With 31 games left in the regular season, the picture for the NFL playoffs is starting to take shape.
With a 37-20 win over the Jets on Thursday night, the Cleveland Browns became the seventh team to earn a playoff ticket this year. The Browns were the first team to earn a spot in Week 17, but there’s a good chance they won’t be the last. In fact, he could have six more spots confirmed by the time Week 17 begins.
Here are the playoff deciding scenarios for Week 17, starting with the AFC.
Jaguars (8-7)
Qualify for the AFC South and playoffs with the following conditions:
1. Jaguars beat Panthers, Colts lose to Raiders, Texans lose to Titans.
Chiefs (9-6)
can win the AFC West championship and qualify for the playoffs.:
1. The Chiefs win or tie against the Bengals, or
2. A combination of a Raiders loss or tie with the Colts and a Broncos loss or tie with the Chargers.
Bill (9-6)
There are 14 scenarios where the Bills could clinch a playoff spot this weekend, so let’s take a look at them.
You can qualify for the playoffs in the following ways:
- Bills beat Patriots + lose to Steelers or tie with Seahawks + lose to Bengals or tie with Chiefs OR
- Bills win + Steelers lose or tie + Jaguars lose or tie with Panthers OR
- Bills win + Steelers lose or tie + Texans lose or tie with Titans + Colts lose or tie with Raiders OR
- Bills win + Bengals lose or tie + Jaguars lose or tie OR
- Bills win + Bengals lose or tie + Texans lose or tie + Colts lose or tie OR
- Bills tie + Steelers lose + Bengals lose + Jaguars lose OR
- Bills tie + Steelers lose + Bengals lose + Texans lose or tie OR
- Bills tie + Steelers lose + Bengals lose + Colts lose or tie OR
- Bills tie + Steelers lose + Jaguars lose + Texans lose or tie OR
- Bills tie + Steels lose + Jaguars lose + Colts lose or tie OR
- Bills tie + Steelers lose + Texans lose + Colts lose OR
- Bills tie + Bengals lose + Jaguars lose + Texans lose or tie OR
- Bills tie + Bengals lose + Jaguars lose + Colts lose or tie OR
- Bills tie + Bengals lose + Texans lose + Colts lose
If the Bills beat the Patriots and the Dolphins lose to the Ravens, they will play for the AFC East title in Week 18. If the Dolphins lose, the Ravens could clinch the top seed in the AFC. On the other hand, if the Dolphins win, they will clinch the AFC East title and maintain their No. 1 seed.
Now, let’s review the NFC decision scenario.
Buccaneers (8-7)
Here’s how you can earn a playoff spot and the NFC South title:
1. The Buccaneers beat the Saints, or
2. Buccaneers tied, Falcons lost to Bears
Rams (8-7)
You can qualify for the playoffs with:
1. The Rams beat the Giants and the Seahawks lost to the Steelers, or
2. Rams win and Vikings-Packers tie combination
Seahawks (8-7)
You can qualify for the playoffs in the following ways:
1. Seahawks beat Steelers, Vikings and Packers tied
In the NFC, the Eagles could win the division title with a win against the Cardinals, a loss to the Cowboys, or a tie with Detroit. The Eagles won the NFC East with a tie and a loss to the Cowboys.
The 49ers also lost to both the Eagles and Lions and could clinch the No. 1 overall seed with a win against the Commanders.
No matter what happens this weekend, they still have at least one spot left heading into Week 18, which would be the No. 7 seed in the AFC, but they won’t get it this week. The NFC’s No. 7 seed is also likely to play in Week 18, based on the fact that the Seahawks need a tie to win.
If you’re scoring at home, here’s a list of teams that have already won:
AFC (3/7): Ravens, Dolphins, Browns
NFC (4/7): 49ers, Eagles, Lions, Cowboys (DET and SF win division titles)
Most notably, the Browns and Lions are making the playoffs together for the first time since 1994.
Seven playoff berths have been confirmed, but none of the seven seeds for each conference have been earned, so they remain up in the air and could lead to significant drama in the final two weeks of the regular season. will be added.
For a detailed look at the current playoff standings, Be sure to check out the breakdown here.