The holiday season is here, but the news around the NFL is non-stop.
That’s especially true this week, with a tripleheader on Christmas Day and two more games on Saturday ahead of the usual Sunday slate. With only two weeks of the regular season left, every bit of news is all the more consequential.
Who’s hurt? Who’s practicing? Who’s starting? Who’s on the hot seat?
Here’s the latest on what’s happening around the league entering Week 17:
Chargers will be without LB Denzel Perryman for remainder of regular season
Los Angeles Chargers linebacker Denzel Perryman will officially be suspended for the remainder of the regular season after his two-game suspension was upheld Tuesday. Perryman made helmet-to-helmet contact with Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Ryan Flournoy during Sunday’s game and earned a suspension because he’d “repeatedly violated player safety rules.” Perryman appealed the suspension, stating in a post on X that he apologized to Fluornoy and it was accepted. No matter, Perryman won’t return to the Chargers’ defense until their playoff run.
Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski announced on Dec. 23 that Watson won’t be activated for either of the team’s final two regular-season games and, therefore, won’t play at all this season. Watson has missed the entire 2025 season due to a ruptured Achilles that he suffered last season and later aggravated. Cleveland opened the 21-day practice window for Watson on Dec. 3, which created a roadmap for him to potentially be activated. Watson is entering the final season of a five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed deal. He has started just 19 games for the Browns since being acquired from the Texans in 2022 due to both injuries and an 11-game suspension from the NFL.
McCarthy will miss the team’s Christmas Day home matchup against the Lions due to a hairline fracture in his right hand, head coach Kevin O’Connell announced on Dec. 23. Max Brosmer will start at quarterback for Minnesota.
McCarthy left the Vikings’ Week 16 win over the Giants with the hand injury — the third injury that has sidelined him this season (ankle and head injuries being the other two). Through nine games, McCarthy has totaled 1,450 passing yards, 11 passing touchdowns, 12 interceptions and a 71.2 passer rating, while completing 57.3% of his passes. He has also rushed for 174 yards and four touchdowns. The Vikings (7-8 ) are already eliminated from playoff contention.
Latest on Ravens QB Lamar Jackson’s injury, HC John Harbaugh’s future
The Ravens’ playoff hopes are on thin ice, and they might not have Jackson with their season on the line against the Packers on Saturday. He will undergo an MRI on Monday after suffering a back injury that forced him to miss the second half of Baltimore’s loss to the Patriots, but he’s hopeful he can play in Week 17. The Ravens (7-8) need to win both of their final two games and need the Steelers to lose to the Browns in Week 17 in order to make the postseason. At 7-8, winning the AFC North is the only way for Baltimore to make the playoffs for a fourth consecutive year.
The 2025 season has been challenging for Harbaugh. On Monday, he addressed questions regarding his job security for the first time this year with Baltimore on the verge of missing the postseason. The longtime coach was open and honest about his outlook on the future, noting that he’s only focused on the present and finishing the season strong.
“We have responsibilities, we’re given opportunities to steward those responsibilities when you’re given a job to do that, until you’re not,” Harbaugh told reporters. “I try to do the job, not try to keep the job. … My focus is on always — it has been for the last 18 years here and the last 41 years in coaching — it’s been to try to do the best job I can today and fight as hard as I can, so the guys have the best chance to be successful today.
“And anything after today, I’m not thinking about, because it’s not given for us to think about. We don’t have control over that, except for the job we do today. If we do a good enough job today, then the opportunity to do that job or a different job will be there tomorrow. And that’s what you hope for.”
The Ravens are 179-112 in the regular season and 3-11 in the postseason since Harbaugh took the job in 2008.
A week after losing star quarterback Patrick Mahomes for the remainder of the 2025 season with an ACL tear, the team feared that backup Minshew suffered the same injury that caused him to leave their loss to the Titans early on Sunday, ESPN reported. While Minshew’s ACL turned out to be intact, he did suffer an injury all the same and is expected to miss time, per ESPN’s report. In response, the Chiefs have signed signal-caller Shane Buechele.
Buechele, 27, has never appeared in an NFL game, as his career in the league to this point has mostly been being waived and re-signed by the Bills as part of their practice squad. Now, third-string Chris Oladokun is possibly in line to start in Thursday’s game against the Broncos, while Minshew recovers and Buechele acclimates himself to the Chiefs.
On Monday, Hall had his one-game suspension for unnecessary roughness and unsportsmanlike conduct upheld by hearing officer Ramon Foster, who’s jointly appointed by the NFL and the NFLPA.
Hall was suspended without pay for stepping on the leg of Rams guard Kevin Dotson at the end of a play in the Seahawks’ 38-37 overtime win on Thursday night. The NFL said Hall, 24, was in violation of Rule 12, Section 2, Article 8, which prohibits unnecessary roughness, and Rule 12, Section 3, Article 1, which applies to unsportsmanlike conduct, including “any act which is contrary to the generally understood principles of sportsmanship.”
Hall will be eligible to return on Dec. 29, a day after Seattle’s game against the Panthers. The third-year pro was selected 37th by the Seahawks in 2023. He has 29 total tackles and one sack in 13 games (three starts) this season.
Packers monitoring health of both QBs ahead of matchup
The Packers might also be shorthanded at quarterback for Saturday’s game against the Ravens. Jordan Love left Saturday’s loss to the Bears early after entering concussion protocol, while backup Malik Willis hurt his throwing shoulder in the fourth quarter. Willis remained in the game, but he was fighting through some pain after the game.
“I’d say he’s pretty sore,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur told reporters of Willis on Sunday. “That’s a legitimate deal that he’s dealing with, and he’s going to be another guy that we’ll see where he’s at as we progress. That further complicates the other problem.”
Love, meanwhile, will have to spend the week clearing concussion protocol in order to play on Saturday. “That’s a process that takes multiple days to get through,” LaFleur told reporters.
The Packers fell to 9-5-1 with Saturday’s loss, putting their hopes of winning the NFC North in peril. They’ll need to win out and for the Bears to lose their final two games in order to win the division. Green Bay also hasn’t clinched a playoff spot yet. However, it will if it wins one of its final two games or if the Lions lose once in the final two weeks.
Jets to start rookie QB Brady Cook for final two games
The Jets are sticking with Cook for the rest of the 2025 regular season, head coach Aaron Glenn told reporters Monday. The undrafted rookie could play a big role in the AFC East race, with the Jets taking on the Patriots and the Bills in Weeks 17 and 18, respectively. Cook has started the past two games for the Jets following Tyrod Taylor’s injury. He has thrown for 527 yards, a touchdown and six interceptions over the three total games he has played this season.
The Commanders have signed quarterback Jeff Driskel off the Cardinals’ practice squad, the team announced Monday. The move might be an indication that Mariota won’t be able to play in Thursday’s game against the Cowboys after leaving Saturday’s game against the Eagles early with injuries to his throwing hand and quad. If Mariota can’t go, journeyman quarterback Joshua Johnson would be in line to start against the Cowboys.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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