Baltimore Ravens stars Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry put on a show Wednesday night as the team trounced the Houston Texans, 31-2.
Jackson had two touchdown passes and broke Michael Vick’s career rushing record for a quarterback as he scampered for 87 yards, including a 48-yard touchdown run. Henry added 147 yards on the ground and a touchdown for himself.
Jackson and Henry were interviewed by Jamie Erdahl after the game, and had an opportunity to eat a Netflix cake. But they didn’t appear to be interested.
"Red velvet?" Jackson asked.
Erdahl asked Jackson if he wanted to try it and the quarterback said, "Nah."
Henry tried to get him to eat it, but the star quarterback wasn’t having any of it. Instead, Erdahl had a bite of the cake. She said it was "delicious" and tried to get the two players to join her.
"I need to eat real food, then dessert," Jackson added.
The win appeared to just be an appetizer for the two NFL greats.
Baltimore took control of the AFC North division with the win over the Texans. They held a one-game lead over the Pittsburgh Steelers after their rival lost to the Kansas City Chiefs in the first game that was broadcast on Netflix earlier in the day.
Jackson now has 6,110 rushing yards – one more than Vick.
"It’s just another phenomenal performance," Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said after the game. "He set the all-time NFL record for rushing yards (for a quarterback) in pro football. That kind of speaks for itself. It’s just kind of what he does every week."
Patrick Mahomes kept the promise he made to his wife, Brittany, as the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers on Wednesday afternoon, 29-10.
Brittany Mahomes is pregnant with the couple’s third child and is due very soon. The star quarterback said he told her the Chiefs would get the top seed in the playoffs so she could have the baby with him being there instead of on the football field.
Kansas City moved to 15-1 on the season. They have one more game on Jan. 5, and it doesn’t appear the team will put their starters out there for the whole game.
The wild-card portion of the playoffs begin Jan. 11 with the divisional round. In theory, Mahomes could have a lot of time off to be with his wife as she gets ready for their next child to be born.
The Chiefs have had a wild season filled with injuries and some off-field turmoil. The team has only scored 30 points once in a game and yet still have only one loss.
A chance for three straight Super Bowls is alive and well.
Edie Falco, the actress who played the wife of Tony Soprano on the acclaimed HBO series "The Sopranos," revealed in an interview with New York Knicks stars Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart that she was really upset with Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid during the playoffs.
Falco said she was about to go after Embiid after the big man elbowed Brunson in the first round of the playoffs last season.
"Joel Embiid, he’s mean," Falco said in the latest episode of the "Roommates Show." "He like elbowed you in a game last year and I was going to go after him. I mean that’s how bad it was. And then I think I’ve seen you guys play since then and you guys are all like cool with each other. I’m like, ‘You don’t hold a grudge?’"
Brunson said he’s known Embiid since they came into the league and made clear that it wasn’t cool of him to throw the elbow, but whatever ill will there was between them at the time of the heated moment was gone.
The Knicks got the last laugh anyway, as they defeated the 76ers in the first round and eventually lost to the Indiana Pacers in the playoffs.
Falco is long removed from her "Sopranos" days. She’s set for a "Nurse Jackie" sequel on Amazon Prime Video.
President-elect Trump floated NHL legend Wayne Gretzky as a potential candidate to replace Justin Trudeau as Canada’s prime minister in a social media post on Wednesday.
And it appeared Janet Gretzky – Wayne’s wife – got the message.
Janet Gretzky shared Trump’s Truth Social post on her Instagram Stories and posted the link.
"I just left Wayne Gretzky, ‘The Great One as he is known in Ice Hockey circles. I said, ‘Wayne, why don’t you run for Prime Minister of Canada, soon to be known as the Governor of Canada – You would win easily, you wouldn’t even have to campaign,’" Trump wrote.
"He had no interest, but I think the people of Canada should start a DRAFT WAYNE GRETZKY Movement. It would be so much fun to watch!"
