As we enter the holiday season, the NFL will begin to tinker with its schedule. Every year, the league leaves times off of certain matchups late in the season for the option to flex them to different times or even different days. On Tuesday, the NFL announced that a couple of matchups in Week 15 were being moved to Saturday, Dec. 18, when the Las Vegas Raiders will take on the Cleveland Browns at 4:30 p.m. ET, while the New England Patriots will travel to Indy to take on the Colts at 8:20 p.m. ET.
According to the NFL's release, the NFL Network will broadcast these two games exclusively, although the matchups will be available on local broadcast stations for the teams playing. Viewers can stream these games through fuboTV (try for free).
The Browns and Raiders last played on Nov. 1 of last year, as Vegas recorded a 16-6 victory in Cleveland. We still have several weeks before these Saturday games, but the Browns and Raiders are two AFC teams that are reeling right now. Cleveland somewhat got back on track this past Sunday against the Detroit Lions, and are currently sitting at 6-5 in the jumbled AFC playoff picture -- just half a game outside of a wild card spot. The Raiders are currently on a three-game skid, but are not far behind in the playoff picture at 5-5.
Colts vs. Patriots is a well-known rivalry. They last met in October of 2018, as the Patriots recorded a 38-24 victory. In fact, New England has won the last eight meetings vs. Indy. The 7-4 Patriots are on a five-game winning streak, and recently stole first place in the AFC East from the Buffalo Bills. The NFL world is again singing the praises of Bill Belichick's squad, as their stout defense and the continued improvement of rookie quarterback Mac Jones have the Patriots looking like a dark horse candidate for a playoff run. While the 6-5 Colts are currently half a game out of the playoffs, running back Jonathan Taylor has willed this team to three straight victories. He had five total touchdowns this past Sunday against the Bills.
