The holiday season is here, but the news around the NFL is non-stop.
That’s especially true this week, as we have a tripleheader on Christmas Day and two more games on Saturday ahead of the usual Sunday slate. And we only have two weeks of regular-season action remaining, making every bit of news all the more consequential.
Who’s hurt? Who’s practicing? Who’s starting? Who’s on the hot seat?
Here’s the latest on what’s happening around the league entering Week 17:
Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski announced on Dec. 23 that Watson won’t be activated for either of the team’s final two regular-season games and, therefore, won’t play this season. Watson has missed the entire 2025 season due to a ruptured Achilles that he suffered last season and later aggravated. Cleveland opened the 21-day practice window for Watson on Dec. 3, which created a roadmap for him to potentially be activated.
Watson is entering the final season of a five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed deal. He has started just 19 games for the Browns since being acquired from the Houston Texans in 2022 due to both injuries and an 11-game suspension.
The Minnesota Vikings’ starting quarterback will miss their Christmas Day home matchup against the Detroit Lions due to a hairline fracture in his right hand, head coach Kevin O’Connell announced on Dec. 23. Max Brosmer will start at quarterback for Minnesota.
McCarthy left the Vikings’ Week 16 win over the New York Giants with the hand injury, which will mark the third injury that has sidelined him this season, ankle and head injuries being the other two. Through nine games, McCarthy has totaled 1,450 passing yards, 11 passing touchdowns, 12 interceptions and a 71.2 passer rating, while completing 57.3% of his passes. He has also rushed for 174 yards and four touchdowns. The 7-8 Vikings are eliminated from playoff contention.
Ravens HC Harbaugh discusses future
The 2025 season has been challenging for the Baltmore Ravens and head coach John Harbaugh, with the team’s latest setback coming in a narrow 28-24 Week 16 home loss to the Patriots.
On Monday, Harbaugh addressed questions regarding his job security for the first time this year with Baltimore (7-8) on the verge of missing the postseason. The longtime coach was open and honest about his outlook on the future, noting that he’s only focused on the present and finishing each season strong.
“There’s no such thing as, like, ‘your job’ or ‘my job.’ We have responsibilities, we’re given opportunities to steward those responsibilities when you’re given a job to do that, until you’re not,” Harbaugh told reporters. “I try to do the job, not try to keep the job. Because there’s no such thing as having a job — just doing a job.
“And so my focus is on always — it has been for the last 18 years here and the last 41 years in coaching — it’s been to try to do the best job I can today and fight as hard as I can, so the guys have the best chance to be successful today. And anything after today, I’m not thinking about, because it’s not given for us to think about. We don’t have control over that, except for the job we do today. If we do a good enough job today, then the opportunity to do that job or a different job will be there tomorrow. And that’s what you hope for.”
The Ravens are 179-112 in the regular season, with a 13-11 playoff record, since Harbaugh took the job in 2008. Harbaugh’s Ravens will have the final two games to keep up with the first-place Steelers (9-6) in the NFC North. If they fall short, the questions will likely linger with the 2012 Super Bowl champion and former AP NFL Coach of the Year under contract through the 2028 season.
The Ravens’ playoff hopes are on thin ice, and they might not have their quarterback available when their season is on the line against the Packers on Saturday. Lamar Jackson will undergo an MRI on Monday after suffering a back injury that forced him to miss the second half of Baltimore’s loss to New England, but he’s hopeful he can play in Week 17.
“Yeah, that’s the goal,” Jackson told reporters. “We’re going to do a little [MRI] scan [Monday] and then see what it shows.”
Ravens head coach John Harbaugh later said that Jackson was dealing with “a bruise of some kind.”
“I don’t know how serious it’ll be,” Harbaugh said. “We’ll have to find out over the next couple of days.”
The Ravens must win each of their final two games and for the Steelers to lose at the Browns in Week 17 in order to make the postseason. At 7-8, winning the AFC North is the only way for Baltimore to make the playoffs for a fourth straight year.
