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A couple of week 16 games for your viewing pleasure tonight that have one thing in common: one of the teams is chasing a playoff spot, and the other is playing spoiler.
First up, the NFC East. The 9-5 Philadelphia Eagles are coming off back-to-back losses to the Seattle Seahawks and the 10-4 Dallas Cowboys, and travel to play a Washington team that's 3-11 and propping up the bottom of the division.
The Mark Sanchez-led Eagles need to win both tonight and their final game against the New York Giants, and hope that the Seahawks, Green Bay Packers, or Detroit Lions lose both games, to ensure their season extends into January.
Robert Griffin, for his part, will be trying to reignite the spark for an offense that's averaged 12 points over the past five games, for a team that's lost six in a row. Oh, and maybe to salvage his future with the, or a, team. Hey, we're not the only dysfunctional team with a head coach-quarterback disconnect!
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The second of today's games sees the San Diego Chargers (8-6) at the San Francisco 49ers (7-7).
The Chargers lie third in the AFC West behind the Kansas City Chiefs (8-6) and the Denver Broncos (11-3); they're also one game behind the current AFC Wild Card teams, the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens. They'll be trying to overcome a litany of injuries and recover from a two-game losing streak (albeit against the Broncos and the New England Patriots) to fight their way back into playoff contention with a visit to the other team ahead of them, the Chiefs, in the final week of the season.
The 49ers are also third in the NFC West behind the Seahawks (10-4) and the Arizona Cardinals (11-3), but are already out of playoff contention after losing their previous three games, two to the Seahawks and a clunker to the Oakland Raiders. Colin Kaepernick's regression and Jim Harbaugh's impending exit loom large over the team but one player who won't have to worry about either any more is oft-troubled DE Ray McDonald, who was released after police started an investigation into an alleged sexual assault.
Have fun, don't misbehave or Santa will put a lump of coal in your Xmas stocking.