There are games during the Week 17 slate of the 2025 NFL season that carry plenty of playoff implications. But perhaps the most important matchup of the week will happen between the two worst teams in the league, as the loser will be in the driver’s seat for the #1 overall pick in the 2026 Draft.
NFL Battle For #1 Overall Pick Takes Place In Week 17
Both the Las Vegas Raiders and New York Giants are limping to the finish line. Each team enters the second-to-last week of the season sporting a 2-13 record, the only two franchises with fewer than 3 wins so far.
In anticipation of the battle for No. 1 with the #Giants this Sunday. https://t.co/3RdPdGGIYl
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 24, 2025
The Giants and the Raiders have endured nearly identical seasons. Both have had nine-game losing streaks, injuries to key contributors, and more questions than answers about their respective futures.
New York enters Week 17 in possession of the top draft slot based on strength-of-schedule tiebreakers, but Las Vegas sits just behind them with almost equal odds of landing the coveted top pick thanks to the same 2-13 record. A loss in this game almost guarantees the bottom spot in the draft order.
Adding another layer of intrigue (and controversy) to this “Stinker Bowl” is the Raiders’ decision to place star tight end Brock Bowers on injured reserve ahead of this matchup, reportedly to manage a lingering knee issue as the team heads into the offseason. While Bowers has battled through injury all year, the timing of this move with the Raiders already eliminated from NFL playoff contention has raised eyebrows and sparked discussion about possible “soft tanking”.
Giants players, meanwhile, have publicly dismissed any notion of a tanking mentality, emphasizing that they will compete hard down the stretch despite the disappointing season.
While the loser of Sunday’s matchup certainly controls its own destiny, there will are still games to be played in Week 18. The Giants will take on the Cowboys in their final game of the season, and the Raiders will host the Chiefs.
