for a 63-yard touchdown. After a punt, Ewers hit a chunk completion, and Jaylen Wright ripped off a 32-yard run to set up a field goal. On the ensuing Tampa Bay possession, Mayfield threw a poor pass that was intercepted by Jason Marshall. De’Von Achane provided some good yardage to set up a first-and-goal. To cap the drive, Ewers threw a strike to Greg Dulcich in the middle of the end zone, and Miami took a 17-7 lead. Mayfield came back to hit Jalen McMillan to get across midfield, but a 55-yard field goal was blocked, and that proved to be a huge play in the game. Miami took its 10-point lead into the half.

Midway through the third quarter, Mayfield led a field goal drive, but Miami responded with the same to keep their lead at 10 entering the fourth quarter. Another drive into Miami territory came up short as safety Ashtyn Davis intercepted Mayfield close to the end zone. The Bucs got a punt, and Mayfield drove them across midfield, but the Bucs’ backup left tackle was beaten for a blind-side strip-sack by Bradley Chubb, and the Dolphins recovered the fumble. Late in the fourth quarter, the Dolphins showed terrible coverage downfield to let Chris Godwin race down the field for a 59-yard completion. A few plays later, Mayfield hit Mike Evans with a short touchdown to make it 20-17 with less than a minute remaining. The Dolphins recovered the onside kick to clinch the win for Miami.

Eagles 13, Bills 12
By Charlie Campbell – @draftcampbell

EDITOR’S NOTE: Couldn’t Jalen Carter have blocked the second extra point so we could have gone to overtime? This a**hole has cost us so much money this year.

The Eagles improved to 11-5, and the Bills fell to 11-5 in a hard-fought game in Buffalo. Philadelphia’s defense was tremendous, and if it plays at this level next month, it will be difficult to keep them out of the Super Bowl. Buffalo’s defense played well in the second half as well, but a blocked extra point and a missed two-point conversion were the difference. The Eagles are locked into the division title, while Buffalo will be a wild-card team, so this outcome does not have a big impact on the postseason.

Midway through the first quarter, Josh Allen laid out a deep ball to Brandin Cooks for a 50-yard gain. A couple of plays later, a questionable call went the Eagles’ way when it looked like Allen had his arm going forward for an incompletion, but it was ruled a fumble. With the ball going backwards and a short return, the Eagles were set up at midfield. Hurts connected with A.J. Brown to move into the red zone. A few plays later, Hurts found Dallas Goedert wide open in the end zone for a touchdown.

Later in the first half, Hurts made a superb play to buy time with his feet before firing a strike to Brown to get across midfield. To cap the drive, they added a field goal to go up 10-0. They then notched another field goal to take a 13-0 lead into the half.

The third quarter saw more superb play from the Eagles’ defense, but late in the third, Tyrell Shavers made a superb catch on a jump ball for a 32-yard gain that set up a first-and-goal. However, Josh Allen was tackled at the one on fourth-and-goal, and Philadelphia held their 13-0 lead entering the fourth quarter. The Bills’ defense kept them in the game, and midway through the fourth, Allen plunged into the end zone. The extra point was blocked to make it 13-6 with five minutes remaining.

Buffalo then quickly forced a punt and had one final possession. They got moving on a completion to Shavers with a lateral to Ty Johnson, who took off for a gain of 25. A couple of plays later, Brandin Cooks made a phenomenal leaping catch for a 36-yard gain. On a fourth-and-goal from the one, Allen went behind the right side for a touchdown. Allen missed an open receiver on the two-point conversion to let the Eagles escape Buffalo with a win.

Giants 34, Raiders 10

The Raiders made it clear that they had no desire to win this game when they shelved a healthy Maxx Crosby after the All-Pro defensive end said that he was going to fight hard to win this contest. Las Vegas’ defense was a complete no-show against Jaxson Dart, who struggled heading into this game.

Despite Dart’s recent struggles, he moved the chains on the Crosby-less Raiders defense all afternoon. He completed most of his passes and did a lot of damage as a runner, scoring twice.

Meanwhile, the Raiders had yet another horrible game from Geno Smith. Despite ESPN DEI hire Mina Kimes saying that Smith was a top-10 quarterback heading into the season, the former Seahawk signal-caller extended his league interception lead with two picks. One interception was an atrocious throw in the red zone, setting up a long Devin Singletary run and an ensuing touchdown run. Smith was ultimately knocked out of the game, giving way to Kenny Pickett in garbage time.

49ers 42, Bears 38

The Bears fought the flu entering this game, but as it turns out, battling a locker room-wide sickness was an easier task than going up against San Francisco’s defense. Both defenses were atrocious in this epic shootout that saw history occur, as this was the first regular-season game to ever be tied at seven, 14, 21, 28, and 35.

There were just a couple of big defensive plays in this game, and we saw one on the first play of the evening when Brock Purdy had a pass to Jauan Jennings deflected and pick-sixed. Adding injury to insult, Trent Williams went into the medical tent. Undaunted, Purdy led touchdown drives on the next two possessions. The Bears, meanwhile, kept up offensively.

Kyle Shanahan made a curious call that nearly cost the 49ers the game in the fourth quarter. Tied at 35, the 49ers opted to punt at the Chicago 43-yard line. The Bears returned that spot in just two plays and ended up kicking a field goal to go up three. The 49ers answered with a touchdown drive, with Purdy finding Jennings for the 38-yard score to go up 42-38.

The Bears, however, still had plenty of time to answer. Caleb Williams converted a scramble on a third down to move the chains and then found Colston Loveland on fourth down. The Bears ventured inside the 5-yard line, but time was running out. They had just one play remaining. Williams danced around in the pocket and hopped over a potential sack, but underthrew the receiver in the end zone to end the game.

Falcons 27, Rams 24

The Rams entered this game without necessarily needing to win to achieve the No. 5 seed. With three offensive linemen missing – Rob Havenstein, Alaric Jackson, Kevin Dotson – it would have made sense for the Rams to rest Matthew Stafford and the rest of the starters. Instead, the Rams pushed and nearly paid the price, as Stafford took a beating behind his injury-ravaged offensive line.

Stafford, who was sacked three times, threw two interceptions in the opening half. He was initially picked on a pass behind his receiver and then was intercepted a second time on a deep shot. The Falcons turned the second take-away into a 93-yard touchdown run by Bijan Robinson. Up 21-0 at the half, the Falcons looked like they were going to run away with a blowout.

The Rams scored a touchdown and a field goal to start the third quarter, but the Falcons were still in position to kick the ball to go up 27-10, which may have coaxed Sean McVay into resting Stafford and company. However, the Rams blocked the field goal and returned it for a touchdown to trim the margin to 24-17. The Rams then looked lke they would tie the game, but Stafford threw his third interception, doing so in the red zone. The Falcons, however, went three-and-out after that, thanks in part to a miserable Kick Cousins throw. The Rams then moved down the field with ease, capping off a drive with a touchdown by Puka Nacua to tie the game at 24.

The Falcons could have easily completed their meltdown, but Cousins hit Kyle Pitts for an 11-yard gain, and then Robinson broke free for a big gain to put the team in field goal range. Zane Gonzalez connected from 51 yards to take the lead. The Rams had one final chance, but a few deep passes were off the mark and a potential pass interference penalty was ignored, clinching the victory for Atlanta.