Tag: NFL playoff standings

AFC Playoff Standings: Bengals need Chargers to Charger

The Bengals aren’t eliminated — but they need some help from a certain AFC team (or two).

The Cincinnati Bengals kept their slim playoff hopes alive with a wild 37-27 win over the Tennessee Titans, a game full of turnovers and penalties. However, they also watched as the Denver Broncos took care of the Indianapolis Colts 31-13, in part due to the blunder by Colts running back Jonathan Taylor. Denver losing was perhaps the Bengals’ best hope Sunday as a loss would have put Denver at 8-6 with the teams set to meet in two weeks.

That puts the Broncos at 9-5 and all but into the playoffs. Same goes for the Baltimore Ravens, 35-14 winners over the New York Giants. That means two of the three AFC Wild Cards are 9-5. The Bengals did get help from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Tampa simply throttled the Los Angeles Chargers 40-17, dropping the Bolts to 8-6 and sitting in the final playoff spot.

Simply put, the Bengals, who can be as high as the No. 6 seed, need the Chargers to Charger over the final three weeks. The problem is that, while the Chargers do face the Broncos on Thursday, their last two games are against the 3-11 New England Patriots and the 2-11 Las Vegas Raiders. Bottom line, the Bengals need a miracle over the last three weeks if they want to sneak into the playoffs. That Sunday night loss in L.A. is really biting the Bengals now. Had they won that game, both teams would currently be 7-7 and the Bengals would have the tiebreaker.

It is entirely possible that all seven playoff berths can be clinched in Week 16. Four are already secured. The Kansas City Chiefs, Buffalo Bills and Houston Texans have all clinched their respective divisions and the Pittsburgh Steelers have also clinched a playoff spot. The Steelers can clinch the AFC North with a win in Baltimore Saturday.

The Ravens, Broncos and Chargers all can secure playoff spots this week thanks to being two or three games ahead of the trio of 6-8 teams (Bengals, Dolphins, Colts).

AFC playoff standings

1. y-Kansas City Chiefs 13-1
2. y-Buffalo Bills 11-3
3. x-Pittsburgh Steelers 10-4
4. y-Houston Texans 9-5
5. Baltimore Ravens 9-5
6. Denver Broncos 9-5
7. Los Angeles Chargers 8-6

8. Indianapolis Colts 6-8
9. Miami Dolphins 6-8
10. Cincinnati Bengals 6-8

(y-clinched division, x-clinched playoff spot)

The Bengals are at the bottom of the trio thanks to their 3-6 conference record while the Colts and Dolphins are both 5-5. Indianapolis then has head-to-head over Miami.

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Bengals slim playoff hopes remain alive in Week 15 standings

The Bengals haven’t been eliminated…yet.

Entering Monday Night Football, the Cincinnati Bengals still have slim playoff hopes but did get a sliver of help when the Chargers lost on a doinked game-winning field goal against the Chiefs, securing the AFC West for the 9th year in a row for Kansas City and dropping L.A. to 8-5. The Bengals did lose to the Chargers, so passing them will be tough.

Cincinnati’s best hope if they want to sneak into the playoffs would be to win out and get to 9-8, which would include a win over the Broncos, and also get a couple of losses from the Colts and Dolphins, who both sit at 6-7. The Colts visit Denver this week while the Dolphins are in Houston.

Week Bengals Broncos Colts Dolphins
15 at Titans vs. Colts at Broncos at Texans
16 vs. Browns at Chargers vs. Titans vs. 49ers
17 vs. Broncos at Bengals at Giants at Browns
18 at Steelers vs. Chiefs vs. Jaguars at Jets

The Broncos don’t exactly have a favorable schedule down the stretch while the Colts’ last three games are against teams 3-10 or worse and already eliminated from playoff contention. The Bengals do have two such games (Titans, Browns).

Needless to say, it’s a longshot. But as Yogi Berra always said, it ain’t over ’til it’s over. Regardless of Monday’s result, the Bengals will have an elimination scenario in Week 15. Of note, if the Bengals lose Monday, they can still make the playoffs but only as the No. 7 seed. If they win, they would still be mathematically alive for as high as the No. 5 seed.

Here’s the current AFC standings after Sunday’s action.