Trump’s post came as Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has faced pressure to step down. Earlier this month, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland resigned from Trudeau's cabinet. At the same time, opposition leader Jagmeet Singh called on Trudeau to resign.
The main opposition Conservatives have demanded an election.
"The Great State of Canada is stunned as the Finance Minister resigns, or was fired, from her position by Governor Justin Trudeau," Trump posted to his Truth Social, trolling Trudeau, after previously suggesting Canada should become the 51st state in the USA.
"Her behavior was totally toxic, and not at all conducive to making deals which are good for the very unhappy citizens of Canada. She will not be missed!!!"
Trump has also teased Canadians about adding the country as the 51st U.S. state.
"The Great One" appeared to support Trump amid his election win over Vice President Kamala Harris.
He was seen last month at Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida, after Trump’s presidential election win, wearing a "Make America Great Again" cap.
Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James had a message for the NFL following the team’s close win over the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday night.
James scored 31 points and dished out 10 assists as Austin Reaves’ go-ahead bucket gave the Lakers a 115-113 win. But with the NFL creeping up on what was the NBA’s most exciting day of the regular season, James sent a warning shot to the league.
"I love the NFL. I love the NFL. But Christmas is our day," he declared.
Last year, the NFL scheduled three games on Christmas Day as it fell on a Monday. This year, two games were scheduled on Christmas. In 2022, regular season games fell on Christmas Day.
NFL officials said last year the league wouldn’t schedule any games on Christmas if it fell outside of a normally scheduled day.
"We’ve seen the opportunity with Thanksgiving and some of the audience that we’ve continued to build there," NFL executive vice president of media distribution Hans Schroeder told The Wall Street Journal at the time. "We think there’s an opportunity when the calendar allows it on Christmas now, too, when we know our fans are going to be together."
It was only four months later when the league did an about-face.
"The fans clearly spoke," Schroeder told The Wall Street Journal in March. "There’s a big demand."
The report noted that the NFL would usually give the day away to the NBA and other programming and even moved the old NFL championship off of Christmas if it fell on that day.
This year, the NFL’s games were seen on Netflix. When the ratings come out, everyone will get to see whether James is right.
The NFL dispatched the first round of the College Football Playoff last week in their rare head-to-head matchup.
Choose between the Kansas City Chiefs winning the Super Bowl, the Summer Olympic Games in Paris, France, or LA Dodgers Shohei Ohtani becoming the first MLB player ever with 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in the same season.
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The Baltimore Ravens took the AFC North lead with a 31-2 blowout victory against the Houston Texans Wednesday night and a Pittsburgh Steelers loss earlier in the day.
The quarterback and league MVP candidate broke off a 48-yard touchdown run in the third quarter to put the game out of reach for the Texans. He followed up with a touchdown pass to Mark Andrews with 5:50 remaining in the quarter.
Jackson also had a touchdown pass to Isaiah Likely with 1:51 left in the first half.
Jackson finished with 168 passing yards and 87 rushing yards in the win. He spread the ball around to eight different receivers. No receiver had more than two catches.
Andrews had two catches for 68 yards.
Derrick Henry played a supporting role in the win. He got the game started with a touchdown run from the goal line in the first quarter and finished with 147 rushing yards on 27 carries.
The Texans’ lone score came from a safety in the second quarter with a tackle on Henry.
C.J. Stroud was 17 of 31 for 185 passing yards and an interception. He was sacked five times.
Houston played without wide receiver Tank Dell, who sustained a serious knee injury in last week’s loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. The team was already dealt an injury blow when it lost Stefon Diggs earlier in the season.
Nico Collins had three catches for 59 yards to lead the team. John Metchie III had five catches for 48 yards. But the offense just wasn’t there.
Houston converted only 10 first downs on 11 drives, and Baltimore outgained Houston 432-211.
