Mile High Report
Week 13 in the NFL officially concluded Monday Night with the New England Patriots retaking the number one seed in the AFC with a dominating victory over the New York Giants. The Broncos, coming off another thrilling victory, remain the number 2 seed, but after that, we have some big changes to the AFC playoff picture.
The biggest change was the Jacksonville Jaguars overtaking the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC South and moving to the 3 seed in the AFC, while the free-falling Colts are now the 6th seed and in danger of missing the postseason entirely. Despite their Thanksgiving Night loss, the Ravens are at the top of the AFC North, while the Chargers and Bills are your other two wildcard teams.
If any of those teams slip up in the coming weeks, the Texans and their dominating defense are knocking on the door for a wildcard spot. Meanwhile, the free-falling Steelers and Chiefs are watching their postseason hopes slip away, and could Joe Burrow ignite a late-season AFC North run for the Bengals?
With all that said, here is your AFC playoff picture coming out of week 13 of the 2025 NFL season.
The Patriots continue to roll and improve to 11-2 on the year after a dominating victory over the New York Giants on Monday Night Football. Second-year quarterback Drake Maye is getting MVP chants, and Head Coach Mike Vrabel has this team playing good football. Are they taking advantage of a last-place schedule? Sure, but they’re playing good football and appear to have the best odds of being the number one seed in the AFC.
They are heading into their Bye week this upcoming week and will have some time off before two big matchups vs. the Bills and Ravens. The outcome of those two games will likely decide whether or not they can clinch the one seed or not.
After their home game vs. the Bills and road game vs. the Ravens, the Patriots finish out the year with a road game vs. the Jets and a home matchup vs the Dolphins in the season finale. If they can get past the Bills and Ravens, they have a clear path to the one seed.
Remaining Games: BYE, vs. Bills, at Ravens, at Jets, and vs. Dolphins
The Denver Broncos improved to 10-2 on the year after an overtime thriller vs. the Washington Commanders. Despite being doubted, they continue to find ways to win and now have a good shot at being the number 1 seed in the AFC and winning the AFC West.
While it may not always be pretty, the Broncos continue to grind out one-score victories led by quarterback Bo Nix, leading multiple game-winning drives and a suffocating defense. They have proven they can compete with any team in the NFL, and their only two losses on the year came on last-second field goal attempts by the opposing team....
