NFL Playoff Picture Week 15: Updated AFC, NFC Wild-Card Scenarios, Predictions
We're only one Thursday Night Football game into Week 15, and the league's playoff picture has already been altered.
Following the Arizona Cardinals' 12-6 victory over the St. Louis Rams, the Cardinals find themselves on the periphery of a postseason berth. Unfortunately for the Rams, they are officially out of contention.
The game's result changes things for other playoff-contending teams for the remainder of the week's action, as Arizona's win had a ripple effect through the rest of the NFC. On top of that, there are several division-clinching scenarios in the AFC that are poised to shake things up as well.
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Before the remaining 30 NFL teams take the gridiron to finish off Week 15, let's take a look at the updated playoff picture, impending scenarios and predictions for the week's aftermath.
Updated Playoff Picture
| 1 | New England Patriots (10-3) | 1 | Arizona Cardinals (11-3)* |
| 2 | Denver Broncos (10-3) | 2 | Green Bay Packers (10-3) |
| 3 | Indianapolis Colts (9-4) | 3 | Philadelphia Eagles (9-4) |
| 4 | Cincinnati Bengals (8-4-1) | 4 | Atlanta Falcons (5-8) |
| 5 | Pittsburgh Steelers (8-5) | 5 | Seattle Seahawks (9-4) |
| 6 | San Diego Chargers (8-5) | 6 | Detroit Lions (9-4) |
AFC in the hunt: Baltimore Ravens (8-5), Houston Texans (7-6), Miami Dolphins (7-6), Kansas City Chiefs (7-6), Buffalo Bills (7-6) and Cleveland Browns (7-6).
NFC in the hunt: Dallas Cowboys (9-4), San Francisco 49ers (7-6), New Orleans Saints (5-8) and Carolina Panthers (4-8-1).
Updated Scenarios
The Cardinals did their job for the week but must wait until Sunday evening to find out if they officially made the playoffs, as a tie between the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles would keep them from clinching a spot for at least one more week. Ties are extremely rare, but we've already seen one this season.
Unfortunately, Arizona's win came at a severe price. The team lost quarterback Drew Stanton for an undetermined period of time, and it may need to move forward with a new face under center. NFL on ESPN tweeted some available options:
Arizona's win affects Green Bay's chances of obtaining home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, as the Cardinals still hold a strength-of-victory tiebreaker over the Packers. Although, Green Bay can clinch a playoff berth this week with a win and a loss by Dallas.
The NFC's wild-card picture remains a three-horse race between the Seattle Seahawks, Detroit Lions and Cowboys. All three teams are 9-4 entering the week, and a loss by any one of them could have devastating consequences with only two more games to play following Week 15.
On the AFC's side, the Denver Broncos, New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts can all clinch their respective divisions with wins. Both Denver and New England can also clinch first-round byes with wins and losses by the Colts, Cincinnati Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers.
After the conference's four division leaders, there are eight teams in contention for wild-card spots. However, this week can bring some clarity to this murky picture.
If two of the three teams that hold 8-5 records win—the Steelers, San Diego Chargers and Baltimore Ravens—we could see some of the five 7-6 teams drop out of contention with losses.
That scenario would put those teams two games down with just two to play, making a comeback into the top six highly unlikely.
We won't know which teams will officially drop out of the mix until after the dust settles due to the alterations in tiebreakers following this week's action.
Week 15 Predictions
So, what might the playoff picture look like following Week 15? Well, it's always interesting to speculate. Here's a look at how things could unfold, followed by an explanation.
| 1 | New England Patriots (11-3) | 1 | Arizona Cardinals (11-3) |
| 2 | Denver Broncos (11-3) | 2 | Green Bay Packers (11-3) |
| 3 | Indianapolis Colts (10-4) | 3 | Dallas Cowboys (10-4) |
| 4 | Cincinnati Bengals (9-4-1) | 4 | New Orleans Saints (6-8) |
| 5 | Pittsburgh Steelers (9-5) | 5 | Seattle Seahawks (10-4) |
| 6 | Baltimore Ravens (9-5) | 6 | Detroit Lions (10-4) |
On the AFC side, all four division leaders get wins. This means the Patriots, Broncos and Colts all clinch their divisions, and the Bengals maintain their thin cushion in the AFC North with two games remaining.
With a Broncos victory over the Chargers, San Diego falls out of the picture. This makes room for a Ravens team that should handle the Jacksonville Jaguars easily to move into the No. 6 seed. Baltimore stays behind Pittsburgh in this instance due to a tiebreaker of records within the division.
As for the NFC, there are some changes to the division leaders. The Cardinals are already locked as the No. 1 seed following a victory on Thursday, and the Packers will stay right behind them with a win over the Buffalo Bills. Then, things get interesting.
The Cowboys march into Philadelphia and get a win over the Eagles due to a struggling Mark Sanchez. This catapults Dallas into the division lead and the No. 3 seed—although, the NFL's playoff predictor doesn't agree:
With the Atlanta Falcons losing to the Steelers, the New Orleans Saints take advantage with a win over the struggling Chicago Bears on Monday night, moving into the No. 4 seed. Wins by the Seahawks and Lions keep those teams locked in the wild-card spots.
There will certainly be many different takes and opinions regarding the ultimate outcome of this season's playoff picture, and that is part of what makes this time of year so great for football.
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