Bold predictions for all 32 NFL teams down the stretch

The Eagles securing the NFC's No. 1 seed even with Carson Wentz out for the season with a torn left ACL? The Jaguars winning out?

NFL Nation reporters make bold predictions for all 32 teams.

AFC EAST

Buffalo Bills

The Bills will finish with their third winning season since 2000

Breaking .500 is not a momentous accomplishment for most teams, but it would be for the Bills, who have topped an 8-8 record only twice since 2000 with 9-7 finishes in 2004 and 2014. They must win two of their final three games to do that, including one on the road at either New England or Miami. A winning record would be a victory for first-year coach Sean McDermott, whose team was projected to win five to seven games. -- Mike Rodak

Miami Dolphins

The Dolphins will sweep the Bills in their two December meetings

Buffalo has held a better record most of this season, but Miami recently has its AFC East rival's number with last year's sweep. Coach Adam Gase is undefeated coaching against Buffalo and that streak will continue. -- James Walker

New England Patriots

Rob Gronkowski will reach Tier 2 of his incentives, which will earn him $8.75 million

Because of Gronkowski's one-game NFL suspension, the tight end will miss out on Tier 1 of his incentives, which could have paid him $10.75 million if he reached 90 percent playing time, 80 receptions, 1,200 receiving yards or All-Pro recognition. Tier 2 is reached if he has 80 percent playing time, 70 receptions, 1,000 receiving yards or 12 touchdowns. He's currently at 83.4 percent playing time, with 55 catches for 849 yards, with seven touchdowns. -- Mike Reiss

New York Jets

Jets fans will finally see Christian Hackenberg play

With Josh McCown (fractured left hand) possibly done for the season, the Jets are prepared to start Bryce Petty at quarterback, but his track record suggests that he won't finish, as injuries knocked him out of two of his four starts last season. The next man up will be Hackenberg, who has yet to appear in a game in nearly two seasons. -- Rich Cimini

AFC NORTH

Baltimore Ravens

Ravens will get a fourth shutout in 2017

This defense will tie its record-setting 2000 unit by blanking a team for the fourth time this season. Baltimore finishes out the season against the Browns, Colts and Bengals -- all of whom ranked in the bottom 10 in scoring heading into Week 14. Baltimore is the first defense since the 2003 Patriots to record three shutouts in a season. -- Jamison Hensley

Cincinnati Bengals

The Bengals will have their second straight losing season

Cincinnati will drop two of its last three games to finish 7-9. It's also not out of the question that the Bengals will drop all three if they play like they did in Sunday's 33-7 loss to the Bears, but a Christmas Eve game at home against the Lions will be a toss-up. The Bengals have difficult matchups at the Vikings and at the Ravens, and considering they look like a team that lacks energy, it's hard to see them beating either. -- Katherine Terrell

Cleveland Browns

The Browns' best chance to win a game will come on Christmas Eve

The Browns play the Bears in Chicago that day. Coach Hue Jackson has two just wins in his past 33 games, and both have come on Christmas Eve -- that includes his only win as the Browns coach, which came against the Chargers a year ago. Perhaps the holidays have some kind of weird karma for Jackson. -- Pat McManamon

Pittsburgh Steelers

The Steelers will be the top seed in the AFC

The Steelers have been thinking about home-field advantage since the spring and are in position to do it with a win over New England in Week 15. The Patriots might be the better team, but the Steelers believe they can take down New England at home. The remaining two teams on the schedule, the Texans and Browns, have a combined four wins. -- Jeremy Fowler

AFC SOUTH

Houston Texans

DeAndre Hopkins will finish the season with 1,500 yards

The wide receiver had his third quarterback of the season throw to him on Sunday and still finished with 11 catches for 149 yards and two touchdowns. With three games left, Hopkins has 1,233 yards and is within striking distance of the 1,500-yard mark. He's already tied his career high with 11 touchdowns and is only 23 catches shy of his career high in receptions as well. Hopkins hit both of those marks in 2015 when he caught 111 passes for 1,521 yards. -- Sarah Barshop

Indianapolis Colts

T.Y. Hilton's streak of 1,000-yard receiving seasons will end at four

Hilton will need to average 63 yards receiving over the final three games to get to the 1,000-yard mark. He's gone four straight games in which he hasn't had more than 51 yards receiving, and he's had more than 63 yards receiving just once in the past eight games. -- Mike Wells

Jacksonville Jaguars

The Jaguars will win out (and take the AFC South)

Sunday's victory over the Seahawks will be a springboard to a stretch run that will feature wins over Houston and San Franciso before the season finale against Tennessee. The run game is returning to its early-season form, and quarterback Blake Bortles has played his best football of the season the past two weeks. That's probably the biggest surprise, but with him playing well the Jaguars are a tough team to beat. -- Mike DiRocco

