Three of the NFL’s eight division races have already been wrapped up already. While only one team in each conference gets a first-round bye, all of the NFL division winners will get to be home in the first round of the playoffs. Time is running out, especially for the disaster that is the NFC South, for teams to climb the NFL standings and grab a spot in the playoffs.
Here’s a look at a few of the division races that still have some intrigue left as the last weeks of the NFL season wind down.
Who Can Rule the North?
No team in the NFL may have been as impacted by the NFL injury report over the past two seasons as the Baltimore Ravens. Losing quarterback Lamar Jackson to an injury for a few weeks late in the season took a lot of the sting out of the offense. Baltimore struggled to get past last-place Pittsburgh before losing to Cleveland.
The Ravens, who are +150 to win the division, also have to deal with red-hot Cincinnati. The Cincinnati Bengals have shot up the NFL division standings by winning six straight games. One thing that will help Baltimore, which is one game back in the standings, is that it will have games against the Falcons and Steelers before meeting the Bengals again to close the season.
Jacksonville Suddenly Favorites in AFC South
Tennessee is in a steep, depressing nose dive. The Titans once looked like a lock to be one of the NFL Division winners. However, Tennessee has lost four straight games, including a two-touchdown defeat against Jacksonville two weeks ago. The Titans, who are 7-7 and even money to win the AFC South, still have another meeting with Jacksonville to close the season.
The Jaguars have won four of their last six games, including a 40-34 overtime upset of Dallas last week, to pull within a game of Tennessee. The Jaguars still have to navigate through a struggling but still playoff contender, the Jets, and the lowly Texans, before meeting with the Titans again.
Indianapolis can still win enough games on the NFL schedule to win the division but is +7500 to move on. NFL player stats show the Colts’ offense is likely not going to be able to put up enough points to win that many games.
Does Anyone Want to Win the NFC South?
The Buccaneers are still a heavy favorite to win the division despite losing consecutive games to San Francisco and Cincinnati to fall to 6-8. Tampa Bay, which is -360, will always be a contender to make the NFL Divisional round schedule due to having veteran quarterback Tom Brady on the roster. It is clear that Tampa Bay will find difficulties propping up its veteran quarterback with what the Buccaneers have around him.
Tampa Bay closes the season with winnable games against Arizona, Carolina, and Atlanta. The Panthers are only one game back of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and hold a head-to-head win over Tampa Bay, but they blew a good opportunity in a home loss to Pittsburgh last week. The Panthers, who are +400 to win the division, close with games against Detroit, Tampa Bay, and New Orleans.
Carolina would likely have to win out or at least beat the Buccaneers and Saints to win the division, which seems unlikely with Sam Darnold at quarterback. The Saints and Falcons are both a game back and +2500 to win the division, but they don’t look good in tiebreaker scenarios and would likely have to win out.
Bills and Eagles Should Clinch
When looking at NFL team stats, it is more than like the Philadelphia Eagles, and Buffalo Bills win the NFC East and AFC East division races, respectively. The Eagles can become the NFL Division winners by beating the Dallas Cowboys this weekend. However, Philadelphia will have to play without starting quarterback Jalen Hurts.
The Philadelphia Eagles, even with a loss, would still be able to clinch in subsequent weeks with a win or Dallas loss. Philadelphia, which is -5000 to win the division, beat Dallas earlier in the season. The Buffalo Bills have a three game-lead over Miami and are -10000 to win the division.
Buffalo and Miami split the regular-season series, but the Dolphins could only win the division if the Bills lost out and the Dolphins won all of their games. A Miami loss or Buffalo win this weekend will give the Bills another division crown. Buffalo won’t have too many NFL matchups where it can win and are unlikely to swoon like that.
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