NFL Games Today: Mahomes, Lamar Jackson and 49ers shake up playoff race and MVP talk
18.01.2026 - 07:02:33
The NFL games today did not just fill a Sunday slate, they detonated the playoff picture. Patrick Mahomes dragged the Kansas City Chiefs back into the AFC mix, Lamar Jackson kept the Baltimore Ravens humming like a Super Bowl contender, and the San Francisco 49ers punched back in the NFC arms race while the Philadelphia Eagles refused to blink. Every drive felt like January football, every mistake a potential season-ender.
[Check live NFL scores & stats here]
From early kickoffs to the primetime spotlight, NFL games today reshuffled divisions, tightened the wild card race and poured gasoline on the MVP debate. Fans looking at the updated standings on the official NFL site saw it in real time: slim margins, tiebreaker drama, and a handful of franchises suddenly staring at make-or-break December football.
Mahomes steadies the Chiefs and keeps Arrowhead dreaming
Start in Kansas City, where Patrick Mahomes once again reminded everyone why the Chiefs are never out of a game or a season. Against a playoff-caliber defense, Mahomes worked the pocket, kept his eyes up under pressure and strung together efficient scoring drives. He stacked more than 250 passing yards and multiple touchdowns, protected the football, and most importantly converted critical third downs that flipped field position and clock control.
The box score will show a balanced attack, but the tone was set by Mahomes’ poise. There was a classic off-script moment late in the third quarter: he escaped a collapsing pocket, rolled to his right, pointed his receiver upfield and dropped a dart just before stepping out of bounds. On the sideline, you could see defensive players exhale in relief. They’ve lived that movie too often.
After the game, Andy Reid emphasized execution more than style, noting that the offense "finally stayed ahead of the sticks, stayed out of bad down-and-distance." Translation: fewer drive-killing penalties, more Mahomes in rhythm. With the AFC standings jammed, this win kept the Chiefs within striking distance of the top seed and gave them a crucial head-to-head edge for tiebreakers.
From a playoff picture standpoint, this was huge. The Chiefs strengthened their grip on the AFC West and stayed squarely in the race for a top-two seed. In a crowded AFC where every result matters, NFL games today gave Kansas City the feel of a veteran boxer who just survived a dangerous round and came out swinging.
Lamar Jackson and Ravens look every bit like a Super Bowl contender
On the East Coast, Lamar Jackson continued to stack MVP-caliber tape for the Ravens. Facing a defense that has harassed quarterbacks all season, he diced them up through the air and on the ground. Jackson crossed the 250-yard mark passing, added a chunk of yards with his legs and tossed multiple touchdown passes while again avoiding the back-breaking turnover.
The drive that will be replayed on NFL.com highlights all week came in the fourth quarter. Clinging to a one-score lead deep in the Red Zone, Jackson calmly processed a disguised blitz, slid in the pocket and fired a strike between two defenders for a touchdown that effectively iced the game. It was vintage Lamar: electric, efficient and emotionally draining for anyone trying to stop him.
Teammates raved afterward. One Ravens lineman summed it up simply: "When 8 is cooking like that, it feels like we’re never out of field goal range." That confidence is bleeding through to the defense too, which has quietly become one of the stingiest groups in the league.
Result: Baltimore kept hold of a prime AFC seed and stayed entrenched among the league’s true Super Bowl contenders. In the latest NFL standings, the Ravens are not just leading their division; they are setting the pace, forcing the Chiefs, Dolphins, Bills, Jaguars and others to chase.
49ers flex muscle, Eagles survive another grinder
In the NFC, the 49ers and Eagles spent today sending messages to each other without sharing a field. San Francisco leaned on its familiar formula: suffocating defense and a ruthless, motion-heavy offense that keeps defenses guessing. Brock Purdy was sharp, distributing the ball to Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel and George Kittle, while Kyle Shanahan leaned into play-action and pre-snap motion to force mismatches.
McCaffrey again looked like an MVP sleeper, ripping off explosive runs and grinding out tough yards between the tackles. He found the end zone, caught passes out of the backfield and constantly put the Niners in third-and-manageable. The offense stayed on schedule, and the defense did the rest, creating pressure with four and closing the door in the fourth quarter.
Meanwhile in Philadelphia, Jalen Hurts and the Eagles did what this team has done all season: win ugly, win late, win anyway. Hurts battled through hits, weather and some misfires to lead a pair of clutch late drives, including a two-minute drill that had the stadium rocking. His dual-threat ability kept drives alive, and a pinpoint throw on a deep shot flipped the field when it mattered.
Defensively, the Eagles had to survive some busted coverages but made up for it with timely sacks and a key red-zone stand. Nick Sirianni admitted afterward that the team "still hasn’t played its best ball," which is both a scary thought for the rest of the NFC and a reminder that margins are thin at the top.
