Week 15 capsules

— TV GAMES All times Central

Broncos at Ravens Noon, CBS

LINE - Broncos by 3 LAST MEETING Baltimore beat Denver 31-17, Oct. 10, 2010.

LAST WEEK Denver beat Oakland 26-13. Baltimore lost to Washington 31-28 in overtime. RANKINGS Broncos: offense (4), defense (4); Ravens: offense (18), defense (24) NOTES Denver already has clinched second consecutive AFC West title and is riding 8-game winning streak, longest current run in NFL and fourth-longest in team history. QB Peyton Manning is 8-2 against Ravens. He needs 188 yards passing to become first player in NFL with 12 4,000-yard seasons (including postseason). Jim Caldwell, who replaced Ravens offensive coordinator Cam Cameron on Monday, coached Manning in Indianapolis. LB Von Miller has 6 consecutive games with sack and is 1 sack short of team record of 17, set by teammate Elvis Dumervil in 2009. ... Baltimore RB Ray Rice had 133 yards rushing and 2 touchdowns in last game against Denver (2010). Rice had season-high 121 rushing yards last week in loss to Washington. Ravens can clinch AFC North title with victory.

Giants at Falcons Noon, FOX

LINE - Falcons by 1 1/2 LAST MEETING New York beat Atlanta 24-2, Jan. 8, 2012.

LAST WEEK New York beat New Orleans 52-27. Atlanta lost to Carolina 30-20.

RANKINGS Giants: offense (9), defense (25); Falcons: offense (8), defense (20) NOTES New York holds 1-game lead over Washington and Dallas in NFC East, while Atlanta already has clinched NFC South title. Falcons can wrap up home-field advantage throughout conference playoffs if they win and Green Bay and San Francisco lose. David Wilson of Giants became first player in NFL history to rush for more than 100 yards and have more than 200 return yards in victory over Saints. His 327 all-purpose yards set franchise record. ... Atlanta RB Michael Turner rushed for only 14 yards on 7 carries against Carolina, second-lowest output of his Atlanta career. Only time he gained less yards in game was final appearance of 2009 season, when he left with injury after rushing for 7 yards on 1 carry. Falcons 32-7 at Georgia Dome over past 5 seasons.

Steelers at Cowboys 3:25 p.m., CBS

LINE - Steelers by 1 1/2 LAST MEETING Pittsburgh beat Dallas 20-13, Dec. 7, 2008.

LAST WEEK Pittsburgh lost to San Diego 34-24. Dallas beat Cincinnati 20-19.

RANKINGS Steelers: offense (19), defense (1); Cowboys: offense (10); defense (11) NOTES Pittsburgh has won 29 of past 35 regular-season games against NFC teams. Steelers playing at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, for second time even though this is their first regular-season game at Dallas since 2004, when Cowboys still called Texas Stadium in Irving home. Pittsburgh lost to Green Bay in Super Bowl at Cowboys Stadium two seasons ago. Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger is 2-0 against Cowboys, with road victory as rookie in 2004 and at home in 2008. He has thrown for 397 yards with 3 touchdowns and no interceptions in those games, but has been sacked 8 times. ... Dallas WR Dez Bryant has TD catches in 5 consecutive games (7 touchdowns overall). Cowboys are 35-40 vs. AFC North teams. QB Tony Romo only 238 yards passing from reaching 25,000 for career.

49ers at Patriots 7:20 p.m., NBC

LINE - Patriots by 4 1/2 LAST MEETING New England beat San Francisco 30-21, Oct. 5, 2008.

LAST WEEK San Francisco beat Miami 27-13. New England beat Houston 42-14.

RANKINGS 49ers: offense (12), defense (2); Patriots: offense (1), defense (26) NOTES New England has highest-scoring offense in NFL, while San Francisco allows fewest points. 49ers clinch NFC West with victory combined with Seattle loss. They clinch playoff berth with victory even if Seahawks win. Patriots have locked up AFC East title. San Francisco among best against run and pass, allowing second fewest yards against both. ... Patriots are 21-0 in second half of seasons starting in 2010. They have won past 20 December home games. QB Tom Brady has thrown at least 1 touchdown pass in 45 consecutive games, trailing only Drew Brees (54) and Johnny Unitas (47). DB Devin McCourty had second interception in end zone this season when he picked off Matt Schaub on Houston’s first series Monday night. RB Stevan Ridley has at least 1 rushing touchdown in each of past 6 games.

Packers at Bears Noon

LINE - Packers by 2 1/2 LAST MEETING Green Bay beat Chicago 23-10, Sept. 13.

