The Buffalo Bills will need to do their part to get to 10-6 or 11-5 in order to make the AFC playoffs, but they’re going to need some help, too. While Buffalo is on their bye, you should still have a team to root for. Here’s your list, Bills fans.
Standings
1. New England Patriots (7-1)
2. Oakland Raiders (7-2)
3. Houston Texans (5-3)
4. Baltimore Ravens (5-4)
5. Kansas City Chiefs (6-2)
6. Denver Broncos (6-3)
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7. Miami Dolphins (4-4, head-to-head over BUF & PIT)
8. Pittsburgh Steelers (4-4, loss to MIA)
9. Indianapolis Colts (4-5, head-to-head over TEN & SD)
10. San Diego Chargers (4-5, lost to IND, beat TEN)
11. Tennessee Titans (4-5, lost to IND & SD, 3-4 in AFC)
12. Buffalo Bills (4-5, 1-4 in AFC)
13. Cincinnati Bengals (3-4-1)
14. New York Jets (3-6)
15. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-6)
16. Cleveland Browns (0-9)
Who to root for:
Carolina over Kansas City (6-2)
Sunday, November 13, 1:00 p.m. ET
New Orleans over Denver (6-3)
Sunday, November 13, 1:00 p.m. ET
These two games would be huge. Right now the AFC West is dominating the playoff picture. Giving each of these teams a loss without helping another AFC team get a win would go a long way toward evening out the current playoff picture. #KeepPounding and #WhoDat
Dallas over Pittsburgh (4-4)
Sunday, November 13, 4:25 p.m.
The red-hot Cowboys could put a big dent in the Steelers playoff chances by knocking them blow .500. It’s one of seven inter-conference games this week that would help the Bills.
Seattle over New England (7-1)
Sunday, November 13, 8:30 p.m.
Rex Ryan has conceded the division to the Patriots. While we might dislike both of these teams right now, we hold a special extra bit of hate for the Patriots.
Green Bay over Tennessee (4-5)
Sunday, November 13, 1:00 p.m.
Get Tennessee out of the playoff picture right now. It would also move Buffalo ahead of the Titans in the standings.
New York Giants over Cincinnati (3-4-1)
Monday, November 14, 8:30 p.m.
The Bengals will move ahead of Buffalo with a win here. It’s an easy way to knock out Cincy, probably for good, if the NFC team from New Jersey can hand them a loss on Monday night.
San Diego (4-5) over Miami (4-4)
Sunday, November 13, 4:05 p.m.
I waffled on this one several times. Hear me out. Buffalo needs to beat Miami later in the year, so it’s not as important that they lose now because the Bills will need to give them one later. Both have about the same strength of schedule down the stretch, though. It ultimately came down to the loss column; evening them there trumped everything.
Jacksonville (2-6) over Houston (5-3)
Sunday, November 13, 1:00 p.m.
Jacksonville would have to run the table to have a shot at the AFC playoffs, and that’s not going to happen. With them out of it and Houston squarely in the middle of a tight race with the Tennessee Titans, it makes the most sense for Buffalo to have Houston take the “L” today.
Los Angeles over New York Jets (3-6)
Sunday, November 13, 1:00 p.m.
If New York gets their seventh loss, their season is over. Buffalo will need to beat them later to achieve their own goals anyway, so this game isn’t really important.
Games that don’t really matter:
Atlanta vs. Philadelphia
Chicago vs. Tampa Bay
Minnesota vs. Washington
San Francisco vs. Arizona
Teams on a bye:
Buffalo Bills, Indianapolis Colts, Oakland Raiders, Detroit Lions