NFL Week 15 grades: Chiefs get 'C' after playoff elimination, Bills earn 'B+' for topping Patriots
Here are the grades for every team that has played in Week 15
By
John Breech
•
11 min read
Welcome to the Week 15 grades!
The NFL playoff race is in full swing, and there are several big games on the Week 15 schedule that will have a huge impact on who makes the postseason and who doesn't. Speaking of who won't make the postseason, the most surprising news of the day is that the Kansas City Chiefs have been eliminated from playoff contention.
That's right, Patrick Mahomes will not be in the playoffs. Travis Kelce will not be in the playoffs. The team that has made it to seven straight AFC title games will not be in the playoffs.
With the Chiefs out, the means the AFC is WIDE OPEN this year.
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With that in mind, let's get to the Week 15 grades, starting with the AFC East showdown between the Bills and Patriots.
Buffalo 35-31 over New England
| B- |  |
| Whatever Sean McDermott said to this team at halftime, he might want to bottle some of that up and save it for the playoffs. The Bills were a total disaster during a first half where they totaled just 76 yards, but then they went back to the basics in the second half: They fed James Cook the ball and they let Josh Allen work his magic. Cook had 107 yards and two rushing touchdowns in the game with 65 of that and both scores coming in the second half. Josh Allen willed his team to the win with 194 total yards in the second half, including a 14-yard TD pass on third-and-goal from New England's 14 that gave Buffalo its first lead of the game. The Bills defense was just as good in the second half, surrendering just 100 yards. The Bills (10-4) might not win the AFC East, but they proved they can go on the road and win in a playoff atmosphere, which is big, because there's a good chance this team will be playing a road playoff game or two if they want to get to the Super Bowl. | |
| C |  |
| This was a monumental collapse by a Patriots team that blew a 21-0 lead. The always accurate Drake Maye, who threw just two incompletions in the first half, went ice cold in the second half, going just 5 of 12 for 47 yards with an interception. With Maye struggling, the Patriots turned to their rushing attack and that briefly worked when TreyVeyon Henderson broke loose for a 65-yard score, but New England only had four rushing yards in the second half outside of that play. The Patriots (11-3) are still in the driver's-seat to win the AFC East, but this second half collapse is certainly going to leave a bad taste in their mouth and it makes you wonder if they'll actually be able to win a game come playoff time. | |
L.A. Chargers 16-13 over Kansas City
| B+ |  |
| The Chargers had the chance to drive the final dagger into Kansas City's playoff hopes and that's exactly what they did here. If you're going to beat the Chiefs, you have to keep Patrick Mahomes in check and the Chargers defense did that by beating up on Kansas City's star QB. Odafe Oweh and Tuli Tuipulotu both sacked Mahomes twice on a day where the Chargers got to him five times. The defense also came away with two interceptions, including a game-sealing pick from Derwin James. The Chargers are now 5-0 in the AFC West for the first time ever and with their defense playing like this, this is suddenly a historical season that could go deep into January. | |
| C |  |
| The Chiefs offense is shell of itself this year and that's why they lost this game. Patrick Mahomes can usually muster enough magic to win a game like this, but with a banged up knee, he was a sitting duck against a Chargers pass-rush that sacked him five times. With a struggling offense, a hobbled quarterback and a team that hasn't been able to find a way to win one-score games, this season just wasn't meant to be for the Chiefs, and now, they'll be sitting at home for the playoffs for the first time since 2014. | |
Baltimore 24-0 over Cincinnati
| A- |  |
| After getting embarrassed by the Bengals offense on Thanksgiving, the Ravens defense got its revenge on Sunday. The Ravens had Joe Burrow rattled in a game where they sacked the Bengals QB three times. The defense also came up with two interceptions, including a pick-six in the fourth quarter that Kyle Van Noy pitched to Aloi Gilman, who took it in for the score. Offensively, Lamar Jackson didn't put up huge numbers, but he looked sharp, completing 8 of 12 passes for 150 yards and to touchdowns. The Ravens also got a boost from Derrick Henry, who topped 100 yards for the first time since Week 11. With the win, the Ravens (7-7) are now very much back in the AFC North playoff race with just three weeks left to play in the regular season. | |
