NFL Playoff Picture 2015: Week 12 Wild-Card Hunt, Standings and Super Bowl Odds

The playoff picture in the NFL continues to be a giant puzzle.

The NFC North is still up for grabs after the Green Bay Packers returned to form and beat the Minnesota Vikings at home on Sunday. Even without Andrew Luck, the Indianapolis Colts still lead the AFC South.

And the Dallas Cowboys, after snapping a seven-game losing streak in Tony Romo's return, still have a legitimate chance to win the NFC East at 3-7.

Let's take a look at the updated standings and the wild-card picture.

Standings

AFC East	Record		NFC East	Record
AFC North	Record		NFC North	Record
AFC South	Record		NFC South	Record
AFC West	Record		NFC West	Record
New England Patriots	9-0		New York Giants	5-5
Buffalo Bills	5-4		Washington Redskins	4-6
New York Jets	5-5		Philadelphia Eagles	4-6
Miami Dolphins	4-6		Dallas Cowboys	3-7
Cincinnati Bengals	8-2		Green Bay Packers	7-3
Pittsburgh Steelers	6-4		Minnesota Vikings	7-3
Baltimore Ravens	3-7		Chicago Bears	4-6
Cleveland Browns	2-8		Detroit Lions	3-7
Indianapolis Colts	5-5		Carolina Panthers	10-0
Houston Texans	5-5		Atlanta Falcons	6-4
Jacksonville Jaguars	4-6		Tampa Bay Buccaneers	5-5
Tennessee Titans	2-8		New Orleans Saints	4-6
Denver Broncos	8-2		Arizona Cardinals	8-2
Kansas City Chiefs	5-5		Seattle Seahawks	5-5
Oakland Raiders	4-6		St. Louis Rams	4-6
San Diego Chargers	2-8		San Francisco 49ers	3-7

Super Bowl Odds

Team	Odds
New England Patriots	+240
Arizona Cardinals	+550
Carolina Panthers	+750
Cincinnati Bengals	+1000
Green Bay Packers	+1200
Minnesota Vikings	+1200
Pittsburgh Steelers	+1200
New York Giants	+1600
Denver Broncos	+1800
Seattle Seahawks	+2000

Playoff Picture

Top Two Spots	Record	Week 12 Opponent
In The Hunt	Record	Week 12 Opponent
1) Pittsburgh Steelers	6-4	at Seahawks
2) Buffalo Bills	5-4	at Chiefs
Kansas City Chiefs	5-5	vs. Bills
Houston Texans	5-5	vs. Saints
New York Jets	5-5	vs. Dolphins
Oakland Raiders	4-6	vs. Titans
Jacksonville Jaguars	4-6	vs. Chargers
Miami Dolphins	4-6	at Jets

There's a lot to talk about with the AFC playoff picture.

We can discuss how the Cincinnati Bengals, now losers of two in a row, are no longer a potential threat in the AFC and how they could still lose the division lead to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

There's also the fact that a win by the Buffalo Bills on Monday night would not only give the New England Patriots their first loss of the year, but put the Bills at 6-4 and tied with said Steelers for the top wild-card spot.

But the biggest story right now going on in the AFC has nothing to do with the Patriots or any other good team. It's the matter of the AFC South and who in the world is going to win that ridiculous division.

The Indianapolis Colts came back from a 21-7 third-quarter deficit to beat the Atlanta Falcons, on the road, 24-21. The Houston Texans have found new life, winning three in a row after a 24-17 win over the New York Jets. The Jacksonville Jaguars—yes, those Jaguars—are one game back from the division lead and could be one back in the win column of the second wild-card spot if the Bills lose to the Patriots.

Football Night In America analyst Tony Dungy gave kudos to the Texans, who have gone from going through a crazy quarterback controversy to now a chance to pass the Colts:

But there are four undefeated quarterbacks remaining in the NFL: Tom Brady, Cam Newton, Tony Romo and...Matt Hasselbeck.

The 40-year-old Hasselbeck is now 3-0 as a starting quarterback this year. He's won more games than Andrew Luck. If not for Hasselbeck, the Colts would not be leading the division. Each team faces each other one final time in the last six weeks. It'll be the race to keep an eye on down the stretch.

Top Two Spots	Record	Week 12 Opponent
In The Hunt	Record	Week 12 Opponent
1) Minnesota Vikings	7-3	at Falcons
2) Atlanta Falcons	6-4	vs. Vikings
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	5-5	at Colts
Seattle Seahawks	5-5	vs. Steelers
Washington Redskins	4-6	vs. Giants
St. Louis Rams	4-6	at Bengals
Philadelphia Eagles	4-6	at Lions
New Orleans Saints	4-6	at Texans
Chicago Bears	4-6	at Packers

If Tony Romo hadn't returned for the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, the rain coming down in Sun Life Stadium would've served as the ultimate image of symbolism for the Cowboys season.

But as fate would have it for the Cowboys, that rain only did one thing: wash away that seven-game losing streak after beating the Miami Dolphins 24-14.

Romo threw for 227 yards and two touchdowns in his return, one each to Dez Bryant and Terrance Williams. He threw two interceptions, but that was to be expected in those conditions after not playing for over two months.

Thanks to the Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Redskins both losing on Sunday, Dallas gained a game on those two, and a half-game on the leading New York Giants in the NFC East. And if the Cowboys can somehow pull off the upset of the year—beating the undefeated Carolina Panthers on Thanksgiving—they would be a half-game back of the Redskins and Eagles for at least three days.

Dallas pulling off this comeback is a legitimate possibility, as Tim Cowlishaw of the Dallas Morning News points out:

"

The Cowboys are winners, and they're alive because no one else in the NFC East won Sunday, and we'll just have to see how long Romo's return can carry a 3-7 team. Maybe the euphoria is gone before the pumpkin pie has been devoured Thursday. Or maybe Romo came back just in the nick of time to allow this crazy idea of a 2-7 team reaching the playoffs to come to fruition.

"

It's going to be a long shot for the Cowboys. They'll probably look back on this season and see how many missed opportunities they had to win games when Romo was out. Dallas could have won at least five of those games that Romo missed. Instead of talking about the Cowboys, at 3-7, trying to climb out of the NFC East cellar, the reality is that they should be 8-2 had business been taken care of.

With Romo back, the Cowboys are fully healthy and very much alive in the playoff race. They might not make it as a wild-card team. They'd have to pass the Giants and get some help along the way. But they're very much in the conversation.

For the Cowboys, that's probably all they could ask for at this point.