The Ravens moved to 11-5 and into first place in the AFC North. The Steelers lost to the Chiefs and fell to 10-6.
As Beyoncé started to wrap up, she stood on a scaffold and was raised high above the field. She then made a finger-gun gesture with her hands as a big "Bang" banner unfurled behind her.
Fans in the stadium cheered, and the reviews were mostly positive on social media. But NFL fans started to poke fun at the finger-gun gesture because of the league’s crackdown this season.
Several NFL stars have shown finger guns after touchdowns or to signal a first down. Game officials have thrown flags after those celebrations as the league has cracked down on demonstrations that include gestures of violence.
NFL executive Troy Vincent addressed the issue at a league meeting in October, according to NFL Network.
"There’s no place in professional football for that," Vincent said of the gestures. "Think about where we are as a society. … I don’t think that’s where we are and what we’re trying to represent. We have a responsibility as professional athletes."
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell also talked about the issue.
"It's a long-standing policy, and we are going to enforce that," he said. "Troy had a direct conversation with the union, I think, just last week about it. We're going to continue on that focus. We don't think it's appropriate in those circumstances and sends the wrong messages. So, we'll continue to do that."
A high-ranking NFL employee told The Athletic last week that players are warned about the gestures each year and that they could result in penalties.
Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver George Pickens raised eyebrows on Wednesday when he congratulated Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce following a loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Mahomes and Kelce joined Netflix’s Stacey Dales to talk about the team’s 29-10 win.
Mahomes had 320 passing yards and three touchdowns while Kelce had eight catches for 84 yards and a touchdown and hit the 1,000-career receptions mark during the game.
As the two star players were talking, Pickens interrupted the interview to give his respect.
The move sparked a debate among fans. Some praised Pickens for good sportsmanship while others were cynical and thought it was a signal from the wide receiver to the Chiefs star to influence a trade at some point in the future.
Pickens had three catches on seven targets for 50 yards.
The wide receiver has been a source of consternation over the course of the season. He got into a fight with a Cleveland Browns player on one of the last plays of the game in their matchup last month. He was then flagged for two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties in a win over the Cincinnati Bengals.
Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin was asked about Pickens’ antics earlier this month.
"I’m not going to give you any detail about what goes on behind the scenes in terms of his growth and development," Tomlin said. "That’s my style, and I’m going to be really consistent in it. Being transparent with you guys doesn’t necessarily help or accelerate the growth process, and that’s my agenda, not necessarily feeding the beast."
Wednesday’s game was Pickens’ first season the Bengals. He had been battling injuries.
President-elect Trump threw his support behind NHL legend Wayne Gretzky as a potential candidate for Canadian prime minister in a post on social media on Wednesday.
"I just left Wayne Gretzky, ‘The Great One as he is known in Ice Hockey circles. I said, ‘Wayne, why don’t you run for Prime Minister of Canada, soon to be known as the Governor of Canada - You would win easily, you wouldn’t even have to campaign,’" Trump wrote.
"He had no interest, but I think the people of Canada should start a DRAFT WAYNE GRETZKY Movement. It would be so much fun to watch!"
Trump’s post came as Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has faced pressure to step down. Earlier this month, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland resigned from Trudeau's cabinet. At the same time, opposition leader Jagmeet Singh called on Trudeau to resign.
"The Great State of Canada is stunned as the Finance Minister resigns, or was fired, from her position by Governor Justin Trudeau," Trump posted to his Truth Social, trolling Trudeau, after previously suggesting Canada should become the 51st state in the USA.
"Her behavior was totally toxic, and not at all conducive to making deals which are good for the very unhappy citizens of Canada. She will not be missed!!!"
Gretzky was seen last month at Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida, after Trump’s presidential election win wearing a "Make America Great Again" cap.
It looked like the Steelers were going to respond immediately when running back Jaylen Warren had an 8-yard rushing touchdown, but it was called back due to a holding penalty.
