For only the second time since 1970, six teams enter Week 12 on a winning streak of four-or-more games, although some of the names might be a little different from 2017.

Detroit (eight consecutive wins), Buffalo (six), Philadelphia (six), Pittsburgh (five), Arizona (four) and the Los Angeles Chargers (four) are all on a run that hints at playoff potential and, for the Cardinals (6-4) and Chargers (7-3) that would mark a welcome return to the postseason after missing out last year. Four other teams absent from the 2023 playoffs also currently have winning records — Atlanta (6-5), Denver (6-5), Minnesota (8-2) and Washington (7-4) — and will surely feature in the scrap for places over the coming weeks.

Additionally, for only the third time in the past 35 seasons, six or more teams have at least eight wins under their belts: Detroit (9-1), Kansas City (9-1), Buffalo (9-2), Minnesota (8-2), Philadelphia (8-2) and Pittsburgh (8-2) — and two with seven pelts on the wall meet in this week’s headline matchup as Baltimore (7-4) and the Chargers clash in the latest installment of the Harbaugh Bowl with the entire nation watching.

The Chargers lead the NFL in scoring defense this season (14.5 points allowed per game) while the Ravens lead the AFC — and rank second in the NFL — in scoring offense (30.4 points scored per game), so something might have to give at SoFi Stadium on Monday night. The clash marks the first time since Week 13 of the 2019 season — when a San Francisco side allowing just 14.9 points per game met a Baltimore team racking up an average of 35.1 points each time they hit the field — that a team averaging 30 points per game and a team allowing 15-or-fewer points per game will meet in Week 12 or later.

What makes this year’s game even more intriguing, however, is the fact that the respective head coaches — Jim Harbaugh in L.A. and brother John in Baltimore — will be facing each other for the third time in their careers and the first since Super Bowl XLVII, following the 2012 season, where the Harbaugh Bowl (or Har-Bowl if you prefer) got its origins. The brothers are still the only siblings to face each other as head coaches in the NFL.

Baltimore arrive in L.A. still smarting from their latest loss to divisional rival Pittsburgh , their eighth in nine such meetings, and will be looking to get back on track having pulled themselves out of an 0-2 start to the season to confirm what many expected from a potential offensive powerhouse.

In last week’s loss, running back Derrick Henry recorded his 13th rushing touchdown of the year, becoming the fifth player in NFL history to reach the mark in four different seasons, joining Hall of Famers LaDainian Tomlinson (six seasons), Jim Brown (four) and Emmitt Smith (four) as well as Shaun Alexander (five). Henry also became the third player in NFL history to record a rushing touchdown in 70 games in his first nine career seasons, joining Tomlinson (87 games) and Smith (83). With another score on Monday night, ‘King Henry’ can become the fourth player in the Super Bowl era to record a touchdown in each of his first 12 games of a season, joining O.J. Simpson (first 14 games in 1975), Jerry Rice (first 12 in 1987) and John Riggins (first 12 in 1983). With two rushing touchdowns against the Chargers, Henry can tie Brown (27 games) for the fourth-most games with at least two rushing touchdowns in NFL history.

While the Chargers’ defense will be looking to prevent Henry reaching any of those marks in its new, stiffer, guise under Jim Harbaugh and DC Jesse Minter, quarterback Justin Herbert needs just 329 passing yards tol surpass current Browns QB Jameis Winston (19,737 passing yards) for the second-most passing yards by a player in his first five seasons, and tie Winston (27 games) for third-most games with at least 300 passing yards by a player in his first five campaigns. Herbert, who had an up-and-down game in last week’s win over Cincinnati, has 19,409 career passing yards since entering the NFL in 2020.

Alongside L.A. and Baltimore, there are four other teams in the AFC with seven-or-more wins heading into Week 12, headed by Buffalo (9-2) and Kansas City (9-1) who met each other in last week’s showpiece game. With Buffalo on a bye this week, the Chiefs can become the first AFC team to reach 10 wins this season as they travel to an enigmatic Carolina Panthers side coming off a bye that followed their win over an admittedly poor New York Giants team in Munich.

