Los Angeles Rams v Seattle Seahawks
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The second half of the 2025 NFL season is off and running with the conclusion of Week 10 on Monday night, as the defending Super Bowl LIX champion Philadelphia Eagles held off the Green Bay Packers 10-7 at Lambeau Field in a defensive slugfest. 

However, the playoff picture still has yet to take complete shape. Ditto for the 2026 NFL Draft order. Given that reality, now is as good a time as ever to determine the 10 most impactful matchups in terms of both playoff and draft ramifications. 

2026 NFL Mock Draft: Three QBs taken in the top 5 and a No. 1 pick nobody saw coming
Josh Edwards
2026 NFL Mock Draft: Three QBs taken in the top 5 and a No. 1 pick nobody saw coming

10. Jets at Saints

Week: 16 | Date: Sunday, Dec. 21 | Time: 1 p.m. ET | TV: CBS | Streaming: Paramount+ (try for free)

Through 10 weeks, the New York Jets (2-7) and the New Orleans Saints (2-8) hold the fifth and second overall picks, respectively, in the 2026 NFL Draft. The Jets are fresh off becoming the only team with multiple in-season trades for first-round picks in the past 25 seasons after also becoming the only team in the last 45 years to trade two former first-team All-Pros in the same day, per CBS Sports Research. 

After sending All-Pro cornerback Sauce Gardner to the Indianapolis Colts and All-Pro defensive tackle Quinnen Williams to the Dallas Cowboys, the tank is clearly on for the Jets. Poor salary cap management for the entire 2020s has the Saints in position to reel in the draft's second overall pick through 10 weeks. Second-round rookie quarterback Tyler Shough had a strong start in an upset win at the Carolina Panthers on Sunday, throwing for 282 yards passing and two touchdowns while completing 19 of his 27 throws. That made him the first New Orleans rookie quarterback ever with 250 or more passing yards in a game. However, the jury is still out on if Shough is their future. 

New York would love nothing more than to have its pick between Indiana's Fernando Mendoza and Alabama's Ty Simpson while New Orleans may end up feeling the same way. If not, trading down would certainly help them plug the many holes on their aging roster. 

9. Titans at Browns

Week: 14 | Date: Sunday, Dec. 7 | Time: 1 p.m. ET | TV: Fox | Streaming: fubo (try for free)

While sitting idle on their bye in Week 10, the Tennessee Titans became the last one-win team in football with the Saints and Jets securing upset victories. That has the Titans in position to have consecutive top overall draft picks, but Tennessee has its quarterback of the future in 2025 first overall pick Cameron Ward. The Titans would love nothing more than to trade down to restock their roster. Cleveland is now 2-7 after their upset loss against the New York Jets, which puts them in position to have the fourth overall pick as of this moment. 

The Browns likely aren't sold on Dillon Gabriel, and they have yet to play Shedeur Sanders in the regular season. Cleveland's front office would likely appreciate nothing more than losing this game to get closer to the top overall pick. However, Tennessee doesn't have the manpower along its offensive line to slow down NFL sacks co-leader Myles Garrett, who has 11.0 this year. This game will provide a draft tiebreaker that could loom large as the season winds down. 

8. Lions at Eagles

Week: 11 | Date: Sunday, Nov. 16 | Time: 8:20 p.m. ET | TV: NBC | Streaming: fubo (try for free)

The Detroit Lions (6-3) and the Philadelphia Eagles (7-2) were the NFC's top two seeds in last year's postseason, and both are at the top of the NFC standings once again. Following the Eagles' 10-7 road win over the Packers on "Monday Night Football" to close out Week 10, the Lions are the NFC's No. 3 seed as the NFC North division leader, and Philadelphia is the NFC's No. 1 seed as the NFC East division leader.

With coach Dan Campbell on the headset as the Lions' offensive play caller over new offensive coordinator John Morton in Week 10, Detroit dominated the Washington Commanders to the tune of a 44-22 road drubbing. All of his offensive skill-position players -- quarterback Jared Goff (320 yards passing and three touchdowns on 25 of 33 passing), running back Jahmyr Gibbs (172 yards from scrimmage, three scrimmage touchdowns), wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown (58 yards receiving and a touchdown on five catches), wide receiver Jameson Williams (119 yards receiving and a touchdown on six catches) -- ate. 

That offensive juggernaut will travel to Lincoln Financial Field to face Pro Bowl defensive tackle Jalen Carter and fellow Georgia first-round pick Jordan Davis. This game could have critical implications on tiebreakers as they pertain to playoff seeding should the Lions win the NFC North division. 

7. Seahawks at Rams

Week: 11 | Date: Sunday, Nov. 16 | Time: 4:05 p.m. ET | TV: Fox | Streaming: fubo (try for free)

The Seattle Seahawks and the Los Angeles Rams are the only two teams in the NFL who both rank in the top five in the league in scoring offense -- 31.4 PPG for Seattle (third in the NFL) and 27.9 PPG for Los Angeles (fifth in the NFL) -- and scoring defense -- 17.0 PPG for Los Angeles (second in the NFL) and 19.1 PPG for Seattle (fifth in the NFL) -- this season. 