On the play after the penalty, Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson threw an interception in the end zone, and the Steelers missed out on a chance to cut into the lead.
Despite getting stopped in the red zone, Wilson had success on the next drive.
The Steelers quarterback scrambled for a 1-yard rushing touchdown, capping an 11-play, 72-yard drive to make the score 13-7.
After halftime, the teams traded field goals to make it 16-10, and then the Chiefs pulled away.
Patrick Mahomes engineered an 11-play, 77-yard drive that ended with a Kareem Hunt 2-yard rushing touchdown to make it 22-10 after the Chiefs' two-point conversion was unsuccessful.
On the ensuing drive, Steelers’ tight end Pat Freiermuth fumbled on the Steelers 34-yard line, setting up the Chiefs with great field position.
Mahomes capitalized on the fumble, finding a wide open Travis Kelce for a touchdown to make it 29-10.
Kelce’s touchdown reception was the 77th of his career, passing Tony Gonzalez for the most touchdown receptions in Chiefs franchise history.
Mahomes completed 29 of 38 passes for 320 yards and three touchdowns.
Kelce had eight catches for 84 yards and a touchdown, while rookie wide receiver Xavier Worthy had eight catches for 79 yards and a touchdown in the Chiefs' win.
The loss for the Steelers is critical for their AFC North title chances. If the Baltimore Ravens win over the Houston Texans in the second half of the NFL’s Christmas Day doubleheader, the Ravens would have the inside track over the Steelers for the AFC North title.
Wilson threw for 205 yards and an interception and ran the ball six times for 55 yards and a touchdown in the loss. Steelers wide receiver George Pickens had three catches for 50 yards in his return after missing the last three games with a hamstring injury.
Both teams were playing their third game in 11 days.
The Chiefs’ final regular-season game will not matter since they have already clinched the No. 1 seed, but it may matter to their opponent. The division rival Denver Broncos might be fighting for their playoff lives, depending on Week 17’s outcome.
New York Knicks’ shooting guard Mikal Bridges and San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama matched up in a Christmas Day duel in the Knicks' 117-114 win Wednesday.
Bridges scored 41 points, the most he has scored since the Knicks acquired him in a blockbuster trade with the Brooklyn Nets in the offseason.
With star center Karl-Anthony Towns in foul trouble, Bridges stepped up, scoring 15 points in the fourth quarter alone.
Bridges shot 17-for-25 from the field, while shooting 6 of 9 from beyond the arc.
Wembanyama, 20, was sensational in the loss. The Spurs' young star scored 42 points while grabbing 18 rebounds with four assists and four blocks. He also nailed six 3-pointers.
Wembanyama’s performance continued a string of strong games after he was named the Western Conference player of the week.
Knicks forward Josh Hart finished with 12 points, 12 rebounds and six assists, but his last two rebounds were his most important.
The Knicks were up three points with 39 seconds left, and the Spurs opted not to foul. Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson missed a 15-foot jump shot, but Hart snagged the rebound.
Then, with four seconds left, Knicks forward OG Anunoby missed a 3-pointer, but Hart again hustled for the offensive rebound, and the Knicks ran out the clock.
Towns scored 21 points with nine rebounds, while Brunson added 20 points in the win.
With the win, the Knicks won their fifth straight game and improved to 20-10.
Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry remains one of the most recognizable figures in the NBA.
While Curry continues to perform at a high level on the basketball court, he is also 36, and next spring will mark the end of his 16th season in the league. Although the four-time NBA champion has acknowledged he is much closer to the end of his career than he is to its start, Curry said he is able to enjoy living in the moment.
"More than I probably have before," he said during a sit-down with ESPN as he discussed his NBA future. "I think, you know, it's okay to accept and acknowledge that the end is near, whatever point. But only because it allows you to enjoy what's happening right now. But I think the more you talk about it, the more you acknowledge it, it levels up just the sense of urgency of the moment now."