| F |  |
| This might go down as the ugliest loss of Joe Burrow's career. The offense looked completely out of sync and Burrow didn't help things by throwing an ugly pick six in the fourth quarter. This marked the first time since 2017 that the Bengals were shut out in a game. If Zac Taylor wasn't on the hot seat before this week, he should be now after an embarrassingly bad performance that ended with the Bengals (4-10) being eliminated from playoff contention. | |
Chicago 31-3 over Cleveland
| F |  |
| Shedeur Sanders played solid football in his first three starts, but he finally got his "welcome to the NFL" moment against the Bears. Sanders got destroyed by a Bears defense that sacked him five times. The Browns' rookie QB was under constant pressure and he'd didn't handle it particularly well, throwing three interceptions. The Browns had six three-and-outs to go along with their three turnovers, which put the defense in a rough spot for most of the game. It's another lost season for the Browns (3-11). | |
| A |  |
| The Bears won this game by doing what they do best: Playing smart offense and forcing turnovers on defense. Heading into Week 15, the Bears had forced the most turnovers in the NFL and they added three more to that total with three interceptions. The Bears pass-rush caused all sorts of problems for Shedeur Sanders, who was sacked five times, including two from Austin Booker. The Bears offense struggled at times, but that's to be expected when you're playing the Browns defense. Caleb Williams looked solid in spurts and D'Andre Swift was able to average 5.4 yards per carry against a Cleveland defense that was only surrendering 3.8 yards per carry on the season going into the game. The Bears (10-4) took care of business against a bad team and that's what you have to do if you want to be successful in the NFL. | |
Washington 29-21 over N.Y. Giants
| B |  |
| This was a day of big plays for the Commanders, who scored three touchdowns with all three of them coming from 16 yards or longer. Jaylin Lane had the biggest one with a 63-yard punt return TD in the first half and Terry McLaurin followed that up in the second half with a 51-yard receiving touchdown. Those backbreaking plays were a big reason why Washington was able to win. The Commanders defense also deserves some credit, especially for making two big fourth down stops in the fourth quarter, including one that came after the Giants had driven down to Washington's 1-yard line. This was a solid rebound for a Commanders team that got shut out last week. It would have been easy for them to give up on the season after last week, but this team is still playing hard for Dan Quinn. | |
| B- |  |
| The Giants had every chance to win this game, but they ended up giving it away. One of their biggest issues continues to be at kicker: Younghoe Koo missed two field goals to continue New York's season long problems at the position. The Giants also couldn't punch the ball in the end zone after driving all the way down to Washington's one-yard line in the fourth quarter. There was another opportunity lost late in the fourth quarter after the Giants got a gift with a Commanders fumble in the final three minutes, but New York was unable to capitalize on that. This loss was really just the story of the Giants' season: They couldn't capitalize on big opportunities, their QB got beat up (Jaxson Dart got sent to the blue tent in this game) and they missed several kicks. That's the 2025 Giants (2-12) for you. | |
Philadelphia 31-0 over Las Vegas
| F |  |
| It's not often you see a Pete Carroll team that has no fight, but that was the case here. The Raiders have been bad this season, but this was rock bottom: They totaled just 75 yards of offense and they got held to zero points. It was their lowest offensive output since 2008 and it also marks the first time in 19 years that they've been shutout twice in the game season. The Raiders look ready for the season to be over. | |
| A+ |  |
| It took 15 weeks, but the Eagles finally put it all together and what they got was a nearly perfect performance against the Raiders. Actually, their defensive performance might have been perfect. The defense beat up on Kenny Pickett with four sacks, including two from Brandon Graham. who recorded his first sacks of the season since coming out of retirement in late October. The defense held the Raiders to just 75 yards, which was the lowest total they've held an opponent to since 1955. Offensively, Jalen Hurts had as many TD passes (3) as incompletions on a day where he was nearly perfect (12 of 15 for 175 yards). This was a get right game that the Eagles desperately needed and if they keep playing like this, they might be able to make some noise in the postseason. | |