1. y – Kansas City Chiefs 12-1
2. y – Buffalo Bills 10-3
3. Pittsburgh Steelers 10-3
4. Houston Texans 8-5
5. Baltimore Ravens 8-5
6. Los Angeles Chargers 8-5
7. Denver Broncos 8-5

8. Indianapolis Colts 6-7
9. Miami Dolphins 6-7
10. Cincinnati Bengals 4-8

(y=clinched division)

The bottom six teams (CLE, JAX, NYJ, TEN, NE, LV) have all been eliminated from playoff contention.

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AFC standings update: Bengals playoff chances on life support

Here’s where the Bengals sit in AFC standings.

The Cincinnati Bengals’44-38 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, coupled with the Denver Broncos winning a 41-32 primetime shootout over the Cleveland Browns Monday night, have put the Bengals’ playoff chances in very dire straits.

Let’s start with the AFC North, which we only need to spend a few moments on. The Bengals were eliminated from division contention with their loss Sunday. Even if the Bengals were to tie the Steelers at 9-8, one of those losses by the Steelers would be to the Ravens, whom the Bengals were swept by. A three-way tie at 9-8 would go to the Ravens thanks to what would be a 3-1 record head-to-head (Steelers would be 2-2, Bengals at 1-3).

So the division is officially out of the question. What about the wild card? Right now, all three wild cards in the AFC (Ravens, Chargers, Broncos) have eight wins. The Bengals were swept by the Ravens and lost head-to-head to the Chargers. The Bengals also already have six conference losses (2-6). Only the Patriots (2-7) and Raiders (2-8) are worse in that category.

The Bengals do not have an elimination scenario this week, as they still have a head-to-head meeting with the Broncos, who are off this week. But a loss to the Cowboys on Monday would all but seal their fate.

Current AFC playoff standings

1. x-Kansas City Chiefs 11-1
2. y-Buffalo Bills 10-2
3. Pittsburgh Steelers 9-3
4. Houston Texans 8-5
5. Los Angeles Chargers 8-4
6. Baltimore Ravens 8-5
7. Denver Broncos 8-5

8. Indianapolis Colts 6-7
9. Miami Dolphins 5-7
10. Cincinnati Bengals 4-8
11. Cleveland Browns 3-9
12. New York Jets 3-9
13. Tennessee Titans 3-9
14. e-New England Patriots 3-10
15. e-Jacksonville Jaguars 2-10
16. e-Las Vegas Raiders 2-10

Key: x-clinched playoff spot, y-clinched division, e-eliminated

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NBA superstar isn’t giving up on Joe Burrow and the Bengals just yet

One major NBA star still thinks the Bengals can make the playoffs.

It says a lot about Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals that they keep being a trendy pick to still make a run despite the 4-7 record.

Adam Schefter recently suggested the Bengals are still a dangerous possible playoff team.

And now NBA superstar Kevin Durant has said something similar during an appearance on the “Up & Adams” show.

“The paper says the Bengals should be in because they got the most talent, experience,” Durant said. “If I had to take anybody, I’m taking the Bengals. I trust Joe Burrow more than anybody else.”

If the Bengals can exit the bye and take down the Pittsburgh Steelers, perhaps this can become a more serious conversation. They do get to play five AFC opponents over their final six games, yet will likely need to win all six just to have a chance at the playoffs.

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Where Bengals stand in playoff picture after Week 12

An updated playoff outlook for the Bengals after the bye week.

With just six weeks left in the regular season, the Cincinnati Bengals are hoping for a major turnaround and quickly if they are to sneak into the playoffs. During the bye week, the Bengals saw the Denver Broncos defeat the Las Vegas Raiders to move to 7-5. We’ll get to more on that in a minute.

First, let’s take a quick look at the AFC North standings, a race that tightened at the top following a Thursday night upset in Cleveland. While that race will likely come down to the wire, the Bengals’ chances are very slim. They are four games back with six to play. The silver lining is they still have two games against the Steelers. The downside is they have already been swept by the Ravens.

AFC North standings

1. Pittsburgh Steelers 8-3
2. Baltimore Ravens 8-4
3. Cincinnati Bengals 4-7
4. Cleveland Browns 3-8

Let’s get back to the wild card race. The Bengals are now 2.5 games out of the playoffs following Denver’s win. The Bengals also have two other teams they have to jump over, the 5-6 Miami Dolphins and the 5-7 Indianapolis Colts. The Bengals host the Broncos in Week 17, either the 28th or 29th of December.

