Every week of the NFL season brings with it a ton of new questions… and answers some old ones, too. Let’s recap what we learned in Week 17… and what we’ll wonder about in Week 18 and the postseason.

ASKED: Did Atlanta make the right move after all?

When Atlanta signed Michael Penix Jr. to a huge franchise cornerstone deal just weeks after signing Kirk Cousins, disbelief and ridicule rained down from every corner of the NFL world – fans, media, other teams. Why draft a base QB when you already have a base QB? As it turns out, the Falcons had a succession plan in mind — and on Sunday night, the NFL world got to see that succession plan in action, albeit much sooner than Atlanta intended.

With Cousins ​​out midseason, Atlanta traded for Penix, and the two-game results were all the Falcons could hope for from the QB position at that point. Yes, Atlanta lost on Sunday night, putting the Falcons on the outside of the playoff bubble, but that was more the result of poor time management and inexplicable coaching than any failure on Penix’s part.

After an ugly first-drive interception, Penix looked more confident and in control in the pocket than Cousins ​​had in months. Penix also has an arm that Cousins ​​can’t match, which opens up a whole new set of plays for the Falcons. The do-or-die fourth touchdown for Kyle Pitts with just over a minute left was something wonderful; Too bad for Penix that the Falcons blew the clock shortly afterward.

It was enough to make one wonder what would have happened if the Falcons had gone to Penix a game or two earlier. But he’s here now, and that gives Atlanta fans something to look forward to in 2025, regardless of how that season turns out.

ANSWER: Jayden Daniels is no longer a rookie QB

While this isn’t exactly news here, Jayden Daniels is everything the Commanders hoped he would be and more. He led the team back to Atlanta on Sunday night from a 17-7 halftime deficit and then captained a smooth victory in overtime. What was impressive about Daniels was how smooth he was, even in the biggest moments of the game. He simply moved the sticks in overtime, a short pass here, a fight for first place there, and marched Washington straight into the playoffs.

The Commanders still have a long way to go before joining the NFC elite – stupid penalties, for example, kept letting Atlanta back into the game – but with Daniels under center, they’ve secured their most important position for the foreseeable future. The fans responded with a stadium that was louder than it had been since the days of Joe Gibbs and Mark Rypien. There are good days ahead in Washington, and when is the last time you could say that?

ASKED: Cincinnati isn’t really going to do that, is it?

There is hardly a more fitting metaphor for the Bengals’ entire season than this week’s Broncos game. Joe Burrow leads Cincinnati to a go-ahead touchdown with 91 seconds left… and the defense gives up a game-winning touchdown to force overtime. Leading the Bengals in overtime, Burrow sets up a game-winning 33-yard field goal… and the ball goes past the upright. Finally, with just 90 seconds left in overtime, Burrow makes a third attempt at the win and it sticks.

Somehow, Cincinnati just hit .500 this season, and somehow the Bengals — who started 0-3 — are still in the playoff mix. The Bengals only have a 9.9 percent chance of reaching the postseason; You have to hope that both the Chiefs backups and the Jets pull out wins this week, which is the definition of a faint hope. But the fact that Burrow is in the MVP conversation, behind only Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson and Saquon Barkley, is nothing short of astounding. Surround this guy with more defensive talent, Cincinnati, and he’ll get you back to the promised land.

ANSWER: Tampa Bay could have a tricky playoff exit

You may have seen this photo on social media lately, Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield in Carolina Panthers uniforms:

The not-so-subtle conclusion is that Darnold and Mayfield succeeded when they found the right situations, and that the Panthers continue to rot due to institutional incompetence. (The not-so-subtle implication isn’t wrong.) The more immediate issue is that these are two of the best quarterbacks in the NFL right now, and depending on how Week 18 turns out, they could end up facing off in the opening round of the playoffs . (In which case, you’ll see this photo about a billion times.)

Sunday showed us that Mayfield and Tampa Bay as the No. 4 seed will be no easy feat, even if it will take them all 18 weeks to (potentially) secure a playoff spot. Mayfield has the skill set, receivers, game plan and backfield defense to work with just about any team in the NFL. That doesn’t mean the Bucs are Super Bowl-caliber contenders, just that they can make life difficult for the teams that are. Be wary of teams that play their best games in crucial moments like the Bucs did this past weekend…they are dangerous, especially if you overlook them.

ASKED: What are the bears doing?

This is a deep dive into the offseason, but seriously: What in the world are the Chicago Bears doing now? Thursday night’s 6-3 loss to the Seahawks was easily the most depressing game of the year, a slog that was no fun for anyone and wasted three hours of the precious time we all have on this earth.

The game fittingly ended with Caleb Williams scoring the equalizer and fans chanting “Sell the team!” But is that the right option? Should Chicago burn everything down and start again? Should GM Ryan Poles get a chance to right the ship? Should the McCaskey family simply part ways with this anchor? It’s going to be an exciting offseason surrounding Halas Hall one way or another.

ANSWER: Is Aaron Rodgers really that bad this year?

The conventional wisdom about Aaron Rodgers is that he is cash-strapped and has nothing left to give to a team that has nothing to play for. But how true is that? Consider his stats: 63% completion rate, 3,623 yards passing, 24 touchdowns, 10 interceptions and an 89.1 passer rating.

Now consider the stats of another notable quarterback heading into the playoffs: 67.5% completion percentage, 3,928 passing yards, 26 touchdowns, 11 interceptions and a 93.5 passer rating. Not that different, right? Rodgers is about one pass beyond the uprights per game, which is the same as the other quarterback… who happens to be Patrick Mahomes.

The difference, of course, lies in the teams’ records: Mahomes’ Chiefs are 15-1, while the Jets are 4-12. The difference is also in personnel, game direction and late game execution. Mahomes, for example, has led Kansas City on seven game-winning drives (fourth quarter or overtime, which was the last time the winning team took the lead), while Rodgers has just three of them.

None of this means Rodgers is still an MVP-caliber quarterback. In fact, it’s probably more of an indictment of Mahomes than a praise for Rodgers. But it’s also true that the difference between genius and stupidity in the NFL is incredibly slim, and a few plays here or there can be the difference between a first-round bye and irrelevance.