AFC playoff picture: Bills hit form as Chiefs slump continues

With just five weeks now remaining in the regular season, the playoff race in the NFL is really starting to heat up. But it is incredibly close in the AFC in particular, as we saw in Week 14 on Sunday.

In the biggest game of the day in the conference, rivals the Buffalo Bills and the Kansas City Chiefs had another epic matchup at Arrowhead Stadium, with Josh Allen and co. hanging in to steal victory. The win means that six – yes, six – teams sit at 7-6 in the AFC, all fighting over just two wild-card spots. Incidentally, the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Indianapolis Colts hold those final position for now as per the conference record tiebreaker, despite both losing this week. They meet on Saturday in Week 15, so it’s highly likely for things to change in the seeding.

Similarly, there are three teams at 8-5, including the Chiefs, who are now on a two-game losing streak. That’s their worst record through 13 games since Patrick Mahomes became a starter in 2018.

The other two 8-5 teams are the Cleveland Browns and the team they beat on Sunday, the Jacksonville Jaguars, as 38-year-old Joe Flacco bested a hobbled Trevor Lawrence in just his second start for the team.

Flacco wasn’t the only backup quarterback in the AFC North to lead his team to victory, as Jake Browning and the Cincinnati Bengals torched the Colts, and put themselves in playoff contention.

Elsewhere, top seed the Baltimore Ravens (10-3) survived a challenge from the Los Angeles Rams in overtime, while the Miami Dolphins (9-3) play the Tennessee Titans on Monday night with a chance to lead the way in the conference.

It’s really hotting up in the race for the postseason in the AFC. Who is going to make it? The Bills are hitting a bit of form and Browning looks good for the Bengals, so I wouldn’t be surprised to see the two juggernauts sneak in. Let’s see what happens next weekend…