Here’s a look at the remaining schedules for the four teams:

Bengals Broncos Dolphins Colts
vs. Steelers vs. Browns at Packers at Patriots
at Cowboys BYE vs. Jets BYE
at Titans vs. Colts at Texans at Broncos
vs. Browns at Charger vs. 49ers vs. Titans
vs. Broncos at Bengals at Browns at Giants
at Steelers vs. Chiefs at Jets vs. Jaguars

 

Current AFC Playoff standings

1. Kansas City Chiefs 10-1
2. Buffalo Bills 9-2
3. Pittsburgh Steelers 8-3
4. Houston Texans 7-5
5. Baltimore Ravens 8-4
6. Los Angeles Chargers 7-4
7. Denver Broncos 7-5

8. Miami Dolphins 5-6
9. Indianapolis Colts 5-7
10. Cincinnati Bengals 4-7
11. Cleveland Browns 3-8
12. New York Jets 3-8
13. Tennessee Titans 3-8
14. New England Patriots 3-9
15. Jacksonville Jaguars 2-9
16. Las Vegas Raiders 2-9

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Bengals don’t get much help in playoff race during bye week

The Bengals will need to keep winning to stand a chance.

The Cincinnati Bengals started their bye week getting some help on Thursday night when the Cleveland Browns upset the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Those Steelers were tops in the AFC North and fell to 8-3 with the loss.

The Week 12 weekend was more mixed for the resting Bengals. Tennessee knocked off Houston in an upset, bringing the Texans down to 7-5. But Miami stomped New England to move to 5-6.

Later, Denver moved to 7-5 as 2-9 Las Vegas couldn’t pull off the upset despite leading at halftime.

Not the best help overall from a Bengals perspective. As is the case with any possible results from here on out, all that matters is the Bengals keep winning games.

That starts in Week 13 against those Steelers, then even in primetime against the Dallas Cowboys, the only non-AFC team remaining on their schedule.

Monday night, at least, features a showdown between seven-win AFC teams Baltimore and the Los Angeles Chargers.

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49ers schedule: Week 11 game vs. Seahawks a virtual must-win

The 49ers need to beat the Seahawks for a bunch of reasons.

There’s a clear path to the postseason for the San Francisco 49ers that started in Week 10 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and continues in Week 11 against the Seattle Seahawks.

The game at Tampa Bay was a virtual must-win for the previously 4-4 49ers. A loss to fall to 4-5 could have been catastrophic. Alas, they pulled out a 23-20 victory on the road. While it was a significant win, it was only Step 1 for the 49ers. Perhaps more important is Sunday’s matchup against the Seattle Seahawks.

It doesn’t appear as though the 49ers’ road back to the playoffs will ever be easy this season. They could simply win the rest of their games and punch their ticket that way, but with games coming up in Green Bay, in Buffalo, at home against the Lions, Dolphins and Rams, and in Arizona, the likelihood they win out is slim. That puts a handful of other scenarios on the table.

There are too many different ways this can all play out to start listing them here, but there’s a real chance tiebreakers come into play for either the division or a wild card spot. The bottom line for Sunday’s game is that the 49ers can’t drop another game in the division after losing to the Cardinals and Rams earlier in the year.

NFL tiebreakers for the division start with head-to-head record. The 49ers would sweep the season series with the Seahawks with a win Sunday and climb further ahead of them in the standings. If the teams split their head-to-head matchups, which the 49ers would if they beat the Rams and Cardinals, then the next tiebreaker is record within the division.

San Francisco needs a trio of wins in the division down the stretch, and their second time through the NFC West begins Sunday.

There’s a wild card element to factor in as well.

The first tiebreaker for wild card teams is head-to-head matchup. We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it next week when the 49ers visit the No. 7 seed Green Bay Packers. The next tiebreaker is conference record, and San Francisco’s three NFC losses early in the year put them behind the curve in that category.

Racking up NFC wins is going to be imperative to not only have a playoff-caliber record, but also for getting a potential tiebreaker edge.

San Francisco could still make the postseason if they lose Sunday. A win makes the path much easier though, and finding out what it looks like with a loss to Seattle is probably a version of the playoff picture they’ll want to avoid.

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Where Bengals sit in playoff standings after Sunday of Week 10

Do the Bengals still have a shot at the playoffs?

The Cincinnati Bengals lost another heartbreaker Thursday against the Ravens, falling to 4-6. The silver lining is that a handful of other AFC playoff contenders also lost in Week 10.

