NFL Week 17 grades: Steelers get a 'D' for choking against Browns, Patriots earn 'A+' for destroying Jets
Here are the grades for every team that has played in Week 17
By
John Breech
•
19 min read
Welcome to the Week 17 grades!
There's always a lot of drama in the NFL over the final two weeks of the season, and that was definitely the case once again.
- The biggest shocker of the week happened in Cleveland where the Browns pulled off a stunning 13-6 win over Pittsburgh. The Steelers could have clinched the AFC North with a win, but now they'll be facing the Ravens in Week 18 with the division title on the line. The Ravens kept their playoff hopes alive with a 41-24 win over the Packers on Saturday night.
- The NFC South is also up for grabs and that race will be going down to the final week after the Panthers lost to the Seahawks on Sunday. With the loss, Carolina will now face Tampa Bay in Week 18 in a game that could determine the division title (There is one scenario where the Bucs would win that game but miss the playoffs and that will happen if the Falcons win their final two games).
We're not here to talk about the playoffs though, we're here to talk about grades, so let's hand out grades for every game that's been played so far in Week 17, starting with Cleveland's shocking win.
Cleveland 13-6 over Pittsburgh
| D |  |
| The Steelers had a chance to clinch the AFC North title with a win, but instead they choked. With DK Metcalf out due to a suspension, Aaron Rodgers and the offense struggled to move the ball on a muddy day in Cleveland. Rodgers had multiple chances to put his team in a position to win, but the Steelers seemed to come up empty on almost every big play: They went 0-for-3 on fourth down, including a last gasp pass from Rodgers to Marquez Valdes-Scantling that fell incomplete on a fourth-and-goal from Cleveland's 7-yard line with just 21 seconds left to play. Due to this loss, the Steelers' season now comes down to one game: Pittsburgh (9-7) face the Ravens in Week 18 with the winner heading to the playoffs and the loser headed home. | |
| A- |  |
| The Browns won't be making the playoffs this year, but this probably felt like a playoff win. In what was easily the most stunning win of Week 17, the Browns defense punched the Steelers in the mouth and Pittsburgh never recovered. With the game on the line in the second half, the Browns bullied the Steelers: They held them to zero points while sacking Aaron Rodgers twice over the final two quarters. Rodgers was under constant pressure throughout the game which led to an erratic performance where he only completed 53.4% of his passes. Shedeur Sanders had his ups and downs, but he led the Browns to 10 points during a nearly perfect first quarter that saw him throw for 101 yards and a TD, and that was all Cleveland needed. This was a monumental win by a Browns (4-12) team that did a huge favor for the Ravens by winning this game. | |
Philadelphia 13-12 over Buffalo
| B |  |
| This was a defensive masterpiece by an Eagles team that totally shut down Josh Allen for 3.5 quarters. The Eagles had Allen on the run for most of the game and although the Bills QB can sometimes thrive when he's in that situation, he took a beating against Philadelphia, getting sacked five times. The Eagles offense struggled to move the ball for most of the game, but did just enough during a first half where Jalen Hurts threw for 110 yards and a touchdown. The Eagles can't be thrilled with their offensive performance, but they did go on the road and beat a Super Bowl contender, which is the kind of win that should give them plenty of confidence come playoff time. | |
| B- |  |
| After struggling through three quarters, Josh Allen put on his Superman cape in the fourth quarter, but it still wasn't enough. Allen threw for 102 yards and rushed for two touchdowns in the final quarter, but he came up one play short when he missed a wide-open Khalil Shakir on what would have been a game-winning two-point conversion. Allen's late-game heroics were needed because Buffalo struggled to move the ball for the first three quarters. The only reason Buffalo was in the game is because the Bills defense came through with one of its most spectacular performances of the season. The Bills held the Eagles to just 16 yards during a second half where Jalen Hurts didn't complete a single pass. If the defense plays this well in the postseason, the Bills could make a deep run in the playoffs, but first, they'll have to figure out how to win on the road. With this loss, the Bills have clinched a wild card spot, which means they'll be opening the postseason on the road. The Bills haven't won a playoff game away from Buffalo since 1992. | |
N.Y Giants 34-10 over Las Vegas
| A+ |  |
| The Giants absolutely dominated this game, especially in the trenches: On the defensive side of the ball, New York's pass rush hounded Geno Smith, which led to three sacks. The constant pressure also led to two interceptions, including one from Bobby Okereke that set up a short TD drive in the first half. Offensively, the Giants did their best to help Wan'Dale Robinson get to the 1,000-yard mark. Robinson had 901 receiving yards going into the game and he ended up hitting 1,000 after catching 11 passes for 113 yards. Jaxson Dart had arguably his best game of the month with 255 total yards and two rushing touchdowns. The Giants (3-13) could have tried to out-tank the Raiders in this game, but instead, they went all out and got the win. | |