"It is a matter of acknowledging like, okay, me and [Warriors teammate] Draymond [Green] are in our prime. We're, you know, in a situation where you have to kind of think about the game a little differently. But if you're not winning, the answer is, like, 'How do we make this happen for me?' I only have a certain amount of years left, and I want to win desperately. And what helps me, helps us. So, yeah, it's a funny term, because it's people saying, and what is the actual answer? We're trying to figure it out," he said.
Curry was a key part of the Warriors' recent run to three NBA titles in four seasons. Golden State won its fourth NBA Finals with Curry in 2022. He has also earned two league MVP trophies and is a 10-time NBA All-Star.
The Warriors' 2024-25 campaign got off to a strong start, as the team jumped out to a 12-3 record. But Golden State enters their Christmas Day matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers with a 15-13 record and currently sit in the eighth spot in the Western Conference.
The Warriors failed to qualify for the playoffs last season after they were defeated in the NBA Play-In tournament. Curry and his teammates are looking to avoid a repeat of that this season, and the February trade deadline could prove critical for their 2024-25 hopes.
The Christmas Day game between the Warriors and the Lakers is set to tip off at 8 p.m. ET.
The NFL has not been shy about its pursuit of making its product as widely available as possible. Earlier this year, the league took another step toward its goal by striking a three-year deal with streaming giant Netflix.
There was plenty of excitement leading up to the NFL's Christmas Day doubleheader on Netflix, but there were also some concerns. The streamer was facing pressure to ensure that issues that popped up during the livestream of last month's bout between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul did not resurface on Wednesday.
While the streaming quality did not appear to falter leading up to kickoff and at least through the first half of the game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Pittsburgh Steelers, there were some minor hiccups during the pregame coverage.
Pregame co-host Kay Adams' microphone appeared to be off for a few seconds at the start of the show. At a later point, ESPN personality Mina Kimes was interrupted by a seemingly unscheduled advertisement for the upcoming season two premiere of Netflix's popular show "Squid Games."
Cameras did eventually cut back to the pregame show after the ad.
Pregame coverage began a couple of hours before the Chiefs and Steelers kicked off at 1 p.m. ET.
Once the action got underway, another noticeable miscue surfaced. The scorebug listed just two remaining timeouts for the Steelers, despite Pittsburgh being in the midst of its opening drive. The error was corrected a short time later.
The defending Super Bowl champions held a 13-7 lead over Pittsburgh at halftime.
Netflix earned the rights to stream at least one holiday game in 2025 and 2026, according to the terms of the multiyear deal with the NFL.
"Last year, we decided to take a big bet on live — tapping into massive fandoms across comedy, reality TV, sports and more," Netflix Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria said in a news release in May shortly after the Christmas Day package of games was announced.
"There are no live annual events, sports or otherwise, that compare with the audiences NFL football attracts. We’re so excited that the NFL’s Christmas Day games will be only on Netflix."
Music superstar and Houston native Beyoncé is scheduled to perform at halftime of the Houston Texans-Baltimore Ravens game at NRG Stadium later on Wednesday.
Netflix paid an estimated $150 million for the rights to the games, per Bloomberg. The streamer and the NFL have had an ongoing relationship over the past couple of years.
The docuseries "Quarterback" was released on Netflix in 2023, and "Receiver" premiered on the streaming platform last month. While the former focused on three different signal-callers at different points of their careers, the pass-catching series follows four wideouts and one tight end.
In keeping with previous deals, the agreement with Netflix allows games to be shown on broadcast television in the competing teams' home markets. The league-owned NFL+ streaming service will allow fans in the U.S. to watch the games via their mobile devices.
NFL officials penalized Worthy for the play. But fans were confused as to why the flag was thrown. Some suggested Worthy may have been pretending to have a gun on him. Gun-themed celebrations have been a point of contention with players.
Mahomes threw his second touchdown pass of the game, an 11-yarder to wide receiver Justin Watson, later in the first quarter.
