There are 17 games left in the NFL regular season and so much is still going on. In a season where most of the league's 14 playoff berths were all but decided by mid-December, Week 17 delivered a bizarre set of results.
The Bengals are still alive, despite a few struggles. The Dolphins have a shot, despite playing without Tua Tagovailoa. The Colts, who didn't have Anthony Richardson, are out after losing to ... the Giants? The Commanders and Rams clinched their playoff spots as a result of last-second comebacks coming up narrowly short. The Vikings kept the heat on the Lions, who now need to beat Minnesota next week to lock up a much-needed first-round bye.
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Oh, and with one week to go, the MVP race is wide open and has a fourth candidate in the mix. I have four things on my mind after Week 17, and I'm going to start with the player who simply has to be part of the MVP conversation. If the Bengals somehow beat the Steelers next week and get other results to go their way, could a guy whose team was 4-8 a month ago really win it?
Jump to a section:
Does Joe Burrow have a legit MVP case?
Would Saquon Barkley's record need an asterisk?
Did the Giants blow it with their win over Indy?
Who's the team nobody wants to face in January?
Should Joe Burrow be an MVP candidate?
If there was ever a game that summed up the seemingly Sisyphean task Burrow has been handed to try to win with the Bengals this season, it was Saturday's season-saving win over the Broncos. Burrow's numbers were spectacular as he went 39-of-49 for 412 yards with four total touchdowns against one of the league's best pass defenses. But even those numbers fail to tell the story of what he had to do down the stretch.
