Week 15 of the 2025 National Football League season promised much in the way of high-profile matchups, and did not disappoint when toe met ball on Sunday.

The Buffalo Bills, facing a threat to their recent AFC East dominance, came from behind to remind the upstart New England Patriots of their place in the hierarchy; the Denver Broncos bested the Green Bay Packers in a pulsating matchup at Mile High, which unfortunately included a season-ending injury to a star player, if not yet GB’s Lombardi hopes; Philip Rivers rolled back the years in the latest story of an eventful year for Indianapolis, while Patrick Mahomes’ injury ended the greatest chapter of the Kansas City Chiefs dynasty.

Here’s what happened in Week 15 of the 2025 NFL season…

WEEK 15 SCORES

(to Monday 15th December)

Thursday

(5-9) Atlanta Falcons 29 @ 28 Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-7)

Sunday:

(7-7) Baltimore Ravens 24 @ 0 Cincinnati Bengals (4-10)

(2-12) Las Vegas Raiders 0 @ 31 Philadelphia Eagles (9-5)

(3-11) Arizona Cardinals 20 @ 40 Houston Texans (9-5)

(10-4) Los Angeles Chargers 16 @ 13 Kansas City Chiefs (6-8)

(10-4) Buffalo Bills 35 @ 31 New England Patriots (11-3)

(2-12) New York Jets 20 @ 48 Jacksonville Jaguars (10-4)

(4-10) Washington Commanders 29 @ 21 New York Giants (2-12)

(3-11) Cleveland Browns 3 @ 31 Chicago Bears (10-4)

(7-7) Carolina Panthers 17 @ 20 New Orleans Saints (4-10)

(8-6) Detroit Lions 34 @ 41 Los Angeles Rams (11-3)

(8-6) Indianapolis Colts 16 @ 18 Seattle Seahawks (11-3)

(9-4-1) Green Bay Packers 26 @ 34 Denver Broncos (12-2)

(2-12) Tennessee Titans 24 @ 37 San Francisco 49ers (10-4)

(6-8) Minnesota Vikings 34 @ 26 Dallas Cowboys (6-7-1)

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GAME OF THE WEEK

Buffalo Bills 35 @ 31 New England Patriots

It’s hard to ever imagine the New England Patriots as the young upstart in an inter-division rivalry. For years we witnessed Tom Brady and Bill Belichick run roughshod over the Bills, Dolphins and Jets; however, since the GOAT left town the Bills have established themselves as the pre-eminent side in the AFC East. With a few minutes left in the second quarter on Sunday, however, it seemed New England, now under the leadership of Mike Vrabel and Drake Maye, had cemented the natural order once again.

Vrabel’s side were bossing the Bills. TreVeyon Henderson’s 52-yard scamper gave the Pats a 21-0 lead with 5:53 left to play in the first half. To that point, Josh Allen had produced a net of -2 passing yards.

Then, out of nowhere, everything flipped.

The Bills scored touchdowns on their next five drives, as the Patriots failed to mount any offense of their own outside of another long score from Henderson.

So, what changed? It might seem rudimentary to suggest the Bills simply started to execute, but that’s the truth. “It’s no secret,” Vrabel said after the game. “They called the same stuff.”

The Pats also helped their foes. Dalton Kincaid’s crucial 24-yard gain on a 3rd-and-7 on the go-ahead drive came on a busted coverage, while the touchdown toss to fellow TE Dawson Knox came on a pre-snap miscommunication. The offense became bogged down too. Maye attempted just four passes in the final quarter as the unit lost momentum, but also took a bad sack on a wide-open throw, while he was errant in hitting Hunter Henry on a third down. The Pats’ final drive ended after just four plays, as Joey Bosa batted down Maye’s attempt on 4th-and-five.