Both teams are currently 7-2, on four-game winning streaks and coming off of victories in which they both scored over 40 points. Oh, and they play each other for the first time in 2025 in Week 11. New Seattle quarterback Sam Darnold's 9.9 yards per pass attempt leads the league and ranks as the fourth-highest in NFL history through their first nine games of a season, minimum 200 pass attempts. Los Angeles quarterback Matthew Stafford leads the league with 25 passing touchdowns, and he is just the second quarterback ever with 25 or more passing touchdowns and two or fewer interceptions (2) through the first nine games of a season along with Patrick Mahomes in 2020. 

This should be an absolute showcase of high-level football, and it's just the first meeting between the two NFC West contenders. 

6. Buccaneers at Rams

Week: 12 | Date: Sunday, Nov. 23 | Time: 8:20 p.m. ET | TV: NBC | Streaming: fubo (try for free)

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-3) lead the NFC South and are currently the conference's No. 4 seed entering Week 11. Tampa Bay quarterback Baker Mayfield has been in the MVP conversation all season, and as mentioned above, Stafford is playing like the NFL MVP at the moment with a league-leading 25 passing touchdowns and only two interceptions for the 7-2 Los Angeles Rams.

This game will have some NFC playoff seeding ramifications, especially if the Rams overcome the Seahawks to win the NFC West. 

5. Packers at Lions

Week: 13 | Date: Thursday, Nov. 27 | Time: 1 p.m. ET | TV: Fox | Streaming: fubo (try for free)

Thanksgiving Day brings delicious food and football. The Green Bay Packers (5-3-1) visit the Detroit Lions (6-3) for their second and final matchup of the 2025 NFL season. Green Bay won the first matchup 27-13 in Week 1 at Lambeau Field in a game the Packers defense dominated from start to finish: Detroit didn't score a touchdown until under a minute left to play. 

This game could end up being crucial in determining the NFC North division winner, especially if the Packers win to clinch the head-to-head matchup between these two contenders. 

4. Steelers at Ravens

Week: 14 | Date: Sunday, Dec. 7 | Time: 1 p.m. ET | TV: CBS | Streaming: Paramount+ (try for free)

The Baltimore Ravens have begun to rally their way back into the AFC North race since two-time NFL MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson returned from his hamstring injury. They've won three in a row after a 1-5 start to get to just one game under .500 with a 4-5 record. Their defense has also rounded into form lately, allowing just 14.5 points per game since Week 6 after allowing the most points in the league through the first five weeks (35.4 points per game).

The Pittsburgh Steelers are moving in the opposite direction of late, losing three of their last four games including a deflating 25-10 loss on "Sunday Night Football" at the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 10. As result, they're now just one game up on the Ravens for the division lead. If the Steelers win, they can create some solid separation. If the Ravens win, they could take the AFC North lead with an early head-to-head win against the Steelers.

3. Bills at Patriots

Week: 15 | Date: Sunday, Dec. 14 | Time: 1 p.m. ET | TV: CBS | Streaming: Paramount+ (try for free)

The New England Patriots (8-2) are on fire: they're on a seven-game winning streak that's tied for the longest in the NFL right now with the Denver Broncos, and it's tied for the longest single-season winning streak in franchise history without Tom Brady. Quarterback Drake Maye is also heating up with five consecutive games with multiple passing touchdowns. 

The Buffalo Bills (6-3) are fresh off a stunning 30-13 defeat at the Miami Dolphins in Week 10 as a 9.5-point favorite that now puts them a game-and-a-half back of the Patriots in the AFC East standings. New England won the first matchup in Buffalo back in Week 5, and this second and final meeting between the top teams in the division will be critical in how the AFC playoff picture takes shape. 

2. Rams at Seahawks

Week: 16 | Date: Thursday, Dec. 18 | Time: 8:15 p.m. ET | Streaming: Prime Video

The second of two matchups between these two NFC West heavyweights takes place with just three weeks remaining in the 2025 regular season. That means this game could literally determine the NFC West winner. High stakes football indeed. 

1. Chargers at Broncos

Week: 18 | Date: Jan. 3 or 4 | Time: TBD | TV: TBD

This might be presumptuous, but it looks like the top two teams in the AFC West division this season don't involve the Kansas City Chiefs (5-4). The Denver Broncos (8-2) are on a seven-game winning streak and are off to their best 10-game start since their 2015 Super Bowl 50 season. The Los Angeles Chargers (7-3) are on a three-game winning streak and just a game back of Denver. Los Angeles won the first matchup 23-20 all the way back in Week 3. With how things are going, this game will determine the AFC West title in the final week of the season with the loser having to hit the road in the wild card round.