Sportsnet Staff
December 26, 2023, 5:27 PM
With two weeks to go in the regular season, eight spots remain open in the NFL playoffs.
By the end of the week, it’s possible (though extremely unlikely) that all NFC spots could be accounted for, while the AFC will have at least one berth up for grabs in the final week.
The biggest game of the week clearly is Sunday’s showdown between the Baltimore Ravens and visiting Miami Dolphins. If Baltimore wins, the Ravens will be the top seed in the AFC. If the Dolphins win, they’ll have a magic number of one (Miami victory or Baltimore loss) to take the top seed in the final week.
Meanwhile, Buffalo Bills fans will be watching the out-of-town scoreboard closely as their team hosts the New England Patriots on Sunday. With a win and some help, they can book a playoff spot. And if the Dolphins lose and Bills win, the Week 18 Miami-Buffalo clash will determine the AFC East winner.
The surprising Cleveland Browns can grab the seventh playoff berth with a win over the visiting New York Jets on Thursday night.
Over in the NFC, the San Francisco 49ers are in the driver’s seat to grab the No. 1 seed, but still have some work to do after losing to Baltimore on Monday.
The best news for fans? None of the eight eliminated teams face each other this week, meaning all games feature at least some playoff relevance (though Denver vs. the Los Angeles Chargers late Sunday afternoon could be rendered all but meaningless depending on earlier results).
Here’s a look at this week’s clinching scenarios (with help from NFL.com), the playoff picture and the Week 17 schedule.
Clinching scenarios
AFC
Baltimore Ravens
• Can clinch top seed in AFC with win over Miami.
• Can clinch AFC North title with win or tie; OR Cleveland loss or tie.
Miami Dolphins
The Dolphins can clinch the AFC East title with a win over Baltimore; OR a Buffalo loss or tie.
Cleveland Browns
The Browns, who host the New York Jets, can clinch a playoff berth with one of five scenarios.
• CLE win or tie
• PIT loss or tie
• BUF loss
• JAX loss or tie
• HOU loss or tie + IND loss or tie
Kansas City Chiefs
The Chiefs can clinch the AFC West title and a playoff berth with a win or tie vs. Cincinnati; OR a Las Vegas loss or tie and a Denver loss or tie.
Buffalo Bills
The Bills, who host New England, can clinch a playoff berth with one of 14 scenarios.
• BUF win + PIT loss or tie + CIN loss or tie
• BUF win + PIT loss or tie + JAX loss or tie
• BUF win + PIT loss or tie + HOU loss or tie + IND loss or tie
• BUF win + CIN loss or tie + JAX loss or tie
• BUF win + CIN loss or tie + HOU loss or tie + IND loss or tie
• BUF tie + PIT loss + CIN loss + JAX loss
• BUF tie + PIT loss + CIN loss + HOU loss or tie
• BUF tie + PIT loss + CIN loss + IND loss or tie
• BUF tie + PIT loss + JAX loss + HOU loss or tie
• BUF tie + PIT loss + JAX loss + IND loss or tie
• BUF tie + PIT loss + HOU loss + IND loss
• BUF tie + CIN loss + JAX loss + HOU loss or tie
• BUF tie + CIN loss + JAX loss + IND loss or tie
• BUF tie + CIN loss + HOU loss + IND loss
NFC
San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers can clinch the top seed in the NFC with a win over Washington, a Detroit loss and a Philadelphia loss.
Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles can clinch the NFC East title with a win over Arizona and a Dallas loss or tie; OR a Philly tie and Dallas loss.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Buccaneers can clinch the NFC South title and a playoff berth with a win over New Orleans; OR a Tampa tie and Atlanta loss.
Los Angeles Rams
The Rams can clinch a playoff berth with a win over the New York Giants and a Seattle loss; OR a Rams win and a Green Bay-Minnesota tie.
Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks can clinch a playoff berth with a win over Pittsburgh and a Green Bay-Minnesota tie.
In the playoffs
NFC
*San Francisco 49ers (11-4)
*Philadelphia Eagles (11-4)
*Detroit Lions (11-4)
Dallas Cowboys (10-5)
AFC
*Baltimore Ravens (12-3)
*Miami Dolphins (11-4)
In current playoff spots
NFC
*Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-7)
Los Angeles Rams (8-7)
Seattle Seahawks (8-7)
AFC
*Kansas City Chiefs (9-6)
*Jacksonville Jaguars (8-7)
Cleveland Browns (10-5)
Buffalo Bills (9-6)
Indianapolis Colts (8-7)
* Current division leaders.
In the hunt
NFC
Minnesota Vikings (7-8)
Atlanta Falcons (7-8)
Green Bay Packers (7-8)
New Orleans Saints (7-8)
Chicago Bears (6-9)
AFC
Houston Texans (8-7)
Pittsburgh Steelers (8-7)
Cincinnati Bengals (8-7)
Las Vegas Raiders (7-8)
Denver Broncos (7-8)
Eliminated
New York Jets (6-9)
New York Giants (6-9)
Tennessee Titans (5-10)
Los Angeles Chargers (5-10)
New England Patriots (4-11)
Washington Commanders (4-11)
Arizona Cardinals (3-11)
Carolina Panthers (2-13)
Week 17 schedule
Thursday, Dec. 28
New York Jets at Cleveland, 8:15 p.m. ET / 5:15 p.m. PT
Saturday, Dec. 30
Detroit at Dallas, 8:15 pm ET / 5:15 pm PT
Sunday, Dec. 31
Miami at Baltimore, 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT
New England at Buffalo, 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT
Atlanta at Chicago, 1 pm ET/10 am PT
Tennessee at Houston, 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT
Las Vegas at Indianapolis, 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT
Carolina at Jacksonville, 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT
L.A. Rams at New York Giants, 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT
Arizona at Philadelphia, 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT
New Orleans at Tampa Bay, 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT
San Francisco at Washington, 1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT
Pittsburgh at Seattle, 4:05 p.m. ET / 1:05 p.m. PT
L.A. Chargers at Denver, 4:25 p.m. ET / 1:25 p.m. PT
Cincinnati at Kansas City, 4:25 p.m. ET / 1:25 p.m. PT
Green Bay at Minnesota, 8:20 p.m. ET / 5:20 p.m. PT
2023-12-26 22:27:00
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