6. Houston Texans
The Houston Texans have a huge primetime game in Week 14 against the Kansas City Chiefs, and this could be a game that Houston wins despite it being at Arrowhead. The Chiefs are down multiple starters along the offensive line, and Houston’s defense is the best unit in this matchup.
After an 0-3 start, the Texans have since gone 7-2 entering Week 14 and are the best team in the AFC South right now. CJ Stroud has returned to the lineup as well and will likely begin to play better as he gets more reps under his belt.
He missed a bit of time with a concussion. On paper, Houston is quite good, but the offensive line has been a sore spot for more than a year now. If that unit can hold their own as the season finishes up, they’ll make some noise in the postseason.
This is a rare case where a team is better than their record even being this late in the season. Houston will be a tough out in the playoffs this year.
5. Seattle Seahawks
It was looking questionable there in the beginning part of the game, but the Seattle Seahawks pulled away from the Atlanta Falcons and improved to 10-3 on the season with another win, and Seattle continues to prove to the NFL world that they are one of the best and most balanced teams in the league.
Seahawks’ QB Sam Darnold hasn’t played super well since that four-interception performance against the LA Rams a few weeks ago, so that is something to take note of, but, overall, the Seahawks are a juggernaut and could make a deep playoff run.
Seattle is in a heated race with the Rams and the San Francisco 49ers for that NFC West crowd, and we are rumbling toward all three teams finishing the season with at least 11 wins, which is just insane.
The Seahawks are also, oddly, a lot better playing away from home than they are at home. It’s a weird trend with Mike Macdonald, but I guess that’s just how things shake out sometimes.