Minnesota’s 6–2 and just traded for a quarterback. Carolina and New Orleans are both 3–5 and somehow playing for first place. If you’re trying to make sense of the standings before picking a game Sunday, you’re not alone.

The early window features seven games, including a loaded NFC North matchup, a couple of contenders facing tricky road tests, and Miami handing the reins to a first-time starter. Here’s what’s worth watching—and what could actually decide each game.

All seven kick off Sunday, Nov. 15, at 1 p.m. ET, with regional CBS and FOX coverage.

Minnesota Vikings at Green Bay Packers: Well, Hello Again, Kirk

FOX and FOX One

The Vikings scored six points against Buffalo on Monday, then traded for Kirk Cousins on Tuesday. They’re moving through the stages of quarterback frustration at a pretty impressive speed.

Cousins threw 20 touchdowns and eight interceptions for Las Vegas before the deal. He already knows Kevin O’Connell’s offense and has played with Justin Jefferson, so Minnesota at least has a chance to make this work on a short week. As of Wednesday, though, O’Connell still hadn’t officially named him the starter. Kyler Murray’s dealing with a hamstring injury, and Carson Wentz has an ankle issue.

The stakes were already high enough. Every NFC North team has at least six wins, and Minnesota beat Green Bay 39–22 in the opener. The Packers need this one to avoid getting swept.

But Love threw for 387 yards in that loss — more than 150 more than any other quarterback this season against Minnesota.

Now he’s leading the league in passing yards, and Minnesota’s giving up a league-low 14.5 points a game. Something’s got to give.

The deciding question: Can Minnesota’s offense give their defense enough help? Cousins doesn’t need to turn his return into a movie. Whoever starts needs to keep drives moving and get Jefferson involved. Asking the defense to carry everything again would be a lousy plan against Love.

Kansas City Chiefs at Atlanta Falcons: Bijan Gives Atlanta a Chance

CBS and Paramount+

Kansas City beat the Jets 35–12 last week, but their last two road trips ended with losses at Seattle and Denver. That gives Atlanta at least a little room to make the Chiefs sweat.

Start with Bijan Robinson. He leads the league with 880 rushing yards, just ahead of Kansas City’s Kenneth Walker at 872. Patrick Mahomes will get most of the attention, as usual, but these two running backs are a big reason this game could stay close.

Mahomes’ right elbow is worth keeping an eye on, although he practiced fully Wednesday. Kansas City also added Josh Downs at the deadline. Atlanta, on the other hand, is going in the other direction. They traded away safety Jessie Bates III and starting center Ryan Neuzil. That’s a lot of change to deal with against a team like this.

The deciding question: Can Atlanta keep Robinson productive enough that Michael Penix Jr. doesn’t have to chase the game? That’s the Falcons’ clearest path to an upset. The problem is that Atlanta has lost two straight and is just 1–4 at home. Bijan gives the Falcons a real chance. The rest of the team has to do their part.

Houston Texans at Cleveland Browns: Check the Protection

FOX and FOX One

Houston’s won three of four after starting 0–4. C.J. Stroud just threw for 384 yards and five touchdowns in a 44–22 win over the Chargers.

That’s a good sign. It also came against a winless team though, so now we need to see what Houston looks like against somebody who can push back a little.

Cleveland should be able to give them that test. The Browns have 26 sacks, and Houston has 29, so both quarterbacks could be in for a long afternoon. Cleveland’s protection is the bigger concern, though. Deshaun Watson’s already taken 33 sacks in eight games.

And he's back in there as the starter after missing last week’s overtime loss in New Orleans. Shedeur Sanders threw for 297 yards and two touchdowns in his place, so there’s going to be some extra attention on what Watson does now that he’s back in the lineup.

The deciding question: Which offense can avoid obvious passing situations? A sack on first down can turn the next two plays into survival mode. Houston’s offense has made real progress, but Cleveland’s 3–0 at home. The Texans need to show they can win a game that doesn’t hand them five touchdown passes on a silver platter.

