Mile High Report
It’s a little early to begin playoff picture type stuff, but it isn’t too early to begin seeing how the conference is lining up after 1/3 of the season. As it stands, the AFC is definitely a bit muddled after six weeks. There are a lot of potential playoff contenders at the top and a slew of really bad teams at the bottom.
Let’s take a look.
1. Indianapolis Colts (5-1)
2. Pittsburgh Steelers (4-1)
3. Los Angeles Chargers (4-2, win over DEN)
4. New England Patriots (4-2, win over BUF)
5. Buffalo Bills (4-2, loss to NE 3-1 AFC)
6. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-2, 2-1 AFC)
7. Denver Broncos (4-2, loss to LAC, 3-2 AFC)
8. Kansas City Chiefs (3-3)
9. Houston Texans (2-3)
10. Cincinnati Bengals (2-4)
11. Las Vegas Raiders (2-4)
12. Baltimore Ravens (1-5)
13. Miami Dolphins (1-5)
14. Cleveland Browns (1-5)
15. Tennessee Titans (1-5)
16. New York Jets (0-6)
If you had asked me to setup a list of the Top 6 teams in the AFC after 1/3 of the season two months ago, I can confidently say that four of those teams would not have been in the list we currently have. The surprises are definitely the Colts, Steelers, Patriots, and Jaguars. I would also quantify the Ravens as a surprise at 1-5!
For the Broncos, there are about where I would expect. The only difference is that the Chargers are where I would have expected the Chiefs to be. That said, it is looking like there will be eight teams competing for the seven playoff spots this year. I suppose the Texans could get back into the mix, but if they don’t, then there will be a musical chairs type setup for that last playoff spot.
Taking the AFC West out of the mix, the Broncos play the Texans and Jaguars. They’ve already lost to the Colts, so it would be best if they go on to win the division there. So Denver’s game against Houston in Week 9 and Jacksonville in Week 16 could end up deciding whether or not they snag a playoff spot in 2025.
What you do think about the AFC in 2025?