Despite their defeat in Buffalo, the Chiefs remain atop the AFC at 9-1, marking the seventh time in franchise history — and fourth occurrence under head coach Andy Reid — that Kansas City has won nine of its first 10 games in a season. With another win this season, Reid will record his 19th 10-win season as a head coach, becoming the third coach all-time with as many such seasons, joining Bill Belichick (20 seasons) and Pro Football Hall of Famer Don Shula (20). Reid has nine-straight seasons with at least 10 wins, the second-longest streak in NFL history, trailing only Bill Belichick (17 consecutive seasons from 2003-19 with New England).

The Houston Texans (7-4) and Pittsburgh Steelers (8-2) are the other AFC teams with seven wins in their pocket at this stage of the campaign and face Tennessee and Cleveland respectively in Week 12.

The Steelers, who open the week’s schedule on Thursday Night Football, have won five straight games for the first time — in a single season — since 2020. Head coach Mike Tomlin now has a .500-or-better record in each of his 18 seasons since being hired in 2007 and, with a win on Thursday night, can extend his streak for the most such consecutive seasons by a head coach to begin a career.

Over in the NFC, the Detroit Lions (9-1) keep on rolling following their latest demolition job, this time a 52-6 win over the hapless Jacksonville Jaguars, who might count themselves fortunate to be on a bye this week.

Meanwhile, the Lions, who have won nine of their first 10 games of a season for the first time in 90 years (since starting 10-0 in 1934), get to take on another AFC South team in the Indianapolis Colts, and will be looking to add another win to their record and keep just out of reach of Philadelphia in the race for the conference’s #1 seed. Detroit leads the NFL in scoring offense with 336 points (at an average of 33.6 points per game), the most since the 2019 Baltimore Ravens put up 341. Their assault comes on all fronts too as, including the postseason, the offense has rushed for a touchdown in 24 consecutive games, the longest such streak in NFL history, while wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown has a touchdown reception in eight consecutive games, tied for the third-most since 1970. With another in Week 12, ARSB — who posted 11 receptions for a career-high 161 yards and two scores in Week 11 — can tie Hall of Famer Lance Alworth (1963) and A.J. Green (2012) for the third-longest single-season streak of all-time, trailing only Jerry Rice (12 in 1987) and Elroy ‘Crazy Legs’ Hirsch (10 in 1951).

St. Brown (nine scrimmage touchdowns in 2024, 10 scrimmage touchdowns in 2023) and running backs Jahmyr Gibbs (nine in 2024, 11 in 2023) and David Montgomery (10 in 2024, 13 in 2023) can become the second trio of teammates in NFL history to each record 10-or-more scrimmage touchdowns in consecutive seasons, joining Minnesota receivers Cris Carter and Randy Moss and running back Leroy Hoard, who achieved the feat in 1998-99.

Orchestrating the Lions offense, quarterback Jared Goff completed 24 of 29 pass attempts (82.8 percent) for 412 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions for a 158.3 passer rating – the highest attainable mark – in the win over Jacksonville. Goff, who threw five interceptions in the previous week’s win over Houston, is the first player in NFL history with multiple career games of at least 400 passing yards, four touchdown passes and a 158.3 rating, having also reached the marks in Week 4 of the 2018 season while playing for the Los Angeles Rams. There have only been seven such performances all-time. Goff also ranks second among qualified passers in completion percentage (73 percent, 197 of 270) and passer rating (112.1) and became the first player in NFL history with a completion percentage of 80-or-higher in five games in a single season (min. 15 attempts in each game).

Speaking of the Rams, for the first time since 2002, all four teams in the NFC West have a .500-or-better record through Week 11, but the 5-5 Los Angeles team might have a tough task staying at that mark as they host the high-flying Philadelphia Eagles (8-2) at SoFi in Sunday’s late game.