| F |  |
| If the Raiders were trying to tank, then this was one of the greatest tanks of all time, but if they were trying to win, then this was one of the ugliest performances of the 2025 NFL season by any team. Either way, the Raiders were bad. Their offense was bad. Their defense was bad. And they were even bad on special teams (The Giants returned a kickoff for a TD in the second half). The Raiders (2-14) can now officially clinch the top pick in the 2026 NFL Draft by losing to the Chiefs in Week 18. | |
Seattle 27-10 over Carolina
| B+ |  |
| The Seahawks defense has been great all season, but this might have been its most impressive performance. The unit held the Panthers to under 140 yards, forced two huge turnovers in the second half that led to 14 points and limited the Panthers to just one third-down conversion on 11 attempts. Every time there was a big third down in the game, the Seahawks clamped down. The offense wasn't exactly impressive, but Sam Darnold did make some big plays and Zach Charbonnet ran like a tank, going off for 110 yards and two touchdowns. The Seahawks (13-3) needed to win this game to keep control of the No. 1 seed in the NFC and Seattle's defense made sure that happened. | |
| C- |  |
| The Panthers can't be feeling good about their offense after the unit essentially pulled a no-show against the Seahawks. Bryce Young threw for just 54 yards and to make matters worse, he threw a third-quarter interception that led to a Seahawks touchdown. There was also a fumble by Chuba Hubbard that led to another Seahawks TD in the third quarter. And let's not forget about the fact that the Panthers only totaled 139 yards. It's bad enough when your offense can't move the ball, but when you also commit two turnovers, there's just no way you're going to beat a good team like Seattle (or any good team for that matter). Despite the loss, the Panthers (8-8) will still get a chance to play for the NFC South title and that will come in Week 18 against the Buccaneers. | |
Jacksonville 23-17 over Indianapolis
| B |  |
| The Jaguars almost gave this game away, but Jacksonville's defense didn't let that happen. The defense had a dominant fourth quarter that included two interceptions, a forced three-and-out and a fourth-down stop. Jarrian Jones saved the day when he picked off Philip Rivers in the fourth quarter to set up Cam Little's go-ahead field goal. Offensively, the Jags were solid, but they were nowhere close to perfect: Not only did they turn the ball over twice, but they struggled during a fourth quarter where they had multiple chances to put the game away. With their defense playing at such a high level, the Jags (12-4) should have plenty of confidence heading into a Week 18 game against the Titans where they'll be able to clinch the AFC South title with a win. | |
| B- |  |
| If this was Philip Rivers' final start with the Colts, it was a wild ride. Rivers looked unstoppable early, completing seven of his first 11 passes for 59 yards while leading Indy on two straight scoring drives to open the game. But after that, the 44-year-old QB played like a 44-year-old QB, especially during crunch time in the fourth quarter, a period where the Colts totaled just 60 yards. The Rivers story was a fun one, but the reality is that the Colts (8-8) now have a lot of question marks going forward. | |
Miami 20-17 over Tampa Bay
| C- |  |
| The Buccaneers have absolutely fallen apart since their Week 9 bye and a lot of that has to do with the fact that Baker Mayfield seems to have lost his mojo. Mayfield was playing like an MVP candidate through the first half of season, but things have suddenly gotten ugly for him. In this loss to the Dolphins, Mayfield turned the ball over three times with two interceptions and a lost fumble. The Buccaneers have some talent, but they're simply not good enough to overcome Mayfield's constant turnovers. They're now 0-8 this season in games where Mayfield throws at least one pick. The only silver lining for the Bucs (7-9) is that the Panthers also lost, which sets up a potential winner-take-all showdown for the NFC South in Week 18. The question is: Can Mayfield be trusted in that game? | |
| A |  |
| The Dolphins had absolutely nothing to play for and they were starting a rookie QB, but they still managed to beat a desperate Buccaneers team. In his second career start, Quinn Ewers was on fire to start the game, completing 66.7% of his passes for 144 yards and two touchdowns in the first half. With offense staking the Dolphins to an early lead, the defense did the rest. Miami's pass rush kept constant pressure on Baker Mayfield and that led to three sacks, two interceptions and a strip-sack by Bradley Chubb, who had two sacks in the game. Not only did the Dolphins win, but several young players also came up with key contributions, including 2024 second-round pick Jaylen Wright (five carries for 56 yards) and 2025 undrafted free agent Theo Wease Jr., who caught a 63-yard TD. The Dolphins (7-9) are definitely still playing hard for Mike McDaniel. | |
Cincinnati 37-14 over Arizona
| F |  |
| This is a game that got out of hand early and that mostly happened because the Cardinals defense couldn't figure out how to stop Joe Burrow. The Cards did sack Burrow three times, but that was about the only bright spot from their defensive performance. As bad as their defense was, the Cardinals' offense might have been worse. The Cardinals (3-13) look like a team that's ready to see the season end. | |
| A+ |  |
