The NFL is inching closer and closer to the start of the postseason. Week 15 brings us to the final four weeks of the regular season, with teams all vying for a position in the playoff brackets. How do the AFC and NFC playoff pictures stand and what teams can clinch or be eliminated this week? We break down the current situation from across the league.
We also bring back the Miami Dolphins rooting guide. While the Dolphins started the year 1-6 and looked like a team in contention for the league’s worst record, they have turned things around late in the year and somehow clawed their way back into postseason consideration. The hole they dug themselves to start the year makes a postseason berth unlikely, but they still have a chance and can see those chances continue to grow this week.
1 – Denver Broncos (12-2, AFC West leader)^2 – New England Patriots (11-3, AFC East leader)3 – Jacksonville Jaguars (10-4, AFC South leader)4 – Pittsburgh Steelers (7-6, AFC North leader)
5 – Los Angeles Chargers (10-4, Wildcard 1)6 – Buffalo Bills (10-4, Wildcard 2)7 – Houston Texans (9-5, Wildcard 3)
Indianapolis Colts (8-6)Baltimore Ravens (7-7)
Eliminated:Kansas City Chiefs (6-8)Miami Dolphins (6-8)Cincinnati Bengals (4-10)New York Jets (3-11)Cleveland Browns (3-11)Las Vegas Raiders (2-12)Tennessee Titans (2-12)
AFC playoff seeding tiebreakers
Chargers over Bills based on AFC record (8-2 vs. 7-3)Chiefs over Dolphins based on AFC record (3-6 vs. 3-7)Jets over Browns based on head-to-head resultsRaiders over Titans based on head-to-head results
AFC playoff clinching scenarios
Denver Broncos – Clinched playoff berth
Broncos clinch a playoff berth with:
Broncos win ORBroncos tie and Chargers loss ORBroncos tie and Jaguars loss ORBroncos tie and Texans loss/tie ORBroncos tie and Colts loss/tie ORTexans loss/tie and Colts loss ORColts loss/tie and Texans tie
New England Patriots – Cannot clinch
Patriots clinch the AFC East division title with:
Patriots clinch a playoff berth with:
Patriots win ORPatriots tie and Chargers loss ORPatriots tie and Texans loss/tie ORPatriots tie and Colts loss/tie ORPatriots tie and Jaguars loss ORTexans loss/tie and Colts loss ORColts loss/tie and Texans tie
AFC playoff elimination scenarios
Cincinnati Bengals – Eliminated
Bengals eliminated from the playoffs with:
Bengals loss ORBengals tie and Steelers win
Miami Dolphins – Elimimated
Dolphins eliminated from the playoffs with:
Dolphins loss and Bills win/tie and Texans win/tie ORDolphins loss and Bills win/tie and Colts win/tie ORDolphins loss and Texans win and Colts win ORDolphins tie and Bills win and Jaguars win/tie and Chargers win/tie and Colts win/tie and Texans win ORColts tie and Bills win and Jaguars win/tie and Chargers win/tie and Colts win and Texans tie
Kansas City Chiefs – Eliminated
Chiefs eliminated from the playoffs with:
Chiefs loss and Bills win/tie and Jaguars win/tie and Texans win ORChiefs loss and Bills win/tie and Jaguars win/tie and Colts win ORChiefs loss and Bills win/tie and Jaguars win/tie and Texans tie and Colts tie ORChiefs loss/tie and one of 33 different scenarios that involve combinations of wins from multiple teams to create strength of victory/schedule scenarios (if these start to come into play, this will be updated)
1 – Los Angeles Rams (11-3, NFC West leader)^2 – Green Bay Packers (9-4-1, NFC North leader)3 – Philadelphia Eagles (9-5, NFC East leader)4 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-7, NFC South leader)
5 – Seattle Seahawks (11-3, Wildcard 1)6 – San Francisco 49ers (10-4, Wildcard 2)7 – Chicago Bears (10-4, Wildcard 3)
Detroit Lions (8-6)Carolina Panthers (7-7)Dallas Cowboys (6-7-1)
Eliminated:Minnesota Vikings (6-8)Atlanta Falcons (5-9)New Orleans Saints (4-10)Washington Commanders (4-10)Arizona Cardinals (3-11)New York Giants (2-12)
NFC playoff seeding tiebreakers
Rams over Seahawks based on head-to-head resultsBuccaneers over Panthers based on wins in common games (5-5 vs. 4-6)49ers over Bears based on NFC record (8-2 vs. 6-3)Saints over Commanders based on NFC record (4-7 vs. 2-7)
NFC playoff clinching scenarios
Los Angeles Rams – Clinched playoff berth
Rams clinch a playoff berth with:
NFC playoff elimination scenarios
Minnesota Vikings – Eliminated
Vikings eliminated from the playoffs with:
Vikings loss/tie ORBears win/tie ORLions win/tie
Miami Dolphins Week 15 rooting guide
Dolphins at Steelers (MNF): Obviously, the Dolphins need wins to make the playoffs. Root for: DolphinsRavens at Bengals: This one comes down to who you think will win the AFC North, the Steelers or the Ravens. Miami giving the Steelers a loss on Monday night would open the door for the Ravens to claim the division lead. That scenario is probably the preferred path way for Miami, because they would then have the head-to-head advantage over the Steelers in a tiebreak scenario, while the Ravens hold that advantage having beaten Miami earlier this season. If you want to argue that the Ravens losing and falling behind the Dolphins is the better path, that could be a consideration here as well. Whichever way this goes, the Dolphins need that path to continue throughout the remaining three games. Root for: Coin toss, but Ravens wins would seem to be the better pathway currently.Cardinals at Texans: This one is straightforward. Miami needs the Texans to start picking up some losses, while the Cardinals are an NFC team that has no bearing on the Dolphins’ playoff chances. Root for: CardinalsJets at Jaguars: The Colts and Texans are both trying to chase down the Jaguars for the AFC South title, a move that would push Jacksonville, who already has nine wins this year, into a playoff position, and Miami does not need to deal with that. Root for: JetsChargers at Chiefs: The Dolphins only catch the Chargers if Los Angeles loses every game on their remaining schedule and Miami wins every game. While that would seem like a rooting goal, it actually is better if the Chargers pull off the win here and push Kansas City behind the Dolphins in the standings. Root for: ChargersBills at Patriots: The Patriots can end the five-year AFC East title run for the Bills with a win on Sunday, but more importantly for the Dolphins, they can also drop Buffalo to 9-5, which (assuming a Miami win on Monday) would put the Bills only two games ahead of the Dolphins in the AFC East with three games to play. Miami would love to jump the Bills, making them more likely to make it to the playoffs. Root for: PatriotsPackers at Broncos: There are not any actual playoff implications for the Dolphins in this game, but given the game above roots for the Patriots, rooting for Denver to hold on to the top spot in the AFC playoff picture feels right. Root for: BroncosColts at Seahawks: Philip Rivers is returning for the Colts, despite also being a semi-finalist for the Hall of Fame this year, because injuries have decimated their quarterback position. A collapse from Indianapolis would be the best thing that could happen for Miami, given the Colts dismantled the Dolphins in Week 1. Root for: Seahawks
