NFL playoff scenarios: Dolphins, Bills, others control own destiny
The Miami Dolphins, the Buffalo Bills and three AFC South clubs are among the eight NFL teams who control their own playoff destinies in Week 18.
The Dolphins (11-5) will host the Bills (10-6) in the final game of the regular season Sunday night, with the winner clinching the AFC East title. The Dolphins would also get in with a tie, while the Bills still can wind up as the sixth or seventh seed in a few other scenarios, including a loss or tie by the Jacksonville Jaguars or Pittsburgh Steelers.
The three-team race in the AFC South features the Jaguars, Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts, all currently 9-7.
The Jaguars control their destiny to win the division title simply by beating the Tennessee Titans on Sunday afternoon, but when the Texans visit the Colts on Saturday night, the winner will be guaranteed at least a playoff bid.
If Jacksonville loses to or ties with Tennessee, the Houston-Indianapolis winner will win the AFC South and the right to host a playoff game as the No. 4 seed.
In the NFC, the Dallas Cowboys (11-5) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-8) are one win away from clinching the NFC East and South titles, respectively.
Dallas visits Washington on Sunday and can also secure the division banner if the Philadelphia Eagles (11-5) lose to the New York Giants. If the Eagles win and Dallas loses or ties — or if the Eagles tie and the Cowboys lose — then Philadelphia will lock up the NFC East crown despite a 1-4 December.
Tampa Bay visits the league-worst Carolina Panthers, and if the Buccaneers tie, they’d still fend off the New Orleans Saints and Atlanta Falcons for the NFC South crown if New Orleans loses to or ties with Atlanta.
The Saints (8-8) need to finish with a better record than the Buccaneers (8-8) to win the division, so they need a win and a Tampa Bay loss or tie, or a Saints tie plus a Bucs loss. The Falcons (7-9) can only win the division by beating the Saints and having the Buccaneers lose, forcing a three-way tie at 8-9 that Atlanta would win via tiebreaker.
There is also one NFC wild-card spot still up for grabs, and in that race, the Green Bay Packers (8-8) control their destiny. They have six clinching scenarios for Week 18, but the simplest one is to beat the visiting Chicago Bears.
Also in the chase are the Seattle Seahawks (8-8), the Minnesota Vikings (7-9), the Saints and the Buccaneers.
The Seahawks will grab the wild-card berth if they beat the Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay loses or ties. If Seattle happens to tie with Arizona, a Green Bay loss and a loss or tie by either Tampa Bay or New Orleans would also let the Seahawks sneak in.
The Vikings must beat the Detroit Lions and get losses from the Packers and Seahawks, plus a loss by either the Buccaneers or the Saints.
The biggest prizes of the regular season were decided in Week 17 when the Baltimore Ravens (13-3) and San Francisco 49ers (12-4) clinched the No. 1 seeds in the AFC and NFC, respectively.
The Ravens may choose to rest their players in Week 18 against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Pittsburgh, at 9-7, still has a path to grab an AFC wild-card berth:
1. PIT win + BUF loss OR
2. PIT win + JAX loss or tie OR
3. PIT win + HOU-IND tie OR
4. PIT tie + JAX loss + HOU-IND doesn’t end in tie OR
5. JAX loss + DEN win + HOU-IND doesn’t end in tie
–Field Level Media