The Chiefs have had struggles all season but still had a 14-1 record entering the Week 17 matchup against the Steelers.
Worthy has been a bright spot for a receiving corps that’s been decimated by injuries. He has 51 catches for 559 yards and five touchdown catches this season. He also has three rushing touchdowns.
Last week, Worthy had seven catches for 65 yards and a touchdown catch against the Houston Texans. It was the second straight week he received double-digit targets. Before the game against the Cleveland Browns, he hadn’t had more than eight targets in a single game.
Kansas City will lock up home-field advantage throughout the playoffs with a win on Wednesday.
On the field, Kelce has taken a step back this season but has still been productive for the 14–1 Chiefs.
Kelce has started every game and has 89 receptions for 739 yards and two touchdowns. Those totals are a bit down from the 93 catches for 984 yards and five touchdowns he had in the regular season last year.
Kelce's Chiefs and the Pittsburgh Steelers are playing in the NFL Christmas doubleheader Wednesday on Netflix.
If the Chiefs win, they will secure the No. 1 seed in the AFC and get the all-important bye week in the wild-card round of the NFL playoffs.
The Chiefs and Steelers play at 1 p.m. ET, and the Houston Texans and Baltimore Ravens play at 4:30 p.m. ET in the second game of the doubleheader.
Former NFL linebacker Bill Bergey has died, his son announced on Christmas Day. He was 79.
Bergey, who played for the Philadelphia Eagles from 1974-1980, had been battling cancer for the past few years. His son, Jake Bergey, said his father was an "out right great person."
The South Dayton, New York, native's professional football career began in the late 1960s when he played for the Cincinnati Bengals.
"After a long hard 3 year battle, Dad lost his fight with Cancer. The best father, friend, grand father, football player and out right great person in this world. I will truly miss him. Love you dad," Jake wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Bergey recorded nearly 1,200 tackles during his standout tenure with the Eagles. He earned Pro Bowl honors four times during his time in Philly. Bergey received the first Pro Bowl nod of his career in 1969 when he was with the Bengals.
The former linebacker was inducted into the Eagles Hall of Fame in 1988. He received another honor in 2011 when he became a member of the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame.
In 2023, Bergey shared some details about his relationship with Buffalo Bills legend Jim Kelly. The former Bills quarterback battled jaw cancer and became one of Bergey's trusted confidants.
"He has kind of been my inspiration," Bergey told the Eagles official team website last year. "He keeps me on the up and up. ‘Just remember,’ he would say, 'You're a football player, you're tough, and you can beat this. You can handle this.'"
Bergey played college football at Arkansas State. After he retired from the NFL, Bergey spent several years contributing to the Eagles' pregame and postgame coverage.
The clashing NFL game, a matchup between Kansas City Chiefs and the Houston Texans, began at 1 p.m. ET and averaged 15.5 million viewers on NBC.
The NFL and college football clashed again later in the afternoon, as Clemson-Texas was on at 4 p.m. ET while the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens game began shortly after, at 4:30 p.m. ET.
The Steelers-Ravens matchup averaged 15.4 million viewers on FOX, while Clemson-Texas drew 8.6 million viewers on TNT.
When the NFL wasn’t competing with the College Football Playoffs, the ratings were way up for the other two games.
Indiana-Notre Dame, the first game of the new 12-team format, aired on Friday night, and averaged 13.4 million viewers on ABC/ESPN.
The lone game on Saturday that wasn’t competing with the NFL did well, as Tennessee and Ohio State averaged 14.3 million viewers on ABC/ESPN.
The overall average of 10.6 million viewers for the first round of the College Football Playoffs was higher than all but four college games this season.
College football and the NFL will clash again on Saturday, as the NFL has three games throughout the day against a slate of bowl games.
