The 49ers began Week 15 Thursday evening with a 21-13 road gain the Seahawks, San Francisco's seventh straight victory, clinching the NFC West title while doing so. In simply his 2nd occupation start, Mr. Irrelevant Brock Purdy was 17-of-26 passing for 217 lawns and 2 goals, an impressive performance as the 49ers 10-4) plan for what they really hope is a lengthy postseason , the Seahawks 7-7) are on the outside looking in at the playoffs. With three games staying and three teams in advance of them in the wild-card race, there's a great deal of work to do as well as not a whole lot of time to do it. For much more on the playoff chase and each group's opportunities of getting to that solemn ground, do not miss out on Aaron Reiss and Austin Mock's evaluation DEEPERNFL playoff photo at Week 15: As 49ers win NFC West, where does that leave Seahawks?But wait-- there's a lot more of Week 15 still to come. Can the Dolphins reinforce their playoff resume with a win in snowy Buffalo? Who has the edge as Joe Burrow and also Tom Brady square off in Tampa florida? What should we get out of Josh McDaniels and also the Raiders as he encounters his old manager, Bill Belichick Amari Cooper Jersey, as well as the Patriots? The Athletic's Zac Jackson,  Mike Jones as well as Mike Sando meal on what they'll be enjoying Saturday, Sunday and highlight of Saturday's activity is the night tilt between the Expenses, 10-3 and the No. 1 seed in the AFC, and also the teetering Dolphins, 8-5 and also losers of two directly. Can Tua Tagovailoa recover from two off games and get Miami back right into playoff placement, or is this part of the group's continued down spiral?Jackson: I will not totally hide Tagovailoa or the Dolphins, but I can't see this as the game in which they transform points around. The Expenses have had this circled considering that September, and also with expected weather concerns as well as the Dolphins having actually played last Sunday evening in Los Angeles, this feels like an avalanche. Probably the Dolphins can get the ball out quickly to Tyreek Hill and also Jaylen Waddle as well as allow them develop, but Miami's current challengers have eliminated the middle of the field, and Bills linebacker Matt Milano leads an unpleasant defense that will certainly be : It's going to be challenging both for Tua and Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel because they are the ones who'll need to get this infraction back on course. The climate will certainly offer challenges, so McDaniel needs to identify just how to restore balance to the violation, which has actually balanced simply 63.7 rushing lawns per game since the Dolphins returned from their bye 3 weeks ago 1-2 throughout that stretch). Miami averaged 97.7 backyards per game on the ground throughout its 7-3 start to the period and also a robust 122.5 per game from Weeks 7 via 10. A reliable run video game converts into less stress on Tua because it opens up the play-action assault and also keeps the protection from embarking on on him. But having stated that, getting back on track against a strong Bills protection will certainly be a really difficult job. We may see some improvement from Tagovailoa as well as his offense, yet I believe the Dolphins' losing streak will certainly : The spiral continues in this game. The Expenses are rapid and also great on defense. The climate is mosting likely to be chilly. There will certainly be wind. There could be snow. There will certainly be sound. I'll be so impressed if this is where the Dolphins uncover their offense. But I'm not encouraged they have the running video game to constant points in a game such as this DEEPERDolphins at Bills: Odds, specialist picks, discussion for Saturday's gameA number of teams are in must-win setting if they wish to maintain their playoff wishes active. Along those lines, which group are you most certain in looking ahead to this weekend? Jackson: This is the Super Dish for Josh McDaniels and the Raiders. A really beatable Patriots team sees Las Las vega, and also though the Raiders clearly aren't reliable, they probably are the much better and extra hopeless group in this area. I just believe Josh Jacobs and also Davante Adams are qualified of making sufficient big plays to keep the Raiders' period : I believe Washington will certainly get a much-needed gain the seeing Giants to keep hope to life and improve to 8-5-1. The Commanders played the Giants to a connection in New York two weeks ago, but after the Giants' loss Sunday, Washington now holds the sixth playoff spot in the NFC. Ron Rivera's group will try to strengthen its placement and also needs to have the side when it concerns defense as well as offensive : Tennessee is reeling and also needs to beat the Chargers on the road