NFL playoff picture: Huge late afternoon games reshape the AFC and NFC standings

The NFL playoff field is filling out with greater speed as the season works its way through December. Four teams punched their ticket into the playoffs ahead of Week 15, and four teams entered Sunday with a chance to clinch a playoff berth.

The weekend opened with a huge NFC West matchup between the 49ers and Rams in Santa Clara. The Rams pulled out the 12-6 win and find themselves firmly in the mix for the NFC West title. That was the first of what is a busy Week 15 for the playoff picture.

Entering Sunday, the Eagles, Vikings, Texans, and Steelers could all clinch a playoff berth. The Vikings snuck in without even playing their game on Monday night, while the Texans and Eagles could clinch their division titles with a win and a loss by the second place team. Both Houston and Philly were able to punch their tickets.

On the other end, the Panthers, Cowboys, Bears, and Bengals all faced elimination from playoff contention. Dallas and Cincinnati kept their hopes alive but Chicago and Carolina were officially eliminated.

The Sunday slate ended up backloaded with five of the six matchups starting at 4:25 p.m. ET featuring two playoff teams. The two big ones are a grab bag of the four teams who could end up in their respective conference title games. The Lions lost to the Bills while the Eagles beat the Steelers.

Sunday night featured to teams in playoff position, too, but the Seahawks loss dropped them out of consideration and the Rams into the top spot in the NFC West. Green Bay’s win allowed them to keep pace with the rest of the NFC wild card picture.

1. x-Detroit Lions (12-2, win over MIN, 8-1 NFC)
2. x-Philadelphia Eagles (12-2, 7-2 NFC)
3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-6, 6-3 NFC)
4. Los Angeles Rams (8-6, win over SEA, 5-5 NFC)

5. x-Minnesota Vikings (12-2, loss to DET)
6. Green Bay Packers (10-4)
7. Washington Commanders (9-5)

8. Seattle Seahawks (8-6)
9. Atlanta Falcons (7-7, 7-3 NFC)
10. Arizona Cardinals (7-7, 3-6 NFC)
11. San Francisco 49ers (6-8, win over DAL)
12. Dallas Cowboys (6-8, loss to SF)*
13. New Orleans Saints (5-9)
14. Chicago Bears (4-10) — eliminated
15. Carolina Panthers (3-11) — eliminated
16. New York Giants (2-12) — eliminated

1. y-Kansas City Chiefs (13-1)
2. y-Buffalo Bills (11-3)
3. x-Pittsburgh Steelers (10-4)
4. y-Houston Texans (9-5)

5. Baltimore Ravens (9-5, win over DEN)
6. Denver Broncos (9-5, loss to BAL)*
7. Los Angeles Chargers (8-6)*

8. Indianapolis Colts (6-8, 5-5 AFC, win over MIA)*
9. Miami Dolphins (6-8, 5-5 AFC, loss to IND)*
10. Cincinnati Bengals (6-8, 3-6 AFC)*
11. New York Jets (4-10) — eliminated
12. Cleveland Browns (3-11, win over JAX) — eliminated
13. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-11, win over TEN, loss to CLE, win over NE) — eliminated
14. Tennessee Titans (3-11, loss to JAX, win over NE) — eliminated
15. New England Patriots (3-11, losses to JAX & TEN) — eliminated
16. Las Vegas Raiders (2-12) — eliminated

Teams with an asterisk (*) have been eliminated from divisional contention
Teams with an (x) have clinched a playoff spot
Teams with a (y) have clinched their division

The Lions fell to the Buffalo Bills in the highest scoring game of the year, but Detroit couldn’t win. They stay in first place because of their superior NFC record, but it’s a tough loss whenever you score 42 points. 494 passing yards and five touchdowns wasn’t good enough for Jared Goff’s offense, apparently.

While the Minnesota Vikings tied the Lions on Monday with their win, Detroit owns the head-to-head tiebreaker. They play each other in Week 18, so they both control their own destiny.

The Chiefs handled their business against the Browns, but the big story is Patrick Mahomes’ ankles. He was rolled up on a failed fourth down attempt in the fourth quarter and did not return to the game. The medical staff taped up his ankles, but given the lead, there was no need for him to return. This will be a situation to monitor as the Chiefs play two more games in the next 10 days.

Josh Allen is the NFL’s MVP and scored four more touchdowns in Detroit. The Bills scored 40 points for the second straight week and needed every one of them, as the defense allowed 42 points or more for the second straight week. Coupled with the Steelers loss, the Bills are firmly in second place in the AFC with a chance to overtake the Chiefs in the final month of the season. The Bills have three games against the Patriots and Jets remaining.

The Eagles proved to be perhaps the most dangerous team in the NFL by downing their cross-state rivals. Philly hung 27 on the Steelers defense and held a red-hot Pittsburgh offense to just 13 points.

Tampa Bay went to Southern California and hung a 40-burger on the Chargers. Los Angeles stays in playoff position with the loss, but it’s a huge blow for them. The Bucs meanwhile stay ahead of the Falcons for the lead in the NFC South.

Meanwhile, the Indianapolis Colts had a chance to close the gap in the wild card race but could not overcome self-inflicted wounds. Denver is now two games plus a tiebreaker up with three games left and sitting pretty for a playoff berth.

Washington was rolling over New Orleans, but needed a huge defensive stand at the end of the game to secure the win. The Saints scored what could have been a game-tying touchdown, but elected to go for two and the win. They came up short and Washington won. The win means the Eagles have to wait another week to get a clinching scenario for the NFC East.

The Texans held off the Dolphins thanks to a pair of picks by Derek Stingley. They won 20-12 and in doing so set up a clinching scenario heading into the 4 p.m. window. The Colts loss meant the Texans clinched the AFC South title. The Dolphins are not eliminated from playoff contention, but they’re in a bad spot.

LA won in Santa Clara on Thursday Night Football to sweep the season series. The Rams could move into first place if the Seahawks lose to the Packers on Sunday Night Football. The 49ers dropped to 6-8 and with only three games remaining, they could be eliminated from playoff contention in Week 16.

When they moved to 11 wins in Week 13, the Kansas City Chiefs became the first NFL team in the NFL to clinch a playoff spot. The Buffalo Bills clinched the AFC East last Sunday night, ensuring a home playoff game. The Lions secured their playoff spot with the Thursday night win while the Philadelphia Eagles joined them on Sunday. The Houston Texans won the AFC South in Week 15 while the Minnesota Vikings sewed up their spot before they even played in Week 15.

In Week 13, the Giants became the first team this season to be officially eliminated from the playoff race. On Black Friday, the Raiders joined them with their tenth loss of the season and they are also eliminated. On Sunday, the Patriots were also eliminated them with a loss and wins by the Chargers and Texans. With the Broncos win on Monday night, they eliminated the Jaguars from the playoffs. In Week 14, the Browns joined the list. The Week 15 elimination group includes the Bears and Panthers.