Miami Dolphins at Indianapolis Colts: A Real Audition for Kyle McCord

CBS and Paramount+

Let’s be honest about the stakes here: these teams have three wins between them. This isn’t exactly the place to go looking for a heavyweight contender matchup.

But it is a good spot to see Kyle McCord make his first NFL start. Miami put Malik Willis on injured reserve with a groin injury, giving McCord a chance to show whether he can get this passing game moving.

Indianapolis has plenty of their own problems. The Colts have lost five straight and traded Keenan Allen and Josh Downs at the deadline, after already losing Quenton Nelson and DeForest Buckner earlier in the season. Daniel Jones is working with a supporting cast that looks a lot different than it did a few weeks ago.

The deciding question: Who can put together a functional passing game with the pieces they’ve got? McCord’s getting his first shot. Jones is trying to keep the offense afloat after two starting receivers walked out the door. Jonathan Taylor and Tyler Warren could have a lot to say about whether Indianapolis can make it work.

Carolina Panthers at New Orleans Saints: First Place Counts Anyway

FOX and FOX One

Somebody’s going to leave this game alone atop the NFC South. Both teams are 3–5, Atlanta and Tampa Bay are 3–6, and the Buccaneers are on their bye.

But nobody’s asking the winner to apologize for it.

There’s a pretty good chance this is more entertaining than the records suggest. Carolina scores 24.9 points a game, while New Orleans averages 23.1. Both defenses give up at least 27 points a game, so Bryce Young and Tyler Shough should have chances to make plays — as long as their offenses don’t get in their own way.

Keep an eye on Saints rookie Jordyn Tyson, too. The eighth overall pick finally made his debut last week, catching four passes for 30 yards. Kellen Moore said Wednesday that Tyson should get “a healthy dose more” snaps against Carolina.

The deciding question: Which defense can get off the field when they actually need to? Both teams should be able to move the ball. One late stop could be the difference between sitting in first place and having to explain how another winnable game got away.

Buffalo Bills at New York Jets: Hold Onto the Damn Ball

CBS and Paramount+

Buffalo’s won four straight and just took care of Minnesota, 23–6. The Jets have lost four in a row, so it’s easy to look at this matchup and move on before kickoff.

But it's not quite that simple. New York has forced a league-high 13 fumbles and recovered nine of them. Rookie David Bailey already has 7.5 sacks and five forced fumbles. A bad record doesn’t make a strip sack any less dangerous.

Buffalo has a pretty clear answer, though. James Cook ran for 107 yards Monday, and the Jets have given up more than 140 rushing yards a game over their last four.

The deciding question: Can Buffalo protect the ball while leaning on Cook? The Jets’ opponents have scored touchdowns on their last 11 red-zone trips, so New York has to find a way to stop drives before they get that far. If Buffalo avoids giving away short fields, the Jets will have to beat a much better team the hard way.

Jacksonville Jaguars at Tennessee Titans: Make Cam Ward Do It Again

FOX and FOX One

Tennessee lost their last game, but there was at least something to build on. Cam Ward threw for 304 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions in a 43–36 overtime loss at Cincinnati. Tony Pollard chipped in 117 rushing yards, too.

Now the Titans get a Jacksonville team that’s sitting three games ahead of Houston in the AFC South.

Trevor Lawrence has thrown 18 touchdown passes to just four interceptions, and the Jaguars aren’t coming to Nashville hoping to hang around. They’re trying to keep control of the division, especially with another game against Tennessee coming up in two weeks.

The deciding question: Can Tennessee keep Pollard involved and keep Ward out of long-yardage trouble? That’s the best way for the Titans to give their young quarterback a chance to build on what he did in Cincinnati. If Jacksonville takes away the early-down runs, Ward could end up carrying too much of the afternoon himself.

An upset would help Houston, sure, but for Tennessee, the bigger payoff would be seeing some real proof that this offense is starting to find their footing.

All stats courtesy of Fantasy Points Data.

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