to quit a three-game losing streak and also declare its status as the clear AFC South leader. I'll opt for Ryan Tannehill, Derrick Henry and also Mike Vrabel this week, but my self-confidence in the Titans is DEEPERVic's Picks, Week 15: Stay calmness like the bearded Sam DarnoldIn the late-afternoon time port Sunday, Joe Burrow and also the Bengals 9-4) travel to Tampa fl to encounter Tom Brady as well as the Buccaneers 6-7). Just how do you see this set playing out? Jackson: The Bengals are official. The Bucs are not. The Bengals have some injury issues, but Burrow is crafty enough to work around them, as well as the Bucs simply aren't wreaking the kind of chaos on defense they were the last number of years. I do not think the slow, unexciting Bucs violation can keep up unless Burrow presents them multiple : Look for the Bengals to keep rolling. I assume they'll expand their win streak to six video games. Burrow as well as firm are simply also powerful offensively for Brady and his crime to keep : The Bengals must cover the 3.5-point spread. Tampa bay Bay simply does not have the workers it needed to power playoff runs over the previous number of seasons. The Bengals are strong on both sides of the ball, have been playing well lately and ought to see this as a chance to defeat a formerly excellent team when it's DEEPERSeeing Tom Brady in Joe Burrow: Through eyes of those who have actually recognized bothSunday night brings us a big competition video game in between the Giants 7-5-1) and also Commanders 7-5-1) in Washington. That has the side, and also which of these teams has the much better shot of getting to the postseason?Jackson: I such as the Commanders in this game, as well as I like them as the much better wager to make the postseason. The Commanders have a top-10 defense according to Football Outsiders' overall DVOA, as well as they have enough offending weapons to split the code as well as the Giants) in a vital however odd competition of groups that played to a 20-20 tie 2 weeks : See my response above. Washington is your finest : It is difficult to break Washington in this competition, even though I did believe earlier in the period that the Giants were going to get to the playoffs. Washington has actually been playing much better recently, is coming off its bye and is dipping into house. There's no substantial factor to choose the Giants in this DEEPERNFC East Roundtable: Giants-Commanders face-off, playoff forecasts with 4 weeks to goIf you had to pick one dismayed today, who would you take? Jackson: Tough week on that particular front, yet I can't believe the Steelers are three-point underdogs in Carolina. The Steelers clearly have problems and also quarterback concerns, however they suffice defensively to transform Sam Darnold over numerous times and also win what could be a first-to-17 sort of : I'll take the Lions beating the Jets in Jacket. Dan Campbell's gang has actually won 5 of the last six and 2 straight. Their energy is : I already opted for Tennessee previously. It would not shock me if Jacksonville managed a triumph over Dallas as a six-point underdog. Allow's see if Dak Prescott can restrict the turn overs after tossing a league-high eight choices given that Week 8. What is one of the most intriguing storyline of Week 15 that we haven't yet talked about? What are you directly most delighted to see?Jackson: Might the Packers still have playoff life by the time they play Monday evening? Exists enough left in the container to make a genuine run at the playoffs if the Packers do what I expect and take care of the Rams? It's not the week's most exciting video game, but Aaron Rodgers is still excellent television-- and Packers-Dolphins on Xmas could wind up being really DEEPER' A really tough shift': In Aaron Rodgers' offense 'it's tough for the young men' Jones: I want to see if interim trainer Steve Wilks can keep this improbable mission going with the 5-8 Panthers, who have actually won 2 straight and are just one video game behind battling Tampa florida Bay. Pittsburgh definitely is beatable, and also the Panthers have improved : Josh McDaniels leading the Raiders against Expense Belichick as well as the Patriots deserves mentioning with so much interest concentrated on what New England did as well as did refrain from doing) in replacing McDaniels as its offending organizer. Can the Patriots crime get anything going versus an unimpressive Raiders protection? Will Belichick solve McDaniels? There's so much familiarity, and these groups are mirror pictures the Raiders are much better on crime than protection, while the Patriots are better on defense than violation). Illustration: John Bradford/ The Athletic; photos: Greg Fiume, Chris Unger, Dylan Buell / Getty Images). Connor McGovern Jersey