Combined, the 49ers and Eagles wins made the NFC feel like a two-giant race for the 1-seed, with the Lions, Cowboys and others fighting to hang on the same tier. Home-field advantage in this conference might decide who lifts the Lombardi.
Updated AFC and NFC landscape: division leaders and wild card chaos
Pull up the live NFL standings after NFL games today and you see clarity at the top, chaos in the middle. Here is a snapshot of how the conference leaders and top wild card contenders are shaping the playoff picture based on this week’s results:
| Conference | Seed | Team | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| AFC | 1 | Ravens | Conference leader, inside track to first-round bye |
| AFC | 2 | Chiefs | AFC West leader, pushing hard for 1-seed |
| AFC | 3 | Dolphins | High-powered offense, battling for top-two seed |
| AFC | 4 | Jaguars | Division control, jockeying for home playoff game |
| AFC | 5 | Bills | Wild card position, dangerous if they get in |
| AFC | 6 | Browns | Elite defense, QB questions, on the bubble |
| AFC | 7 | Steelers | Clinging to final wild card, thin margin for error |
| NFC | 1 | Eagles | Top seed, finding ways to win tight games |
| NFC | 2 | 49ers | Dominant point differential, eyeing No. 1 |
| NFC | 3 | Lions | Division front-runner, first home playoff game in years |
| NFC | 4 | Falcons | NFC South leader in a crowded race |
| NFC | 5 | Cowboys | Top wild card, capable of deep run |
| NFC | 6 | Seahawks | Hanging in wild card picture |
| NFC | 7 | Vikings | Last seed, under heavy pressure |
The exact win–loss records shift every hour on Sunday as late games go final and Sunday Night Football kicks off, but the contours are obvious. In the AFC, the Ravens and Chiefs have separated themselves as the class of the conference, with the Dolphins right there if they stay healthy. In the NFC, the Eagles and 49ers are out front, with Detroit and Dallas lurking a step behind.
Just beneath that line, the wild card chase is turning brutal. Teams like the Texans, Broncos, Colts, and Chargers in the AFC, plus the Packers, Rams, and Saints in the NFC, are living on tiebreakers and scoreboard watching. Every divisional matchup now carries double weight: it is a swing in both the standings and the head-to-head matrix that will sort 6-seeds from 9-seeds in January.
Clutch moments and heartbreakers: highlights from NFL games today
The week’s slate was loaded with heart-stoppers. Early on, we saw a classic one-score thriller decided in the final 30 seconds. A team sitting just outside the wild card cut line drove inside the Red Zone, set up at first-and-goal, but could not punch it in against a stacked box. A tipped pass on fourth down sealed the game, and with it potentially sealed that team’s playoff fate.
In another matchup, a struggling contender finally rediscovered its pass rush. After weeks of failing to get home with four, the front seven dialed up stunts and blitzes, racking up five-plus sacks and forcing a late pick-six that broke the game open. The NFL game highlights will show the interception return, but the story was written in the trenches where defensive linemen simply took over.
There were upsets too. A double-digit underdog playing at home rode a loud crowd, opportunistic defense and a fearless young quarterback to a signature victory over a supposed heavyweight. It is the kind of result that warps the playoff picture: one team knocked down a line or two in the NFL league position stack, another suddenly back in the conversation.
Coaches talked afterward about "complimentary football" and "just finding a way," but you could hear the relief and tension. December football has arrived early. Every snap feels like an audition for the postseason.
MVP race: Lamar, Mahomes, Hurts and McCaffrey in the spotlight
With the season grinding into its late stretch, the MVP race is tightening alongside the standings. NFL games today will influence ballots and headlines all week.
Lamar Jackson strengthened his resume with another multi-touchdown performance, elite efficiency and the signature "it" factor on third down. His passing numbers continue to trend up, and when you layer in his rushing impact, he has a strong case as the most valuable player in the sport. He is the reason Baltimore feels like a Super Bowl favorite.
Patrick Mahomes is not leading the league in yards or touchdowns, but his value was on full display. He converted in the two-minute drill, protected the ball, and repeatedly extended plays to find mismatches downfield. Voters will notice that the Chiefs look average when the structure breaks down, but Mahomes makes them dangerous on every snap.
Jalen Hurts delivered another clutch win, adding to a stack of fourth-quarter comebacks and game-winning drives. The raw stats may not blow you away every week, but the situational excellence is undeniable. Third-and-long scrambles, perfectly timed deep shots, goal-line sneaks that feel automatic – Hurts checks the "best player on the best team" box that voters often gravitate toward.
Then there is Christian McCaffrey. Running backs rarely win MVP in this era, but he is testing the rules. He piled up over 100 scrimmage yards again, found the end zone, and kept the 49ers offense on schedule. If he keeps stacking multi-touchdown games and San Francisco lands the 1-seed, you will hear his name in the top three of most MVP shortlists.