Tennessee Titans

No Titans running back will eclipse 850 yards

Derrick Henry will lead the Titans in rushing yards and touchdowns despite DeMarco Murray starting all 16 games, but neither will reach the 850-yard mark. The Titans' rotation has been frustrating for fantasy owners and fans, but Henry has emerged as the more consistent back. Overall, the Titans' run game has been a disappointment with too many hot-and-cold games for a unit that used to consistently bully teams. -- Cameron Wolfe

AFC WEST

Denver Broncos

The Broncos will win enough down the stretch to frustrate their fans and themselves

That's if they stick to the formula they used against the Jets. No, you're not a genius for running the ball in this day and age. But the Broncos have run the ball more than they've thrown it in four games this season -- all four of them wins. Their continued dalliance with three-wide sets in an offense that showed early that was not the best look for it has resulted in most of their sacks and interceptions. They bulked up more early in the season and bulked up more against the Jets, and that's when they've won. Is it glamorous? No. But for this team, it's what works best, and by a long shot. -- Jeff Legwold

Kansas City Chiefs

The Chiefs will win the AFC West

While this prediction wouldn't have been bold early in the season, it is now after the Chiefs barely snapped a four-game losing streak with Sunday's win over the Raiders. The Chargers are playing well, but the Chiefs will prevail in Saturday night's showdown at Arrowhead Stadium for first place and, in all likelihood, the division title. -- Adam Teicher

Los Angeles Chargers

The Chargers will win out and claim the AFC West

They've already won four straight and have three winnable games left on the schedule, with a tough matchup on the road in Kansas City up next. After an 0-4 start, the Chargers are playing with a lot of confidence, are healthy and are rolling on offense with efforts led by Keenan Allen and Philip Rivers. -- Eric D. Williams

Oakland Raiders

The Raiders will lose out to finish 6-10

It'll move first-year offensive coordinator Todd Downing from the frying pan into the fire and coach Jack Del Rio and his four-year contract extension onto an extremely hot seat. Too harsh? Look at it this way: What did the Raiders, who had so much to play for in Kansas City on Sunday when they came out unbelievably flat, show you to make you believe they can pull themselves out of their slump against the Cowboys, Eagles and Chargers? -- Paul Gutierrez

NFC EAST

Dallas Cowboys

For the first time in franchise history, the Cowboys will win 10 games and not make the playoffs

At 7-6, the Cowboys will win out against the Raiders, Seahawks and Eagles now that they have some sort of confidence back after consecutive NFC East wins. With Ezekiel Elliott returning for the final two games, the Cowboys will make it interesting down the stretch, but their three-game losing streak in November will come back to haunt them. -- Todd Archer

New York Giants

The Giants will not win another game

Even with winnable matchups against the Cardinals and Redskins in Week 16 and Week 17, respectively, the Giants will manage to lose out and finish 2-14. It will be the second-fewest wins in a season in franchise history. -- Jordan Raanan

Philadelphia Eagles

The Eagles will claim home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, even without Carson Wentz

Wentz missing the remainder of the season with a torn ACL will damage Philadelphia's Super Bowl chances. Nick Foles is a capable enough backup, though, and with manageable games against the Giants, Raiders and Cowboys remaining, the 11-2 Eagles should still be able to clinch the top seed without their leader. -- Tim McManus

Washington Redskins

The Redskins will win two more games

With Arizona, Denver and the Giants over the next three weeks, the Redskins had better be able to win two of those matchups. Washington has played 10 games against teams currently over .500, so getting three teams well below that mark will be a welcome sight. Despite their injuries, the Redskins need to win two of the matchups. The toughest will be their upcoming game against Arizona. -- John Keim

NFC NORTH

Chicago Bears

Jordan Howard will surpass last year's rushing total

Howard's 147 rushing yards in Sunday's win over Cincinnati puts him at 1,032 for the season. Last year as a rookie Howard finished second in the league with 1,313 rushing yards. He'll have to average close to 100 yards over the final three games, but the Bears' commitment to the run should allow him to top last year's total. -- Jeff Dickerson

Detroit Lions

Matthew Stafford will finish as the NFL's passing leader

This isn't so much bold as something that could potentially happen. He has 3,683 yards so far this season -- in the same ballpark as Tom Brady, Drew Brees and Alex Smith -- and the Lions will rely on his arm to try and reach the playoffs. And the only way that will happen is if they win out. He's the offense's biggest strength, so figure coach Jim Caldwell and offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter to lean on that down the stretch. Stafford will hit over 300 yards in each of the last three games and that will be enough to give him the yardage crown for the year. -- Michael Rothstein

