Week 16 of the NFL season was arguably the best yet despite a slate that didn't look all that promising on paper. The marquee games were spread out through all the windows, but that left the Sunday slate a little bit barren. That didn't matter in the end, as a couple of wild finishes in Panthers-Buccaneers and Lions-Steelers carried the day.
In the prime time windows, Rams-Seahawks lived up to its billing as a clash of Super Bowl contenders, with Seattle taking control of the NFC West race on Thursday night. On Saturday night, Caleb Williams orchestrated a heroic comeback to take down the Packers and extend Chicago's lead in the NFC North. On Sunday, Drake Maye pulled off a comeback of his own, making an MVP statement in a 28-24 win over the Ravens.
Who made the list of winners and losers from Week 16? Let's get into the list.
Winner: Trevor Lawrence and the Super Bowl contender Jaguars
The Jaguars came into Week 16 as somewhat of an unknown. After starting the season 5-4, the Jags ripped off five wins in a row against an objectively hilarious list of teams and quarterbacks. Brady Cook, Riley Leonard and Jacoby Brissett all played against Jacksonville during that stretch, which left a lot of intrigue coming into a clash in Week 16 against the 12-2 Broncos, winners of 11 games in a row.
The Jags passed that test in decisive fashion, maintaining their lead in the AFC South with a very impressive 34-20 win on the road against the current top team in the AFC. Trevor Lawrence maintained his status as one of the hottest quarterbacks in the NFL with a monster day, finishing 23-for-36 with 279 yards and four total touchdowns against one of the best defenses in the league.
The Jacksonville defense played well for the most part, and Lawrence operated efficiently even with the Jags struggling to run the football for most of the day. That should give Duval fans hope that the Jags can make a push in the AFC this season.
Loser: It's time to say goodbye to the Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens came into the season as one of the Super Bowl favorites, and this was billed as Lamar Jackson's year. The entire offensive skill group from what was a stellar offense in 2024, and the defense was expected to show strides in year two under Zach Orr.
Instead, the Ravens are just about out of the AFC playoff race — in the worst division in the conference — with two weeks to go. Even if Baltimore can pull off a win against the Green Bay Packers on Saturday night, a Steelers win against the lowly Browns on Sunday would spell the end of the year for John Harbaugh and company.
Sunday night's defeat, a 28-24 loss to the New England Patriots where the Ravens held an 11-point lead in the fourth quarter, featured all the elements of this bizarre season in Baltimore. Derrick Henry lost another fumble early in the game, Lamar Jackson went down with another injury, the defense failed to get pressure on Drake Maye during his heroic comeback, and a Zay Flowers fumble ended the game on the final drive.
It was truly a season from hell in Baltimore, one that the Ravens would quickly like to forget.
Winner: Everyone who watched Seahawks-Rams
What happens when you combine Thursday Night Football weirdness with NFC West weirdness? You get games like Thursday night.
The Seahawks and the Rams squared off in one of the biggest games of the season with both teams coming in at 11-3 and the winner taking control of the NFC West. Everything appeared to be all gravy for the Rams, who had a 30-14 lead in the fourth quarter after a Sam Darnold interception in the red zone.
Things flipped after the ensuing three-and-out, when Rashid Shaheed housed a punt and the Seahawks picked up the two-point conversion to make it a one-score game. From there, chaos ensued.
Darnold found AJ Barner for a long score, and then Zach Charbonnet somehow converted the game-tying conversion in one of the wildest and most confusing plays you'll ever see. The defenses buckled down, new Rams kicker Harrison Mevis missed a field goal and the game went to overtime.
Puka Nacua got things started in the extra period with a 41-yard touchdown catch, the last of his 225 yards on the night. Darnold matched the Rams with a couple of absurd throws, the last of which went to Jaxon Smith-Njigba for a touchdown, to set up yet another 2-point play.
When Eric Saubert, signed to a new contract the week before, broke wide open in the end zone, Darnold whipped it to him to give the Seahawks an improbable 38-37 win and the lead in the NFC. It was a wild ending to an excellent game — maybe the best of the year — between two NFC contenders, and the fans couldn't have asked for much more.
Loser: The Buccaneers are 2025's bad vibes champions
During the first half of the season, the Buccaneers looked like true contenders in the NFC and Baker Mayfield was playing like a potential MVP candidate. Fast-forward to now, and all of that is a distant memory.
Tampa Bay has lost six of its last seven games after a 23-20 defeat at the hands of the Carolina Panthers on Sunday. The Bucs are now 7-8 on the season and are not even in first place in the NFC South, and Mayfield is playing the worst football he has played since his Carolina days.
After a Week 15 loss to the Atlanta Falcons, head coach Todd Bowles dropped a series of F-bombs in his postgame press conference. The vibes around this Tampa Bay team are terrible, and even though the Bucs still control their own destiny in the division, it's starting to feel more and more like changes will be coming in the offseason.
Winner: Justin Herbert just keeps winning
Justin Herbert and the Chargers have been struggling on offense of late, in large part due to an insurmountable amount of injuries on the offensive line and at running back. However, Herbert has still continued to win games despite that, thanks to his playmaking and a good defense on the other side.
On Sunday, the Chargers got their shot at the league's get-right game on offense against the Dallas Cowboys. Herbert did not disappoint, putting on a laser show in one of the best performances of his career: 23-for-29 with 300 yards and three total touchdowns in a 34-17 win to get to 11-4.
With the win, this makeshift Chargers squad is now 11-4 and just one game back of the Broncos in the AFC West, with a head-to-head meeting coming in Week 18.
Somehow, Herbert has gone from being viewed as a good stats-bad team guy to a bad stats-good team guy. On Sunday, he got both, and now has two of the best defenses in the NFL standing in between him and a home playoff game. He's been Superman all season, and now will have to continue to be that for this LA team.
Loser: The Packers throw it back to the 2014 NFC Championship
Flash your mind back to January 18, 2015 for a quick second. The Packers, playing the Seahawks with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line. Green Bay, thanks to four interceptions, took a double-digit lead before Seattle stormed back. Brandon Bostick infamously botched an onside kick recovery with about two minutes to go, allowing the Seahawks to score to take the lead. When Aaron Rodgers forced overtime, Russell Wilson launched a deep pass into the end zone and Jermaine Kearse made a difficult over-the-shoulder catch to end the game.
Here we are 11 years later, and the Packers were taking on the Bears in the biggest game of their season so far on Saturday night. Green Bay took a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter before Caleb Williams started leading the Bears back. Romeo Doubs botched an onside kick recovery with about two minutes remaining, and Williams tied the game with a fourth-down touchdown in the final seconds of regulation to send it to overtime.
Starting to sound familiar?
In overtime, after Green Bay fumbled away a fourth down chance of their own, Williams launched a deep pass into the end zone and DJ Moore made a difficult over-the-shoulder catch to end the game.
It was a majestic moment, fitting for a magical Bears season, one that will now likely see Chicago win the NFC North. Even as a neutral observer, the throw, the catch, the call from Kevin Burkhardt, and the scene at Soldier Field still give me goosebumps days later.
For the Packers, who also lost Jordan Love to a concussion during this game, it's looking like a team without arguably two of its three best players for the rest of the season will now have to win three road playoff games to make the Super Bowl. It's rare you get a truly sliding doors moment for two teams in one game, but this one looked a whole lot like that one 11 years ago for Green Bay
