The Chiefs are still the No. 2 seed in the AFC with two games left in the regular season.
Kansas City stayed in that second spot by defeating the Seattle Seahawks in Week 16, while the Buffalo Bills stayed in the No. 1 spot thanks to a win over the Chicago Bears.
Luckily for the Chiefs, it’s still possible for them to earn the top seed, but they’ll need a little help to do it. Here’s a look at the AFC playoff picture and how the Chiefs can earn the No. 1 seed heading into Week 17:
AFC standings after Week 16
Playoff seeds
1. Buffalo Bills (12-3) [AFC East winner]
2. Kansas City Chiefs (12-3) [AFC West winner]
3. Cincinnati Bengals (11-4) [AFC North leader]
4. Jacksonville Jaguars (7-8) [AFC South leader]
5. Baltimore Ravens (10-5) [wild card]
6. Los Angeles Chargers (9-6) [wild card]
7. Miami Dolphins (8-7) [wild card]
In the hunt
8. New England Patriots (7-8)
9. New York Jets (7-8)
10. Tennessee Titans (7-8)
11. Pittsburgh Steelers (7-8)
12. Las Vegas Raiders (6-9)
Eliminated
Cleveland Browns (6-9)
Indianapolis Colts (4-10-1)
Denver Broncos (4-11)
Houston Texans (2-12-1)
If the playoffs started today, the Chiefs would host the Dolphins in the wild-card round.
The Bills defeated the Chiefs earlier this season, giving them a playoff-seeding tiebreaker over the Chiefs. That’s why Buffalo is in the No. 1 spot. The chances of the Bills losing their next two games are slim, so the Chiefs will likely need to win out and hope for one more Bills loss to take the No. 1 seed. Buffalo’s biggest challenge remaining this season is its Week 17 game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Chiefs will also need to be careful because one more loss could send them further down the seeding chain. The Bengals, who are just one game below the Chiefs, would hold a tiebreaker over the Chiefs if they held the same record.
Long story short: The Chiefs need to win out and hope for one more Bills loss.
NFC standings after Week 16
Playoff seeds
1. Philadelphia Eagles (13-2) [NFC East leader]
2. Minnesota Vikings (12-3) [NFC North winner]
3. San Francisco 49ers (11-4) [NFC West winner]
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-8) [NFC South leader]
5. Dallas Cowboys (11-4) [wild card]
6. New York Giants (8-6-1) [wild card]
7. Washington Commanders (7-7-1) [wild card]
In the hunt
8. Seattle Seahawks (7-8)
9. Detroit Lions (7-8)
10. Green Bay Packers (7-8)
11. Carolina Panthers (6-9)
12. New Orleans Saints (6-9)
Eliminated
Los Angeles Rams (5-10)
Atlanta Falcons (5-10)
Arizona Cardinals (4-11)
Chicago Bears (3-12)
The NFC playoff picture doesn’t affect the Chiefs unless they eventually make the Super Bowl. Still, it’s interesting to see who’s on the other side. Plus, there are some potentially great matchups for the Chiefs if they can make it to the Super Bowl — the Eagles, 49ers, Bucs and Vikings would all be intriguing opponents for K.C., with each potential matchup carrying its own set of storylines.
What's the playoff seeding tiebreaker?
The playoff tiebreaking procedure is:
- Head-to-head record, if applicable.
- Best conference win-loss record.
- Best common games win-loss record (minimum of four).
- Strength of victory.
- Strength of schedule.
- Best combined points scored and points allowed ranking within the conference.
- Best combined points scored and points allowed ranking within the NFL.
- Best net points conference games.
- Best net points in all games.
- Best net touchdowns in all games.
- A coin flip.
