A Million Ways to Get in the Playoffs (Week 14)

We are now down to the final five weeks of the NFL season, which has fully entered the month of December. I do love December as a sports fan, because the NFL's week-by-week schedule makes the home stretch very interesting and captivating. Plus, the holidays (Christmas and New Year's) basically mean the end of the regular season; once upon a time, the NFL crowned champions during the holidays. Week 13 saw two teams clinch spots, while the first four eliminations were handed out, but there's still a lot to decipher as the month of December begins to progress.

So with all of that said, here's what the playoff picture looks like entering Week 14:

In the American Football Conference, the playoff-bound Kansas City Chiefs hold the #1 spot at 11-1, thanks to another lucky win. At #2, the now five-time in a row AFC East Champions, the Buffalo Bills, at 10-2. The Pittsburgh Steelers sit at #3 at 9-3, having increased their lead in the AFC North. And at #4, it's the AFC South leading Houston Texans at 8-5, as they head into their bye week (one of the last six teams to go on a bye this season).

Regarding the Wild Card positions, the Los Angeles Chargers move up to the #5 position at 8-4, and that's followed by the Baltimore Ravens and the Denver Broncos at 8-5. The Ravens dropped to 8-5 with their loss, and the Broncos tied them with their Monday Night win, but regarding seeding, the Ravens sit at #6 due to their blowout win over the Broncos this season. Even so, the Broncos still have a tight hold on the #7 seed in the conference, and both they and the Ravens will take a long overdue siesta this week. As for what's behind the playoff line, the Indianapolis Colts are quite behind, but they still have a shot at 6-7, as they are two games behind in the Wild Card race and in the AFC South. The Miami Dolphins dropped to 5-7, but still have some life, which is more than I can say for the teams who are behind them. The Cincinnati Bengals are screwed at 4-8, and the Cleveland Browns, the New York Jets, and the Tennessee Titans can all be eliminated this week (all three have nine losses and are "lose and out").

In the National Football Conference, the Detroit Lions lead the way at 11-1, while the Philadelphia Eagles continue to hold the #2 position at 10-2. The #3 spot is held by the NFC West-leading Seattle Seahawks, who improved to 7-5 with their win, and at #4, it's the Atlanta Falcons, who lead the NFC South (because someone has to) at 6-6, despite losing their third straight game.

In the Wild Card race, the Minnesota Vikings hold the #5 spot at 10-2, while the Green Bay Packers remain at #6 at 9-3. The Washington Commanders snapped their three game skid and remain at #7 at 8-5 (they will be the only NFC team taking this week off). As for what's behind the playoff line, it's a 6-6 logjam between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Arizona Cardinals, and the Los Angeles Rams. The Bucs are leading that cluster due to a number of tiebreakers, and Arizona has head-to-head over LA. The San Francisco 49ers and the Dallas Cowboys, the two teams who finished one-two in the NFC standings last year, are both 5-7, with the Niners holding head-to-head over Dallas. The Niners are 2.5 games behind Washington, but they are only two games out in the NFC West. The New Orleans Saints and the Chicago Bears are barely alive in the Wild Card hunt at 4-8, though the Saints have the luxury of being in the decrepit NFC South. That luxury won't save the Carolina Panthers, as they can be eliminated this week.

So that's the playoff picture for Week 14. As for clinching scenarios, one division can be clinched, and three teams can join the playoff party during what should be an interesting Week 14.

The Chiefs locked in a playoff spot during Black Friday against the Raiders. The next step, of course, is the AFC West. The Chiefs have won the division eight years straight. In order to make it nine, all they have to do is win. The Chiefs are at home against the second-place Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday Night Football, though the Chargers have played KC very tough in recent years. This could be the team who sends KC a dose of reality. Yes, KC will most likely win the West even if they lose this game, but if the Chargers punch them in the mouth, maybe KC will learn not to take teams for granted.

Entering Week 13, the Lions had seven ways to get in, but none of them were win and in. Even crazier, they needed a lot of outside help because the NFC is a beautiful mess. Winning on Thanksgiving made it a bit easier for the Lions. Because of the win, this week sees the Lions with the easiest scenario for clinching a playoff spot: win or tie gets it. One problem: the Lions will be at home against a very determined Packers team, and we will be out to tame those Lions. If we do that and beat the Lions, our opponents still will have nine other ways to get in this week, but they require a lot of help and some of them even involve the dreaded Strength of Victory tiebreaker. Holy moley.

Philadelphia Eagles, welcome to the clinching scenario party! The Eagles keep winning against all odds; in fact, they've won eight straight after a sputtering 2-2 start! We do remember when they were 10-1 last year and how that ended, but it does look like whatever issues they had last year were fixed this year. Having Saquon Barkley run through everything helps that case. The Eagles have quite a sizable lead in the NFC East, and could actually clinch that division in one or two weeks. As for this week, The Eagles have 10 ways to get in, with six of them including a win and a lot of help. To put it simply, the Eagles need a win, either the Falcons or Bucs losing or tying a Cardinals loss, and either the Rams failing to win or the Lions failing to lose. Or, they could win, either the Falcons or Bucs lose or tie, and the Cardinals could tie. The Eagles host the Carolina Panthers this week.

The Minnesota Vikings entered the final week of last season with a 3% chance to get in, and of course, they didn't. Here it is, entering the first full NFL week of December, and the Vikings are 10-2 and can get in the playoffs this week. They don't have as many ways to get in as the Lions and Eagles do, but they can get in. A win and a Cardinals tie will get it done. If the Cardinals lose, the Rams have to lose or tie as well. If the Vikings tie, the Bucs, Cards, and Rams all have to lose. If the Cards tie in that scenario, the Eagles have to win or tie. The Vikings host the Falcons this week, and as for the other teams involved, the Bucs host the Raiders in Sunday's early window, and the Cardinals host the Seahawks in Sunday's late window, which also has the Rams hosting the Bills.

So those are the scenarios for Week 14, and this Packers fan will have to make it through our Thursday battle against the Lions. If we win that, we could possibly have a chance to clinch a spot next week, and if the Vikings also lose... oh man! Overall, Week 14 should be very exciting, and we'll definitely see some crazy developments in the playoff picture, I have that feeling.