Top NFL Week 14 storylines: Kirk Cousins ​​returns to Minnesota; another Chiefs AFC West crown?

For many NFL teams, the final full month of the regular season is a matter of life or death. After the Dallas Cowboys host the Cincinnati Bengals on “Monday Night Football,” only four weeks of competition remain.

The playoff picture is increasingly coming into focus. The Kansas City Chiefs, Buffalo Bills and Detroit Lions have already punched their ticket to the postseason. Four teams (the New York Giants, Las Vegas Raiders, Jacksonville Jaguars and New England Patriots) have now been eliminated.

The Pittsburgh Steelers, Houston Texans, Philadelphia Eagles and Lions want to expand their division lead. Meanwhile, the NFC South and the NFC West are in a head-to-head duel. Wildcard races remain crowded and the margin of error is getting smaller and smaller every week.

Here are five of the most compelling storylines for Week 14 of the NFL season. (Find the full schedule here.)

1. Kirk Cousins’ return to Minnesota

After six seasons as the Minnesota Vikings’ well-paid ($185 million fully guaranteed) starting quarterback, Cousins ​​left the North in the offseason to sign a four-year, $180 million contract with the Atlanta Falcons. He returns to US Bank Stadium on Sunday, where he will try to help the Falcons end a three-game losing streak and stay in the race for the NFC South title.

Cousins, who won three Pro Bowl honors at Minnesota and helped the Vikings to two playoff appearances, ranks sixth in the NFL with 3,052 passing yards this season. However, he struggled in that blip, throwing six interceptions and no touchdowns. He told reporters that he and his team want to “get back off the mat and get going” this week. The Falcons (6-6) need a win to hold off the surging Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who have won two straight, are also 6-6 and are hoping to win their fourth straight division title.

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Beating the Vikings is a tall order for Atlanta. Minnesota has won five straight and has an aggressive defense that leads the NFL with 18 interceptions. The Vikings also held their opponents to just 18.3 points per game (fifth-fewest) while recording 39 sacks (fourth-most) and 24 total takeaways (tied for second). Meanwhile, Cousins’ replacement, Sam Darnold, is leading an efficient offensive attack and has thrown six touchdown passes and no interceptions over the past three weeks. It will be difficult to push Detroit to the top of the NFC North, but the Vikings and Green Bay Packers are in the hunt for second place in the division. (Falcons at Vikings, Sunday, 1 p.m. ET.)

Jameis Winston (No. 5) and the Browns celebrated a snowy victory over the Steelers on November 21st. (Ken Blaze/Imagn Images)

2. Browns-Steelers rematch

Two weeks ago, the last-place Cleveland Browns defeated the AFC North-leading Steelers 24-19 in a blustery, snowy showdown on Thursday night. The Browns won despite going 1 of 10 on third down and turning the ball over three times. But Jameis Winston, who had already rushed for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter, directed a nine-play, 45-yard scoring drive with 57 seconds left, capped by a Nick Chubb touchdown, to put his team in the lead to drive up.

Now these two meet again, this time in Pittsburgh, where Mike Tomlin’s team will look to get revenge while extending their lead in the division. Pittsburgh wins a confident victory in Cincinnati. A win would give the Steelers their seventh win in their last eight games and put some cushion between them and Baltimore, which has a bye this week. Russell Wilson had his best game as a Steeler, throwing for 414 yards and three touchdowns against the Bengals. It was the second-highest passing total of Wilson’s career and his third 400-yard day.

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At this point, it might be impossible for 3-9 Cleveland to make the playoffs. But the Browns would love nothing more than to defeat the rival Steelers. Improved ball security should be one of the keys to victory for Cleveland. The Browns were lucky that losing the turnover battle didn’t result in a loss in the first game against the Steelers. However, three turnovers (including two pick-sixes) led to a loss to the Denver Broncos last week. (Browns at Steelers, Sunday, 1 p.m. ET.)

