NFL Playoff Picture 2023-24 Week 16: Standings, Scenarios After Saints vs. Rams

With only three weeks remaining in the 2023 season, the NFL playoff picture is starting to come into focus as teams separate themselves from the rest of the pack.

Week 16 officially got underway with the Los Angeles Rams earning a 30-22 win over the New Orleans Saints on Thursday Night Football.

Here's a look at the playoff picture following Thursday's win followed by the clinching scenarios on the horizon in Week 16.

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AFC

1. Baltimore Ravens (11-3, first-round bye)

2. Miami Dolphins (10-4) vs. 7. Indianapolis Colts (8-6, tiebreaker over Houston Texans and Buffalo Bills)

3. Kansas City Chiefs (9-5) vs. 6. Cincinnati Bengals (8-6, tiebreaker over Indianapolis Colts, Houston Texans and Buffalo Bills)

4. Jacksonville Jaguars (8-6, tiebreaker over Indianapolis Colts and Houston Texans) vs. 5. Cleveland Browns (9-5)

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NFC

1. San Francisco 49ers (11-3, first-round bye)

2. Dallas Cowboys (10-4, tiebreaker over Detroit Lions) vs. 7. Minnesota Vikings (7-7, tiebreaker over Seattle Seahawks)

3. Detroit Lions (10-4) vs. 6. Los Angeles Rams (8-7)

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-7) vs. 5. Philadelphia Eagles (10-4)

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The Rams' win moved them up to the sixth seed in the NFC, for now. If the Minnesota Vikings emerge victorious against the NFC North-leading Detroit Lions on Sunday, they will continue to own the tiebreaker over Los Angeles and send the Rams back to the seventh seed.

Despite the loss, the Saints remain alive in the NFC South. They will meet the division-leading Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 17 before closing out the regular season in another division matchup with the Atlanta Falcons. They will need to be successful in both games if they hope to get back to the playoffs after missing the postseason in back-to-back years.

Elsewhere in the NFC, the Lions could've clinched a playoff spot with a Rams loss, but a win over the Vikings would give them their first NFC North title since 1993.

The conference-leading San Francisco 49ers have the chance to clinch the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage in their marquee matchup against the Baltimore Ravens on Monday Night Football, but they will need some help. A win plus losses by the Lions, Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys would do the trick for the 49ers.

Over in the AFC, the Ravens can earn their first AFC North title in the last four years with a win coupled with a loss by the Cleveland Browns. Baltimore is still clinging to a one-game lead over the Miami Dolphins for the conference's No. 1 seed, and the two teams will face each other in Week 17 to determine supremacy.

The Dolphins can clinch a playoff berth with a win over the Cowboys. If the Buffalo Bills lose to the Los Angeles Chargers on Saturday, Miami will have the opportunity to win its first AFC East title since 2008.

Lastly, the Kansas City Chiefs can clinch a playoff berth and their eighth straight AFC West crown with a win over the Las Vegas Raiders.

The bottom half of the playoff race in the AFC is also heating up. Matchups between the Browns and Houston Texans and the Cincinnati Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers will go a long way to clearing up a logjam in the race for the final three spots.