NFL Playoff Picture 2014: Week 16 Standings, Super Bowl Odds and Wild-Card Hunt
Sure, a few NFL division races finally reached a conclusion in Week 15, but the madness of the postseason push will only intensify as we head into Week 16 of what has been yet another exciting season of football.
As Bleacher Report's Matt Miller noted, four teams clinched playoff spots in Week 15:
The Broncos, Colts and Patriots clinched their respective division titles on Sunday, while the Cardinals still have work to do to secure the NFC West crown. This is certainly wonderful, stress-relieving news for fans of that quartet of franchises, but it hardly thins the herd of teams looking for a wild-card spot.
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The horrid NFC South means a glut of strong teams from that conference will be battling it out for the two wild-card spots, and there is a very strong possibility a couple of 10-win squads will be watching the playoffs on television with the rest of America. In the AFC, it's the North Division that's causing most of the ruckus in the playoff push.
Here is a look at the latest NFL standings, Super Bowl odds and a breakdown of the wild-card hunt as we head into Week 16. A full look at the playoff picture can be found via CBSSports.com.
AFC Standings, Super Bowl Odds, Wild-Card Picture
| Denver Broncos | 11 | 3 | 0 | 9-2 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 8 | 6 | 0 | 150-1 |
| San Diego Chargers | 8 | 6 | 0 | 50-1 |
| Oakland Raiders | 2 | 12 | 0 | 5000-1 |
| New England Patriots | 11 | 3 | 0 | 7-2 |
| Buffalo Bills | 8 | 6 | 0 | 300-1 |
| Miami Dolphins | 7 | 7 | 0 | 125-1 |
| New York Jets | 3 | 11 | 0 | 2000-1 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 9 | 4 | 1 | 40-1 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 9 | 5 | 0 | 33-1 |
| Baltimore Ravens | 9 | 5 | 0 | 33-1 |
| Cleveland Browns | 7 | 7 | 0 | 250-1 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 10 | 4 | 0 | 20-1 |
| Houston Texans | 7 | 7 | 0 | 150-1 |
| Tennessee Titans | 2 | 12 | 0 | 1000-1 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 2 | 12 | 0 | 3000-1 |
With three of the four division races wrapped up, all eyes fall on the two stragglers in the AFC West and the ridiculously competitive AFC North, the lone division in this conference still up for grabs.
The Pittsburgh Steelers secured a 27-20 win over the Atlanta Falcons in Week 15, while the Baltimore Ravens pipped the lowly Jacksonville Jaguars 20-12. The Cincinnati Bengals ended the Cleveland Browns' postseason hopes by embarrassing Johnny Manziel in his first NFL start en route to a dominant 30-0 win.
The Bengals' tie game against the Carolina Panthers from earlier this season is serving as a nice buffer at the top of the division, but they could falter against the Denver Broncos in Week 16 and/or a highly motivated Steelers squad in the final week of the regular season.
The Ravens have two very tough final games and are in danger of slipping up at the end of the season after an unconvincing performance against the Jags. The other AFC teams in the wild-card hunt will be hoping for a big game from J.J. Watt and the Houston Texans in Week 16 and a spirited rivalry showing from the Browns in Week 17.
The Kansas City Chiefs and San Diego Chargers are both 8-6 and on the outside looking in as of Sunday, but there is still hope for these squads. The Chiefs play the Steelers in Week 16 and then close out against the Bolts in Week 17.
The Chargers essentially need to win out and hope either Pittsburgh or Baltimore stumble over the final two weeks, but their 22-10 loss to the Broncos on Sunday puts them squarely behind the eight ball. Bolts coach Mike McCoy noted a number of miscues derailed his team's efforts, via Chargers.com's Hayley Elwood:
"Against a very good team obviously, we made too many mistakes. The kicking game missed opportunities to get points on the board at critical times. Offensively, the turnovers towards the end of the game. Defensively, making some big time plays there, but giving up too many big plays on the outside on the fade route….Unfortunately, we didn’t make enough plays as a football team to win the game against a good team.
