Trav’s 2024 NFL Regular Season Finale Picks

Week 17 is in the books, and we are now at the regular season finale. This year has gone by too fast, and it has been a great one. In the AFC, we have all the playoff positions filled except the final one. The Denver Broncos hold on to the final Wild Card spot as of now. They have a one game lead over the Miami Dolphins and Cincinnati Bengals entering the season finale. The only division that’s still up for grabs is the AFC North. The Ravens hold a game lead over the Steelers with the winner being the third seed in the playoffs. All the teams that will make the playoffs in the NFC have already clinched. The only thing remaining is positioning and it starts with the #1 seed. The Minnesota Vikings will travel to Detroit to face the Lions for the NFC North and top seed.

The NFC South will be decided in the regular season finale. The Bucs have a one game lead over the Atlanta Falcons. If Tampa Bay beats New Orleans, they win the division and still have a shot at the 3 seed. If Atlanta win and the Bucs lose, they win the NFC South and would be the four seed in the playoffs. The final two Wild Card spots are still up for grabs also. The Washington Commanders and Green Bay Packers are tied with the Commanders holding the tiebreaker. If Washington beat Dallas, they will be the 6^th seed. If they lose and Green Bay wins at home against Chicago, they would be the 6^th seed. My Week 17 NFL picks produced a 12-2 record, and my overall mark goes to 122-52. My winning percentage rises from 68.8% to 70.1%.

We still have a lot of positioning and important games in the regular season finale, and I’ll be picking 11 games. Check out Trav’s 2024 regular season finale picks below.

We kick off the weekend with a pair of games on Saturday between teams from the AFC North. The Cleveland Browns will head to Baltimore to face the Ravens. The Browns beat this Ravens team the last time they faced each other. After that win, Cleveland has dropped seven of their last eight games and five in a row. As of now, the Browns own the 3^rd pick in the upcoming NFL Draft. Will they take their quarterback of the future? Baltimore looks like one of the teams to beat when it comes to the playoffs. They are currently on a 3-game winning streak and have won four of five. Lamar Jackson is once again in the conversation for league MVP with his amazing season. With a win, the Ravens clinch their division and have the 3 seed in the playoffs. Baltimore Win 31-17

The Saturday Night game will see the Cincinnati Bengals head to Pittsburgh to face the Steelers. Both teams have a lot to play for in this game. Cincinnati still has an outside shot of making the playoffs, but they must win and get help. Pittsburgh can win the division with a win and loss by Baltimore. The Steelers have already clinched a playoff berth but could fall to sixth with a loss and Chargers win. The Bengals are on a four game winning streak and Joe Burrow is playing as good as any quarterback in the league. Cincinnati needs to win and have the Dolphins and Broncos to lose also. The Steelers have lost three in a row and need a win just for some momentum. This should be a great game and closely contested. I’m picking the Steelers to defeat the Bengals again. Pittsburgh Win 34-31

We head to the NFC South as Carolina travels south to Atlanta to battle the Falcons. The Panthers have dropped five of their last six games. The Panthers currently sit at the #6 spot in the upcoming NFL Draft. They have a lot of needs going into the offseason, but they would love to spoil the Falcons playoff hopes. Carolina have had moments where it looked like they were improving. They also had times where it looked like they were going backwards. Atlanta lost their Sunday Night game in Washington, while the Bucs beat this Panthers team. With the loss, Atlanta is a game behind Tampa for first place. If Atlanta wins and the Bucs lose, the Falcons win the division and go to the playoffs. I’m picking the Falcons to do their part and at least finish with a winning season. Atlanta Win 38-20

We head to the NFC East as the Washington Commanders head to Dallas to face the rival Cowboys. The Commanders and Jayden Daniels have been the talk of the league. They are riding a 4-game winning streak and jumped Green Bay for 6^th in the Wild Card. The last time they lost was against this Dallas team. Washington would love to finish the season strong on a 5-game winning streak and play the 3^rd seed. If they lose and Packers win, they would go to Philly for the playoffs. Dallas is coming off an embarrassing loss to the Eagles. Micah Parsons comments after the game had a lot of people talking for the wrong reasons. Before that, Dallas won four of five games, but now the future of Mike McCarthy is coming to the forefront. Can they finish with a win? Washington Win 31-27

We head to the NFC North as the Chicago Bears travel to Lambeau Field to face the Green Bay Packers. It’s hard to believe that the Bears are currently on a 10-game losing streak. They are coming off an awful performance where they lost 6-3 to Seattle. As of now, the Bears would have the 9^th pick in the NFL Draft if the season ended today. Can they find a way to beat this Packers team they almost upset a couple months ago? Green Bay is coming off a close defeat to Minnesota to drop them to the final Wild Card spot. Many believe that Green Bay is a Super Bowl contender, and they would like to play the Rams in the first round. The Packers should win against the Bears and hope the Commanders fall to Dallas. Green Bay Win 34-20

