Five NFL Week 15 Games With Quarterback Matchups Worth Watching

Plus transfers lead the way for college basketball's new big favorite to win the title

In today’s newsletter…

1. Leading Off: Michigan, led by newcomers, is the current favorite to win the national title

2. The Rundown: 44-year-old Philip Rivers could be back under center this weekend

3. Game of the Day: Lakers face still Wemby-less Spurs in NBA Cup quarterfinals

4. By the Numbers: 5 NFL Week 15 games with QB matchups worth watching

5. Overtime: “You’re going to drive yourself crazy. And I’m not going to do that.”

1. Leading Off

Michigan might be ranked second in the latest AP Top 25 men’s basketball poll, but the Wolverines have become the significant favorite to win the national championship. Coach Dusty May’s squad is off to an 9-0 start this year, and their back-to-back blowout wins over No. 21 Auburn (102-72) and No. 12 Gonzaga (101-61) were two of the more impressive performances of the young season.

The Wolverines don’t have another ranked team on their schedule until a January 27th date with No. 23 Nebraska, so their momentum, and odds, should only build. They’re coming off of a 27-10 season and Sweet 16 appearance in May’s first campaign in Ann Arbor, but this is a very different team.

In what has become the norm in the new era of college sports, this is the first year at the school for four of Michigan’s top-five leading scorers — three transferred ahead of this season and one is a freshman. Former UAB forward Yaxel Lendeborg leads the way with 15.8 points per game and Morez Johnson Jr. and his 14.3 points on 68.7% shooting spent last year at Illinois. Center Aday Mara got limited playing time in two seasons at UCLA before heading to Michigan, where he leads the team with nine rebounds a game to go along with his 9.4 points and 2.9 blocks. And freshman guard Trey McKenney out of Flint, Michigan, rounds out the four newcomers with 11 points per game off the bench.

At FanDuel, the Wolverines are a +350 favorite to cut down the nets in Indianapolis next spring, with a bunch of schools clustered together far behind Michigan at the moment: UConn and Duke at +1000, Arizona, Purdue, Iowa State, and Gonzaga at +1200, Houston at +1600, and defending champion Florida at +2000.

— Abe Rakov

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2. The Rundown

Projected No. 2 Pick in Next Year’s NBA Draft Chose BYU, Then the School Built a Team Around Him

• Quarterback Philip Rivers is returning to the NFL for the first time since 2020 after signing with the Colts. The 44-year-old joined the Indianapolis practice squad days after the team lost Daniel Jones for the season with a torn Achilles. Former first-round pick Anthony Richardson is already on injured reserve and is unavailable, and rookie Riley Leonard, who has been Jones’ backup, injured his knee and might not be mobile enough to play this weekend — which is why Rivers got a call. In more un-retirement news, three-time Pro Bowler Jason Pierre-Paul (36) returned the Buccaneers practice squad after a nearly two-year hiatus from the NFL.

• After being shocked by missing out on the College Football Playoff, Notre Dame is trying to avoid another surprise this offseason by ensuring coach Marcus Freeman doesn’t leave for another job. “Everybody has eyes on Marcus. College has eyes on Marcus. NFL has eyes on Marcus. I bet Hollywood has eyes on Marcus,” Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua said. Freeman is 43-12 at Notre Dame and signed an extension through 2030 last December, but is expected to be considered by the Giants, among others.

• Yahoo Sports walks through what every NBA team could offer the Bucks for Giannis Antetokounmpo, who might end up asking to be traded before the February 5th deadline. Two examples: They give the Mavericks an A- opportunity (though a 2/5 likelihood because it would involve a certain rookie), and the Clippers an F with a corresponding 0/5 likelihood because “nothing here makes sense.”

• One of the biggest names in MLB free agency reportedly isn’t going anywhere, as the Associated Press reported that Kyle Schwarber is signing a five-year, $150-million contract to stay in Philadelphia. Schwarber, coming off his fourth and best year with the Phillies, set career highs with 56 home runs (led the NL) and 132 RBIs (top in MLB). The 32-year-old, a three-time All Star, spent the first six years of his career with the Cubs before splitting 2021 between the Nationals and the Red Sox then joining the Phillies for the 2022 season.

