The Miami Dolphins and Baltimore Ravens are on a collision course.
The Dolphins and Ravens have separated themselves as the two best AFC teams. Regular-season supremacy will likely be decided when these teams meet in Baltimore on New Year’s Eve.
What was obvious heading into Week 14’s Sunday slate is now inarguable. Both teams know that if they win each remaining game on their schedule this calendar year, the AFC’s No. 1 seed will be theirs.
That’s because the conference’s other two division leaders — the Kansas City Chiefs and Jacksonville Jaguars — both lost Sunday.
The Dolphins are now overwhelming favorites to enter the postseason as the No. 1 or 2 seed in the AFC, meaning that they would need to win no more than one postseason road game to reach the Super Bowl.
Miami Dolphins’ Playoff Scenarios After Week 14’s Sunday Slate
With a Monday night game against the Tennessee Titans, the Dolphins (9-3) could sit back and watch Sunday’s games like the rest of us.
Here’s what they saw.
Ravens 37, Rams 31 (OT)
A walk-off punt return by the Ravens’ Tylan Wallace in overtime ruined what was shaping up to be a dream day for the Dolphins.
Had the Rams prevailed, the Dolphins would have been a half-game up on Baltimore heading into Monday night’s affair and given them a bigger margin for error down the stretch.
Instead, the Dolphins will almost certainly have to win in Baltimore in Week 17 to be the AFC’s No. 1 seed.
The Ravens (10-3) visit the Jaguars (8-5) next Sunday night. A win on national TV will all but ensure the Ravens are one of the top two seeds in the conference.
Those Jaguars will be angry because of the next result.
Browns 31, Jaguars 27
Trevor Lawrence wasn’t close to 100 percent, and it showed. He threw three interceptions on a gimpy ankle he rolled six days before.
MORE: Miami Dolphins Depth Chart
With the win, the Browns are now 8-5 and have an over 80% chance to reach the postseason — either as a Wild Card or the AFC North champs. They are a game clear of the six-way logjam at 7-6 in the AFC.
The Texans are one of those 7-6 teams, and remain a game back in the AFC South. But the Jags seem destined to end up as the AFC’s No. 4 seed for the second straight season, largely because the Chiefs own the head-to-head tiebreaker.
Bills 20, Chiefs 17
It wasn’t pretty, but the Bills are absolutely back in the thick of the AFC playoff hunt. They’re one of those six teams at 7-6. and are virtual locks to get in if they win out.
Meanwhile, the Chiefs are probably playing for the No. 3 seed after their second straight loss at Arrowhead.
They’re a game and a half back of the Dolphins, who are currently the AFC’s No. 2 seed but would move back up to the top spot with a win over the Titans Monday night.
If so, the Dolphins would guarantee themselves the No. 1 seed in the AFC by winning three of their last four — so long as Baltimore is one of those four wins.
The same scenario is true for Baltimore. So long as the Ravens beat the Dolphins, they can afford a loss to the Jaguars, 49ers, or Steelers.
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