Both the AFC North and the NFC South were impacted significantly by Monday’s matchup between the Baltimore Ravens and the New Orleans Saints. The Ravens wound up winning Monday Night Football, 34-27, and in doing so made the race for the AFC North even tighter. There are now three 7-4 teams in the division, while the Cincinnati Bengals, thanks to a tie, are ahead of them all at 7-3-1.
NFL playoff picture and standings 2014: AFC North remains the tightest division in football
The AFC North and NFC South were impacted by Monday’s game between the Baltimore Ravens and New Orleans Saints, and the Buffalo Bills helped themselves in a tough AFC East.
The NFC South is a mess. There’s no nice way to talk about a division that now has two teams at 4-7 that are tied for the division lead. It’s the first time in NFL history a team three games under .500 leads a division. The 3-7-1 Carolina Panthers are still in the running just a half-game out, and we guess you can’t count out the 2-9 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, either. The Saints looked decent at times Monday, but the Ravens were still the class of the Superdome.
Not much changed in the other division impacted Monday -- the AFC East. Both the Buffalo Bills and the New York Jets are in the division, but only Buffalo was really competing for anything coming into this game. They've helped themselves with a win and are now 6-5, alongside the Miami Dolphins. But both teams trail the New England Patriots, who sit at 9-2 and should run away with the East again.
Here’s a look at all of the divisions and where they stand after Week 12:
AFC North
The Ravens did themselves a big favor, but at 7-4 they’re still in a three-way tie for second place in the division. At least one wild card team will come from the AFC North, but the winner and a first-round home game is still totally up for grabs.
AFC South
The Indianapolis Colts downed the Jacksonville Jaguars Sunday -- as expected. They're now 7-4, with a comfortable lead over the 5-6 Houston Texans, who just lost quarterback Ryan Mallett for the season. The Tennessee Titans are 2-9, and are non-factors along with the aforementioned Jaguars, who have just one win on the season.
AFC West
The Denver Broncos got off to a shaky start Sunday, but they rallied to beat the Miami Dolphins and now have an 8-3 record and the AFC West lead. It's not exactly a comfortable lead though, as the Kansas City Chiefs and San Diego Chargers both sit at 7-4. The Oakland Raiders have a single win on the year.
AFC East
The Bills are surprisingly relevant at this point in the season, but it’s hard to imagine them catching up to the aforementioned Patriots. Miami and Buffalo are making things interesting at 6-5, and are certainly in the wild card discussion, but the Patriots (9-2) have won their last seven games and don’t look to be slowing down. The Jets’ (2-9) season was over in early October.
The AFC playoff picture after 12 weeks is as follows: 1. New England, 2. Denver, 3. Cincinnati, 4. Indianapolis, 5. Kansas City, 6. San Diego, with the 7-4 AFC North trio (Piit, Cle, Bal) just outside the wild card spots.
NFC North
This division is a two-team battle at this point. The Chicago Bears are 5-6 and are firmly behind the Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers. Green Bay has the lead at 8-3, while Detroit sits at 7-4. The Minnesota Vikings are 4-7 and are a non-factor. This division is a definite contender for two playoff representatives, the Packers and Lions.
NFC South
The worst division in football gets even worse. The Saints are now 4-7 on the season and in a tie for the NFC South lead with the Falcons. Atlanta holds the tiebreaker, and with just four games left, and even .500 8-8 division winner seems like a best case scenario.
NFC West
The Arizona Cardinals still have a commanding lead at 9-2 this season, but the Seattle Seahawks just scored a statement win over the West leaders to move to 7-4. The San Francisco 49ers are also 7-4 after beating Washington Sunday. San Francisco still has both games against Seattle remaining on the schedule, so that race will likely go down to the wire.
NFC East
The Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles are tied for the NFC East lead, which isn't too dissimilar from recent seasons. The big difference this year: they're both good teams. Both are 8-3, and the two will face off on Thanksgiving for sole possession of the division lead. The New York Giants (3-8) are a non-factor, as is Washington (3-8).
The NFC playoff picture after 12 weeks is as follows: 1. Arizona, 2. Green Bay, 3. Philadelphia, 4. Atlanta, 5. Dallas, 6. Seattle, with the 7-4 Lions and 49ers just outside the final wild card spot due to tiebreakers.
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