Greg Fiume/Getty Photographs
Present AFC Playoff Bracket
1. Kansas Metropolis Chiefs (15-1): Bye to the Divisional Spherical
2. Buffalo Payments (13-3) vs. 7. Denver Broncos (9-7)
3. Baltimore Ravens (12-5) vs. 6. Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7)
4. Houston Texans (9-7) vs. 5. Los Angeles Chargers (10-6)
Present AFC Standings
1. Kansas Metropolis Chiefs: 15-1, clinched AFC West title and AFC’s No. 1 seed
2. Buffalo Payments: 13-3, clinched AFC East title and AFC’s No. 2 seed
3. Baltimore Ravens: 12-5, clinched AFC North title and AFC’s No. 3 seed
4. Houston Texans: 9-7, clinched AFC South title and AFC’s No. 4 seed
5. Los Angeles Chargers: 10-6, clinched playoff berth
6. Pittsburgh Steelers: 10-7, clinched playoff berth
7. Denver Broncos: 9-7
Nonetheless Alive
8. Cincinnati Bengals: 9-8
9. Miami Dolphins: 8-8
Eradicated
10. Indianapolis Colts: 7-9
11. New York Jets: 4-12
12. Las Vegas Raiders: 4-12
13. Jacksonville Jaguars: 4-12
14. Tennessee Titans: 3-13
15. New England Patriots: 3-13
16. Cleveland Browns: 3-14
AFC East
The Buffalo Payments will assuredly relaxation their starters Sunday on the New England Patriots (1 p.m. ET) with the AFC East title and No. 2 seed in hand.
The most important query is who the Payments will play within the Wild Card spherical. It might be the Miami Dolphins, who go to the New York Jets (4:25 p.m.) to finish the season.
Miami wants a win and a Denver Broncos loss to the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs (4:25 p.m.) with the intention to try this. The Dolphins are lucky to play the struggling 4-12 Jets, however the Broncos will host a Chiefs staff with no incentive to play their starters after locking within the No. 1 seed.
AFC North
The Baltimore Ravens roll into the playoffs because the No. 3 seed after successful their ultimate 4 video games by a mixed 92 factors.
They await the eventual No. 6 seed, which would be the Los Angeles Chargers or the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Proper now, Pittsburgh is within the No. 6 seed after shedding to the Bengals on Saturday. Nevertheless, they will bump again as much as No. 5 if the Chargers fall to the host Las Vegas Raiders (4:25 p.m.). Each groups could be 10-7, however Pittsburgh earned the head-to-head tiebreaker after beating L.A. 20-10 earlier this season.
In the meantime, the Bengals should play a nervy ready recreation. They want Miami to lose to the Jets and Denver to fall to Kansas Metropolis. That is lots simpler mentioned than accomplished, given the Jets’ 4-12 document and the Chiefs’ lack of incentive to play their starters, plus Denver being at dwelling.
AFC South
The Houston Texans clinched the AFC South three weeks in the past and would be the AFC’s No. 4 seed. Nevertheless, they’re going into Week 18 on a chilly stretch after going 3-5 of their final eight video games, capped by a 31-2 defeat to the Baltimore Ravens on Christmas Day.
Houston has yet one more alternative to enter the playoffs in any kind of rhythm on Sunday when it visits the Tennessee Titans (1 p.m.).
AFC West
The Chiefs have earned the No. 1 seed and can host a Divisional Spherical matchup on both January 18 or 19.
The Chargers clinched a playoff berth after crushing the New England Patriots 40-7 final Saturday. They will end the season towards the staff they began it towards, the Raiders. L.A. beat Las Vegas 22-10 in Week 1 and can go to Vegas this time.
A win secures the No. 5 seed and a date with a reeling Texans staff. A loss means a visit to Baltimore, which may make a case for being the NFL’s greatest staff in the meanwhile given the way it’s performed the final 4 weeks.
Denver’s future is in its personal palms. It is win-and-in for the Broncos, who will go to Buffalo for the playoffs in the event that they beat Kansas Metropolis.
In the event that they lose, it is over. If Miami loses to the Jets, the Broncos would lose the head-to-head tiebreaker towards the Bengals by advantage of their 30-24 extra time loss final Saturday. If Miami beats the Jets, then the Dolphins win a three-team convention document tiebreaker (7-5 Miami, 6-6 Cincinnati, 5-7 Denver).