• BYU came out of nowhere to nab the No. 1 2025 high school basketball prospect, AJ Dybantsa, in December of 2024. ESPN’s Jeff Borzello has a feature out about how the No. 10 Cougars then built around the transformational freshman for this season in “an effort to maximize what's expected to be the only season of Dybantsa, ESPN’s projected No. 2 pick in the 2026 NBA draft.” Dybantsa scored a career-high 28 points, 22 in the second half, in the Cougars’ 67-64 win last night over Clemson.

3. Game of the Day

Lakers Have Won 9 of 11, Won’t Have to Face Wemby in NBA Cup Quarterfinal Matchup

San Antonio has weathered Victor Wembanyama’s injury nicely, going 8-3 and earning a spot in the NBA Cup quarterfinals. Wembanyama, who hasn’t played since November 14th, is close to returning but has been ruled out for tonight’s game (which immediately moved the spread 2.5 points in LA’s favor). The Lakers have worked their way up to a tie for second in the West after winning nine of 11, and they’re as healthy as they’ve been all season. Oklahoma City (-14.5, -105) is favored over Phoenix (+14.5, -115) in the other quarterfinal matchup of the night at 7:30pm on Prime Video.

Spurs (16-7, 7-5 Away) vs. Lakers (17-6, 7-3 Home)
10pm on Prime Video

The Odds

• Spread: SA (+7, -110), LAL (-7, -110)

  • 69% of the money and 68% of the bets are with the Lakers

  • ATS | SA (road): 4-7-1, LAL (home): 6-4

• Moneyline: SA +230, LAL -280

• Total (237.5): Over -114, Under -106

  • SA: 13-10, LAL: 16-7

• Injuries | SA: Victor Wembanyama (O); LAL: Marcus Smart (O)

Head-to-Head

Players to Watch

• SA G De’Aaron Fox | Points: 22.5 (14, 25, 31), Reb: 3.5 (4, 5, 5), Ast: 6.5 (7, 9, 5)

• SA F Keldon Johnson | Points: 11.5 (12, 14, 13), Reb: 5.5 (6, 7, 4)

• LAL G Luka Doncic | Points: 32.5 (31, 38, 34), Reb: 8.5 (15, 11, 12), Ast: 8.5 (11, 5, 7)

• LAL F Rui Hachimura | Points: 11.5 (17, 13, 12), Reb: 4.5 (6, 7, 3)

*Stats listed are past 3 games, most recent to least recent

4. By the Numbers

Five Week 15 NFL Game That Feature Quarterback Matchups Worth Watching

MCBB

• Minnesota (+20.5, -110) vs. No. 6 Purdue (-20.5, -110): 89% of the money and 78% of the bets are with the Boilermakers

  • ATS | MIN: 3-6, PUR: 4-5

  • Total (142.5) | MIN: 3-6, PUR: 3-6

• Wisconsin (+1.5, -110) vs. No. 23 Nebraska (-1.5, -110): 78% of the money and 75% of the bets are with the Cornhuskers

  • ATS | WIS: 5-4, NEB: 5-4

  • Total (155.5) | WIS: 7-2, NEB: 4-5

NHL

• Red Wings (-110) vs. Flames (-110): 72% of the money and 66% of the bets are with Detroit

  • ATS | DET (road): 8-6, CAL (home): 10-3

  • Total (6.5) | DET: 17-13, CAL: 19-12

• Panthers (-115) vs. Mammoth (-105): 71% of the money and 75% of the bets are with Florida

  • ATS | FLA (road): 3-7, UTA (home): 5-7

  • Total (5.5) | FLA: 14-14, UTA: 15-16

• Rangers (-142) vs. Blackhawks (+120): 67% of the money and 66% of the bets are with New York