3. The pressure is increasing in the NFC West

Two weeks after the Seattle Seahawks earned a hard-fought 16-6 victory over the Arizona Cardinals and moved ahead in the race for the NFC West title, the teams meet again. This time, the Cardinals host the Seahawks with the goal of ending a two-game losing streak following a loss in Seattle and a 23-22 loss at Minnesota. Seattle has won three straight to improve to 7-5 while sitting alone at the top of the division. However, a Cardinals win would give both teams a 7-6 record and begin the season’s crucial four-game home stretch.

The outcome of this game could have a big impact on the outcome of this division race and ultimately playoff placement. The Seahawks currently have a 42 percent chance of reaching the postseason The athlete‘s playoff predictions. A win over Arizona would increase their chances to 73 percent, while a loss would decrease their chances to 17 percent. An Arizona win would give the Cardinals a 59 percent chance of making the playoffs, but a loss would reduce their chances of winning the division to 8 percent. (Seahawks at Cardinals, Sunday, 4:05 p.m. ET.)

4. Another crown for the Chiefs?

The Chiefs (11-1) dominated the AFC West, winning the division eight straight seasons. They head into Sunday night against the Chargers with a playoff spot already secured and a chance to re-clinch the division with a win.

This is the second meeting between these teams this season. Kansas City rallied from a 10-point deficit to win 17-10 in Week 4 thanks to a Samaje Perine touchdown run with 6:04 left. Close results and late-game heroics have been the order of the day for the Chiefs this season. Nine of their eleven victories were decided by a score. So another win like this wouldn’t be a surprise.

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This game represents a big test for the Chargers, who have won five of their last six games – losing only to Baltimore in Week 12 before bouncing back against Atlanta last week. The Chargers have lost six straight games to the Chiefs, and after being knocked out of another projected AFC contender in the Ravens, Los Angeles could gain a high level of recognition with a win on Sunday.

The Chargers were missing defensive stars Derwin James Jr. and pass rusher Joey Bosa as well as offensive tackles Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater in their last game against the Chiefs. LA had a 10-0 lead in the first quarter before faltering and being outscored 17-0 the rest of the game. Can the improved health and lessons from the previous meeting help this 8-4 team overcome the crisis this time? (Chargers at Chiefs, Sunday, 8:20 p.m. ET.)

5. Bears answer, 49ers fight

Rather than delay the inevitable, the Chicago Bears fired head coach Matt Eberflus after their Thanksgiving Day loss to the Lions collapsed at the last second. The coach’s terrible clock management and disastrous leadership helped extend Chicago’s losing streak to six games, with the last three losses by a combined seven points.

Now the 4-8 Bears are turning to interim head coach Thomas Brown, who took over as interim offensive coordinator after Shane Waldron was fired after nine games. Under Brown’s leadership, rookie quarterback Caleb Williams has shown improved decision-making and effectiveness. Now Brown, the 38-year-old former running back, will try to prove he can make the Bears more competitive while developing Williams into the star general manager Ryan Poles drafted him to be.

Chicago’s opponent this week: the run-stricken San Francisco 49ers, who fell to 5-7 after a three-game losing streak. The latest loss proved costly as the Niners lost running backs Christian McCaffrey and Jordan Mason to injured reserve. The 35-10 loss to Buffalo also appeared to have taken Kyle Shanahan’s team a giant step further away from its goal of returning to the Super Bowl to clear up unfinished business. Mathematically, the 49ers are not eliminated, but they only have a 6 percent chance of making the playoffs and are two games behind the Seahawks in the NFC West. To secure a playoff ticket, they will likely need a long unbeaten streak.

Can Shanahan push all the right buttons and figure out how to cover up all the shortcomings of this struggling squad? Or have things progressed too far? Will the Bears find a spark under new leadership and roll to victory, or will the same thing happen to them again? (Bears at 49ers, Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET.)

(Top photo: Todd Kirkland / Getty Images)