The Buffalo Bills lost their first game since before Thanksgiving, dropping a close game to the Eagles and now officially having to be a Wild Card team in the NFL playoffs. This is the first time they'll have been in that situation since 2019, which was Josh Allen's first year in the postseason.
The loss not only cemented the Patriots as AFC East champs (bleck) but it hurt the Bills in the playoff standings as well. Buffalo will for sure be in the postseason but its not looking a great path to get to the Super Bowl right now.
Here are the updated AFC playoff standings after the Sunday games of Week 17:
- Denver Broncos (13-3, 1st in AFC West)
- New England Patriots (13-3, 1st in AFC East)
- Jacksonville Jaguars (12-4, 1st in AFC South)
- Pittsburgh Steelers (9-7, 1st in AFC North)
- Houston Texans (11-5, 2nd in AFC South)
- Los Angeles Chargers (11-5, 2nd in AFC West)
- Buffalo Bills (11-5, 2nd in AFC East)
- Baltimore Ravens (8-8, 2nd in AFC North)
- Indianapolis Colts (8-8, 3rd in AFC South) - Eliminated
- Miami Dolphins (7-9, 3rd in AFC East) - Eliminated
- Cincinnati Bengals (6-10, 3rd in AFC North) - Eliminated
- Kansas City Chiefs (6-10, 3rd in AFC West) - Eliminated
- Cleveland Browns (4-12, 4th in AFC North) - Eliminated
- Tennessee Titans (3-13, 4th in AFC South) - Eliminated
- New York Jets (3-13, 4th in AFC East) - Eliminated
- Las Vegas Raiders (2-14, 4th in AFC West) - Eliminated
Buffalo Bills stare down brutal playoff path after losing AFC East crown
If the playoffs began right now, the Bills would head to a familiar site for the Wild Card round, as they'd be matched up against the Patriots at Gillette Stadium. Considering they just won there a few weeks ago, fans might not hate this matchup, but then if they managed to win that one, they'd head to Denver, which is a tough place to play.
It's frustrating that the one year where Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs aren't in the playoffs is the year the Bills couldn't win the AFC East crown. This would have been a massive advantage for them in a wide-open AFC, but now they'll likely have to win three straight games on the road to advance to the franchise's first Super Bowl since 1994.
The odds are stacked against the Bills, but they have a chance to move up in the standings depending on how Week 18 goes. If the Texans and Chargers lose and the Bills take care of business against the Jets, they can be the five-seed and get that coveted matchup against whoever wins the AFC North. They also could potentially end up playing in Jacksonville or Houston, depending on the results of next weekend's games as well.
A lot can happen between now and the start of the postseason, but one thing is for sure, and that's that the Bills will be hitting the road for Wild Card weekend for the first time in six years. It's certainly a weird feeling.