NFL Playoff Picture Week 15: AFC, NFC Scenarios, Predictions for 2015 Postseason

For those of you who love offense, the Green Bay Packers and Atlanta Falcons provided quite a treat on Monday Night Football, ending Week 14 in style with an 80-point affair. While that matchup sure was entertaining, it also affected the playoff picture heading into Week 15.

With only three weeks remaining in the regular season, postseason scenarios and predictions have become the most discussed and debated narrative surrounding the NFL. Which teams are likely to be left on the outside looking in? Which AFC and NFC squads will come away with home-field advantage? These are just two of the many questions brought up at this time of year.

If you're looking for more speculation on the matter, you've come to the right place. Below, you'll find the current playoff standings, teams still in contention, upcoming Week 15 scenarios and predictions for the 2015 postseason.

Updated Playoff Picture

AFC Seed	Team	NFC Seed	Team
1	New England Patriots (10-3)	1	Arizona Cardinals (10-3)
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), Minnesota Vikings (6-7), St. Louis Rams (6-7), New Orleans Saints (5-8) and Carolina Panthers (4-8-1).

Week 15 Scenarios

Not one single team has clinched a playoff berth yet this season. That just goes to show the quality of competition across the league. However, with just three weeks remaining, that's about to change.

Three AFC teams can clinch their divisions this week with wins. The New England Patriots will take the AFC East with a victory over the Miami Dolphins, the Indianapolis Colts will finish atop the AFC South by defeating the Houston Texans and the Denver Broncos will clinch the AFC West with a win against the San Diego Chargers.

While there aren't any scenarios in which any NFC team can clinch their respective division, there are other intriguing scenarios to watch.

The Dallas Cowboys meet the Philadelphia Eagles to determine who will have the outright lead in the NFC East. The NFC South will be on everyone's radar, as losses by the Falcons and New Orleans Saints will send a team with a losing record into the postseason.

If the Arizona Cardinals falter on Thursday, and the Seattle Seahawks complete a season sweep of the San Francisco 49ers, we'll see a change atop the NFC West.

All of these Week 15 NFC contests will serve as a precursor for what figures to be an immensely pivotal Week 16 for the conference's contenders.

Postseason Predictions

Here's what everyone wants to know: Which teams will ultimately secure postseason berths?

Obviously, there's no way of being 100 percent sure at this point. However, with a little digging, we can make a pretty educated guess.

Here's how it looks:

AFC Seed	Team	NFC Seed	Team
1	New England Patriots (13-3)	1	Green Bay Packers (13-3)
2	Denver Broncos (13-3)	2	Dallas Cowboys (12-4)
3	Indianapolis Colts (11-5)	3	Seattle Seahawks (12-4)
4	Baltimore Ravens (11-5)	4	Atlanta Falcons (7-9)
5	Cincinnati Bengals (10-5-1)	5	Arizona Cardinals (11-5)
6	Pittsburgh Steelers (10-6)	6	Detroit Lions (11-5)
First Out	San Diego Chargers (10-6)	First Out	Philadelphia Eagles (11-5)

There you have it.

On the AFC side, the Patriots and Broncos win out, maintaining the top seeds. Due to a New England head-to-head win, the Pats stays at No. 1 overall. The Colts and Ravens finish atop their respective divisions, but Indianapolis gets the No. 3 seed due to a head-to-head win. Meanwhile, the Cincinnati Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers get wild-card spots over the San Diego Chargers, who just barely miss out on a conference-record tiebreaker.

In the NFC, the Packers win out and gain home-field advantage. Dallas and Seattle also win out, but the Cowboys move into the No. 2 seed due to a head-to-head win over the Seahawks. Atlanta rounds out the top four with a series-sweep tiebreaker over the New Orleans Saints. Arizona gets the No. 5 seed due to wins over both Detroit and Philadelphia, and the Lions edge out the Eagles on conference records.

Sure, this could all change after Week 15—the NFL has been quite unpredictable this season. However, for now, there's a glimpse of your 12 playoff teams.