Week 16 isn’t completely over, as the Buffalo Bills and New England Patriots still need to clash on “Monday Night Football.” But for the Ravens’ playoff scenarios, things are as clear as they’re going to get until next week when the dust settles. And with fans hungry to know where Baltimore stands in the playoff hunt, it’s a perfect opportunity to see exactly what’s potentially in store for the Ravens beyond Week 17.
Using ESPN’s playoff machine, I calculated every major scenario for the AFC to determine what is most likely to happen for the Ravens. While I didn’t factor in ties, this breaks down how Baltimore could be as high as the fifth seed and as low as out of the postseason entirely, and everything that needs to happen for each scenario.
For those wanting to keep track of the madness, it all starts tonight with the Bills vs. Patriots. But in Week 17, the Ravens vs. Bengals, Dolphins vs. Bills, Steelers vs. Browns, Titans vs. Texans, and Jaguars vs. Colts are all critically important to figuring out where Baltimore winds up and who they’ll face in the Wild Card round of the NFL playoffs.
Let’s dig into each possibility below and just how likely each scenario is.