NFL playoff picture: How the New England Patriots clinched the AFC East in Week 17

Game update (Sunday evening): With Buffalo’s loss to the Eagles, the Patriots have clinched the AFC East.

Game update: New England’s blowout win over the New York Jets moves the Patriots one step closer to clinching the AFC East. If the Bills lose or tie against the Eagles later today, the Patriots will clinch the AFC East title.

If Buffalo wins that game, New England can clinch the AFC East with a win over the Dolphins next week.

New England’s win also prevents the Broncos from clinching the No. 1 seed in the AFC. The Patriots can still catch Denver in that race. Both teams are now 13-3, and while the Broncos have a tiebreaker advantage over New England based on their record against common opponents, the Patriots can still secure the No. 1 seed in Week 18 with a win and a Denver loss.

The New England Patriots missed a golden opportunity to clinch the AFC East in Week 15, when they blew a 21-0 lead and lost to the Buffalo Bills.

But the upstart Patriots can finish the job in Week 17, albeit with a little bit of help.

Here is how the Patriots can clinch the AFC East for the first time since the 2019 season, Tom Brady’s last campaign in New England.

The Patriots control their own destiny in the race with the Bills for the division title, but to clinch this weekend, they will need a little bit of help from a team that beat them in Super Bowl LII.

New England sits atop the division with a 12-3 record, one game ahead of the 11-4 Bills. With wins in their final two games (starting this weekend against the New York Jets, and then in the season finale against the Miami Dolphins), then the Patriots are division champions.

However, New England can clinch the division this weekend, and start celebrating early. With a win over the Jets, and a Bills loss or tie against the Philadelphia Eagles, the Patriots are AFC East champions.

New England can also clinch the division with a tie against the Jets, and a Bills loss to the Eagles.

The Patriots are also in the running for the No. 1 seed in the AFC, but the advantage is in the Denver Broncos’ favor. Denver’s win over the Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas night improved their record to 13-3, and the Broncos have already clinched a tiebreaker advantage over the Patriots based on common games, which is the third tiebreaker after head-to-head (these two teams did not play this year) and record in conference games.

New England needs to win to keep their hopes for the No. 1 seed alive. A loss eliminates the Patriots from contention for the top spot in the AFC.

Here are the full AFC standings entering Week 17:

x - Team has clinched a playoff spot
e - Team has been eliminated from playoff contention

AFC East standings entering Week 17:

Here are the current AFC East standings: