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SPORTS Saturday 16 december 2017
Game of the Millennium

in Pittsburgh? Not quite

By BARRY WILNER honestly.”Los Angeles NFL’s most-improved play-
AP Pro Football Writer Chargers (7-6) at Kansas ers in 2017.
Shout it from the top of City (7-6), Saturday night LA is 3-0 after a loss; the
Mount Washington: It’s the Win this and you have the Eagles beat the Rams last
Game of the Year! inside track to the AFC Sunday.
Perhaps the Game of West title. That would have Green Bay (7-6) at Carolina
the Decade!! Maybe the seemed very impressive in (9-4) In this Sept. 10, 2015, file photo, New England Patriots
Game of the Millennium!!! the summer, when this was Huge one for both sides, quarterback Tom Brady, left, speaks with Pittsburgh Steelers
Or, very possibly, a big dud. thought to be the NFL’s and this time the Pack- quarterback Ben Roethlisberger before an NFL football game in
Until their flop in Miami on best sector. Instead, it’s so ers head into it with Aaron Foxborough, Mass.
Monday night, the way mediocre that the winner Rodgers back at quarter- Associated Press
the New England Patriots probably will be a No. 4 back.
were performing was the seed in the playoffs.Kan- Recovered from his broken
way so many predicted sas City had a 24-20 win collarbone — Green Bay
they would heading into in September, when it was stayed relevant without
the season: a powerhouse. starting off 5-0. It broke a him, going 3-4 — Rodgers
And how the Pittsburgh four-game slide with a big might have some rust. Still,
Steelers were squeezing victory over Oakland last was there ever any doubt
past inferior foes brought week. The Bolts have been, he would replace Brett
into question whether they well, charging, winning Hundley when his wing was
could slow down the Fox- four straight and seven of healed?
borough freight train. nine, their best nine-game “Hopefully it gives a lift to
Then the Dolphins did so stretch since 2010. But some of the guys but I’m
one day after the Steelers they’ve dropped seven in not coming back to save
needed another late rally a row to the Chiefs. this team,” Rodgers said.
to edge archrival Baltimore Dallas (7-6) at Oakland (6- “I’m coming back to play
and clinch the AFC North. 7) Oakland might need to quarterback the way I
So while Sunday’s contest win out for any shot at the know how to play it.”
at Heinz Field will almost postseason. Same for Dal- Rodgers will face a for-
certainly decide the top las, chasing a wild card in midable defense that in-
seed in the AFC, it’s not the much-stronger NFC. cludes end Julius Peppers,
exactly Ali-Frazier, two un- With star RB Zeke Elliott who left Green Bay for a
defeated heavyweights suspended for one more return to Carolina this sea-
facing off. “It’s good to be game, the combination son and has 5½ sacks in the
in big games than be in of Dak Prescott throwing past four games against his
ones nobody’s watching,” to Jason Witten and Dez former team, and LB Luke
Steelers coach Mike Tom- Bryant has been the focal Kuechly (100 tackles in six
lin says. “We better be ap- point on offense. straight seasons.)
preciative of this spot and Prescott’s coming off his first New York Jets (5-8) at New
not resist it in any way. This 300-yard passing game of Orleans (9-4). New Orleans
is what we’ve been fight- the season with a career- owns the tiebreaker over
ing for since March. Why high 332 against the woeful Carolina thanks to a sea-
would you fight that? It’s Giants. son sweep, and gets fortu-
an awesome thing.” For- After fizzling in KC, Oakland nate here.
get their ‘A’ game, which needs to rediscover its of- Josh McCown, having the
the Steelers (11-2) seem to fense and get pressure on best season of his lengthy,
have misplaced for much Prescott from Bruce Irvin vagabond pro career, has
of the past two months de- and Khalil Mack. a broken hand, so untested
spite winning eight straight, Los Angeles Rams (9-4) at Bryce Petty gets the start.
with a half-dozen of them Seattle (8-5) The Saints lost two of their
close (decided by one, The Rams lost two of four past three, against top-
three, three, three, five and in the midst of a very diffi- level opponents, so they
six points. cult stretch. Now, the key aren’t likely to fall into any
They will need their ‘AAA division matchup with the traps. Their well-balanced
game’ against New Eng- banged-up, penalty-prone and top-ranked offense
land (10-3), which knows a Seahawks. could go wild against the
loss eliminates it from top- Seattle, whose air of invin- inconsistent Jets, and no
ping the conference head- cibility at home has been team has improved more
ing into the postseason. punctured with two losses on D than Nawlins.
“It’s all about us being pre- in the past three, won the Atlanta (8-5) at Tampa Bay
pared to play Pittsburgh,” first meeting and would (4-9), Monday night
Patriots safety Devin Mc- have the tiebreaker with While the Buccaneers spi-
Courty says, mimicking a repeat. This easily could ral enough to put coach
his coach. “All the extra come down to Russell Wil- Dirk Koetter’s job security in
stuff comes with it, but it’s son , making a late run question, it’s the defending
just if we worry about the for league MVP, lighting NFC champ Falcons who
playoffs, we’ll go down up the skies against Rams have been maddeningly
there and we’ll get killed, QB Jared Goff, one of the up and down. q