Final three spots in NFL play-offs still up for grabs
LOS ANGELES: Five of the seven AFC play-off spots are secured, with five teams fighting for the final two conference tickets to the post-season in Week 18.
The Baltimore Ravens, Los Angeles Chargers, Las Vegas Raiders, Indianapolis Colts and Pittsburgh Steelers enter the final weekend of the debut 17-game regular season with a shot at the expanded play-offs.
Seven teams in each conference will make this month’s post-season field in an NFL first.
Only one spot is open in the NFC with the Green Bay Packers locked into the No.1 seed and lone first-round bye with a dominant victory over the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.
Home-field advantage remains uncertain in the AFC, but the Tennessee Titans (11-5) will clinch the AFC’s No.1 seed with a win at Houston (4-12), among other possibilities involving ties and losses by the Kansas City Chiefs and Cincinnati Bengals.
Three teams — the Philadelphia Eagles, Los Angeles Rams and Arizona Cardinals — are in the NFC field with three certain division champions: the Packers, Dallas Cowboys and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Still alive for the seventh spot are the San Francisco 49ers (9-7, at Rams) and New Orleans Saints (8-8, at Atlanta).
The 49ers will be in with a win or tie, or Saints’ loss. New Orleans must win and pull for the Rams to beat the 49ers to sneak into the post-season. If the Titans lose, the Bengals or Chiefs could steal the top seed in the AFC.
The Chiefs will be the No.1 in the conference with a win and Titans’ loss or tie. If the Chiefs tie, they’d still have a shot at the No.1 seed if the Titans lose to the Texans.
Cincinnati (10-6) have a more complicated route to the No.1 seed and home-field advantage, but the Bengals do have a chance. It would require losses by the Chiefs and Titans and a loss or tie by the New England Patriots in addition to a Bengals’ win.
A victory by New England (10-6) could throw the play-off picture for a loop.
The Patriots would claim the No.1 seed with a win, combined with losses from the Bills, Chiefs and Titans.
Sunday night in Las Vegas will determine the outlook of wild-card weekend.
The Chargers (9-7) visit the Raiders (9-7) with the winners getting a play-off ticket. The Chargers, led by quarterback Justin Herbert, beat the Broncos last week, while QB Derek Carr and the Raiders defeated the Colts.
The Colts (9-7) need to win or tie at the Jacksonville Jaguars to get in the easy way after losing to the Raiders.
Because of tiered tie-breakers, the Colts could sneak in with a Chargers’ loss plus a tie in the Ravens-Steelers game, or a Miami Dolphins’ win combined by losses by the Chargers and Steelers.
The Steelers (8-7-1) could earn a play-off spot if they win, the Colts lose, and the game between the Raiders and Chargers doesn’t end in a tie.