LAST WEEK Green Bay beat Detroit 27-20. Chicago lost to Minnesota 21-14.

RANKINGS Packers: offense (17), defense (17); Bears: offense (28), defense (5) NOTES Green Bay has won 7 of 8 and can clinch second consecutive NFC North title with victory. Packers have also won 5 consecutive and 7 of 8 against Chicago, including NFC title game two years ago. Packers eyeing third season sweep in four years against Bears. CB Charles Woodson (broken collarbone) out for seventh consecutive game. LB Clay Matthews practiced Wednesday for first time since pulling hamstring last month and was eager to play this week. Had career-high 3 1/2 sacks against Cutler last time and leads Packers with 9 despite missing past 4 games. ... Chicago has dropped 4 of 5 after 7-1 start. Bears placed K Robbie Gould (left calf), CB Sherrick McManis (knee) and S Craig Steltz (chest) on injured reserve and signed veteran K Olindo Mare to one-year contract.

Buccaneers at Saints Noon

LINE - Saints by 3 LAST MEETING New Orleans beat Tampa Bay 35-28, Oct. 21.

LAST WEEK Tampa Bay lost to Philadelphia 23-21. New Orleans lost to New York 52-27.

RANKINGS Buccaneers: offense (14), defense (29); Saints: offense (3), defense (32) NOTES Tampa Bay rookie RB Doug Martin second in NFL with 1,612 yards from scrimmage (1,234 rushing, 378 receiving). Tied for NFC lead with 10 touchdowns rushing. Martin rushed for 128 yards last week vs. Philadelphia, surpassing Cadillac Williams’ club record for most yards rushing by rookie. QB Josh Freeman has 20 touchdowns vs. 4 interceptions in past 9 games. He has more than 3,000 yards passing (3,192) for third consecutive season, joining Brad Johnson (2001-2003) as only Buccaneers to do so. ... New Orleans have won past 2 meetings against Tampa Bay. QB Drew Brees, only quarterback in Saints history to pass for 4,000 yards in a season, has now done it 7 consecutive years after reaching 4,028 yards last week. WR Marques Colston has 8 touchdowns in past 10 games.

Vikings at Rams Noon

LINE - Rams by 2 1/2 LAST MEETING Minnesota beat St. Louis 38-10, Oct. 11, 2009.

LAST WEEK Minnesota beat Chicago 21-14. St. Louis beat Buffalo 15-12.

RANKINGS Vikings: offense (24), defense (18); Rams: offense (25), defense (10) NOTES Minnesota RB Adrian Peterson enters game with 7 consecutive 100-plus yards games. He is 400 yards from becoming eighth RB in league history to rush for 2,000 in single season. Peterson is averaging more yards per rush (6.0) than QB Christian Ponder is per pass (5.98). Vikings is 1-5 on road this year and have lost 12 of past 15 away from Metrodome. ... St. Louis RB Steven Jackson needs 71 yards to reach 10,000 for his career. Rams have won 3 consecutive for first time since 2006. They are tied for second in NFL in sacks with 39, 3 behind Cincinnati. Robert Quinn leads team with 9 1/2. QB Sam Bradford emerging as clutch performer in fourth quarter. Has thrown 7 of his 15 touchdown passes in fourth quarter and has driven Rams to a lead in final quarter 5 times this season. Rams 3-1-1 in such games.

Seahawks vs. Bills 3:05 p.m.

LINE - Seahawks by 5 LAST MEETING Buffalo beat Seattle 34-10, Sept. 7, 2008.

LAST WEEK Seattle beat Arizona 58-0. Buffalo lost to St. Louis 15-12.

RANKINGS Seahawks: offense (21), defense (3); Bills: offense (20), defense (21) NOTES Today’s game will be played at Toronto’s Rogers Centre. Buffalo is 1-3 in regular-season games at Toronto after defeating Washington 23-0 last year. ... Seattle has never played regular-season game outside U.S., and is 0-2 in international preseason games, including 24-21 loss to San Francisco at Vancouver in 1998. Seahawks RB Marshawn Lynch ranks second in NFL with career-best 1,266 yards rushing. Lynch was selected 12th overall in 2007 draft by Buffalo before being traded to Seattle for fourth-round draft pick a month into 2010 season. Seahawks tied with Chicago in race for NFC’s 2 wild-card spots. Seattle loss or San Francisco victory would give 49ers the NFC West title.

Colts at Texans Noon

LINE - Texans by 9 1/2 LAST MEETING Indianapolis beat Houston 19-16, Dec. 22, 2011.

