Here’s how the NFL playoff picture looks after Week 16 games on Christmas Eve (Saturday).
AFC:
y – 1. Buffalo Bills (12-3), AFC East champions. Overcame rough start and tougher hitting conditions to win third straight AFC East crown. Next week’s matchup against Cincinnati will be electric, with home field advantage at stake. The rest of the schedule. At the Bengals, against the Patriots
y – 2. Kansas City Chiefs (12-3), AFC West champions. Took the business against the Seahawks. Two AFC West foes to finish the season and play for the No. 1 seed, but earlier losses to Buffalo and Cincinnati cost dear. The rest of the schedule. vs. Broncos at Raiders
x – 3. Cincinnati Bengals (11-4), AFC North leaders. Joe Burrow came out with the ball again, this time against Bill Belichick’s Patriots defense. Again. Next week against Buffalo is key, as is the week after against Baltimore. The rest of the schedule. vs. Bills vs. Ravens
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4. Jacksonville Jaguars (7-8), AFC South leaders. Currently leading the AFC South after the Titans lost to the Texans. The 18th match of the week will be pivotal. The rest of the schedule. At Texas vs. the Titans
x – 5. Baltimore Ravens (10-5), wild card No. 1. Backup Tyler Huntley came through again thanks to Greg Roman’s rushing offense and stout defense, keeping the Ravens in contention for the AFC North title. They have a wild card spot thanks to the Jets and Patriots wins and losses. The rest of the schedule. vs. Steelers at Bengals
6. Los Angeles Chargers (8-6), wild card No. 2. Play Monday night on the road against the Colts and you can clinch a playoff berth with a win. Keep the advantage of the fight against “Miami”. The rest of the schedule. vs. Colts vs. Rams vs. Broncos
7. Miami Dolphins (8-6), wild card No. 3. Host the Packers in the first of an NFL Christmas three-game series. The rest of the schedule. vs. Packers, at Patriots, vs. Jets
8. New England Patriots (7-8), out of the playoff field. After looking rattled after a devastating loss in the closing seconds in the first half last week, the Bengals torched them. Then they lost again, agonizingly, and were left on the outside looking in. The rest of the schedule. vs. Dolphins at Bills
9. New York Jets (7-8), out of the playoff field. They’ve lost four in a row and playoff hopes are all but gone. Worse, QB Zach Wilson sat again. The rest of the schedule. At Seahawks, at Dolphins
10. Tennessee Titans (7-8), AFC South leaders. The Titans have lost five straight and let the season slip away. The rest of the schedule. vs. Cowboys at Jaguars
11. Pittsburgh Steelers (7-8), out of the playoff field. Defeated the Raiders in dramatic fashion as they celebrated the life and legacy of Franco Harris. The rest of the schedule. At Ravens vs. Browns
12. Las Vegas Raiders (6-9), out of the playoff field. In a tight spot after Pittsburgh drove 76 yards and scored the game-winning TD with a minute to go, it was the last dramatic end to a wild and ultimately frustrating first season under coach Josh McDaniels. Basically, it’s only a matter of time before they are officially removed. The rest of the schedule. vs. 49ers vs. Chiefs
NFC:
x – 1. Philadelphia Eagles (13-2), NFC East leaders. A missed opportunity to clinch the NFC East, a first-round bye and home field advantage by losing to Dallas. There is still breathing room to secure that advantage. The rest of the schedule. against the saints, against the giants
y – 2. Minnesota Vikings (12-3), NFC North champions. Greg Joseph’s leg keeps the Vikings at No. 2, at least this week. The rest of the schedule. At Packers, at Bears
y – 3. San Francisco 49ers (11-4), NFC West champions. They have won eight in a row and are still fighting for number 2. The rest of the schedule. At Raiders vs. Cardinals
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-8), NFC South leaders. Wins in Carolina and New Orleans continue to turn up the heat on Tom Brady and company. The rest of the schedule. at Cardinals vs. Panthers at Falcons
x – 5. Dallas Cowboys (11-4), wild card No. 1. You look set to travel to the weekend for a wild card matchup against the winner of the NFC South. Also not out of the NFC East race but need some help. The rest of the schedule. At the Titans, at the commanders
6. New York Giants (8-6-1), wild card No. 2. Sunday had a golden opportunity for a touchdown, but the Vikings went back and forth in the lead. It helped that everyone who chased them also lost. The rest of the schedule. vs. Colts at Eagles
7. Washington Commanders (7-7-1), wild card No. 3. Still in the playoff field despite two straight losses. A Dec. 4 game against the Giants looks more beneficial. It helped that the Seahawks and Lions both lost. The rest of the schedule. vs. the Browns vs. the Cowboys
8. Seattle Seahawks (7-8), out of the playoff field. Couldn’t get anything going against the Chiefs defense and missed an opportunity to pressure Washington. The good news is that the Lions also lost and Seattle has the advantage. The rest of the schedule. vs. Jets vs. Rams
9. Detroit Lions (7-8), out of the playoff field. Finally fell back to Earth. The run defense was embarrassed. They also benefited from an opponent slip up. The rest of the schedule. vs. Bears at Packers
10. Green Bay Packers (6-8), out of the playoff field. Play the Dolphins on Christmas Day (Sunday). The Packers still need to win out and get a lot of help to get to a fourth straight season. The rest of the schedule. At Dolphins, vs. Vikings, vs. Lions
11. Carolina Panthers (6-9), out of the playoff field. Wrecked the Lions streak and ran all over them while Sam Darnold is playing the best ball of his career. They control their own destiny. The rest of the schedule. Buccaneers at Saints
12. New Orleans Saints (6-9), out of the playoff field. Scored 17 unanswered touchdowns in Cleveland to stay alive in the NFC South race. New Orleans’ problem is a poor division record (2-3) that will cost the Saints in the tiebreaker. The rest of the schedule. Eagles at Panthers
x – bench press
y – compressed partition
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