AFC Playoff Picture: Chiefs Soaring Above Competition Entering Week 14

With Week 14's play on deck, let's take an updated look at the Kansas City Chiefs and their competition in the AFC playoff picture standings.

Nov 24, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid talks with quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) during a time out during the second half against the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images / Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

With the 2024-25 NFL season well past its halfway point, every team is scratching and clawing for positioning on the standings leaderboard. For clubs like the Kansas City Chiefs, that means jockeying for a No. 1 conference seed and a first-round playoff bye.

Where does Andy Reid's squad rank entering Week 14's play, and what does the competition look like? Let's examine the AFC playoff picture for a better look at who's tracking to make the postseason.

* indicates a team that has clinched a playoff spot.

1: Kansas City Chiefs (11-1)*

No change for the top dogs in the conference. Following a narrow win over the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 13, Kansas City remains the leading playoff seed in the AFC. That Black Friday win locked up a playoff spot. If Patrick Mahomes and company can take down the Los Angeles Chargers on the Sunday Night Football stage, they'll win the AFC West for the ninth time in a row and eliminate the possibility of being a wild card club.

2: Buffalo Bills (10-2)*

Another week, another instance of the Bills putting together an impressive win. With quarterback Josh Allen playing at an MVP level and a previous tiebreaker over the Chiefs in hand, Buffalo is easily the biggest outside threat for the one-seed. Time will tell if that Week 11 matchup in Orchard Park will come back to bite the reigning champs, although the Bills do have some tough games left on their schedule. One of them is on the road versus a feisty Los Angeles Rams group on Sunday afternoon.

3: Pittsburgh Steelers (9-3)

Head coach Mike Tomlin simply refuses to have losing seasons. He helped the Steelers avoid one with a Week 13 win, and Sunday's matchup against the Cleveland Browns presents the opportunity to lock up a year with double-digit victories. Thanks to an elite defense and Russell Wilson turning back the clock a bit at quarterback, Pittsburgh is one of the more dangerous AFC clubs on paper. They still have to prove it – a Christmas Day meeting with the Chiefs later this month would be a major chance to do so.

4: Houston Texans (8-5)

Speaking of teams that still have to face Kansas City, the Houston Texans also fall under that umbrella. On one hand, they have a game-breaking wideout in Nico Collins and a steady running game with Joe Mixon having a resurgent year. On the other hand, second-year quarterback C.J. Stroud has regressed in his sophomore effort and DeMeco Ryans's team is just 3-4 since a 5-1 start to the season. Perhaps a Week 14 bye is a good time to get back on track.

5: Los Angeles Chargers (8-4)

In year No. 1 under head coach Jim Harbaugh, the Chargers are playing a throwback brand of football. Leaning on a suddenly impressive defense and a steady diet of running the ball has Los Angeles thriving at 8-4 on the season. Even with an underwhelming cast of weapons around him, quarterback Justin Herbert is avoiding mistakes and playing good football. Sunday's game in Kansas City is the Chargers' biggest one listed on the calendar.

6: Baltimore Ravens (8-5)

If the Ravens aren't the most confusing team in the sport, they've got to be near the top of the list. After starting the season 0-2, they rattled off five wins in a row but are 3-3 since then. There's no shame in losing one-score games to Cleveland, Pittsburgh or the Philadelphia Eagles, sure, and Lamar Jackson is playing as well as ever. With that said, the Baltimore defense isn't as potent as it was last season and this squad's variance borders on scary. Similar to Houston, the timing of the Week 14 bye seems nice.

7: Denver Broncos (8-5)

When they lost to the Chiefs in Week 10 on a blocked field goal, the Broncos were dealing with a blowout and a heartbreaker at the hands of two conference contenders back-to-back. Many teams would've snapped at that point, but not Sean Payton's crew. In its last three contests, all Denver has done is win by 32 points against the Atlanta Falcons, beat the Raiders by 10 and hang 41 points on the Browns to cap off Week 13's slate. This is suddenly a sneaky-solid team that will need to maintain its momentum coming out of the bye if it wants to get one of three wild card spots.

In the hunt: Indianapolis Colts (6-7), Miami Dolphins (5-7)

The Colts are 2-1 in their last three games after dropping a trio of outings in a row. Anthony Richardson, while still clearly a work in progress, looks better in his second go-round as the starter. After the bye, Indianapolis has some very winnable games on the docket. Miami, who had a three-game losing streak of its own earlier this season, won the same number of games in a row before coming out on the wrong side of an ugly 30-17 bout with the Green Bay Packers on Thursday. The Dolphins are hanging on by a thread and absolutely need a Week 14 win to get even remotely back on track.

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