Entering the final week of the NFL’s regular season, the road to the postseason is clear for Mike Vrabel’s squad. No longer do the Tennessee Titans playoff scenarios include a possible AFC Wild Card berth. Instead, the playoffs start in Week 18 for the Titans.
Update Jan. 7, 11:10 p.m. ET: Jaguars Win AFC South
The Jaguars defeated the Titans on Saturday Night Football and have locked up the AFC South. They will now be the No. 4 seed in the AFC.
Titans Playoff Scenarios To Watch For in Week 18
In what can only be seen as a shocking collapse, the once 7-3 Titans have found themselves in a win-or-go-home situation in Week 18. While their opponent on Saturday, the Jacksonville Jaguars, still has a narrow path to the playoffs as a Wild Card team should they fall to Tennessee, the Titans must win the AFC South to reach the postseason.
The playoff scenario for the Titans on Saturday night is simple. If they win, they will enter the postseason as the AFC’s No. 4 seed and host a playoff game on Wild Card Weekend. If they lose, the Titans will see their season come to an end.
What Are the Titans’ Playoff Chances?
Given that Tennessee’s only path to the playoffs is through winning Saturday night’s matchup with the Jaguars in Jacksonville, FiveThirtyEight gives the Titans a 26% chance of reaching the postseason.
Additionally, the Titans are 6.5-point underdogs in their matchup with the Jaguars, per DraftKings Sportsbook. The Titans’ moneyline odds of +230 give them an implied win probability of 30.3%.
MORE: Titans vs. Jaguars Odds and Predictions
In the last matchup between these two teams, the Jaguars went into Nashville and defeated the Titans 36-22 less than a month ago. Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence passed for 368 yards and three touchdowns in the win.
The Titans still had starting quarterback Ryan Tannehill in that loss. But they will not have him in Week 18, as Tennessee placed him on injured reserve last week following ankle surgery that ended his season. In his place, Josh Dobbs will make just his second career NFL start. Last week in Tennessee’s loss to the Cowboys, Dobbs completed 20 of 39 passes for 232 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
Now, it’ll be up to Dobbs to help lead his team into the postseason and prevent the Titans from closing the 2022 regular season with seven consecutive losses.