LAST WEEK Indianapolis beat Tennessee 27-23. Houston lost to New England 42-14.

RANKINGS Colts: offense (7), defense (22); Texans: offense (6), defense (7) NOTES Houston can clinch second consecutive AFC South title with victory. Indianapolis can secure playoff berth and remain in hunt to win division with victory. Texans have won past 2 meetings in Houston. ... Victory by Colts would make them second team in NFL history to win at least 10 games year after losing 14 or more. Colts have 3-game winning streak and have won 8 of past 9. Teams play again in regular-season finale Dec. 30. Colts QB Andrew Luck’s 9 victories are most by rookie quarterback drafted first overall since 1966.

Panthers at Chargers 3:05 p.m.

LINE - Chargers by 3 LAST MEETING San Diego beat Carolina 26-24, Sept. 7, 2008.

LAST WEEK Carolina beat Atlanta 30-20. Chargers beat Steelers 34-24.

RANKINGS Panthers: offense (16), defense (15); Chargers: offense (27), defense (9) NOTES Second-year Carolina Coach Ron Rivera faces former employer. Was inside linebackers coach from 2007 until being promoted to defensive coordinator after Ted Cottrell was fired following eighth game of 2008 season. ... San Diego TE Antonio Gates hasn’t caught touchdown pass in 4 games, leaving him 1 shy of matching Lance Alworth’s team record 81.

Redskins at Browns Noon

LINE - Redskins by 1 LAST MEETING Washington beat Cleveland 14-11, Oct. 19, 2008.

LAST WEEK Washington beat Baltimore 31-28 in overtime. Cleveland beat Kansas City 30-7.

RANKINGS Redskins: offense (5), defense (28); Browns: offense (26), defense (23) NOTES Washington QB Robert Griffin III, who sustained mild sprain in his right knee last week, will not start. Fellow rookie Kirk Cousins will start. Cousins came off bench and threw 11-yard touchdown pass and ran for 2-point conversion to force OT vs. Ravens. Griffin and Cousins became first rookie teammates to throw touchdown pass in same game since 1966. Griffin has thrown 4 interceptions in 351 attempts. ... Cleveland still in playoff hunt, but must win out to have chance. Browns are seeking first 4-game winning streak since end of 2009 season ..

Lions at Cardinals 3:05 p.m.

LINE - Lions by 6 1/2 LAST MEETING Arizona beat Detroit 31-24, Dec. 20, 2009.

LAST WEEK Detroit lost to Green Bay 27-20. Arizona lost to Seattle 58-0.

RANKINGS Lions: offense (2), defense (13); Cardinals: offense (32), defense (12) NOTES Detroit WR Calvin Johnson needs 303 yards receiving to break Jerry Rice’s NFL single-season record (1,848) and is 140 yards shy of Herman Moore’s franchise record (1,686). ... If Arizona loses, it will tie franchise record for consecutive losses (10) in season. Team went 0-10 in 1944, when it was merged with Pittsburgh Steelers because of player shortage during World War II.

Jaguars at Dolphins Noon

LINE - Dolphins by 7 1/2 LAST MEETING Miami beat Jacksonville 14-10, Dec. 13, 2009.

LAST WEEK Jacksonville lost to New York 17-10. Miami lost to San Francisco, 27-13.

RANKINGS Jaguars: offense (31), defense (31); Dolphins: offense (29), defense (19) NOTES Jacksonville’s Chad Henne has 8 touchdown passes in 182 attempts. Henne had completion percentage of 60.7 with Miami, which ranks second in franchise history. Jaguars rank next to last in NFL in 5 major offensive categories, including yards and third-down efficiency. ... With 12 takeaways this year, Miami on pace to set franchise record for fewest in season. They have 1 in past 6 games. Dolphins’ starting linebackers have no interceptions or fumble recoveries.

Chiefs at Raiders 3:25 p.m.

LINE - Raiders by 3 LAST MEETING Oakland beat Kansas City 26-16, Oct. 28.

LAST WEEK Kansas City lost to Cleveland 30-7. Oakland lost to Denver 26-13.

RANKINGS Chiefs: offense (22), defense (16); Raiders: offense (13), defense (30) NOTES Kansas City has won 8 of past 9 in Oakland, including 28-0 victory last season. QB Brady Quinn is 4-13 as starter in NFL. ... Oakland has lost past 6 since winning in Kansas City on Oct. 28. Franchise hasn’t had longer losing streak since 11-game skid in 2006-2007. Brandon Myers leads AFC TEs with 70 receptions.

Sports, Pages 30 on 12/16/2012

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