Jacksonville 48-20 over N.Y. Jets
| F |  |
| With the Jets forced to start a rookie undrafted free agent at QB (Brady Cook) this game was destined to get ugly, but you can't blame Cook for the Jets' failures. Instead, the blame goes on a Jets' defense that let Jacksonville score on five of its six possessions in the first half. The Jets are now 0-6 this year against teams currently above. .500 and if you watch them play, it's not hard to see why. | |
| A |  |
| The Jaguars officially look dangerous. The Jags came out on fire by scoring a touchdown on each of their first three offensive possessions, which is something they hadn't pulled off since 1998. One thing that makes the Jags so dangerous is that they have so many offensive weapons: They had seven different pass-catchers finish with at least 20 receiving yards, including Trevor Etienne, who caught three passes for 73 yards and three touchdowns. It also helps that Trevor Lawrence is playing the best football of his career. With the Broncos and Colts coming up in the next two weeks, this could have easily been a trap game for Jacksonville, but instead, the Jags (10-4) put this one away early. That's what good teams do and the Jags aren't just a good team, they're one of the best in the AFC. | |
Houston 40-20 over Arizona
| D |  |
| This game felt like it was over before it even started. The Cardinals were trailing 17-0 before they even got a single first down. That happened because they fumbled away a kickoff after a Houston touchdown and they also had a three-and-out in the first quarter. Being down 17-0 is a hole you're just not going to dig yourself out of against the Texans' defense. Trey McBride (12 catches for 134 yards and two touchdowns) was one of the few bright spots for a Cardinals team that didn't have very many bright spots on Sunday and hasn't had very man all season. | |
| A |  |
| The Texans already had the best defense in the NFL and their offense might have finally caught up. C.J. Stroud looked impressive, throwing for 260 yards and three touchdowns. Nico Collins continues to be one of the best big play threats in the NFL. The Texans star caught just three passes, but those went for 85 yards and two touchdowns. On top of that, the Texans seemed to have found another running back in Jawhar Jordan. The 2024 sixth-round pick had 101 yards on just 15 carries in the first action of his career. Houston might be the scariest team in the AFC right now. | |
Atlanta 29-28 over Tampa Bay
| B- |  |
| With the Falcons eliminated from the playoff race, they had nothing to play for on Thursday night, so they decided to embrace the roll of spoiler. Kyle Pitts, who's set to be a free agent in March, likely just made himself millions of dollars with this performance against the Bucs that saw him catch 11 passes for 166 yards and three touchdowns (all career highs). Kirk Cousins showed that he still has some juice left in his right arm with a performance that saw him throw for 376 yards with 154 of that coming in the fourth quarter. The Falcons defense struggled at times, but it clamped down on the Bucs in the fourth quarter, holding Tampa Bay's offense to just 28 yards. The Falcons (5-9) won despite getting hit with a franchise-record 19 penalties. It as a sloppy win, but as sloppy Joes have long proven, sometimes sloppy can be good. | |
| D |  |
| Considering the magnitude of this game, this was a monster choke by the Buccaneers, who blew a 28-14 lead in the fourth quarter. The entire team choked, starting with Baker Mayfield, who made several errant throws in the fourth quarter, including an interception. The Bucs' defense got steamrolled for 188 yards and 15 points in the final quarter and two of their best plays went to waste because they couldn't fall on the ball after causing two different fumbles. Mike Evans ended up being one of the few bright spots for Tampa Bay: In his return to action, he caught six passes for 132 yards. The only sliver lining here for the Bucs (7-7) is that their offense should be at nearly full strength for the final three weeks of the season and they still control their playoff fate: If they win their final three games, they'll win the NFC South. | |
