NFL Playoff Picture Week 13: Latest AFC, NFC Standings and Bracket Scenarios

Week 13 is the perfect time to wildly craft NFL playoff scenarios. The picture is clear enough for inspection but not crystallized enough to eliminate most possibilities.

Aside from a select few laggards, most squads have a heartbeat as December's action commences. None of the 13 teams holstering four or five victories can make vacation plans just yet. In fact, one has even weaseled its way into a division lead.

Five weeks of football will present several twists and turns in the NFL playoff picture, but let's take a snapshot of the league's current standings and playoff picture.

AFC East	Record		NFC East	Record
AFC North			NFC North
AFC South			NFC South
AFC West			NFC West
New England Patriots	10-1		Washington Redskins	5-6
New York Jets	6-5		New York Giants	5-6
Buffalo Bills	5-6		Philadelphia Eagles	4-7
Miami Dolphins	4-7		Dallas Cowboys	3-8
Cincinnati Bengals	9-2		Minnesota Vikings	8-3
Pittsburgh Steelers	6-5		Green Bay Packers	7-4
Baltimore Ravens	4-7		Chicago Bears	5-6
Cleveland Browns	2-9		Detroit Lions	4-7
Indianapolis Colts	6-5		Carolina Panthers	11-0
Houston Texans	6-5		Atlanta Falcons	6-5
Jacksonville Jaguars	4-7		Tampa Bay Buccaneers	5-6
Tennessee Titans	2-9		New Orleans Saints	4-7
Denver Broncos	9-2		Arizona Cardinals	9-2
Kansas City Chiefs	6-5		Seattle Seahawks	6-5
Oakland Raiders	5-6		St. Louis Rams	4-7
San Diego Chargers	3-8		San Francisco 49ers	3-8

AFC

Seed	Team
1	New England Patriots
2	Cincinnati Bengals
3	Denver Broncos
4	Indianapolis Colts
5	Kansas City Chiefs
6	Houston Texans

A month ago, the AFC South stood as an embarrassment on par with last year's putrid NFC South won by the 7-9 Carolina Panthers. Now two of its representatives hold playoff bids at 6-5.

Since allowing 41 points in one half to the Miami Dolphins, the Houston Texans have done a complete 180. They have since allowed 35 combined points during a four-game winning streak, holding three of four teams out of the end zone completely. Shutting down the Tennessee Titans is one thing, but the New Orleans Saints and Cincinnati Bengals both boast top-10 offenses at Nos. 3 and 7, respectively.

Pro Football Focus's Mike Clay noted the Texans' steep defensive improvement since getting destroyed by the Dolphins:

Head coach Bill O'Brien, a hot-seat candidate a month ago, is suddenly guiding the league's No. 6 defense into a real threat. Despite the team's success, he's intent on preventing complacency, as he explained to the Houston Chronicle's Aaron Wilson.

"We're very pleased with how the defense is playing, but you can never be satisfied," O'Brien said. "As soon as you get satisfied or you are resting on your laurels or whatever it may be, you are going to get beat."

Back in October, some onlookers may have thought six wins would win the division. Yet the Indianapolis Colts have kept things interesting with three straight victories, two under backup quarterback Matt Hasselbeck's watch.

Jeff Haynes/Associated Press

The 40-year-old proved to be more than a mere game-manager in Week 12, amassing 315 yards and two passing scores against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. After losing their first three games against nondivision opponents, the Colts have picked up their past three triumphs outside of the AFC South.

Houston and Indianapolis both play pivotal bouts in Week 13 against fellow playoff contenders. After losing to the Kansas City Chiefs—who control the conference's other wild-card spot—the Bills can't afford to lose to another competitor in Houston. The Pittsburgh Steelers, meanwhile, can redeem a tough loss to the Seattle Seahawks by halting Hasselbeck's winning ways.

The AFC picture remains crowded, and these two matchups can make it even messier.

NFC

Seed	Team
1	Carolina Panthers
2	Arizona Cardinals
3	Minnesota Vikings
4	Washington Redskins
5	Green Bay Packers
6	Seattle Seahawks

If the playoffs started today, the Minnesota Vikings would host the Seahawks, while the Green Bay Packers would take a trip to face 5-6 Washington. Based on the current circumstances, the Vikings might be better off losing the potential first-round preview to Seattle.

It's far too early to study the bracket for precise matchups, so that's not an actual thought the NFC North leaders can harness heading into Week 13. A Vikings loss and Packers victory would give Green Bay back control of the NFC North by virtue of a tiebreaker. It'd also bring Seattle, back-to-back NFC champions who rank No. 5 in Football Outsiders' Defensive-adjusted Value Above Average (DVOA), a game behind Minnesota for the cushy No. 5 seed.

Home cooking is nice, but the No. 5 slot is the best place to be for anyone who can't net a first-round bye.

Every NFC East squad sports a losing record, and only the New York Giants hold a positive point differential (plus-14). The league no longer has to worry about a returning Tony Romo saving the day for the Dallas Cowboys, and the Philadelphia Eagles have surrendered 45 points and five passing touchdowns in back-to-back weeks. 

Washington or New York isn't an automatic win, but it certainly beats facing the Seahawks, who leapfrogged the collapsing Atlanta Falcons with four straight wins. They're both 6-5, but come on. Seattle is better. Following a 6-1 start festooned with five single-digit victories over the NFC East and Tennessee Titans, Atlanta has lost four straight games, continuing its tumble with a 20-10 defeat against Minnesota.

After throwing five interceptions over the last two games, quarterback Matt Ryan has prompted onlookers to wonder if he's really any good. Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post provided his take:

"

In his eighth season, Matt Ryan has become the most maddening kind of NFL quarterback. He cannot make his team a legitimate Super Bowl contender, but it would be difficult to acquire a markedly better replacement. He will make his team respectable most seasons, but at the cost of a sizeable chunk of the salary cap. He’s Alex Smith with better receivers, Jay Cutler with social grace. He looks like a franchise quarterback, but really he’s a trap door into mediocrity.

"

The only NFC bubble team with a winning record, the Falcons have fallen to No. 23 in DVOA. A road to redemption will include two clashes with the Carolina Panthers and rematches against the Saints and Buccaneers, who both beat them this year.

Despite a 2-4 start, the Seahawks suddenly have a clear path to a playoff appearance. That's bad news for the NFC. Don't panic too much about the No. 4-ranked defense struggling against two top-five offenses in recent weeks. Even if they've taken a step back, they're not an opponent a division winner wants to see in the opening round.