The final week of the 2021 NFL regular season is going to be big. On Monday, the NFL announced the schedule for Week 18 and there will be two games played on Saturday. Additionally, the Sunday night game will be the Los Angeles Chargers vs. the Las Vegas Raiders. There will not be a game on Monday night.
The first Saturday game will be between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Denver Broncos, which will kick off at 4:30 p.m. ET on ESPN/ABC. After losing to the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, the Chiefs need to win to have a shot at a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. They are facing a Broncos team that has been eliminated from playoff contention but would love nothing more than to beat their rivals to end the year.
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The second Saturday game will be the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles which will kick off at 8:15 p.m. on ESPN/ABC. The Cowboys have clinched the NFC East but want to end the season on a strong note after losing to the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday. The Eagles have clinched a playoff spot but can move up from the No. 7 seed to the No. 6 seed with a win against the Cowboys and some help.
And the Sunday night game between the Chargers and the Raiders is essentially an elimination game. Both teams have a 9-7 record, but the Chargers hold the final spot in the AFC side of the playoffs due to them beating the Raiders earlier in the season. The Chargers are looking to reach the playoffs for the first time since 2018 while the Raiders are looking to reach postseason play for the first time since 2016.
“The guys feel the urgency,” Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert said about the last two weeks of the season, per the team’s official website. They know that these games mean a lot. It’s all about going out there and executing and playing the football that we know that we’re capable of. We’ve had a good week of practice. It’s all about dialing it in these next couple of days and getting ready for Sunday.” The NFL expanded the playoffs from 12 to 14 teams this season. They will play for the right to compete in Super Bowl LVI on Feb. 13 at SoFi Stadium.
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