Well, that's certainly one way to end a football game! The Denver Broncos won a wild overtime game against the Cincinnati Bengals, and the playoff picture is both that much closer to sorted out, and that much crazier. I've posted the current standings below as the Broncos climbed into a tie with the Bengals, and now hold the head-to-head tiebreaker on them. But first, the NFC standings.
NFC
1. Carolina Panthers (14-1)
2. Arizona Cardinals (13-2)
3. Green Bay Packers (10-5)
4. Washington (8-7)
5. Minnesota Vikings (10-5)
6. Seattle Seahawks (9-6)
The Seahawks were locked into the wild card round, so they would not be hosting a game either way. However, Minnesota still has a chance to win the NFC North. They face the Green Bay Packers on Sunday Night Football next week. The winner takes home the NFC North and a home game in the wild card round, while the loser will be traveling. It is of course also worth noting that the Arizona Cardinals have a slim chance at claiming home field advantage in the NFC playoffs. Carolina's loss leaves the door open for Arizona with a win and Panthers loss.
AFC
1. New England Patriots (12-3)
2. Denver Broncos (11-4)
3. Cincinnati Bengals (11-4)
4. Houston Texans (8-7)
5. Kansas City Chiefs (10-5)
6. New York Jets (10-5)
The AFC playoff picture is almost complete, but there is still some craziness available. The six playoff teams are locked in, but Denver, Cincinnati and Kansas City can all move around. The Bengals will be either the two or three seed. Denver could be the two, three or five seed, and maybe the six seed, pending what the tiebreakers look like. The Chiefs can also still win the division.
The timing of games could result in the resting of players, but there will be quite a few teams with plenty still to play for in Week 17. And then there's 49ers-Rams. Good times for us!