The Eagles have won six consecutive games since their Week 5 bye, tied for the second-longest active winning streak in the NFL, and, since resuming in Week 6, rank first in scoring defense (13.8 points per game) and total defense (211.3 yards per game), as well as having a +90 point differential, the second-largest in the NFL in that span, trailing only the ubiquitous Lions (+137). Philly quarterback Jalen Hurts recorded his 52nd career rushing touchdown in Week 11, his fifth-straight game with a rushing touchdown, and can join Justin Fields (2022 with Chicago) as the only quarterbacks ever with a rushing touchdown in six straight games. It’s not like the Eagles need Hurts to be their rushing game, however, as free agent acquisition Saquon Barkley leads the NFL in scrimmage yards (1,347) and sits second in rushing yards (1,137) as he eases into a fourth career season with 1,000 yards on nthe ground. Barkley is the one of only two players in 2024 — Joe Mixon, and not Derrick Henry, is the other — with 100-or-more rushing yards in six games.

The Rams have blown hot and cold this year, veering between looking at a high draft pick and potential playoff implications, as they struggle with injuries. Amongst those to have made a difference since returning — along with fellow WR Puka Nacua — Cooper Kupp will line up for his 99th career game this weekend having become the first player ever with 600 receptions (614), 7,500 receiving yards (7,554) and 50 touchdown receptions (55) inside his first 100 appearances. Last week, Kupp tied Anquan Boldin (614 receptions) for the fourth-most receptions by a player in his first 100 games and should break that mark this weekend.

The unpredictable 49ers taking on Green Bay aside, perhaps the most intriguing NFC West game this weekend comes at Lumen Field, where the 5-5 Seattle Seahawks host division leaders Arizona (6-4) in a fixture that could help shape the destiny of the guaranteed playoff spot.

The Cardinals have won four consecutive games — and six of their first 10 — for the first time since 2021 and, since Week 7, ranks second in the NFL in scoring defense (14.3 point allowed per game), including holding its opponents to fewer than 10 points in each of its last two games. The offense too has been humming, with quarterback Kyler Murray becoming the fourth quarterback in NFL history with three-or-more rushing touchdowns in each of his first six seasons. He now has 30 career rushing touchdowns and became the fifth quarterback in NFL history with 30-or-more rushing touchdowns in his first six seasons with his scores against the Jets immediately before heading for a bye week.

Arizona wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. caught his sixth-career touchdown reception in Week 10, the most among rookies this season, and requires just four more to join Jordan Addison (10 in 2023), Ja’Marr Chase (13 in 2020) and Calvin Ridley (10 in 2018) as the fourth rookie wide receiver with 10 scoring receptions in the past 10 seasons. Meanwhile, Seattle counterpart Jaxon Smith-Njigba — who recorded 10 catches for 110 yards in Week 11 and seven catches for 180 yards and two touchdowns in Week 9 — can become the first player in Seahawks franchise history with at least 110 receiving yards in three consecutive games.

The San Francisco-Green Bay matchup cannot be ignored, especially as the 49ers defeated the Packers, 24-21, in the 2023 NFC Divisional playoffs to advance to Super Bowl LVIII. The 49ers, despite being only 5-5, rank second in the NFL in total offense (398.9 yards per game) this season while the Packers rank fourth (388.1), both achieved despite injuries to key players during the campaign. San Francisco running back Christian McCaffrey recorded 128 scrimmage yards (98 rushing, 30 receiving) and two rushing touchdowns in the NFC Championship game last season and has 100+ scrimmage yards in each of his past five games, including the playoffs, the longest active streak in the NFL. Although he has only recently returned from the Achilles injury that delayed the start of his 2024 campaign, McCaffrey has 14 games with at least 100 scrimmage yards since the start of the 2023 season, the most in the NFL.

