Schwartz Hierarchy- Week 15

Week 14 was once again entertaining for all NFL fans. Jalen Hurts won his debut as a Philadelphia Eagle over the New Orleans Saints, the Kansas City Chiefs piled on points against the Miami Dolphins’ defense, and the Baltimore Ravens outdueled the Cleveland Browns in a high-scoring match on Monday Night Football.

Week 15 will kickoff Thursday as the Las Vegas Raiders fight for their playoff lives against Justin Herbert and the Los Angeles Chargers. Then, we have our first set of Saturday action in a double-header featuring the Buffalo Bills taking on the Denver Broncos and then the Carolina Panthers travel to Lambeau Field to take on the Green Bay Packers.

The Sunday slate doesn’t feature any marquee 1pm games, but CBS’s Game of the Week at 4:25pm will showcase the Chiefs taking on the Saints in what should be a Super Bowl preview. Hopefully, Drew Brees will be healthy enough for this game.

Sunday Night Football will feature the Cleveland Browns taking on the New York Giants, possibly without Daniel Jones and then Monday Night Football will showcase the Pittsburgh Steelers hoping to rebound from back-to-back losses in their battle against the Cincinnati Bengals. It’s going to be an exciting three-week stretch as many teams battle for playoff positioning so here is my Schwartz Hierarchy for Week 15:

10. Cleveland Browns (9–4; At New York Giants, Sunday, 8:20pm; LW-6)

-The Browns slip in the rankings after their loss to the Ravens. The defense was just bad, especially the back seven. I will say though that the Browns’ offense is pretty good and Baker Mayfield has improved greatly over the course of this season. As I keep saying, it helps to have two really good running backs in Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt. The Browns do hope to rebound against the Giants in a primetime showcase as NBC decided to flex this game from its original 1pm slot. Cleveland is a four point favorite and while I’ve been pretty impressed with the Giants’ defense as of late, the Browns’ offense will just be too overwhelming. I’ll take Cleveland 27–13.

9. Seattle Seahawks (9–4; at Washington Football Team, Sunday, 1pm; LW- 10)

• Seattle rebounded nicely against the New York Jets after succumbing to a defeat from the Giants the week prior. In their 40–3 win, Russell Wilson padded the stats with four touchdown passes and he was quite efficient. The running game was highly effective behind Chris Carson and Carlos Hyde as well. Unfortunately, they won’t have an easy time against Washington’s front seven and I don’t expect Seattle’s rushing attack to have the same results as they did against the Jets. Wilson will have to play hero ball in this game and I don’t believe it will be enough as Washington is running with high momentum in their quest to win the NFC East. The Seahawks enter this game as a five point favorite, but I’m taking Washington to win in an upset 17–14.

8. Tennessee Titans (9–4; Detroit Lions, Sunday, 1pm; LW-9)

-The Titans had a redemption win too after Cleveland embarrassed them in that terrible first half. In their 31–10 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars, Derrick Henry went off for 215 rushing yards on 26 carries and two touchdowns. He’s an absolute beast. A.J. Brown also remains to be a valuable offensive weapon with seven catches for 112 receiving yards, along with a ridiculous one-handed catch for a touchdown. The Titans have a very good offense and offensive coordinator Arthur Smith looks to be in line for a head coaching job for 2021. Due to Matthew Stafford’s health, there is no betting line for the Titans matchup against the Lions. Regardless of the spread, I expect Tennessee to win this game.

7. Los Angeles Rams (9–4; New York Jets, Sunday, 4:05pm; LW-8)

-Wow!!! The Rams absolutely dominated the New England Patriots last Thursday to the score of 24–3. The defense was fantastic, especially with a pick six from Kenny Young. Michael Brockers had two sacks and Aaron Donald had a sack and a half of his own. This defensive unit is becoming dangerous. Jared Goff didn’t have to do too much at the quarterback position as Cam Akers broke out for 171 rushing yards on 29 carries. This is most certainly coach Sean McVay’s recipe for success and he proved me wrong in what I expected to be a coaching mismatch against Bill Belichick. The Rams take on the winless Jets this Sunday as a 17.5 point favorite and I expect them to dominate. Los Angeles shall win 27–6.

