Ravens-Bengals and Packers-Lions Could Shake Up the NFL Playoff Race in Week 7
Photo: NFL | Fox Sports
Some Week 7 games are bigger than their records suggest. Two of them are in the AFC and NFC North, and both could shape the playoff race when the season is over.
Here is what to know before the Bengals vs. Ravens and the Packers-Lions game.
Bengals at Ravens (1 p.m. ET, CBS)
Cincinnati (3-2) and Baltimore (4-2) are two of the seven teams that have a winning record after missing the postseason in 2025. Both have come a long way in a year, and the loser will feel it in the standings.
Joe Burrow threw four touchdown passes in Week 5. He now has 31 career games with at least three touchdown passes, the fourth-most through a player’s first seven seasons. Only Dan Marino (42), Patrick Mahomes (38) and Peyton Manning (32) have more.
Derrick Henry has eight scrimmage touchdowns this year (seven rushing, one receiving) and 135 for his career. One more would tie Marshall Faulk for fourth place all-time among running backs. Only Emmitt Smith (175), LaDainian Tomlinson (162) and Marcus Allen (145) are ahead of them.
Our lean: Ravens. Baltimore is at home, and Henry is a threat to score every time he gets the ball near the end zone. Burrow can keep Cincinnati in the game, but the Ravens have the edge.
Packers at Lions (4:25 p.m. ET, FOX)
Detroit is coming off a bye, and Green Bay has won three straight. The two NFC North rivals meet again in Green Bay in Week 18, so the Lions need to win this one if they want a good chance at the division.
The Packers have an unusual pair of receivers. Christian Watson (538 yards) and Matthew Golden (501) rank fifth and sixth in the league in receiving yards. No pair of teammates has both topped 500 yards through six games since Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle did it in 2022.
Detroit counters with Jahmyr Gibbs, who leads the NFL with nine scrimmage touchdowns (seven rushing, two receiving) and ranks third with 747 scrimmage yards. Only four other running backs have had at least 700 yards and nine touchdowns in a team’s first five games: Jim Brown, Eric Dickerson, Emmitt Smith and Priest Holmes.
Our lean: Lions. They have the extra rest, they are at home, and Gibbs is as dangerous as any back in the league. Green Bay’s receivers will make it close, but the Lions should hold on.
What it means
The winners of these two games will have the early edge in two of the league’s tightest divisions, and the Week 18 rematch in Green Bay already looks big.
Extras: The NFL schedule has kickoff times, and Pro Football Reference has the career stats.
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