NFL Standings 2015-16: AFC, NFC Team Records, Postseason Outlook After Week 16
Prior to the start of their Week 16 game against the New England Patriots, the New York Jets were on the outside of the playoff picture and looking in.
With both the Kansas City Chiefs and Pittsburgh Steelers having two winnable games left on their schedule and the Jets facing a home game against the New England Patriots and and a road game at Buffalo, it didn't look great for the Jets.
But with one week to go in the regular season, the Jets are now on the inside and the Steelers are in big trouble. Pittsburgh was upset 20-17 by the battered and bruised Baltimore Ravens.
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The Jets played one of their best games of the year and defeated the Patriots 26-20 in overtime, thanks in part to the Patriots' decision to kick at the start of overtime. ESPN's Mike Reiss discussed the decision:
"Matthew Slater says coach instructed Patriots to kick off at start of overtime. The only confusion was which direction they were kicking.
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) December 27, 2015"
The Jets took advantage of the gaffe and scored the game-winning touchdown when Ryan Fitzpatrick hit wide receiver Eric Decker with a six-yard scoring pass on the opening possession of the extra session.
If the Jets can beat Buffalo next week, they are assured a playoff spot.
| 1 | New England#, AFC East | 12-3 | at Miami |
| 2 | Cincinnati*, AFC North | 11-3 | vs. Baltimore |
| 3 | Denver, AFC West | 10-4 | vs. San Diego |
| 4 | Houston, AFC South | 8-7 | Jacksonville |
| 5 | Kansas City*, AFC West | 10-5 | Oakland |
| 6 | N.Y. Jets, AFC East | 10-5 | at Buffalo |
| -- | Pittsburgh, AFC North | 9-6 | at Cleveland |
| -- | Indianapolis, AFC South | 7-8 | Tennessee |
| *-clinched playoff spot; #-clinched first-round bye |
The Chiefs have clinched a playoff spot as a result of their 17-13 victory over Johnny Manziel and the Cleveland Browns. The Chiefs have reeled off nine consecutive victories and are the NFL's hottest team. If they can beat the Oakland Raiders at home in Week 17, while the Denver Broncos lose one of their two remaining games, the Chiefs will win the AFC West title. That's because the Chiefs hold the tiebreaker edge over the Broncos.
All is not lost for the Steelers. If they can beat the Browns in Week 17, while the Jets lose at Buffalo, they will take the second wild-card spot. The Steelers also will have a chance to get in if the Broncos lost their Week 16 Monday night game to the Cincinnati Bengals and their season finale to the San Diego Chargers.
The Broncos have not clinched a playoff spot yet, and there's a good chance they could fail to make the postseason if they lose their final two games.
The Patriots could have clinched the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC playoff with a victory, and that scenario is still within their grasp. If they can beat the Dolphins in Week 17, they will have home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs.
A loss in that game would allow the Cincinnati-Denver Monday night winner to earn the top spot by winning its season finale.
The Houston Texans will clinch the AFC South if the Bengals win on Monday night. If the Broncos win, the Texans will clinch with a victory in Week 17 over Jacksonville or an Indianapolis loss to Tennessee.
| 1 | Carolina#, NFC South | 14-1 | vs. Tampa Bay |
| 2 | Arizona#, NFC West | 13-2 | vs. Seattle |
| 3 | Green Bay*, NFC North | 10-5 | vs. Minnesota |
| 4 | Washington*, NFC East | 8-7 | at Dallas |
| 5 | Minnesota*, NFC North | 10-5 | at Green Bay |
| 6 | Seattle*, NFC West | 9-6 | at Arizona |
| *-clinched playoff berth; #-clinched first-round bye |
The big news on the NFC side is that the Carolina Panthers are no longer a threat to go through the season with an undefeated record. Two weeks after throttling the Atlanta Falcons 38-0, the Falcons got revenge with a 20-13 triumph.
A win would have allowed the Panthers to clinch the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs, and they can still earn that position with a win in the season finale against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers or a loss by the Arizona Cardinals to Seattle.
The Falcons were eliminated from playoff contention Sunday night when the Minnesota Vikings crushed the Giants 49-17 to earn their 10th win of the season, and that allowed them to clinch a playoff spot. They currently have the No. 5 seed in the NFC playoffs, while the Seattle Seahawks slipped to the sixth spot after losing at home to the St. Louis Rams.
The Cardinals clinched no worse than the No. 2 spot in the conference with their 38-8 victory over the Green Bay Packers.
The Packers have clinched a wild-card spot, but they won't have an opportunity to clinch the NFC North title until next week when they host the Vikings. The winner of that game will win the NFC North and will earn the conference's No. 3 seed.
The Washington Redskins are locked in as the No. 4 seed by virtue of their NFC East championship.
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