So even at 4-6, the Bengals still only find themselves just one game back in the AFC playoff picture. The division is already starting to get away from them after Pittsburgh also got to seven wins with their 28-27 victory over the Washington Commanders.

Current AFC North standings

1. Pittsburgh Steelers 7-2
2. Baltimore Ravens 7-3
3. Cincinnati Bengals 4-6
4. Cleveland Browns 2-7

As far as the wild card goes, a blocked field goal on what was thought to be a chip shot sunk the Denver Broncos in their upset bid of the Kansas City Chiefs. As a result, the Broncos fell to 5-5.

Elsewhere, the Indianapolis Colts continued their offensive struggles despite the switch to Joe Flacco. A 30-20 loss to the Buffalo Bills dropped the Colts to 4-6.

The Broncos, Colts and Bengals all currently sit with four conference losses. This could be a tight race right down to the end.

The Bengals do also have a chance next Sunday night to close the gap on the current No. 6 seed in the AFC, the 6-3 Los Angeles Chargers.

Current AFC playoff standings

1. Kansas City Chiefs 9-0
2. Buffalo Bills 8-2
3. Pittsburgh Steelers 7-2
4. Houston Texans 6-4
5. Baltimore Ravens 7-3
6. Los Angeles Chargers 6-3
7. Denver Broncos 5-5

8. Indianapolis Colts 4-6
9. Cincinnati Bengals 4-6
10. New York Jets 3-7
11. New England Patriots 3-7
12. Miami Dolphins 2-6
13. Cleveland Browns 2-7
14. Tennessee Titans 2-7
15. Las Vegas Raiders 2-7
16. Jacksonville Jaguars 2-8

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Did Bengals’ season just get saved by the Chiefs?

Somehow…the Bengals just aren’t out of this thing just yet.

It appeared all hope was lost for the Cincinnati Bengals when the team dropped its latest heartbreaker by losing to the Baltimore Ravens in Week 10.

That was Thursday — Sunday provided some hope.

Hope came from an unexpected place, too, with the Kansas City Chiefs pulling off a last-second victory over the Denver Broncos in 16-14 fashion.

That kept the Broncos at just 5-5 on the season — and the 4-6 Bengals get a shot at them in Week 17.

Just as good? The Buffalo Bills beat the Indianapolis Colts, keeping that reeling club at 4-6.

The Bengals really needed the Los Angeles Chargers to lose on Sunday, too, but no dice there as Brian Callahan’s Tennessee Titans were just no match. But the Bengals get a shot at the Chargers in Week 11 on primetime.

Right now, the Bengals are one of two 4-6 teams with a shot at the final seed in the AFC. And considering the Chargers at 6-3 are still in danger of falling out in a conference that has seven teams with three or fewer wins, anything really is possible.

Six of Cincinnati’s last seven opponents to close the season call the AFC home. Win all six of those, which isn’t impossible, and the Bengals are a 10-win team in a conference that might be lucky to have seven teams finish with a winning record at this rate.

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Bengals make progress in AFC playoff standings for Week 10

The Bengals climbed the postseason standings in a weak AFC.

The Cincinnati Bengals took care of business against the now 2-7 Las Vegas Raiders and have themselves right back in the playoff picture with the trade deadline looming Tuesday.

Will the Bengals make a move and try to make a playoff push? They are now 4-5 but just one game back of the final spot, currently held by the 5-4 Denver Broncos.

The Bengals also moved within two games of the idle Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC North race. The Bengals have a quick turnaround this week, facing the 6-3 Ravens on Thursday.

 

Current AFC North standings

1. Pittsburgh Steelers 6-2
2. Baltimore Ravens 6-3
3. Cincinnati Bengals 4-5
4. Cleveland Browns 2-7

 

Current AFC playoff standings

1. Kansas City Chiefs 7-0
2. Buffalo Bills 7-2
3. Pittsburgh Steelers 6-2
4. Houston Texans 6-3
5. Baltimore Ravens 6-3
6. Los Angeles Chargers 5-3
7. Denver Broncos 5-4

8. Indianapolis Colts 4-5
9. Cincinnati Bengals 4-5
10. New York Jets 3-6
11. Tennessee Titans 2-6
12. Miami Dolphins 2-6
13. Cleveland Browns 2-7
14. Jacksonville Jaguars 2-7
15. Las Vegas Raiders 2-7
16. New England Patriots 2-7

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