  • ATS | NYR (road): 13-4, CHI (home): 12-2

  • Total (5.5) | NYR: 11-20, CHI: 14-15

NFL Week 15 QB Matchups

• Ravens (6-7, 3-2 Away) vs. Bengals (4-9, 2-4 Home) | BAL (-2.5, -115), CIN (+2.5, -105)

  • BAL QB Lamar Jackson | Pass Yards: 233.5 (219, 246, 153), Pass TD: 1.5 (1, 0, 0), Pass Attempts: 29.5 (35, 32, 23), Rush Yards: 33.5 (43, 27, 11)

  • CIN QB Joe Burrow | Pass Yards: 259.5 (284, 261), Pass TD: 1.5 (4, 2), Pass Attempts: 36.5 (36, 46)

• Chargers (9-4, 3-2 Away) vs. Chiefs (6-7, 5-2 Home) | LAC (+4.5, -108), KC (-4.5, -112)

  • LAC QB Justin Herbert | Pass Yards: 208.5 (139, 151, 81), Pass TD: 1.5 (1, 2, 0), Pass Attempts: 30.5 (26, 20, 18)

  • KC QB Patrick Mahomes | Pass Yards: 240.5 (160, 261, 352), Pass TD: 1.5 (3, 0, 1), Pass Attempts: 34.5 (33, 34, 46)

• Bills (9-4, 3-3 Away) vs. Patriots (11-2, 5-2 Home) | BUF (-1.5, -105), NE (+1.5, -115)

  • BUF QB Josh Allen | Pass Yards: 228.5 (251, 123, 253), Pass TD: 1.5 (3, 1, 0), Pass Attempts: 29.5 (28, 23, 34), Rush Yards: 35.5 (78, 38, 20), Anytime TD: -105 (1, 1, 0)

  • NE QB Drake Maye | Pass Yards: 233.5 (282, 294, 281), Pass TD: 1.5 (2, 1, 1), Pass Attempts: 29.5 (31, 35, 34), Rush Yards: 20.5 (12, 22, 2)

• Packers (9-3-1, 4-1-1 Away) vs. Broncos (11-2, 6-0 Home) | GB (-2.5, -110), DEN (+2.5, -110)

  • GB QB Jordan Love | Pass Yards: 223.5 (234, 234, 139), Pass TD: 1.5 (3, 4, 0)

  • DEN QB Bo Nix | Pass Yards: 220.5 (212, 321, 295), Pass TD: 1.5 (0, 1, 0)

• Lions (8-5, 3-3 Away) vs. Rams (10-3, 5-1 Home) | DET (+5.5, -105), LAR (-5.5, -115)

  • DET QB Jared Goff | Pass Yards: 248.5 (309, 256, 279), Pass TD: 1.5 (1, 2, 2), Pass Attempts: 33.5 (34, 26, 42)

  • LAR QB Matthew Stafford | Pass Yards: 264.5 (281, 243, 273), Pass TD: 2.5 (3, 2, 3), Pass Attempts: 32.5 (31, 28, 35)

5. Overtime

Quotable

“We’re going to do what we got to do, and if you start looking too far ahead of, ‘Ok, if this happens, if that happens,’ you're going to drive yourself crazy. And I’m not going to do that.” — Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer on if his team is still thinking about the playoffs. Dallas is 6-6-1 and in 10th place in the NFC. Seven teams in each conference make the postseason. The Cowboys are two wins behind the Eagles in the NFC East and three wins behind the Bears for the final Wild Card spot. They finish the season with home games against the Vikings and Chargers followed by road contests against the Commanders and Giants.

What to Watch (times ET)

• 3pm: Real Madrid vs. Manchester City [Champions League] on Paramount+

• 7pm: No. 11 Iowa vs. No. 10 Iowa State [WCBB] on ESPN

• 7:30pm: Suns vs. Thunder on Prime Video (or Rangers vs. Blackhawks on TNT)

• 9pm: Wisconsin vs. No. 23 Nebraska [MCBB] on Big Ten Network

• 10pm: Spurs vs. Lakers on Prime Video (or Kings vs. Kraken on TNT)