Windy City Gridiron
Although it might be hard to believe, the NFL regular season is six games away from coming to an end. The playoff push for over half the league is in full swing, and teams are starting to play like it. With a three-game Thanksgiving slate, followed by a marquee matchup on Black Friday, football and the holidays always tend to complement each other well. Week 13 is upon us, and so is the final stretch of the season.
1. Los Angeles Rams (9-2) Previous Week: 1
Man… The Rams are scary, aren’t they? Their defense is playing lights out, and Matthew Stafford might be playing the best football of his career. After a close game against the Seahawks, where they picked off Sam Darnold four times, they smothered a depleted Bucs offense. Beating division rivals is one thing; blowing out another division leader is another. With the Eagles’ loss, the Rams are in firm control of the No. 1 seed with six weeks remaining in the regular season.
Next up: At Panthers
2. New England Patriots (10-2) Previous Week: 2
All the Patriots continue to do is win football games. Despite quarterback Drake Maye not having his best game under center, the Patriots were able to do more than enough to come out with a six-point victory against a desperate Bengals team. Couple that with a Bills loss, and the Patriots are well-positioned to take the AFC East. Crazy, right? They’ve been playing damn-good football, and they’ve shown little sign of slowing down. For as many good stories as there have been in 2025, the Patriots surely top the list.
Next up: Vs Giants (Monday Night Football)
3. Denver Broncos (9-2) Previous Week: 4
The Broncos headed into their bye week as the best team in football. Not only that, they took down the Chiefs in Week 11, all but knocking them out of the race in the AFC West. Barring more consistency from the Chargers, the Broncos are in a prime position to win the division and challenge for the top seed in the AFC. The defense is as good as it gets, and if the offense can find more consistency, this team becomes very dangerous.
Next up: At Commanders (Sunday Night Football)
4. Seattle Seahawks (8-3) Previous Week: 6
Heading into Week 12’s matchup with the Titans, it felt like there was no way Seattle would lose, especially with their (4-1) road record coming in. Despite holding a commanding lead for the majority of the game, the Titans had it a game late in the fourth quarter. In the end, the Seahawks escaped, and that’s all that really matters late in November, heading into December. With a matchup next week against a struggling Minnesota team, they’ve put themselves in a great position to make the playoffs heading into December.
Next up: Vs Vikings
5. Philadelphia Eagles (8-3) Previous Week: 3
The first half of Sunday’s game in Dallas looked like it was going to be a dominant victory...
