Despite the team's horrendous loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, the LA Chargers find themselves in the NFL Playoff picture. Fourteen teams are in position to make a run for the Lombardi Trophy, and the Chargers are lucky to be one of them.
Thanksgiving is around the corner so it's time to start looking at what the NFL Playoffs might look like. There's plenty of time for the standings to crystallize, but we now know who will be fighting to maintain a playoff spot and who will be on the outside looking to get in.
The Monday Night Football matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and Las Vegas Raiders won't have a huge impact on the playoff picture (sorry, Dallas fans). With that in mind, we can break down the current playoff picture after Sunday's slate of games.
AFC Playoff Picture:
Seed | Team |
|---|---|
1. | Denver Broncos (9-2) |
2. | New England Patriots (9-2) |
3. | Indianapolis Colts (8-2) |
4. | Pittsburgh Steelers (6-4) |
5. | Buffalo Bills (7-3) |
6. | LA Chargers (7-4) |
7. | Jacksonville Jaguars (6-4) |
IN THE HUNT:
8. Houston Texans (5-5)
9. Kansas City Chiefs (5-5)
10. Baltimore Ravens (5-5)
Ten teams in the AFC have a .500 or better record heading into Week 12. Surprisingly, three playoff teams from last season find themselves on the outside looking in. Of the three teams, Baltimore has the best path forward as the Steelers' time atop the AFC North may be short-lived after Aaron Rodgers' wrist injury.
The Kansas City Chiefs are the big team on the outside looking in. Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid had a chance to make huge gains in the conference after the Chargers lost to the Jaguars in the early slate. However, with a loss to Denver, the Chiefs now find themselves a full game back of a playoff spot with both the Chargers and Jaguars owning the head-to-head tiebreaker over them.
Houston plays LA, Kansas City, Buffalo, and Indianapolis (twice) in its final seven games. DeMeco Ryans' team will either catapult itself into playoff position or will crash and burn with tough matchups.
AFC Playoff bracket if the season ended today:
- (1) Denver Broncos: BYE
- (2) New England Patriots vs. (7) Jacksonville Jaguars
- (3) Indianapolis Colts vs. (6) LA Chargers
- (4) Pittsburgh Steelers vs. (5) Buffalo Bills
There isn't an easy matchup in the first round of the AFC Playoffs, so it's doubtful there will be any trickery late to try and get a better matchup. All three of the wild-card teams are dangerous, and there isn't a division winner that's a pushover (unless Pittsburgh somehow wins the division without Rodgers).
The Bills play the Steelers in two weeks so fans will get an idea of what that matchup could look like. Buffalo already beat Baltimore in a thriller earlier this year. The Chargers were walloped by the Colts. The Patriots haven't played the Jaguars.
Denver would play the lowest seed that advances.
NFC Playoff Picture:
Seed | Team |
|---|---|
1. | Philadelphia Eagles (8-2) |
2. | LA Rams (8-2) |
3. | Chicago Bears (7-3) |
4. | Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-4) |
5. | Seattle Seahawks (7-3) |
6. | Green Bay Packers (6-3-1) |
7. | San Francisco 49ers (7-4) |
IN THE HUNT:
8. Detroit Lions (6-4)
9. Carolina Panthers (6-5)
There's a lot less variability in the NFC playoff picture. That last playoff spot is going to come down to one of three likely teams: the 49ers, Lions, or Packers. The Panthers are doing their best to stay in the conversation at 6-5, but it's hard to imagine them outlasting any of the other NFC playoff contenders.
Then again, Carolina is only half a game back of the Buccaneers and plays Tampa twice in the final three weeks. The Panthers do control their own destiny in that regard, as two wins over the division foe to end the season would certainly catapult them into the playoffs with the NFC South title.
If any team is going to plummet down the standings it's the Bears, who have patched together seven wins against seven teams with losing records. Chicago has played two teams with a .500 or better record and is 0-2 with a -45 point differential. Six of Chicago's last seven opponents have a winning record.
NFC Playoff bracket if the season ended today:
- (1) Philadelphia Eagles: BYE
- (2) LA Rams vs. (7) San Francisco 49ers
- (3) Chicago Bears vs. (6) Green Bay Packers
- (4) Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. (5) Seattle Seahawks
From a pure entertainment standpoint, the current NFC playoff bracket is far better than the AFC side of things. This theoretical Wild Card Weekend would include two division matchups and a high-powered slug fest between two former Carolina Panthers quarterbacks, Baker Mayfield and Sam Darnold.
The collective football world outside of Philly probably hopes the Rams surpass the Eagles for the No. 1 seed. Philly doesn't necessarily play the most entertaining brand of football, and a first-round bye instantly gets them as one of the final eight teams.