The Los Angeles Chargers and New England Patriots play at 1 p.m. ET, the Denver Broncos and Cincinnati Bengals play at 4:30 p.m. ET, and the Arizona Cardinals and Los Angeles Rams play at 8:10 p.m. ET.
One of the notable bowl games on Saturday is No. 18 ranked Iowa State playing No. 13 ranked Miami in the Pop-Tarts Bowl at 3:30 p.m. ET.
Another big game is No. 23 ranked Colorado playing No. 17 ranked BYU in the Alamo Bowl at 7:30 p.m. ET, where top draft prospects Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter are expected to play.
The NFL is giving fans a present on Christmas, with two high-profile matchups between AFC contenders with a lot of playoff implications.
The Kansas City Chiefs and Pittsburgh Steelers play at 1 p.m. ET, and the Baltimore Ravens and Houston Texans play at 4:30 p.m. ET, with both games streaming exclusively on Netflix.
After many had streaming issues during the Jake Paul-Mike Tyson fight in November, Netflix is under a lot of pressure to ensure their viewers don’t have any issues watching the games.
One Netflix subscriber even filed a lawsuit against Netflix for "breach of contract" because of constant glitches during the fight, per TMZ.
This will be the first time an NFL game has been streamed exclusively on Netflix, and no matter how the viewing experience is for fans on Wednesday, it won’t be the last game they see on the streaming service.
The NFL and Netflix announced in May that they agreed to a three-year deal where the streaming service will broadcast at least one Christmas Day game over the life of the deal.
Brandon Riegg, Netflix's vice president of nonfiction series and sports, said the company learned from what went wrong in the Tyson-Paul fight.
"The sheer tonnage of people that came to watch was incredible. And for all the testing that the engineering team had done ahead of that, and I think they’re the best in the business, the only way to test something of that magnitude is to have something of that magnitude," Riegg said.
"We never want to have technical issues or a disappointing experience for our members. There was a subset of people that were watching that struggled with that and we acknowledge that. The good news is they stress-tested the system to such a degree that there’s a lot of these fixes and improvements that they realized that they could make, and they’re applying all that stuff."
Netflix’s first test will be a showdown between the Chiefs (14-1) and Steelers (10-5).
The Chiefs have already secured their ninth consecutive AFC West title and are now playing for the No. 1 seed in the AFC, which would grant them the all-important bye week.
If the Chiefs were to win on Wednesday, they would have the No. 1 seed locked up before Week 18, giving head coach Andy Reid a chance to rest his starters during the final week of the regular season.
The Chiefs are coming off a 27-19 win over the Texans on Saturday, where quarterback Patrick Mahomes played well. The star quarterback threw for 260 yards and a touchdown, while rushing for 33 yards and a touchdown despite playing through an ankle sprain.
The Steelers, on the other hand, are coming off a tough 34-17 loss against their arch-rival Ravens on Saturday.
It looked like the Steelers were going to have a chance to come back after safety Minkah Fitzpatrick intercepted Lamar Jackson down 24-17 in the fourth quarter.
However, Ravens' cornerback Marlon Humphrey thwarted any chance of a Steelers' comeback with a Pick Six off Russell Wilson on the ensuing drive, putting the Ravens up 31-17 and effectively sealing the win.
The Steelers’ defense had a tough time handling running back Derrick Henry, who ran the ball 24 times for 162 yards in the win for Baltimore.
For the Steelers, their game against the Chiefs is crucial to winning the AFC North. Pittsburgh has already clinched a playoff spot, but their loss on Saturday was a big blow to their chances of winning the division, as the Ravens are also 10-5.
Some good news for the Steelers is that wide receiver George Pickens has a "real chance" to play against the Chiefs, coach Mike Tomlin said on Sunday.
Pickens has missed the last three games, and he's been sorely missed. In the three games without Pickens, the Steelers are averaging just 248.3 yards per game, almost 77 yards less than their season average of 324.9.
