Fans really don’t need to see any numbers to know the Cincinnati Bengals have everything at stake in Kansas City when they play the Chiefs on Sunday.
But darn if those numbers aren’t interesting.
As NFL Network’s James Palmer pointed out on social media, NGS has the Bengals at nearly a 60 percent chance to make the playoffs if they can pull off the upset on the road.
But that number nosedives to just seven percent with a loss.
It all comes back to conference record. The Bengals are 0-5 in the AFC North and 3-7 in the AFC, tied for the worst conference record with two teams that have already been eliminated.
But if the Bengals can win and then beat the Browns in the season finale, the team will need just a small fraction of help to make the playoffs.
Per NGS, the #Bengals have a 58% chance of reaching the playoffs with a win in Week 17. Cincy's playoff chances drop to 7% with a loss in Week 17 to the #chiefs. That's the largest playoff % leverage based on their Week 17 outcome in the AFC. pic.twitter.com/Tjjkqbw92N
— James Palmer (@JamesPalmerTV) December 29, 2023
