Sunday Night Football open thread: Giants at Commanders

It’s a game that has huge playoff implications not only for the teams playing, but also for the Detroit Lions. Its Sunday Night Football enables chaos.

Our week 15 rooting guide breaks down the possibilities in full detail, but the gist of it is that New York Giants and a tie with the Washington Commanders in Week 13 threw a wrench into the Lions’ playoff chances. Despite Detroit beating both teams, a tie eliminated this playoff. While Detroit’s best path to the playoffs initially was for one of them to blow up, the Lions now need both teams to cheat their way to the finish line. Best case scenario? One more tie, combined with a Lions win over the Jets today, would improve their playoff odds tremendously.

The Commanders arrive late in Week 14, so it’s back-to-back games against the division rival Giants. Taylor Heinicke will remain the starter in Washington despite the activation of Carson Wentz. All things considered, it’s not hard to see why. It hasn’t been the prettiest of hot streaks, but the Commanders have quietly gone 6-1-1 since Week 6. However, the wins are largely due to a defense that has been on fire lately.

The Giants, on the other hand, are going in the opposite direction. After starting the season 6-1, the Giants have since fallen to 7-5-1. Blast loss Philadelphia Eagles Last week, a team Commandershas the Giants handed their only loss, desperately clinging to a Wild Card spot. With Seahawks with the Lions pinching their position, a loss against the Commanders would further jeopardize their playoff push.

Here’s how to watch tonight’s game:

Date: on Sunday 18 December 2022
Time: 20:20 ET
Location: FedExField Landover, MD
TV: NBC
Publishers: Mike Tirico, Cris Collinsworth and Melissa Stark
Online: NBCSports.com