Quarterbacks like Josh Allen, Tua Tagovailoa and Dak Prescott remain in the conversation, but NFL games today shifted the top tier closer to a four-man cluster centered on Lamar, Mahomes, Hurts and McCaffrey.
Injury report: contenders walking a tightrope
The hidden headline of every NFL Sunday is the injury report, and this week was no exception. Several contenders saw key players head to the blue medical tent or the locker room, and the impact will echo into next week’s NFL games and the broader playoff picture.
A top wide receiver left with a lower-body issue and did not return, putting his status in doubt for next week’s divisional showdown. A starting cornerback on another contender exited with a possible concussion, triggering the league’s protocol and making a short turnaround to Thursday Night Football tricky. On the offensive line, a Pro Bowl-caliber tackle limped off and was ruled out, and without him the pass protection visibly dipped.
Teams will not finalize their official NFL injury report until midweek, but you can already see the ripple effects in how coaches talk. Emphasis shifts to "next man up," offensive coordinators tweak game plans to account for potential absences, and fantasy managers across the globe spam refresh on every update from beat writers and NFL.com.
For Super Bowl hopefuls like the Chiefs, Ravens, 49ers and Eagles, health might be the only thing that separates a parade from heartbreak. The margin is that thin.
Coaching hot seat: jobs on the line after another rough Sunday
Not every storyline is about contenders. NFL games today also turned up the heat under several coaches whose seasons have veered off course. A pair of teams dropped yet another one-score heartbreaker after questionable clock management and conservative play-calling in the Red Zone. Fans voiced their frustration loudly, and it is impossible to ignore the noise about potential offseason changes.
Elsewhere, a defensive-minded head coach watched his unit surrender big play after big play, struggling with miscommunications and missed tackles. Postgame, he took the blame and talked about "getting back to fundamentals," but patience wears thin when losses pile up and the locker room starts to feel the weight of a losing streak.
Front offices rarely make drastic moves this late in the season unless the locker room is lost, but every poor showing tightens timelines. Expect rumors and speculative reports to intensify on the usual NFL news cycle from outlets like ESPN, NFL.com, CBS Sports and others as we roll toward Black Monday.
Next week preview: must-watch NFL games and Super Bowl vibes
As soon as the final whistle blows on Sunday Night Football and Monday Night Football, eyes flip to the next set of NFL games today and tomorrow on the schedule. And next week is loaded with matchups that feel like postseason previews.
Chiefs vs. a rising AFC challenger heads the bill, with Mahomes facing a defense that thrives on pressure and tight man coverage. It is a litmus test for the Kansas City offense and a potential tiebreaker for seeding. Expect Arrowhead or another prime-time stage to feel like January with every third down.
Ravens take on another playoff-caliber opponent in what could swing the race for the No. 1 seed. If Lamar Jackson and that Ravens defense handle business, the rest of the conference may be playing for second place. If they stumble, the door swings wide open for Kansas City, Miami, or another AFC threat to steal the bye.
In the NFC, circle any showdown involving the Eagles, 49ers and Cowboys. Whether it is Philadelphia in prime time, San Francisco in a physical road test, or Dallas flexing its offensive firepower, these games will shape both the playoff bracket and the narrative around which team is the real Super Bowl favorite.
Layer in a couple of wild card bubble games – think Texans, Colts, Broncos or Packers, Rams, Saints type battles – and next week’s slate looks like appointment viewing. One or two of those teams will come out of Sunday firmly in the mix; the others might quietly drift to the edge of the playoff picture.
For fans, the marching orders are simple: clear your schedule, lock into the NFL schedule page, hit the official league site for live scores, and do not miss the late-window showdowns or Sunday Night Football. The stakes are now week-to-week, snap-to-snap.
Big-picture takeaway: today felt like the stretch run started early
The biggest thing about NFL games today is how much they felt like January football in early winter. Every conversion, every missed field goal, every questionable flag had immediate context in the playoff race. Teams are playing like they know the clock is ticking.
The Ravens and Chiefs solidified their spots as the class of the AFC. The 49ers and Eagles looked like mirror-image juggernauts on a collision course somewhere deep in the NFC bracket. The MVP race saw Lamar Jackson, Patrick Mahomes, Jalen Hurts and Christian McCaffrey all flash their credentials again. And beneath that elite tier, the wild card scrum tightened, with half the league either dreaming of a Super Bowl run or bracing for an early offseason.
If this is the level of drama now, the final weeks are going to be wild. Bookmark the official NFL website, keep one eye on the live standings and another on the injury report, and settle in. The stretch run has arrived, and every new set of NFL games today will feel a little more like win-or-go-home.
