| Rk | Team | W | L | T | Pct | Div | Conf |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | y-New England | 11 | 3 | 0 | .786 | 3-1 | 8-2 |
| 2 | x-Baltimore | 10 | 4 | 0 | .714 | 4-0 | 7-3 |
| 3 | Houston | 10 | 4 | 0 | .714 | 4-0 | 8-2 |
| 4 | Denver | 8 | 6 | 0 | .571 | 3-2 | 6-4 |
| 5 | x-Pittsburgh | 10 | 4 | 0 | .714 | 3-2 | 8-3 |
| 6 | New York Jets | 8 | 6 | 0 | .571 | 3-2 | 6-5 |
| - | Cincinnati | 8 | 6 | 0 | .571 | 2-3 | 6-5 |
| - | Tennessee | 7 | 7 | 0 | .500 | 1-3 | 5-5 |
| - | Oakland | 7 | 7 | 0 | .500 | 2-2 | 5-5 |
| - | San Diego | 7 | 7 | 0 | .500 | 2-3 | 6-5 |
| - | Kansas City | 6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 2-2 | 3-7 |
y – division champion, x – playoff berth
Remaining Schedules:
New England: MIA, BUF
Baltimore: CLE, @CIN
Houston: @IND, TEN
Denver: @BUF, KC
Pittsburgh: STL, @CLE
NY Jets: NYG, @MIA
Cincinnati: ARI, BAL
Tennessee: JAX, @HOU
Oakland: @KC, SD
San Diego: @DET, @OAK
Kansas City: OAK, @DEN
The Patriots received a tremendous early Christmas gift last weekend: everyone else vying for the #1 seed lost. Now the Patriots have home games against Miami and Buffalo, and if they win both, they get the #1 seed. If they drop one (likely to be Miami if it happens) and their competition wins out, they would be behind Houston and Pittsburgh (if Pitt wins the division), and Baltimore would come down to strength of victory (which currently favors Baltimore).
Baltimore breathed a huge sigh of relief after Monday night, as even with a hobbled Roethlisberger, the Steelers aren't likely to lose to either the Rams or the Browns. The Ravens, however, have the Bengals in Cincinnati looming in week 17, which could be tricky, given Baltimore's problems away from home.
Houston is hoping Baltimore does stumble, as they win a tiebreaker vs Pittsburgh but lose vs Baltimore, so the winner of that division likely decides whether or not the Texans get a first round bye.
The Jets are in good shape. If Cincinnati loses to Baltimore, the Jets can drop one fo their remaining two games and still get the 6th spot. Tennessee, Oakland, and San Diego have to win out and hope the Jets lose to Miami, and the Bengals lose either game.
Then we have the AFC West. You may notice that all 4 AFC West teams are listed above, because all 4 are still alive. Kansas City barely so, but hey, they did just beat the Packers, so who knows?
Potential AFC games that could be flexed to Sunday Night Football in week 17:
Note: The NFL prefers to have a playoff spot riding on the outcome of the final game of the season. Two years ago this game was Jets-Bengals, where the Jets had to win to get in. Last year St. Louis and Seattle squared off for the NFC West. This would have been the NFL's dream, except the division winner was going to have a paltry 7 or 8 wins. The flex decision will happen next Tuesday.
Kansas City at Denver - Could be for the AFC West (would require Denver losing to Buffalo and KC beating Oakland this week) Odds: 10%
San Diego at Oakland - ditto (would require Denver losing both games, as they hold tiebreaker edges over both these teams) Odds: 0.2%
Baltimore at Cincinnati - Cincy could be facing "win and they're in" (requires the Jets to lose to the Giants this week) Odds: 33%
Tennessee at Houston - Titans could have a "win and they're in" scenario (would require Jets to lose to Giants and Bengals to lose to Browns this week) Odds: 15%
If that flex game comes from the AFC, I'd wager on it being the Baltimore vs Cincinnati game.
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