We’re kicking off our weekly NFL playoff picture amid chaos, confusion and pandemonium. With most of 11 weeks in the books, it feels accurate to say the following about the NFL: There are no great teams. There are a handful of good teams. There are many teams of questionable repute. There are some really, really awful teams. But there are no great teams.
For the next seven weeks, it will be our job to synthesize that structure into a playoff bracket that makes sense. We’ll combine ESPN’s Football Power Index (FPI), standings tiebreakers and a bit of what our eyeballs tell us to stack the teams on a weekly basis. Week 11 showed how a massive jumble of teams in the middle can lead to weekly volatility. The Patriots leapfrogged the Bills in the AFC East, in the process prompting a few of us to wonder if they aren’t the current favorite to win the AFC. The NFC, meanwhile, will finish the weekend with only five winning teams, followed by another five that are either 5-5 or 5-6.
In summary, we know nothing. Or to put it more precisely, everything we know now could change by the time the NFL plays its final regular-season game on Jan. 9. (Remember, this season is an extra week long, thanks to the new 17-game schedule.) On with it.
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AFC
FPI chances to make playoffs: 98%
FPI chances to win division: 96%
No team has exemplified this unpredictable season better than the Titans, who won seven of their first nine games despite facing the NFL’s most difficult schedule over that stretch. They then embarked on a much easier schedule, only to suffer a stunning home loss on Sunday to the Texans.
The defeat allowed the Colts to continue closing the gap in the AFC South, shrinking the Titans’ lead to two games with six to play. (Tennessee won both head-to-head matchups with Indianapolis.) Regardless of whether the Colts can catch them, it’s difficult to view the Titans as the clear-cut AFC favorite when two of their losses have come to the Texans and Jets — who…
Source : espn
