Week 13 brings a slate of five Sunday games on FOX Sports, following a 31-24 Packers win over the Lions on Thanksgiving.
The lone game in the late window might be the best of the day, with Seattle and Sam Darnold going up against the team he led to the playoffs last season in the Vikings.
A month ago, this would have been a showdown with major draft implications. The Saints are now 2-9 and would pick No. 3 overall if the 2026 draft order was finalized right now, but the Dolphins have won three of their last four to improve to 4-7, dropping them to No. 10 entering Sunday.
Miami’s defense has stepped up in the last month, ranking third among all NFL defenses since Week 8, with only the Eagles and Ravens giving up fewer points per game. The Saints, meanwhile, are tied for last in the league at 15.0 points scored per game. One area where New Orleans is astoundingly bad: goal-to-go situations, where every other NFL offense gets touchdowns at least 55% of the time, but the Saints are way down at 31%. No NFL team in the last five seasons has finished lower than 48% in goal-to-go.
Tampa Bay’s defense has struggled mightily in its three-game losing streak, giving up a combined 106 points to the Patriots, Bills and Rams, its most in any three-game span since October 2019, in Todd Bowles’ first season as the Bucs’ defensive coordinator. Their last three opponents are a combined 26-8, though their remaining six games do not include any teams with winning records.
Baker Mayfield sprained the AC joint in his non-throwing shoulder but could still play. … Arizona tight end Trey McBride is one off the NFL lead with 80 catches, putting him on pace to get 124 and break the NFL record for a tight end, set by Zach Ertz with 116 in 2018. He’s tied for fourth in the league with seven touchdowns as well. The Cardinals will start Jacoby Brissett at quarterback. He’ll be just the third QB ever to start for four different teams against the Bucs, joining Chris Chandler and Gus Frerotte.
It’s a homecoming for Falcons defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich, who was the Jets’ DC and interim head coach last year. Atlanta has had a rough year, but his defense has improved, going from 31st in sack percentage last year to third in 2025. The Jets, meanwhile, have allowed the highest sack percentage in the league, ranking in the bottom five in pass attempts but top five in sacks. Atlanta ended a five-game losing streak by beating the Saints — at 4-7, can coach Raheem Morris keep his job? Atlanta’s Bijan Robinson already has a career high in receiving yards (543) and is on pace to clear 2,000 yards from scrimmage. With Drake London likely missing another game with injury, the Falcons’ lack of receiving depth is a concern. Darnell Mooney and David Sills had touchdowns last week, the first for a Falcons receiver other than London this season.
Los Angeles has won six in a row, and Matthew Stafford has a strong case for MVP with an NFL-best 30 touchdowns against only two interceptions. The Rams’ defense is now the top scoring defense in the league, giving up 16.3 points per game and ranking in the top five on third downs and in the red zone.
Panthers corner Jaycee Horn had two interceptions last week, giving him five for the season, tied for the NFL lead and as many as he’d totaled in his first four NFL seasons. Quarterback Bryce Young has 15 touchdown passes, as many as he totaled last year, with a real shot at having Carolina’s first 20-touchdown season since Cam Newton in 2018.
It’s the Sam Darnold Bowl. He had 35 touchdowns for the Vikings last season, and now has 19 in helping Seattle to an 8-3 record. The Vikings, meanwhile, have struggled with J.J. McCarthy and others at quarterback, totaling 13 touchdowns against 15 interceptions. Minnesota has gone from 14-3 a year ago to 4-7, losing five of its last six games.
Do you like turnovers? These two teams rank 1-2 in the NFL in giveaways. Minnesota has 21, Seattle has 20. The Seahawks are on pace for the second-most turnovers by any playoff team in the last decade, with only the 2023 Browns (37) having more. Minnesota’s Max Brosmer, expected to start for McCarthy, could be the first undrafted rookie to start and win a game since the Giants’ Tommy DeVito in 2023.
Greg Auman is an NFL Reporter for FOX Sports. He previously spent a decade covering the Buccaneers for the Tampa Bay Times and The Athletic. You can follow him on Twitter at @gregauman.
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