As big a blow as the loss was for the Steelers on Saturday, the Ravens win over Pittsburgh was just as big a boost for them.
The Ravens played well on Saturday, outgaining the Steelers 418-315 in terms of yards, with 220 of those yards coming on the ground.
Jackson threw three touchdowns in the win, and will have a chance to make his MVP case with the whole world watching on Wednesday.
The Ravens quarterback is having another fantastic year, as Jackson and Bills’ quarterback Josh Allen are considered the two favorites for the award.
A win for the Ravens on Christmas would go a long way in their race against the Steelers for the AFC North crown.
The Ravens (10-5) are taking on the Texans (9-6) in the second part of the NFL's Christmas doubleheader on Netflix.
They are taking on a Texans team that just lost to the Chiefs. In addition to the loss, the Texans also lost second-year wide receiver Tank Dell for the season after he suffered a gruesome leg injury while catching a touchdown in the loss.
The Texans also lost wide receiver Stefon Diggs for the season after the star receiver tore his ACL, leaving what was once a strong wide receiving corps now thin.
A win over the Ravens on Christmas for the Texans would not only clinch them a playoff spot, but also the AFC South title and a home playoff game.
The Texans-Ravens matchup will also come with a special halftime performance by Beyoncé.
All four of the teams playing on Wednesday are playing their third game in 11 days.
With so many playoff implications, and a big halftime performance, Netflix will be under a lot of pressure from NFL fans and the "BeyHive" to make sure things go off without a hitch.
Fox News' Jackson Thompson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The holiday season for NFL players means focusing on finishing the regular season strong with only a couple of weeks left on the schedule.
For some, it’s the race to the playoffs. For others, it’s putting good reps on tape and hoping the season ends on a high note.
But what’s not lost for these athletes, though, is holiday spirit as evident by four NFL stars – Tee Higgins (Cincinnati Bengals), James Conner (Arizona Cardinals), Pat Surtain II (Denver Broncos) and Jayden Daniels (Washington Commanders) – helping Raising Cane’s give away bikes to children this past week in their respective communities.
In speaking with each star last week, Fox News Digital asked them to go into the memory bank to find their favorite Christmas memories.
For Daniels, the Offensive Rookie of the Year frontrunner, he couldn’t just pick one because of how much spending time with family means to him.
"Pretty much all of them," he said, laughing. "Being around my family, enjoying the holidays. I’d probably say when I was younger growing up and being able to wake up on Christmas, open presents and watch Kobe Bryant play basketball. Those are my favorite memories."
Surtain grew up with a father playing in the NFL, so he understands well how time together on the holidays with family is precious.
"This probably going to sound a little cliché, but my favorite moments are just spending time with family at the end of the day," he explained. "Presents mean a lot, but that’s something that’s going to be here and there. Spending time, spending cherished moments with family means a lot, especially during the holiday.
"I always remember having a big family gathering back then. Great food on the counter, playing great Christmas activities, playing different games and stuff. I always would remember and share those special memories that are in a special place in my heart. I think sharing those memories with my family is always going to be beautiful."
Conner also enjoyed every ounce of time he got to spend with family, especially when it came to a cherished Christmas tradition.
"I remember putting my tree up as a young kid at the house," he said. "We had a little small five-foot tree. Putting it up, just got you in the Christmas spirit early."
And perhaps some of us know what it’s like to be curious in the middle of the night, seeing if there are presents around the tree.
That was Higgins, who immediately knew his favorite Christmas memory, even if it came with some parental discipline.
"I remember one time waking up in the middle of the night, and my dad had got me this dirt bike," Higgins started. "It’s sitting in the living room. I woke up in the middle of the night, my parents are asleep. I go in there and I crank the dirt bike, and everybody in the house woke up. I ended getting a whooping very quick."
Don’t worry, Higgins was able to use his new dirt bike the next day.
The common theme at the end of the day here is quality time with family and making memories that will last a lifetime.
