Kansas City Chiefs: AFC playoff picture after week 14

The Kansas City Chiefs won an overtime thriller on Sunday and as a result, held onto that top seed in the AFC playoffs. There were some losses by the top six seeds, so let’s check out standings after week 14.

With the final game of week 14 being an NFC match-up, we can dive into the playoff picture from the AFC. The Kansas City Chiefs are 11-2 and fought off the Baltimore Ravens to hold onto the top seed in the AFC playoffs. With the win, the Chiefs clinched a playoff berth, meaning they’ve now gone four straight years.

Despite some losses this week, the standings did not change. Let’s take a look at the current seedings.

Kansas City Chiefs (11-2) – BYE
New England Patriots (9-4) – BYE
Houston Texans (9-4)
Pittsburgh Steelers (7-5-1)
Los Angeles Chargers (10-3)
Baltimore Ravens (7-6)

IN THE HUNT: Miami Dolphins (7-6), Indianapolis Colts (7-6), Tennessee Titans (7-6)

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We all know the Chiefs have that number one seed (and officially clinched a playoff spot with their win on Sunday), but it’s getting a little too close for comfort, as the Chargers refuse to lose. Fortunately, there’s a big game on Thursday night that is going to help sort that situation out.

I’m referring to the Chiefs hosting LA on Thursday Night Football this week. If the Chiefs win, they’ll win the AFC West and should be able to have less losses than the Patriots and Texans to close out the year.

If, however, the Chargers win, then things could get a little more complicated. The Chiefs would technically still hold the tiebreaker due to divisional record (Chiefs are 4-0 while Chargers are 2-2), but it’d mean the Chiefs would be on a short leash throughout the rest of the season.

As for the rest of the standings, nothing budged, even with some key losses. The Patriots lost to Miami on a lateral play, which was highly entertaining. All four of the Patriots’ losses have come on the road, making it even more important for the Chiefs to get that top seed.

The Texans also lost on Sunday, which snapped their winning streak. They’re still the third seed as of now however and are still in good position to win the AFC South. That’s not a team I’d want to face next month.

The Pittsburgh Steelers lost to the Raiders and have looked like a totally different team than the one we were watching a month ago. Pittsburgh and New England square off next week in a HUGE game for the conference. That game could also determine who wins the AFC North, as the Ravens are still in the running for the division title too.

As for the teams still in the hunt, the Dolphins, Colts, and Titans are above .500 and have a fighting chance at that sixth seed. Denver lost to the 49ers, so I removed them from the category because they’re now 6-7 and couldn’t beat the lowly San Francisco 49ers.

Let’s check out next week’s match-ups for these six teams.