CNN
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The NFL playoffs are nearly in sight and the heat is on for some teams still in the fight to make the postseason.
Week 15 saw the number of teams that have qualified for the playoffs increase to seven, while two more were cut out of contention. There were also intriguing developments in the battles for division titles and seedings.
So who’s already punched their ticket to the postseason, who faces an anxious wait down the stretch and who already has their eyes on next year?
Seven teams across the two conferences have clinched a playoff spot after Week 15.
The reigning back-to-back Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs secured their 10th straight playoff berth with five games to spare after beating the Las Vegas Raiders on Black Friday in Week 13.
Two days later, the Buffalo Bills clinched a spot. The Bills are the only team to defeat the 13-1 Chiefs this season, and therefore hold a potential tiebreaker for the No. 1 seed in the AFC and home-field advantage in the postseason. Buffalo, however, would need to win out and hope that Kansas City drops two of its last three to guarantee the top spot.
Week 15 defeats for the Indianapolis Colts and the Miami Dolphins saw the Pittsburgh Steelers book their place in the playoffs, despite losing 27-13 to the Philadelphia Eagles.
The Colts’ defeat also meant that the 9-5 Houston Texans will make the playoffs as AFC South winners.
Meanwhile, there is a fascinating battle developing for the No. 1 seed in the NFC.
The Detroit Lions, Eagles and Minnesota Vikings are currently seeded first, second and fifth respectively and all have the same record at 12-2. Minnesota is fifth as the top four seeds are reserved for division winners.
The Vikings secured their spot on Monday with a win over the Chicago Bears, while Detroit and Philadelphia booked their spots in Week 14.
This means that the Lions are in charge of their own destiny when it comes to seeding, but losses could mean they cede control of the AFC North to Minnesota or the lurking Green Bay Packers.
The NFC is the more fluid of the two conferences, with nine teams still officially in playoff contention.
The San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys and New Orleans Saints are still technically in the hunt, but the NFL’s playoff tracker gives them less than a one per cent chance of making the postseason.
The Packers are all but confirmed to make the postseason at 10-4, while the Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks, both 8-6, are currently scrapping over the NFC West title. The Arizona Cardinals are only one game behind both teams. At the top of the NFC South, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have a one-game lead over the Atlanta Falcons.
If the season ended today, the Washington Commanders would sneak into the playoffs as the seventh seed, one game ahead of the Seahawks.
Things are slightly less complicated in the AFC. The 9-5 Baltimore Ravens are on the verge of getting in and could still take the AFC North from Pittsburgh. The Denver Broncos (9-5) and the Los Angeles Chargers (8-6) are currently seeded sixth and seventh.
The Colts, Dolphins and Cincinnati Bengals can all still make the playoffs, but all have losing records and have a 10 percent or less chance of getting in, per the NFL.
As the saying goes, there’s always next year.
Week 15 saw the Bears and Carolina Panthers as the only teams to be eliminated from postseason contention in the NFC. After opening the season at 4-2, Chicago has lost eight straight games and fired head coach Matt Eberflus after a disastrous Thanksgiving loss to the Lions, the first time in the franchise’s more than 100-year history that a coach was fired midseason.
There has been no change among eliminated teams in the AFC with the Cleveland Browns, Jacksonville Jaguars, New York Jets, Tennessee Titans, New England Patriots and Las Vegas Raiders all officially out.
AFC
1) Kansas City Chiefs (13-1) – clinched
2) Buffalo Bills (11-3) – clinched
3) Pittsburgh Steelers (10-4) – clinched
4) Houston Texans (9-5) – clinched
5) Baltimore Ravens (9-5)
6) Denver Broncos (9-5)
7) Los Angeles Chargers (8-6)
On the outside
8) Indianapolis Colts (6-8)
9) Miami Dolphins (6-8)
10) Cincinnati Bengals (6-8)
Eliminated
11) New York Jets (4-10)
12) Cleveland Browns (3-11)
13) Jacksonville Jaguars (3-11)
14) Tennessee Titans (3-11)
15) New England Patriots (3-11)
16) Las Vegas Raiders (2-12)
NFC
1) Detroit Lions (12-2) – clinched
2) Philadelphia Eagles (12-2) – clinched
3) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-6)
4) Los Angeles Rams (8-6)
5) Minnesota Vikings (12-2) – clinched
6) Green Bay Packers (10-4)
7) Washington Commanders (9-5)
On the outside
8) Seattle Seahawks (8-6)
9) Atlanta Falcons (7-7)
10) Arizona Cardinals (7-7)
11) San Francisco 49ers (6-8)
12) Dallas Cowboys (6-8)
13) New Orleans Saints (6-8)
Eliminated
14) Chicago Bears (4-10)
15) Carolina Panthers (3-11)
16) New York Giants (2-12)