We head back down to the NFC South as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers host the New Orleans Saints. The Saints currently hold the 10^th pick in the upcoming NFL Draft. They have dealt with injury after injury throughout the season. Derek Carr, Alvin Kamara, and Chris Olave have missed extended time throughout the season. The season can’t get over fast enough for this Saints team. Do they have one last fight in them? Tampa Bay has been one of the best teams in the last six weeks. They have won five of their last six and sit atop the division. They control their own destiny by just winning their final game or having Atlanta lose. Mike Evans gets to 1,000 yards receiving for the 11^th straight season and they win the game. The Bucs clinch and head to the playoffs. Tampa Bay Win 38-17

The Kansas City Chiefs will head to Mile High Stadium to face the Denver Broncos. The Chiefs have clinched home field advantage throughout the playoffs. Kansas City has a league best 15-1 record. The big question coming out of Kansas City is, will the starters rest for this game? Coach Andy Reid hasn’t revealed going into this game. Kansas City almost lost to this Broncos team at home in their first game. Can the Chiefs win this game and prevent the Broncos from making the playoffs? Denver comes into this game on a 2-game losing streak. All they have to do is win this game and they travel to Buffalo for a playoff game next weekend. If the Broncos were to lose, they would still get in with losses by Miami and Cincinnati. I’m picking the Broncos to find a way to win and go to the playoffs. Denver Win 20-17

The Los Angeles Chargers will head to Las Vegas to face the Raiders in this AFC West finale. Los Angeles have clinched a playoff berth after winning their last two games. They are currently in the 6^th spot in the playoff seeding. They could get to the 5^th seed and head to Houston for a first round matchup. They would need a loss by Pittsburgh to make that happen. With the Texans playing some of their best ball, they would rather go there than Baltimore. Las Vegas has won two in a row as they try to finish the season strong. They have dropped to the 8^th spot for the upcoming NFL Draft in the process. Two weeks ago, they were in play for the No. 1 overall picks. The two wins came against the Jags and Saints, so they fall to the Chargers. Los Angeles Win 31-20

The Seattle Seahawks will head to Los Angeles to face the Rams. Seattle was hoping this game would be for the NFC West crown. With the Commanders winning their game, it eliminated the Seahawks and the Rams were division champs. Seattle will have a lot of decisions to make during the offseason. They would love to finish with 10 wins and maybe put the Rams as the 4^th seed as opposed to the 3^rd. Can they avenge an early season loss to the Rams? Los Angeles has been one of the hottest teams as we head to the playoffs. After starting the season 1-4, they finished the season winning nine of their next eleven games. The young defensive line is playing their best ball and will be a problem in the playoffs. They beat the Seahawks again and host a game next weekend. Los Angeles Win 24-20

The Miami Dolphins will head to New York to face the Jets in an AFC East matchup. Miami have won their last two games, in which they were must win. The Dolphins come into this contest being a game behind the Broncos for the final spot. They need the Broncos to lose to Kansas City, so they’ll be watching this game closely. Will Miami have Tua available for this one? Tua is dealing with a hip injury, and the Dolphins are concerned. New York is wrapping up a disappointing season. The Jets have a lot of questions to answer during the offseason. Will Aaron Rodgers return for another season? Who will be their next coach? Rex Ryan, who’s an Ex-Coach of the team has thrown his name in the hat for the job. Either way, I’m picking the Jets to find a way to win this one. New York Win 20-17

The final game of the year will be the Sunday Night game and arguably the biggest of the season. The Minnesota Vikings will head to Detroit to face the Lions for the division crown and home field advantage in the playoffs. Minnesota is the hottest team in the league seeing they’re riding a 9-game winning streak. The Vikings haven’t lost a game since their 2-game losing streak almost three months ago. One of those losses came against this Lions team. Can they make it 10 in a row? Detroit is dealing with so many injuries, but they still continue to win. The Lions need this No. 1 seed more than anyone so they can regroup after all the injuries. If they can’t pressure Sam Darnold, he will pick them apart. The Lions will find a way to win and clinch home field advantage. Detroit Win 27-26

What do you think about my 2024 NFL regular season finale picks? What games would you pick differently. Below you can check out my playoff matchups based off my picks. Leave some feedback below about anything related to my 2024 NFL regular season finale picks.