| For the second straight week, the Bengals destroyed their opponent and for the second straight week, it happened because of a resurgent defense and a nearly perfect performance from Joe Burrow. The Bengals defense had what was easily its best game of the year, holding the Cardinals to just 233 yards (Before this week, no team had held the Cardinals under 250 yards this season). As for Burrow, he carved up Arizona's secondary with 305 passing yards and two TD passes. The Bengals (6-10) are definitely going to go into the offseason wondering what this year would have been like if Burrow had been able to stay healthy. | |
New England 42-10 over N.Y. Jets
| A+ |  |
| With the MVP race going down to the wire, this was a statement game by Drake Maye, who had one of the most efficient games by any QB in NFL history. Maye completed 90.1% of his passes for 254 yards and five touchdowns making him the first QB in NFL history to finish a game with at least 250 passing yards, at least five TD passes and a completion percentage above 90%. Yes, this was against the Jets, but no QB in history had ever had a game like this before. The most impressive part of Maye's performance might have been the fact that he threw his five TD passes to five different receivers. If Maye keeps playing like this, the Patriots could be a threat to play deep into the postseason. With the win, the Patriots (13-3) are still alive to earn the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC and they clinched the AFC East following Buffalo's loss to Philadelphia. | |
| F |  |
| There's tanking and then there's losing so badly that everyone deserves to be fired. The Jets (3-13) pulled off that second one on Sunday. This was an embarrassing loss to a division rival that was so bad, it should have Jets ownership seriously mulling whether to bring Aaron Glenn back for another year. | |
New Orleans 34-26 over Tennessee
| B |  |
| The Saints have to be feeling very good about their future at the quarterback position after this game. With New Orleans trailing by 10 points in the second half, Tyler Shough engineered an impressive comeback: Over the final two quarters, he threw for 251 of his 333 yards while also throwing two TD passes. Defensively, the Saints struggled at times, but the unit also made one of the biggest plays of the game when Chase Young came up with a strip-sack that he returned 33 yards for a touchdown. With the Saints sitting at 6-10, it's easy to forget that they're one of the hottest teams in the NFL. This team has suddenly won four games in a row and seems to have the right coach (Kellen Moore) and the right QB in place for the long term. | |
| B- |  |
| It's been a long season for the Titans (3-13), but at least their rookie class has shown some promise. Tennessee had multiple rookies who were impressive against the Saints, including Cam Ward, Chimere Dike and Elic Ayomanor. Dike has probably been the biggest surprise of any rookie in the NFL this season. With 102 all-purpose yards, Dike now has 2,371 on the season, which broke Tim Brown's rookie record. As for Ward, there was a lot to like -- he made several eye-popping plays -- but he also made several rookie mistakes, including a lost a fumble that New Orleans returned for a touchdown. On Ayomanor's end, he had a career-high four catches. The Titans (3-13) have the building blocks in place for a bright future, but they also have a lot of holes to fill and how they fill those holes will determine whether this team is ever able to turn things around. | |
Baltimore 41-24 over Green Bay (Saturday)
| A |  |
| With Lamar Jackson on the sideline for the game, the Ravens decided to let Derrick Henry carry their offense and that plan worked to perfection. The Ravens running back bulldozed through the Packers defense for 216 yards and four touchdowns. Last week, the Ravens forgot that Henry existed in the fourth quarter, but this week, he was a key part of their offensive game plan. Henry's performance made life much easier for Tyler Huntley, who had a solid showing in relief of Jackson. The Ravens defense was also solid: From a fourth-down stop and a fumble recovery in the second quarter to a big time interception by Marlon Humphrey in the fourth quarter, the defense came up with a big play whenever Baltimore needed one. The Ravens needed this win to keep their playoff hopes alive, and now, they'll be playing for the AFC North title in Week 18. | |
| C- |  |
| With Jordan Love out, Malik Willis played a nearly perfect game at quarterback for the Packers, but his performance went to waste because Green Bay's defense couldn't tackle Derrick Henry. The Ravens running back steamrolled the Packers defense for 67 yards in the FIRST QUARTER and things only got uglier from there. The Packers surrendered 307 yards on the ground, which is the second-most they've given up in a game over the past 45 years The Packers have now played two games since losing Micah Parsons for the season and in those two games, they've given up an average of 228.5 rushing yards per game. If this defense doesn't figure out how to stop the run soon, the Packers' playoff trip could come to a quick end this year. | |
Houston 20-16 over L.A. Chargers (Saturday)
| B- |  |
