NFL Playoff Standings 2017: Latest Team Records, Updated Postseason Odds

There are only 17 games left in the NFL regular season, and a lot of the postseason picture has been made clear. 

Even though seedings won't be determined until after Week 17, 10 of the 12 playoff teams are locked in. The only two spots up for grabs are in the NFC, including the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions fighting for the NFC North title. 

The Lions still have to play out things in Week 16 with a Monday night game against the Dallas Cowboys, which the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Washington will be watching closely since that result ties into their playoff chances.

Here are the updated postseason standings and odds heading into the regular season's home stretch:

AFC	Playoff Scenario
NFC	Playoff Scenario
New England Patriots (13-2)	Clinched AFC East, 1st-Round Bye
Oakland Raiders (12-3)	Clinched Playoff Berth
Kansas City Chiefs (11-4)	Clinched Playoff Berth
Pittsburgh Steelers (10-5)	Clinched AFC North
Miami Dolphins (10-5)	Clinched Wild-Card Berth
Houston Texans (9-6)	Clinched AFC South
Dallas Cowboys (12-2)	Clinched NFC East, 1st-Round Bye, Home-Field Advantage
Atlanta Falcons (10-5)	Clinched NFC South
New York Giants (10-5)	Clinched Wild-Card Berth
Seattle Seahawks (9-5-1)	Clinched NFC West

NFL Playoff Odds (per OddsShark)

Team	Odds
New England Patriots	+220
Dallas Cowboys	+500
Seattle Seahawks	+550
Pittsburgh Steelers	+1000
Oakland Raiders	+1200
Green Bay Packers	+1200
Kansas City Chiefs	+1600
Atlanta Falcons	+1600
New York Giants	+1600
Detroit Lions	+2500
Houston Texans	+5000
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	+6600
Miami Dolphins	+7500
Washington	+10000

Win to Get In

The Lions can take some drama out of their Week 17 game against the Packers by defeating the Cowboys. That will secure Detroit's postseason spot, though next week will still be used to determine the NFC North champion and guarantee the winner at least one home playoff game. 

With two games still left, the Lions' playoff possibilities range from being the No. 2 seed in the NFC to sitting at home after January 1. They will miss the playoffs with two losses and a Washington win over the New York Giants. 

The Lions are currently in the No. 3 spot as the NFC North leader, with the opportunity to move up one spot if they win each of their last two games and the Atlanta Falcons are upset by the New Orleans Saints. 

In the past, a late-season game against the Packers would have sucked all the energy out of Detroit. The Lions lost 17 of 19 games in the rivalry from 2004-13 before splitting their last six contests. 

Unfortunately for the Lions, they are running into the Packers at a time when Aaron Rodgers is playing like the best quarterback in the NFL again, with Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com providing the evidence:

While Rodgers has been fantastic, he hasn't been leading the Packers' five-game winning streak on his own. 

ESPN.com's Rob Demovsky noted after Green Bay's 38-25 win over the Minnesota Vikings in Week 16 that linebacker Clay Matthews was in vintage form:

"

Not only did he sack Sam Bradford and force a key fumble in the second quarter when the Packers had just a 21-13 lead, he also batted down a pair of passes—including one on a third-and-goal from the 4 that saved the Packers four points when the Vikings had to settle for a field goal—and hit Bradford at least two other times.

"

The Packers defense isn't going to be confused with the '85 Chicago Bears any time soon, but they've only allowed 88 points during their five-game winning streak. 

This has been an unusual season in the NFC North, highlighted by the Vikings missing out on the playoffs despite starting 5-0, but the Lions and Packers could end up giving the division two representatives if things go well for both in the next six days. 

Clinging to Life

Nam Y. Huh/Associated Press

Washington will find itself in the unusual position of rooting for the Cowboys on Monday, since a loss by the Lions will make its path to the postseason simpler.

Per the New York Times' NFL playoff simulator, Washington's current odds of making the postseason are at 45 percent. 