For two quarters, the Pats looked the measure of the AFC-leading side they purported to be. However, Sean McDermott’s brain trust, their superstar Allen and an improving defense exposed this young Pats side in their first stiff test in an otherwise generous 2025 schedule thus far. They still have the inside track on the AFC East title, but they cannot claim to have wrested back control of the division from Messrs Allen and McDermott.

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MVP OF THE WEEK

Bo Nix (QB, Denver Broncos)

The Denver Broncos have the best record in the AFC after beating the Green Bay Packers 34-26 in a pulsating fixture at Mile High. While we’ve long considered Sean Payton’s side a contender by virtue of their stellar defense, this victory was down in no small part to Bo Nix’s signature performance on Sunday.

The second-year star completed 23 of 34 passes for 302 yards and four scores. There were a handful of wonderfully measured passes in that collection, none better than the crucial fourth down strike to Courtland Sutton on fourth down with less than ten minutes on the clock. That dot allowed the Broncos to extend their lead in a tight affair.

Payton demonstrated a renewed level of confidence in a player he has gassed up since he was drafted. The Broncos did not sit on the lead, however, as they pushed and pushed for victory in a game they were forced to chase. Packers QB Jordan Love was rolling from the start, building a 23-14 lead early in the third quarter. Sensing the killshot, Matt LaFleur dialled up a deep shot to Christian Watson, only for a diving Patrick Surtain to snaffle a game-changing interception in front of the receiver — who was injured on the play — and kickstart a defensive renaissance for one of the league’s premier units. The Broncos pressured Love on 54 percent of his dropbacks on the day, allowing the Denver offense to take over the game with 14 unanswered points.

All too often the Broncos have failed to play complimentary football in tandem this season. That is largely down to Nix’s propensity to turn it on late in games, however. If he can maintain this level of play, the Broncos have to be considered the prohibitive favourites to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl come February.

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Winner: Philip Rivers

A quarter into the Colts’ ‘got-to-have-it’ road trip to Seattle, I started to worry about Philip Rivers. The recently unretired 44-year-old quarterback looked like a lame duck out there. Barely mobile, and with his passes harmlessly fluttering down the field in spite of his effort, you could almost hear the grandfather’s joints creaking here in continental Europe. The idea that Shane Steichen and the Colts organisation would put their tenuous playoff hopes in the former Chargers quarterback’s hands was bordering on elder abuse.

But, then, Rivers reminded us all that he was a man that never won on physical prowess. Yes, he had a prototypical NFL arm but, more often than not, he won on sheer bloody-mindedness and a tactical super computer between his ears.

That was almost enough for the Colts to steal a win on the road. Rivers was able to dink and dunk on one of the league’s best defensive units, mixing in a steady dose of Jonathan Taylor to drag Seattle down to their level. When the 44-year-old connected with Josh Downs on an eight-yard touchdown score, Steichen’s side had a 13-3 lead with moments left in the first half.

However, the limitations of Rivers eventually told. The Colts offense was simply too limited and, by extension, too predictable. With their signal caller stuck in shotgun, unable to scramble or convincingly run play-action from under center, Indy became bogged down drive after drive. While Blake Gruppe’s would-be game winner from 60 yards briefly gave the visitors the lead in the final moments, a 56-yarder from Jason Myers — his sixth field goal of the day — was enough for Seattle to keep pace atop the NFC West.

But that shouldn’t diminish the craft, guile and moxie of a man that last played during the Covid-19 lockdown, and who did not know his playing weight four days ago, to come within a hair’s breadth of a famous, famous win. Phil Rivers is a freaking winner, forever and always.

 

Loser: The Kansas City Chiefs dynasty

Last week, we floated the idea that this iteration of the Kansas City Chiefs dynasty was over. Well, we have a definitive answer now.

Patrick Mahomes exited the Chiefs’ 16-13 home loss against the Los Angeles Chargers with an ACL tear, while the defeat brings to an end the franchise’s nine-year streak atop the AFC West, and seven-year run of AFC Championship Game appearances. The injury also likely spells the spiritual end of the Andy Reid-Mahomes-Travis Kelce triumvirate that has brought so much success to Arrowhead.