Minshew’s ACL intact, Chiefs sign QB Buechele
A week after losing star quarterback Patrick Mahomes for the remainder of the 2025 season with an ACL tear, the team feared that Gardner Minshew suffered the same injury that caused him to leave their loss to the Titans early on Sunday, ESPN reported. While Minshew’s ACL turned out to be intact, he did suffer an injury all the same, and is expected to miss time, per ESPN. In response, the Chiefs have signed QB Shane Buechele.
Now, third-string Chris Oladokun is possibly in line to start in Thursday’s game against the Broncos, as Minshew recovers and Buechele acclimates himself to the Chiefs. The fourth-year quarterback threw his first career pass in Sunday’s loss to the Titans.
Buechele has never appeared in an NFL game, as his career in the league to this point has mostly been being waived and re-signed by the Buffalo Bills as part of their practice squad. The 27-year-old – Buechele turns 28 in early January – played quarterback in college for Texas and SMU from 2016 through 2020. His best season came as a junior with SMU, when he lead the American Conference with 34 touchdowns, 307 completions and 302.2 passing yards per game.
Derick Hall’s suspension upheld
Seattle Seahawks linebacker Derick Hall had his one-game suspension for unnecessary roughness and unsportsmanlike conduct upheld on Monday. Hall was suspended without pay for stepping on the leg of Los Angeles Rams guard Kevin Dotson at the end of a play in the Seahawks’ 38-37 overtime win on Thursday night.
Hearing officer Ramon Foster, jointly appointed by the NFL and the NFLPA, upheld the suspension that was announced Friday. The NFL said Hall, 24, was in violation of Rule 12, Section 2, Article 8, which prohibits unnecessary roughness and Rule 12, Section 3, Article 1, which applies to unsportsmanlike conduct, including “any act which is contrary to the generally understood principles of sportsmanship.”
Hall will be eligible to return on Dec. 29, a day after Seattle’s game against the Carolina Panthers.
The third-year pro out of Auburn was selected 37th by the Seahawks in the 2023 NFL draft. He has appeared in 13 games and started three for Seattle this season. He has 29 total tackles and one sack.
Packers monitoring health of both QBs ahead of Ravens matchup
As for who the Ravens’ Week 17 opponent, the Packers might also be shorthanded at quarterback for Saturday’s game. Jordan Love left Saturday’s loss to the Bears early after entering the league’s concussion protocol, while backup Malik Willis hurt his throwing shoulder in the fourth quarter. Willis remained in the game, but he was fighting through some pain after the game.
“I’d say he’s pretty sore,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur told reporters of Willis on Sunday. “That’s a legitimate deal that he’s dealing with, and he’s going to be another guy that we’ll see where he’s at as we progress. That further complicates the other problem.”
Love, meanwhile, will have to spend the week clearing concussion protocol in order to play on Saturday.
“That’s a process that takes multiple days to get through,” LaFleur told reporters.
The Packers fell to 9-5-1 with Saturday’s loss, putting their hopes of winning the NFC North in peril. They’ll need to win out and for the Bears to lose their final two games in order to win the division. Green Bay also hasn’t clinched a playoff spot yet. However, it’ll make the playoffs if it wins one of its final two games or if the Lions lose once in the final two weeks.
Jets to start rookie Brady Cook at QB for final two games
The Jets are sticking with Brady Cook at quarterback for the rest of the 2025 regular season, head coach Aaron Glenn told reporters on Monday. With the Jets starting Cook for the final two games, the undrafted rookie could play a big role in the AFC East race as the Jets take on the Patriots and Bills in Weeks 17 and 18, respectively.
Cook has started the last two games for the Jets following Tyrod Taylor’s injury. He’s thrown for 527 yards, a touchdown and six interceptions over the three games he’s played this season.
The Commanders have signed quarterback Jeff Driskel off the Cardinals’ practice squad, the team announced Monday. The move might be an indication that Marcus Mariota won’t be able to play in Thursday’s game against the Cowboys after leaving Saturday’s game against the Eagles early with injuries to his throwing hand and quad.
If Mariota can’t go, journeyman quarterback Joshua Johnson would be in line to start against the Cowboys.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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