| The Texans defense has been carrying this team for most of the season, but it was the offense that made an early statement. C.J. Stroud opened the game with two long TD passes on Houston's first two possessions -- a 75-yarder to Jayden Higgins and a 43-yarder to Jaylin Noel -- and if you spot the Texans defense a 14-0 lead, you're going to win almost every time. Although the offense struggled some after those initial scores, including two interceptions by Stroud, the defense took over from there. The pass rush harassed Justin Herbert to the tune of five sacks, with two of those coming from Derek Barnett. The defense also got a big play from Azeez Al-Shaair, who came up with an interception at the goal line. The Texans are now 10-0 this season when they score 20 points or more, which tells you everything you need to know about this team: This defense is good enough to carry Houston deep into the postseason as long as the offense produces just a couple of scores. | |
| C |  |
| The Chargers couldn't run the ball and they couldn't protect Justin Herbert, but despite those two problems, they could have won this game if they would have just been better in two spots. First, their offense fell apart in the red zone. The Chargers made three trips to the red zone in the SECOND QUARTER and not only did they fail to score a single touchdown, but they only scored three total points. The Chargers' other biggest issue was an uncharacteristic meltdown by Cameron Dicker, who missed two kicks in a game for the first time in his career. The Chargers offense will need to be better if this team wants to advance in the playoffs, but no one in L.A. should be panicking after a close loss to a good team. | |
Denver 20-13 over Kansas City (Thursday)
| C |  |
| Nothing is ever easy for the Broncos and that includes this win over the Chiefs. The offense sputtered through the first half without scoring a touchdown, but then Bo Nix caught fire in the second half, going 13 of 16 for 115 yards and two total touchdowns (1 pass, 1 rush) to propel Denver to the win. The Broncos had the ball for nearly 40 minutes, but they just couldn't put the Chiefs away. Maybe it was because this game was on a Thursday, maybe it was because they overlooked their opponent, but whatever the reason, this was an ugly win by a Broncos team that actually seems to thrive on winning ugly. | |
| C+ |  |
| The Chiefs didn't win, but they gave the Broncos all they could handle in a game that was expected to be a blowout. The defense came up with a monster effort during a first half where the Chiefs held the Broncos out of the end zone. Chris Oladokun, who was making his first career NFL start, looked solid at times, but he eventually got overwhelmed by a Broncos defense that held the Chiefs to just 60 yards in the second half. If this was Travis Kelce's final home game, the Chiefs definitely went down swinging. | |
Minnesota 23-10 over Detroit (Thursday)
| D+ |  |
| This was a total meltdown by Jared Goff and a Lions team that got eliminated from the playoff race with the loss. The offense never really got on track and that's mostly because Goff never really had time to throw. He faced constant pressure that led to multiple interceptions and multiple lost fumbles on a day where the Lions turned the ball over six times. It was sloppy football by a team that doesn't usually play sloppy football. The Lions defense played arguably its best game of the season, holding the Vikings to just 161 yards -- and 65 of that game on one play -- but no one will remember the defensive effort because the offense fell apart for the second straight year in an elimination game. The Lions (8-8) turned the ball over five times in their playoff loss to the Commanders back in January. | |
| B+ |  |
| The Vikings had nothing to play for, but they still went out and pulled off one of the most dominant defensive performances for the season by any team. The Vikings' pass rush destroyed Jared Goff, who not only got sacked five times, but also turned the ball over five times with two interceptions and three fumbles. Andrew Van Ginkel was the star of the game with 1.5 sacks and TWO fumble recoveries. The Vikings defense was so good that Minnesota was able to win despite finishing with just 3 passing yards. The Vikings (8-8) won't be going to the playoffs this year, but they did knock the Lions out and they'll certainly get some satisfaction from that. | |
Dallas 30-23 over Washington (Thursday)
| B- |  |
| The Cowboys made a statement by scoring a touchdown on each of their first three possessions and then they coasted to the win from there. The Commanders beat up on Dak Prescott, who got sacked six times, but he still managed to throw for over 300 yards. The Cowboys got a surprising performance from Malik Davis, who rushed for 103 yards after not topping 50 yards in a single game all season. If the Cowboys proved one thing this year, it's that they know how to beat up on NFC East teams, but going 4-1 against your division doesn't help when you go 3-7-1 against everyone else. | |
| C+ |  |
| With the Commanders down to their third-string QB in Josh Johnson, this game could have easily turned into a blowout, but Johnson and the offense managed to keep things close. Jacory Croskey-Merritt helped carry the offense with 105 rushing yards and two touchdowns on just 11 carries. The seventh-round rookie running back was one of several young players who thrived. On the defensive side of the ball, 2024 second-round pick Johnny Newton had a huge day with three sacks of Dak Prescott. The Commanders (4-12) should definitely be upset with how their season has gone, but they should also be thrilled to see young players like Newton and Croskey-Merritt playing so well this late in the season. | |
