After Week 17 concludes on Sunday, the Super Bowl nears closer, and the playoff picture is eerily close to being formed. 13 of the 14 positions have been filled; one remains in the AFC. With a week left, it leaves room for some early postseason predictions.
Will the Chiefs’ health and close wins come back to haunt them? Probably. Their spotty offense beat a stout Pittsburgh defense on Christmas Day before a trip to Denver to close out the year. Pittsburgh had the potential to shut down the Chiefs offense, but to no avail. The Broncos, however, have a chip on their shoulder at home after a heartbreaking loss in their last matchup. At worst, the Chiefs would be 15-1, but the window for Buffalo to get the one seed is closed. It seems likely that the Chiefs get to the AFC Championship, and possibly the Super Bowl, but Buffalo has their best shot in years to exercise their playoff demons.
Can the Bills really get to a Super Bowl? They could, but they need to play their best ball. They did so against the Jets, and now will go to Foxboro to close out the year. While the Bills struggled to put the Patriots away, it’s a game they should win. If they can get to the AFC championship and finally beat Patrick Mahomes, it seems most likely the Bills will see a Super Bowl appearance for the chance at Josh Allen’s second ring of the season.
Can Baltimore keep the AFC North? Yes. Pittsburgh controls their own destiny for the division, but they dropped the Kansas City game and will face and a hungry Bengals squad next week. Pittsburgh holds the tiebreaker. The Ravens must beat Houston on Christmas, and then Cleveland should be easy. If all of this happens, Baltimore keeps the three seed and the division. They still have had concerning performances against the better teams in the league, and Lamar Jackson’s playoff efforts have been subpar at best during his career, but Baltimore is still in a good spot for a Super Bowl run.
What in the world is going on with this team? Just when you thought Pittsburgh and Kansas City were inconsistent, then we come to the Texans. This is a team that has a win over the Bills, but also a loss to the Titans. C.J. Stroud’s sophomore slump will be what loses the Texans their chance at a Super Bowl this year. Injuries have not been their friend, but Stroud has already thrown over double his interception total from last year, and they got smacked by Baltimore on Christmas. If they want any shot at getting to the big dance, they need to take a hard look in the mirror.
Riding a three-game losing streak, how pivotal is the Bengals game, even with a playoff berth? They’re more important that people think. The Steelers haven’t been consistent, and have suffered losses against the Eagles and Ravens, two teams with playoffs in their future. They’re good enough to beat up on the fringe teams, like the Chargers and Broncos, but can they really get wins over the elite teams in the conference? It seems unlikely that they could beat Kansas City, Buffalo, or an elite NFC team in the Super Bowl.
What happens next? NFL.com gave the Chargers a 94% chance to make the playoffs before Saturday. After beating New England soundly, they’re in. Their other game is against the Raiders, so they could end the season as high as the five seed, in theory. However, against teams over .500, they stand at 3-5. With their current seeding, they’d play the Ravens. Depending on how things shake up in these next games, it also could be Houston or Pittsburgh. None of those matchups sound ideal.
How should a Broncos fan assess this season? Even with a probable playoff appearance, this team likely won’t make it past the wildcard, which is ok. The Broncos this year are like the Packers last year; a new QB under center, very low expectations, constrained by dead cap, but still a playoff-caliber team in a “rebuilding year”. The Broncos won’t win the Super Bowl, but they’re playing with house money, and once the Russell Wilson cap hit gets cleared, they’ll get even better. That Packers team last year came in as the seven seed and beat the two-seed Cowboys. Maybe Denver can follow the same path with Bo Nix, who deserves to win Rookie of the Year.
How possible is a playoff berth? They need a hope and a prayer. Cincy beat Denver in an amazing game yesterday and will play Pittsburgh next week; two hard games, yes, there’s a decent chance they win both. Joe Burrow has been Superman during the homestretch, doing everything he can to see the playoffs again. Cincy needs to win out, Denver needs to lose out, and the Colts and Dolphins both must drop one of their games. It seems like the Bengals woke up too late, and the Super Bowl window for Burrow is closing before our very eyes, but there’s always a chance, right?
How possible is a playoff berth? Unlikely. Miami beat Cleveland, and now face the Jets. They would need to win out, and have Denver or LA lose out. They have an 28% chance of winning, according to NFL.com. That’s a lot that must happen, and Miami has been criminally underachieving all year. Mike McDaniel’s seat will be hot to start the season next year.
The NFL Playoff Picture is updated and displayed here: https://www.nfl.com/standings/playoff-picture
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