6. Indianapolis Colts (9–4; Houston Texans, Sunday, 1pm; LW- 7)

• The Colts’ offense certainly showed up against the Raiders this past week to a score of 44–27. Jonathan Taylor was a major bright spot as he had 150 rushing yards on 20 carries, including two touchdowns. Philip Rivers remained consistent throughout the game with 244 passing yards and two touchdowns of his own, which both went to T.Y. Hilton, who had five catches for 86 receiving yards. It should be quite exciting down the stretch as the Colts and Titans battle it out for the AFC South. This Sunday, the Colts enter their game against the Texans as a 7.5 point favorite, but I believe Deshaun Watson is too talented for this game to be a blowout. I’ll predict the Colts to win 26–20, which was the same exact score from two weeks ago.

5. New Orleans Saints (10–3; Kansas City Chiefs, Sunday, 4:25pm; LW- 3)

-The Saints drop a few spots mainly due to the fact that their defense had no idea how to defend Jalen Hurts or the the Eagles’ running attack in their 24–21 loss. Hurts had 18 rushes for 106 yards and Miles Sanders had 115 rushing yards on only 14 carries and two touchdowns, which included a big 82-yard touchdown run. It was certainly not the results the Saints were looking for, but they could rebound in a big way against the Chiefs, especially if Drew Brees is to return.

4. Buffalo Bills (10–3; At Denver Broncos, Saturday, 4:30pm; LW-5)

• The Bills played very well against the Steelers this past week to a 26–15 win. You might have expected me to rank the Bills higher, but I still believe Pittsburgh to have a much better defense regardless of what occurred in this game. The Packers and Chiefs also have better quarterbacks, but that shouldn’t be a reason to ignore how well Josh Allen has been playing. He threw for 238 passing yards, along with two touchdowns in this game and he received much help from Stefon Diggs, who had ten catches for 130 yards and a touchdown. The Bills certainly got a high momentum win and they enter their contest against the Broncos as a 6.5 point favorite. I’ll take the Bills to win by a touchdown 24–17.

3. Green Bay Packers (10–3; Carolina Panthers, Saturday, 8:15pm; LW- 4)

-The Packers don’t jump over the Steelers either as I believe Pittsburgh’s defense is better than Green Bay’s. Aaron Rodgers was fantastic against the Lions once again this past week though and his connection with Davante Adams is crazy good. Rodgers had 290 passing yards with three touchdowns and Adams had 115 receiving yards, along with a touchdown. Those two are an absolute problem, but in order to succeed in the playoffs, they’re going to have to get Aaron Jones more involved in the running game and of course, the defense will need to stop the opposing run game as well. They enter their game against the Panthers as an 8.5 point favorite and I believe they cover with ease. The Packers shall win 27–16.

2. Pittsburgh Steelers (11–2; At Cincinnati Bengals, Monday, 8:15pm; LW-2)

-You all aren’t going to agree with this spot and I really don’t care. I truly believe the Steelers are the second best team in the NFL. If you want to rank them at five, that’s something I can accept, but Colin Cowherd ranking them tenth in his hierarchy yesterday was absolutely insulting to this franchise. The Steelers certainly have flaws as all teams do. The main issue is that they can’t run the ball right now and this flaw has certainly exposed them in their last two games, which have resulted in losses. The defense is still really good and Ben Roethlisberger is still a talented quarterback as they enter their contest against the Bengals as a 12.5 point favorite. I believe they redeem themselves and cover the spread to a 33–15 win.

1. Kansas City Chiefs (12–1; At New Orleans Saints, Sunday, 4:25pm; LW-1)

-The Dolphins certainly made things interesting this past Sunday, but the Chiefs came out on top 33–27. Many wonder why the Chiefs haven’t been blowing teams out and it’s pretty simple to me. They’re just bored. It’s not a good reason, but it seems evident that this offense just toys with opposing defenses. Even though Patrick Mahomes threw three interceptions against the Dolphins, I still consider him to be the best quarterback in the league. You’re going to have to get through him to win a championship. Travis Kelce is also making his case as being one of the all-time greats at the tight end position as he’s had over 100 receiving yards in five of his last six games. He’s unstoppable. You know who else is unstoppable? Tyreek Hill. His speed is another element to what makes this Chiefs’ offense so great. With that being said, they enter their game against the Saints as a 3.5 point favorite, but it’s not going to matter whether Drew Brees plays or not. I like the Chiefs 27–21.