Green Bay counterpart Josh Jacobs recorded 134 scrimmage yards (76 rushing, season-high 58 receiving) and a rushing touchdown in the Packers’ narrow Week 11 win over Chicago, marking his fourth rushing touchdown of the season. Jacobs has 1,024 scrimmage yards in 2024 and is one of three players (alongside Derrick Henry and Alvin Kamara) with at least 1,000 scrimmage yards in each of the past six seasons. With two further rushing touchdowns, he can become the eighth player in NFL history with at least 800 rushing yards and six rushing touchdowns in each of his first six seasons.

Elsewhere this week, two rookies can continue piling up the stats as Denver (6-5) travel to face AFC West rival Las Vegas (2-8) in Sunday’s late window. Broncos quarterback Bo Nix, the #12 overall selection in the 2024 NFL Draft, and Las Vegas tight end Brock Bowers, taken one pick after the former Oregon Duck, have both excelled in their first NFL seasons, with Nix seemingly getter better with each game he plays.

Taken after fellow QBs Caleb Williams (Chicago), Jayden Daniels (Washington) and Michael Penix (Atlanta), the Denver selection completed 28 of 33 attempts (84.8 percent) for 307 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions, putting up a 145.0 rating, in the Broncos’ 38-6 rout of the Falcons in Week 11, becoming the second rookie quarterback all-time with at least 300 passing yards, four touchdown passes and a passer rating of 140-or-higher in a game, joining Houston’s C.J. Stroud from last season. Nix recorded three touchdowns (two passing, one rushing) and a 117.2 rating in Week 5 against Las Vegas and over the past seven weeks since then, ranks fifth in the NFL in passing yards (1,615) and is one of two quarterbacks with at least 10 touchdown passes (13) and two-or-fewer interceptions (two), along with Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson (20 touchdown passes, two interceptions).

Bowers, meanwhile, had 13 receptions for 126 yards and a touchdown in Week 11, the most receptions by a rookie tight end in any game in NFL history. He ranks second in the NFL with 70 receptions this season and joined Odell Beckham Jr. (71 receptions) as the only players all-time with at least 70 receptions in their first 10 career games. Bowers currently leads all tight ends with 706 receiving yards this season and surpassed Atlanta’s Kyle Pitts (635 receiving yards) for the most receiving yards ever by a tight end in his first 10 career games in the game against Miami. With five receptions against Denver, Bowers can become the third rookie tight end in NFL history with 75 receptions, joining Sam LaPorta (86 receptions in 2023 with Detroit) and Keith Jackson (81 in 1988 with Philadelphia), as well as drawing level with Buffalo’s Dalton Kincaid for the third-longest streak of games with five-or-more receptions by a rookie, trailing only Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry on that list.

With Atlanta, Cincinnati, New Orleans and the New York Jets joining Buffalo and Jacksonville amongst this week’s teams on a bye, there are only 13 fixtures on the slate, with Minnesota looking to keep themselves in the playoff hunt against a lacklustre Chicago Bears team at Soldier Field and Houston hoping to build on Monday night’s shellacking of the Dallas Cowboys with a divisional win over lowly Tennessee. Other divisional matchups this week see the Patriots and Dolphins (AFC East) and Cowboys and Commanders (NFC East) face off, while Tampa Bay look to continue the Giants’ misery at MetLife Stadium.

Amongst the few highlights for Big Blue this season, rookie receiver Malik Nabers has 61 receptions and 607 receiving yards, including at least five receptions and 50 receiving yards in seven of his first eight career games. With four receptions against the Buccaneers, Nabers can surpass Puka Nacua (64) for the most by a player in his first nine career games and, with just one more, become the first player ever with at least five receptions and 50 receiving yards in eight of his first nine career games.

Both Nabers, who had 12 receptions in Week 4 and 10 receptions in Week 2, and Bowers, whose 13 receptions in Week 11 added to his 10 in Week 7, can join Beckham Jr. (four games in 2014) and Jaylen Waddle (three games in 2021) as the only rookies all-time with 10-or-more receptions in three games.