NFL Playoff Picture: Browns back in WC hunt, 49ers in control of NFC
Twelve weeks of the NFL's regular season are almost in the books, and the playoff picture is starting to come into focus.
Here's how the standings look after Sunday's games.
AFC| Seed | Team | Division | Record |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Patriots | East | 10-1 |
| 2 | Ravens | North | 8-2 |
| 3 | Texans | South | 7-4 |
| 4 | Chiefs | West | 7-4 |
| 5 | Bills | East | 8-3 |
| 6 | Steelers | North | 6-5 |
Stop us if you've heard this before, but the New England Patriots have the inside track for home-field advantage throughout the playoffs after defeating the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday.
The Baltimore Ravens, who play the Los Angeles Rams on Monday night, own a head-to-head win over the Patriots but can't clinch the top seed unless the AFC East leaders lose.
New England will face the third- and fourth-seeded Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs, respectively, in its next two games.
The Buffalo Bills have put themselves in a great position to secure the fifth seed. Some have derided the AFC East club for being buoyed by an easy schedule, but that won't be the case going forward.
Four of the Bills' last five games are against teams with a winning record, including two against New England and Baltimore.
The Pittsburgh Steelers moved into the other wild-card spot Sunday by avoiding disaster against the Cincinnati Bengals with a switch at quarterback.
Head coach Mike Tomlin refused to say whether Mason Rudolph or Devlin Hodges will start next week, but the Steelers' lack of explosive plays with the former under center has been one of the team's weaknesses all year long.
In the hunt| Seed | Team | Division | Record |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | Raiders | West | 6-5 |
| 8 | Colts | South | 6-5 |
| 9 | Titans | South | 6-5 |
| 10 | Browns | North | 5-6 |
The Oakland Raiders and Indianapolis Colts both missed big opportunities to solidify their playoff spots this week. Oakland suffered a shock blowout loss to the New York Jets and Indy fell to division rival Houston on Thursday.
In a vital AFC West clash next week, the Raiders travel to Arrowhead to take on the Chiefs.
Meanwhile, the Tennessee Titans continue to fly under the radar, making easy work of the Jacksonville Jaguars. Their upcoming games include big matchups with the Colts, Raiders, and Texans (twice).
Despite struggling for portions of the season, the Cleveland Browns are still alive in the wild-card race. Baker Mayfield and Co. have the chance to seal the tiebreaker over the Steelers in a Week 13 rematch of their controversial Thursday night contest.
Cleveland also has favorable matchups against the Bengals (twice) and the Arizona Cardinals sandwiching a game with the Ravens.
NFC| Seed | Team | Division | Record |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 49ers | West | 10-1 |
| 2 | Saints | South | 9-2 |
| 3 | Packers | North | 8-3 |
| 4 | Cowboys | East | 6-5 |
| 5 | Seahawks | West | 9-2 |
| 6 | Vikings | North | 8-3 |
The San Francisco 49ers made a statement Sunday night by blowing out Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers to stay atop the NFC and ahead of the Seattle Seahawks in the West.
It doesn't get any easier for the 49ers, though, as they face the Ravens in Week 13 before a pivotal matchup against the New Orleans Saints, who all but locked up the NFC South by beating the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.
Both the NFC West and North look set to come down to the wire. The Packers took the first game with the Minnesota Vikings, and the rivals will face off again in Week 16. Meanwhile, San Francisco and Seattle are slated to play in the mouth-watering regular-season finale.
The Cowboys still sit atop the NFC East, but owner Jerry Jones isn't happy with his team consistently losing to opponents with winning records.
Head coach Jason Garrett is firmly on the hot seat, and both his fate and the division title will likely be decided by the Cowboys' matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 16.
In the hunt| Seed | Team | Division | Record |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | Rams | West | 6-4 |
| 8 | Bears | North | 5-6 |
| 9 | Eagles | East | 5-6 |
| 10 | Panthers | South | 5-6 |
Sean McVay needs to find some magic to reignite the Rams' offense. The NFC West club will likely need to put up a ton of points to avoid a loss Monday against the red-hot Ravens.
Though the Eagles fell to the Seahawks, the Cowboys' loss to the Patriots means the NFC East remains wide-open, especially as Philadelphia has one of the easiest remaining schedules - it faces four teams with a combined record of 8-36.
The Panthers and Chicago Bears - who both face tough remaining schedules - need minor miracles and a disastrous end to the year by the Vikings to force their way into the postseason.
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