Current:Home > FinanceNFL Saturday doubleheader: What to know for Bengals-Steelers, Bills-Chargers matchups -Ascend Finance Compass
NFL Saturday doubleheader: What to know for Bengals-Steelers, Bills-Chargers matchups
View
Date:2025-04-12 12:05:51
NFL fans are getting a full weekend of football in Week 16.
Two games will be played on Saturday, the bulk of the NFL slate will play on Christmas Eve Sunday and three other games will be played on Christmas Day.
The NFL doubleheader Saturday features another matchup of backup quarterbacks vying for playoff position in the AFC North and an AFC playoff hopeful looking to boost its postseason outlook in prime time.
Here’s what to know about Saturday's games between the Cincinnati Bengals facing the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the Buffalo Bills visiting the Los Angeles Chargers.
How to watch Saturday’s NFL games?
The Bengals and Steelers will kickoff Saturday at 4:30 p.m. ET on NBC.
NFL STATS CENTRAL: The latest NFL scores, schedules, odds, stats and more.
The Bills and Chargers will kickoff Saturday at 8 p.m. with the game broadcast exclusively on Peacock, NBC's streaming service.
Cincinnati Bengals (8-6) at Pittsburgh Steelers (7-7)
Cincinnati’s Jake Browning and Pittsburgh’s Mason Rudolph are the stars is this backup quarterback matchup featuring AFC North teams clinging to their postseason hopes.
The Bengals are on a three-game winning streak with Browning, starting in place of Joe Burrow, who is out of the season with a right wrist injury. Cincinnati has leapfrogged Pittsburgh for third place in the division standings, and has the No. 6 seed in the playoff mix entering Saturday’s game.
The Steelers, on the other hand, enter the contest on the outside looking in after losing their past three games. Rudolph will start his first game of the season after Mitch Trubisky started the last two games. Starter Kenny Pickett is recovering from ankle surgery.
But Pittsburgh’s problems are deeper than just its quarterback issue: Players have been exposed on social media for lack of effort, former quarterback Ben Roethlisberger criticized longtime coach Mike Tomlin saying, "Maybe the tradition of the Pittsburgh Steelers is done." And even ESPN analyst Ryan Clark, a former Steelers safety, said current players no longer care for "The Steeler Way."
Buffalo Bills (8-6) at Los Angeles Chargers (5-9)
Quarterback Josh Allen and the Bills, who fell to 5-5 last month, still have a real chance to make the playoffs – and even win the AFC East for the fourth consecutive season.
Quarterback Justin Herbert is done for the season with a broken finger, and the Chargers will play their first game without fired coach Brandon Staley after their 63-21 debacle against the Las Vegas Raiders during Week 15.
It’s unclear which Chargers team will show up. They have nothing to play for except pride, and they didn’t show much of it in their last outing. Allen and the Bills, on the other hand, have plenty to play for, and are coming off an impressive 31-10 win over the Dallas Cowboys last week.
The Bills finish the season at home against the New England Patriots on Dec. 31, and on the road against the Miami Dolphins during the first weekend of January, when the division could be on the line for both teams.
veryGood! (11214)
Related
- Alex Murdaugh’s murder appeal cites biased clerk and prejudicial evidence
- Las Vegas Aces WNBA team gets bigger venue for game Caitlin Clark is anticipated to play in
- The 5 states with the highest inflation and the 5 with the lowest. See where yours ranks
- Trump Media & Technology Group shares continue to fade
- Apple iOS 18.2: What to know about top features, including Genmoji, AI updates
- Zach Edey carries Purdue in final game of college career, but falls short against UConn
- The NCAA women’s tourney had everything: Stars, upsets, an undefeated champion. It’s just the start
- At movie industry convention, leaders say blockbusters alone aren’t enough
- House passes bill to add 66 new federal judgeships, but prospects murky after Biden veto threat
- Ahead of solar eclipse, officials report traffic crashes and delays
Ranking
- Warm inflation data keep S&P 500, Dow, Nasdaq under wraps before Fed meeting next week
- Librarians fear new penalties, even prison, as activists challenge books
- Iowa-South Carolina NCAA championship game smashes TV ratings record for women's basketball
- Urban Outfitters' Total Eclipse of the Sale Delivers Celestial Savings Up to 40% on So Many Cute Styles
- Mets have visions of grandeur, and a dynasty, with Juan Soto as major catalyst
- Woman shoots interstate drivers, says God told her to because of the eclipse, Florida police say
- Missouri death row inmate nears execution with appeals before Supreme Court
- Tiger Woods' Masters tee times, groupings for first two rounds at Augusta National
Recommendation
Federal hiring is about to get the Trump treatment
Many eclipse visitors to northern New England pulled an all-nighter trying to leave
After Appalachian hospitals merged into a monopoly, their ERs slowed to a crawl
Missouri to carry out execution of Brian Dorsey after Gov. Mike Parson denies clemency
'Vanderpump Rules' star DJ James Kennedy arrested on domestic violence charges
From the sandwich shop to the radio airwaves, how the solar eclipse united a Vermont town
Effort to enshrine right to abortion in Maine Constitution comes up short in first votes
WWE Monday Night Raw: Results, highlights and more from Raw after WrestleMania