2025 NFL Week 15 Buzz: Despite Hospital Trip, Steelers Expect Metcalf vs. Miami
Who’s starting, who’s hurt, and who’s on the move?
NFL news is nonstop, and we’re breaking it all down week by week this season.
Here’s the latest on what’s happening around the league entering Week 15:
A brief hospital visit won’t keep Metcalf from playing next week against the Dolphins. Metcalf was hit hard in the abdomen during the team’s 27-22 victory against the Ravens on Sunday and stayed behind when the issue persisted after Metcalf was treated with over-the-counter remedies during the game, according to head coach Mike Tomlin.
“It [probably got] progressively worse after the game, and so I’m appreciative of our medical experts,” Tomlin said. “We just exercised an abundance of precaution. We didn’t want to get him in the air without having a complete understanding about what he was dealing with, and they did a good job of that.”
Metcalf finished with season highs in receptions (seven) and yards (148) as Pittsburgh regained control of the AFC North. The two-time Pro Bowler also filled in as a gunner on punt coverage late in the game after special teams ace Ben Skowronek exited with an injury, something Metcalf hadn’t done since high school. Tomlin stated that Metcalf is “moving in the right direction” and he doesn’t anticipate the issue jeopardizing Metcalf’s availability.
Kelly, who leads Las Vegas with three interceptions, was placed on IR on Dec. 9 with a season-ending tear in his patellar tendon. The team signed cornerback Chigozie Anusiem off Arizona’s practice squad in a corresponding move.
Kelly was injured in the Raiders’ 24-17 loss to the Broncos on Sunday. “It was just a freak accident,” head coach Pete Carroll said Monday. “You didn’t see it buckle or anything. He just planted — and sometimes that happens.”
The Colts bolstered their injury-depleted quarterback corps by bringing 44-year-old Rivers out of retirement and signing him to the practice squad, according to multiple reports. The move comes less than 24 hours after head coach Shane Steichen confirmed that Indianapolis’ starter, Daniel Jones, would miss the rest of this season after tearing his right Achilles tendon and backup quarterback Riley Leonard injured his right knee during Sunday’s loss to the Jaguars.
It’s not clear how long it will take Rivers to learn Indianapolis’ playbook — or work his way into game shape — as the reeling Colts try to snap a three-game losing streak next weekend at the Seahawks.
Rivers hasn’t taken a snap since finishing his career with a playoff loss following the Colts’ 2020 season; that was the last time Indianapolis made the postseason. The eight-time Pro Bowler announced his retirement in January 2021 and has been coaching at St. Michael High School in Fairhope, Alabama, ever since.
Head coach Dan Quinn announced that Ertz would miss the rest of the season after the 13-year veteran tore his ACL in the Commanders’ 31-0 shutout loss to the Vikings on Sunday. Ertz, who was upended during an incomplete pass over the middle thrown by backup QB Marcus Mariota after starter Jayden Daniels was sidelined after reaggravating his elbow injury, left the team’s locker room on crutches. Ertz was unable to put any weight on his leg when he was helped off the field and was visibly upset as he reached the sideline before being transported inside on a cart.
A second-round draft pick by Philadelphia and a Super Bowl champion with the Eagles, Ertz had 50 catches for 504 yards in 2025. In his second season with the Commanders, Ertz has the second-most receptions by a tight end (825) in the NFL since his debut in 2013, trailing only Travis Kelce (1,063 entering Sunday).
Browns name rookie QB Shedeur Sanders as starter for rest of season
Following a strong performance against the Titans on Sunday, Sanders has officially been named the Browns’ starter for the remainder of the season. He threw for a career-high 364 yards and three touchdowns — plus a fourth on the ground — in the narrow 31-29 loss. Sanders joins Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow as the only rookie quarterbacks with at least 350 passing yards, three touchdown passes and one rushing score in a game.
Head coach Kevin Stefanski is also convinced that Sanders can learn from his mistakes, such as the ill-fated third-quarter interception where he scrambled and threw a deep pass to the middle of the field — which was picked off by Tennessee’s Xavier Woods. The interception would later lead to the Titans scoring the go-ahead touchdown.
“I think he has constantly and consistently gotten better in each one of these games,” Stefanski said. “He’s been working very hard, so I feel good about where his development is heading. He knows there are always going to be plays that he can be better … but he’s very intentional about getting better each and every game he’s out there.”
Buccaneers welcome back two-time Super Bowl champion pass rusher
A familiar face has returned to Tampa Bay. The Bucs have signed defensive lineman Jason Pierre-Paul, 36, to the practice squad, setting him up for a chance to help his former team’s pass rush and playoff push with four games left in the regular season. A 2010 first-round pick by the New York Giants, Pierre-Paul previously played for Tampa Bay from 2018 to 2021 and was a member of the club’s Super Bowl LV-winning defense in 2021. Pierre-Paul has 94.5 sacks, 632 tackles and 21 forced fumbles in 180 career games, with his last action coming in 2023 when he played one game for the Saints and two for the Dolphins.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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