How NFL Playoff Picture is Impacted By Chiefs Win, Ravens vs. Texans Result

Posted by Admin December 25, 2024 NFL

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This post will be updated live as games go final, but includes conditional possibilities based on the results of Christmas Day games, barring ties.

In the spring months when the NFL schedule is mapped out, it’s a nearly impossible task to predict what teams will be relevant to the playoff picture late in the season. This year’s schedule aficianados—and surely, helpful schedule optimizing algorithms—did great with their selection of the four teams scheduled for Christmas Day.

All four teams—the Kansas City Chiefs, Pittsburgh Steelers, Baltimore Ravens and Houston Texans—are relevant to the NFL playoff picture in the AFC. Here’s how the playoff picture looks as of Wednesday’s outcomes.

Later this week, several teams can clinch playoff positioning.

After the Chiefs beat the Steelers 29–10, they clinched the No. 1 seed in the AFC, earning themselves home field advantage and a first-round bye in the playoffs.

Seed	Team	Record	Playoff Status	Playoff Likelihood
1	Kansas City Chiefs	15–1	Clinched No. 1 seed	100%
2	Buffalo Bills	12–3	Clinched Division	100%
3	Pittsburgh Steelers	10–6	Clinched playoff spot	100%
4	Houston Texans	9–6	Clinched Division	100%
5	Baltimore Ravens	10–5	Clinched playoff spot	100%
6	Los Angeles Chargers	9–6	Clinch playoff spot with win OR Colts loss + Dolphins loss	94%
7	Denver Broncos	9–6	Clinch playoff spot with win	76%
8	Indianapolis Colts	7–8	No clinching scenario this week	14%
9	Miami Dolphins	7–8	No clinching scenario this week	9%
10	Cincinnati Bengals	7–8	No clinching scenario this week	7%

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At stake for the Ravens is seeding. They would leap above the Steelers with a win today after Pittsburgh lost to Kansas City earlier in the day.

Seed	Team	Record	Playoff Status	Playoff Likelihood
1	Kansas City Chiefs	15–1	Clinched No. 1 seed	100%
2	Buffalo Bills	12–3	Clinched Division	100%
3	Baltimore Ravens	11-5	Clinched playoff spot	100%
4	Houston Texans	9–7	Clinched Division	100%
5	Pittsburgh Steelers	10-6	Clinched playoff spot	100%
6	Los Angeles Chargers	9–6	Clinch playoff spot with win OR Colts loss + Dolphins loss	94%
7	Denver Broncos	9–6	Clinch playoff spot with win	76%
8	Indianapolis Colts	7–8	No clinching scenario this week	14%
9	Miami Dolphins	7–8	No clinching scenario this week	9%
10	Cincinnati Bengals	7–8	No clinching scenario this week	7%

The main difference in this scenario is the Steelers retain the No. 3 seed since they hold a tiebreaker over the Ravens.

Seed	Team	Record	Playoff Status	Playoff Likelihood
1	Kansas City Chiefs	15–1	Clinched No. 1 seed	100%
2	Buffalo Bills	12–3	Clinched Division	100%
3	Pittsburgh Steelers	10–6	Clinched playoff spot	100%
4	Houston Texans	10–6	Clinched Division	100%
5	Baltimore Ravens	10–6	Clinched playoff spot	100%
6	Los Angeles Chargers	9–6	Clinch playoff spot with win OR Colts loss + Dolphins loss	94%
7	Denver Broncos	9–6	Clinch playoff spot with win	76%
8	Indianapolis Colts	7–8	No clinching scenario this week	14%
9	Miami Dolphins	7–8	No clinching scenario this week	9%
10	Cincinnati Bengals	7–8	No clinching scenario this week	7%

With no NFC teams playing on Christmas, there will be no Wednesday change to the playoff picture. Here’s how things look:

Seed	Team	Record	Playoff Status	Playoff Likelihood
1	Detroit Lions	13–2	Clinched Division	100%
2	Philadelphia Eagles	12–3	Clinched Playoff Spot	100%
3	Los Angeles Rams	9–6	Clinched Playoff Spot	86%
4	Atlanta Falcons	8–7	Clinch NFC South with win + TB loss	58%
5	Minnesota Vikings	13–2	Clinched playoff spot	100%
6	Green Bay Packers	11–4	Clinched Wild Card	100%
7	Washington Commanders	10–5	Clinch berth with win or TB loss	95%
8	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	8–7	No clinching scenario this week	48%
9	Seattle Seahawks	8–7	No clinching scenario this week	14%