Green Bay Packers

Aaron Rodgers won't be the savior everyone hopes he'll be

Yes, Rodgers was playing spectacularly before he broke his collarbone, but the Packers have many other flaws, and even the return of a two-time MVP -- assuming he's cleared this week from his broken collarbone -- might not be enough for the Packers to run the table. Especially not with the likes of Carolina, Minnesota and Detroit to finish out the regular season. It's no knock on Rodgers, but this test might be too great even for him. -- Rob Demovsky

Minnesota Vikings

Teddy Bridgewater will play before the season ends

This isn't really that bold, but it's important given the possibility of the Vikings tolling Bridgewater's contract if he doesn't see the field this season. The last game of the season against the Bears will be meaningless as far as the postseason is concerned. There's no doubt Minnesota will lock up the NFC North next week against the Bengals, which means Bridgewater should have a chance to play in Week 17 against the Bears. I've predicted before that he will be the starting quarterback in 2018, so it's important for him to play at least one game to gauge where he's at before he becomes a free agent in the offseason. -- Courtney Cronin

NFC SOUTH

Atlanta Falcons

Devonta Freeman will record 11 rushing touchdowns for the third consecutive season

The two-time Pro Bowler had 11 rushing scores on 265 carries in 2015 and then had the same number of TDs last season on 227 carries. He has six rushing touchdowns with three games to play and probably would have more had he not missed two games with a concussion. But Freeman appears to be back in a rhythm over the past two games and will be relied upon down the stretch, particularly if tag-team partner Tevin Coleman misses the Tampa Bay game with a concussion. -- Vaughn McClure

Carolina Panthers

The Panthers will win the NFC South

Carolina will win its final three games against Green Bay, Tampa Bay and Atlanta. The Saints will lose at least one of their final three games, which will give the Panthers the division title for the fourth time in five years. -- David Newton

New Orleans Saints

The Saints will be the first team in 50 years to sweep the NFL's Offensive and Defensive Rookie of the Year awards

Running back Alvin Kamara is the front-runner for the offensive award, provided he can return soon from the concussion that knocked him out of Thursday's game. He's already become just the third rookie in NFL history with more than 600 yards both rushing and receiving and has scored 11 touchdowns. Meanwhile, cornerback Marshon Lattimore needs a strong finish to cement the defensive award after he missed nearly three full games with an ankle injury. But a big performance in his Week 16 rematch against Atlanta's Julio Jones will get it done. -- Mike Triplett

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Buccaneers won't win another game

Tampa Bay lost to the Packers in overtime last week and the Lions by three in the final seconds on Sunday. With their next three opponents a combined 26-13 and their one true pass-rusher up front, Gerald McCoy, likely lost for the season with a biceps injury, the Bucs look primed to lose out and finish the season 4-12. -- Jenna Laine

NFC WEST

Arizona Cardinals

Larry Fitzgerald will lead the NFL in receptions for the second straight season

He's already jockeying for the lead with 87 for the season after Sunday's win, putting him in third through Week 14. But with the Cardinals' offense starting to become more stagnant by the week, Fitzgerald will become a more vital piece in the final three games. He'll certainly clear 100 and be in a foot race with Antonio Brown and DeAndre Hopkins to lead the league. But Fitzgerald, who has become one of Blaine Gabbert's favorite targets recently, will have a couple of big games down the stretch to take the lead. -- Josh Weinfuss

Los Angeles Rams

The Rams will get a first-round bye

Yes, they lost to the Eagles, who are two games ahead of them for the NFC's No. 1 seed. But the Eagles have lost Carson Wentz for the remainder of the year to a torn ACL. The Rams also lost to the Vikings, who are one game ahead of L.A. for the No. 2 seed, but it's not out of the realm of possibility that the Rams could win their last three games and finish with 12 wins. That could be enough to earn one of their conference's top two seeds. -- Alden Gonzalez 

San Francisco 49ers

The 49ers will finish with five wins

Perhaps that doesn't seem too bold considering the Niners have won two in a row and three of their past four, but the schedule looks tough over the final three weeks with home games against Tennessee and Jacksonville before the finale against the Rams. Still, this is a team that has been energized by quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, and the two AFC South opponents have to travel a long way to meet the Niners. Likewise, they gave the Rams all they could handle in their first meeting this season and that was before Garoppolo entered the picture. It wouldn't be wise to bet the farm on this happening, but it also wouldn't be a surprise to see the 49ers pull it off. -- Nick Wagoner

Seattle Seahawks

Russell Wilson will make history by finishing as Seattle's leading rusher

Mike Davis has been showing some promising signs since taking over as Seattle's starting running back, but Wilson has a healthy enough lead that it would be hard for Davis to catch him over the final three games. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, only four quarterbacks have led their team in rushing since the 1970 merger. -- Brady Henderson