Bills' Playoff Chances Still Excellent

They would rise dramatically with a win at Tampa Bay this Sunday.

Thanks to a schedule that includes three of their last four games at home, including their last two, the Buffalo Bills (7-5) are still a good bet to make the playoffs heading into this weekend, according to FiveThirtyEight, at 73%.

But they don't have much of a chance of earning any home games, as they did last year on their way to the AFC Championship Game.

A win at Tampa Bay on Sunday over the Buccaneers (9-3) would raise their chances to 94%, according to the website's calculator.

Even a loss wouldn't seriously derail them, but would lower their probability to 69%.

After the road trip to Tampa Bay, the Bills host the Carolina Panthers (5-7), visit the New England Patriots (9-4), then close with back-to-back games at home — vs. the Atlanta Falcons (5-7) on Jan. 2 and the New York Jets (3-9) on Jan. 9.

The AFC race as a whole is shaping up to be a thriller down the stretch. All four division leaders have four losses, and every team except the Jets, Jacksonville Jaguars and Houston Texans has at least a 7% chance of still getting in.

The Bills are looking up in the AFC East at the red-hot Patriots, who just spanked the Bills, 14-10, on Monday night and own a 7-1 conference record compared to the Bills' 5-5.

Everything is still in play for the Bills, from earning the No. 1 seed in the playoffs to no qualifying at all for just the second time in coach Sean McDermott's five seasons as head coach.

Bills' remaining schedule

Dec. 12: at Tampa Bay Bucs, 4:25 p.m.

Dec. 19: vs. Carolina Panthers, 1 p.m.

Dec. 26: at New England Patriots, 1 p.m.

Jan. 2: vs. Atlanta Falcons, 1 p.m.

Jan. 9: vs. New York Jets, 1 p.m.

Nick Fierro is the publisher of Bills Central. Check out the latest Bills news at www.si.com/nfl/bills and follow Fierro on Twitter at @NickFierro. Email to Nicky300@aol.com.