NFL Power Rankings: Latest Playoff Field Picture

If it is somehow possible for the playoff picture to become both clearer and more murky, it's happened following Week 10.

With every team in the AFC having at least three losses, what each team does in the conference serves to reshape the postseason field. And while things in the NFC are significantly more stable, that doesn't mean it doesn't have its fair share of question marks to its name.

In the AFC, one team has emerged atop the conference: The Houston Texans. Beneficiaries of being part of a South division shaken up from day one when Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning was declared out for most, if not all, of the regular season, the Texans have clearly taken advantage of the opportunity afforded them.

With the Titans a distant second in the division, at 5-4, and less consistent than the surprisingly well-balanced Texans, it's pretty certain that Houston will see the postseason.

Less cut-and-dry is the AFC North, the most competitive division in the NFL this season. With a win over the Cincinnati Bengals and the Baltimore Ravens dropping to the Seattle Seahawks, the Pittsburgh Steelers are yet again in sole possession of first place.

With the bye up ahead, followed by five games that include the team's second contest against the Bengals and a Week 15 Monday night trip to take on the San Francisco 49ers, the Steelers' fate has yet to be determined.

However, two games against the Cleveland Browns and a contest against the Kansas City Chiefs does help Pittsburgh's chances to end their season as the top team in their division.

The Baltimore Ravens also have a good shot to reach the postseason. If the Steelers dip in the AFC North, it will be Baltimore, not the Bengals, that will take the top spot. If not, the Ravens should enter the playoffs as one of two wild card entrants.

With so many changes weekly in the AFC East, it seems like a folly to assume the New England Patriots will take the division and reach the playoffs. However, their final six opponents all have losing records, including a contest against the winless Indianapolis Colts.

With the struggling defense finally coming together in the team's Week 10 win over the New York Jets, it looks like the Patriots should take their division, though the Jets may squeak into the postseason as a wild card team.

That is, depending on what happens in the truly strange AFC West. Right now, the Oakland Raiders are on the top of the division, at 5-4, while the three remaining teams sit at 4-5, with any of the teams (even the bizarre Denver Broncos) making cases for themselves to perhaps not take the division but at least claim a wild card spot.

My call is that either the Raiders or San Diego Chargers will win the division, with the one that doesn't giving the Jets a run for their money as a possible wild card team.

In the NFC, things are far less complicated. The New York Giants are taking advantage of inconsistent play from their biggest competition, the Dallas Cowboys, and total collapses by the Washington Redskins and Philadelphia Eagles to take control of the NFC East.

While the Cowboys are still threatening, look for the Giants to be the overall winners of the division, though Dallas could still reach the postseason as a wild card contender.

In the NFC North, one thing is clear: This is the Green Bay Packers' division, and neither the Chicago Bears nor the Detroit Lions will be able to wrest that title away from them.

The best either team can hope for is a wild card berth into the postseason, and if only one of those two teams make it, it will likely be the Bears.

With three of its four teams at a combined eight wins, the 8-1 San Francisco 49ers are the tops of the NFC West. They're just a win away from clinching both the divisional title and a playoff berth, and they won't be accompanied by any other of their fellow West teams.

In the NFC South, the New Orleans Saints have secured first place in the division after their Week 10 win over the Atlanta Falcons, extending their lead over the second-place team to two games.

But the Saints have games against the New York Giants and Detroit Lions ahead, plus their second match-up against the Falcons in Week 16. This means that while the Saints look like postseason favorites as of this writing, the NFC South division is still very much up for grabs.

NFL Power Rankings, Week 11*
 
1. Green Bay Packers
2. San Francisco 49ers
3. Houston Texans
4. New Orleans Saints
5. Pittsburgh Steelers
6. New England Patriots
7. Cincinnati Bengals
8. Baltimore Ravens
9. Chicago Bears
10. Dallas Cowboys
11. New York Jets
12. Detroit Lions
13. New York Giants
14. Buffalo Bills
15. Oakland Raiders
16. Atlanta Falcons
17. Tennessee Titans
18. San Diego Chargers
19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
20. Miami Dolphins
21. Kansas City Chiefs
22. Seattle Seahawks
23. Jacksonville Jaguars
24. Denver Broncos
25. Philadelphia Eagles
26. Minnesota Vikings
27. Arizona Cardinals
28. Cleveland Browns
29. St. Louis Rams
30. Carolina Panthers
31. Washington Redskins
32. Indianapolis Colts

*Subject to change pending results of Monday night's Packers-Vikings contest