"
The sneaky-good Buffalo Bills are trailing the AFC West squads in the playoff hunt, but a few fortuitous results could get them into the postseason. USA Today's Steven Ruiz noted the Bills could have a favorable situation in Week 17:
"Ten wins has been the benchmark for making the playoffs, but a number of teams will likely miss out on the postseason despite reaching that mark.
The Buffalo Bills might be one of those teams. With the Raiders and the Patriots — who could be resting starters in Week 17 if the Broncos lose in Cincinnati next week — left on the schedule, the Bills can get to 10-6. But they’ll have to leapfrog three teams just to get to the sixth spot.
"
The Bills need quite a bit of chaos over the last two weeks to make their playoff dreams come true, but the NFL is hardly ever in short supply of results that spread discord through the footballing ranks.
NFC Standings, Super Bowl Odds, Wild-Card Picture
| Arizona Cardinals | 11 | 3 | 0 | 20-1 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 10 | 4 | 0 | 5-1 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 7 | 7 | 0 | 150-1 |
| St. Louis Rams | 6 | 8 | 0 | 500-1 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 10 | 4 | 0 | 20-1 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 9 | 5 | 0 | 16-1 |
| New York Giants | 5 | 9 | 0 | 750-1 |
| Washington Redskins | 3 | 11 | 0 | 1000-1 |
| Detroit Lions | 10 | 4 | 0 | 20-1 |
| Green Bay Packers | 10 | 4 | 0 | 13-4 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 6 | 8 | 0 | 300-1 |
| Chicago Bears | 5 | 9 | 0 | 500-1 |
| New Orleans Saints | 6 | 8 | 0 | 50-1 |
| Carolina Panthers | 5 | 8 | 1 | 200-1 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 5 | 9 | 0 | 100-1 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 2 | 12 | 0 | 2000-1 |
Buffalo trounced the mighty Aaron Rodgers in Week 15, proving that he is no touchdown deity and occasionally gets tangled in the mortal coil. The Bills bamboozled Rodgers for four quarters in their stunning 21-13 win over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, holding the potential MVP candidate to 17-of-42 pass attempts for 185 yards and two interceptions.
This shocking result allowed the Detroit Lions to take first place in the division and secure an inside track to making the playoffs.
The Packers should be able to recover and beat the lowly Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 16, while Matthew Stafford should propel to Lions to another win over the Chicago Bears after shredding that very same team in Week 13. Eleven wins would be enough for both of these teams to make the playoffs, but the division will come down to an epic Week 17 clash between the NFC North foes.
The Arizona Cardinals got a very important win in a lifeless 12-6 contest against the St. Louis Rams Thursday, but they must be wary of the soaring Seattle Seahawks, who could very well bump the Cardinals out of the top spot in the NFC West and relegate them to a wild-card spot. The Seahawks ended one team's postseason hopes in Week 15, via SportsCenter:
The Eagles could very well be on the outside looking in come playoff time after their 38-27 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday night. While anything can happen over the last two weeks, the Cowboys should be able to handle the Colts and Washington Redskins in the last two weeks and keep hold of the NFC East title.
In allowing Dez Bryant to bully his way to three touchdown receptions, the Eagles proved they don't have anyone capable of covering elite wide receivers. Nick Kayal of 97.5 The Fanatic's gave a scathing review of two members of Philadelphia's secondary on Sunday night:
It's quite possible the New York Giants and Odell Beckham Jr. could wreak havoc on the team in Week 17. Still, 11 wins and a surprise loss or two from the Cowboys or Lions would get them the NFC East crown or, at the very least, a wild-card spot.
In the NFC South, we have the very real, very frightening possibility of a team with a losing record hosting a playoff game. The Carolina Panthers, without the services of Cam Newton, moved into first place in the division on Sunday, while the Atlanta Falcons lost to the Steelers and dropped to 5-9. Should the New Orleans Saints lose to the Chicago Bears on the road on Monday night, no team in the division will have a chance at a .500 record.
It will be interesting to see if the NFL reviews this in the offseason, as it's all but certain a 10-win team from the NFC will miss out on the playoffs.
Note: Odds courtesy of Odds Shark and updated as of Monday, Dec. 15 at 4 a.m. ET.
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