Of course, ACL injuries are not career-enders anymore. After all, the man that Mahomes is forever compared to, one Tom Brady, saw his ninth season ended on its first drive with the same injury, while it is Mahomes’ eighth year in the league that has ended prematurely. That injury served as something of a milestone in Brady’s career, as he rebounded to win four more Super Bowl rings after a few years of relative playoff failure.

The same could well happen for Mahomes, although it will require a rebuild. The futures of Travis Kelce, Chris Jones and even Reid feel less secure after this injury. Will the Chiefs use this offseason to re-position themselves for the second half of Mahomes’ prime? Or will they push their chips back in once he returns to the lineup in the early months of the 2026 season?

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THE ROUND UP

Another of the league’s best saw their season end prematurely to an ACL tear. Micah Parsons has been unplayable of late. His lengthy absence, in combination with the Watson injury, will likely put a kibosh on the Packers Super Bowl intentions.

The best play during the Los Angeles Rams’ 41-34 shootout win over the Detroit Lions may have come on defense, with Aidan Hutchinson plucking a Matt Stafford screen pass in the flat. That was the last notable stop in a back-and-forth scrap that sealed L.A.’s spot in the NFC playoffs, but it came with significant cost. Davante Adams limped out of the game with a hamstring complaint, while fellow WR Puka Nacua was shaken up on a heavy hit late in the game. He did return — finishing with 181 yards on the day — but losing either of their star receiver tandem ahead of the NFC West showdown with the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday is a real cause for concern.

How about Charlie Smyth?! The Irishman completed a fourth quarter comeback for the New Orleans Saints over NFC South rival Carolina with a last second 47-yard field goal. The ex-GAA man now has a gamewinner, a converted onside kick and a 56-yard bomb under his belt since winning the job in the Big Easy. Having made 80 per cent of his three-pointers, and nailing all of his extra points, there are signs this son of County Down has the skills to thrive in the NFL.

Joe Burrow’s pre-game comments ahead of the Bengals AFC North tilt against the Ravens surely sent alarm bells through his organisation. The former first overall pick said: “If I want to keep doing this, I have to have fun doing it. I’ve been through a lot and, if it’s not fun, then what am I doing it for? So, that’s the mindset I’m trying to bring to the table.”. I can’t imagine a 24-0 loss was the type of fun Burrow had in mind. Cincinnati has pursued a stars-and-scrubs roster building strategy that works better in an auction fantasy league than it does in the actual NFL. Now sitting at 4-10, how do they rebuild their squad to make life more tolerable for their superstar signal caller?

Who would want to play the Houston Texans right now? Their 40-20 demolition of the moribund Arizona Cardinals was an expected outcome, but it did not come purely off the back of their smothering defense. C.J. Stroud put forward his most complete showing of the 2025 season, while second-year back Jawhar Jordan added 101 yards rushing. This team has all the hallmarks of a late-season buzzsaw getting hot at just the right time in a wide open AFC.

There is no more effective medication for an ailing powerhouse than facing off against the Las Vegas Raiders. The Philadelphia Eagles enjoyed a badly-needed get-right game against Pete Carroll’s squad, racing to a 31-0 shutout win at Lincoln Financial Field. The Kenny Pickett-led Raiders’ offense managed just 1.8 yards per play against one of the QB’s former sides, for a total of 75 on the day — the second time this season Las Vegas have been held to under 100 offensive yards.

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STATS OF THE WEEK

• Box Nix’s performance on Sunday made him the second quarterback in NFL history with 7,000 pass yards, 50 passing touchdowns and 20 wins through his first two seasons. The other signal caller to achieve that feat? Dan Marino. Pretty good company for the Oregon alum
• Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence is first player in NFL history with at least five passing TDs, one rushing TD and 50 rushing yards in single game. 

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