Expanding on why those are the odds, Master Tesfatsion of the Washington Post broke down the scenarios for Washington after its 41-21 victory over the Bears in Week 16:

"

If Detroit wins, Washington will need to beat the Giants (10-5) and hope the Lions beat the Packers in Week 17. In this situation, the Lions would win the NFC North and the Redskins would clinch the sixth seed over the Packers.

If Detroit loses to Dallas, Washington would control its fate again. It just would need to beat the Giants, who locked up a wild-card spot with Tampa Bay’s loss, to clinch the sixth seed.

"

If that picture sounds at all bleak, at least it's better than what the Buccaneers are facing if they want to get in the playoffs.

ESPN Stats & Info provided the scenarios Tampa Bay needed to play out to reach the postseason following its Christmas Eve loss against the Saints:

On the bright side, the Kansas City Chiefs did beat the Denver Broncos on Sunday to take care of one piece of business for the Buccaneers. The bad news is there are still eight games that will determine the team's final outcome. 

As things stand right now, the NFC North has to feel good about its chances of getting two teams in the playoffs. 

The Other AFC Contender

A dream season for the Oakland Raiders turned into a nightmare when quarterback Derek Carr suffered a broken fibula in the fourth quarter of Saturday's win over the Indianapolis Colts. 

The Raiders are currently sitting in the No. 2 spot in the AFC, but with Matt McGloin poised to be their starting quarterback, their Super Bowl chances don't look promising.

The New England Patriots have already locked up a first-round bye in the AFC and will once again be heavy favorites to represent the conference in Super Bowl 51. Carr's injury leaves the AFC without a definitive No. 2 contender to the Patriots' throne. 

The Raiders are far from a perfect team. Their defense outside of Khalil Mack isn't very good, allowing the fifth-most yards per game and tied for 19th in points allowed, per ESPN.com. Yet their loaded offense led by Carr and featuring Michael Crabtree, Amari Cooper and Latavius Murray allowed them to score against anyone in the NFL. 

With the Raiders entering the playoffs on a down note, the Pittsburgh Steelers look like the second-best team in the AFC right now, with Jarrett Bell of USA Today offering three big reasons why:

Antonio Brown. Ben Roethlisberger. Le’Veon Bell.

"

Brown’s 4-yard, catch-and-stretch touchdown with nine seconds left – he quickly reached out to break the plane of the end zone while collared by Eric Weddle inches shy of the goal line – provided the finishing touch to the 31-27 thriller that settled the latest chapter of one of the NFL’s best rivalries.

[...]

Before Brown’s exploits, Bell, who finished with 122 rushing yards, slashed and weaved through the Ravens defense to inflate one drive after another. He scored the other two TDs in Pittsburgh’s 21-point fourth quarter, including a determined 7-yard reception off a Roethlisberger scramble that illustrated his knack for finding daylight in traffic.

Roethlisberger, who threw two picks in the third quarter, elevated his game when it mattered the most. Of course, that included repeated cases where he improvised to make something happen when the plays broke down. That’s always been part of his deal. But it also meant staying composed and playing smart as Pittsburgh produced scoring drives of 75, 90 and 75 yards.

"

The key to defeating the Patriots in the playoffs has been creating pressure on Tom Brady. The Denver Broncos hit him 25 times in last year's AFC title game. 

The Steelers don't have anyone as good as Von Miller on their defensive line, but they do have 21 sacks as a team during their current six-game winning streak. 

The offensive line is keeping Roethlisberger upright, with Joe Rutter of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review  noting Pittsburgh's quarterback is being sacked an average of 1.21 sacks per game, the lowest mark of his career. 

There are other quality teams in the AFC, but how much are we supposed to trust Alex Smith to step up in a key spot during a playoff game for the Kansas City Chiefs? Or Ryan Tannehill for the Miami Dolphins? 

Don't even ask about the Houston Texans, who backed into the playoffs after a hideous 12-10 loss against the Cincinnati Bengals and will have Tom Savage as their starting quarterback. 

The Patriots know their path to the Super Bowl is wide open, with the Steelers as their only formidable challenge right now.