Following their 45-0 win over the Chargers Sunday, the Patriots are firmly in the playoff picture.
While they are still two games out of the final spot, they hold tiebreakers against Miami, Baltimore and Las Vegas, which could help them out if it comes down to that.
With that being said, the Patriots likely need to win their final four games of the year to finish at 10-6, which would give them a 96 percent chance of getting in, according to FiveThirtyEight. Finishing 9-7 would mean they would need to get a ton of help over the next month and that seems unlikely with so many other teams in contention.
Here’s how things look after Week 13.
1. Pittsburgh (11-1)
Remaining games: at Buffalo, at Cincinnati, vs. Indianapolis, at Cleveland
2. Kansas City (11-1)
Remaining games: at Miami, at New Orleans, vs. Atlanta, vs. Los Angeles (Chargers)
3. Buffalo (9-3)
Remaining games: vs. Pittsburgh, at Denver, at New England, vs. Miami
4. Tennessee (8-4)
Remaining games: at Jacksonville, vs. Detroit, at Green Bay, at Houston
5. Cleveland (9-3)
Remaining games: vs. Baltimore, at New York (Giants), at New York (Jets), vs. Pittsburgh
6. Miami (8-4)
Remaining games: vs. Kansas City, vs. New England, at Las Vegas, at Buffalo
7. Indianapolis (8-4)
Remaining games: at Las Vegas, vs. Houston, at Pittsburgh, vs. Jacksonville
8. Las Vegas (7-5)
Remaining games: vs. Indianapolis, vs. Los Angeles (Chargers), vs. Miami, at Denver
9. Baltimore (7-5)
Remaining games: at Cleveland, vs. Jacksonville, vs. New York (Giants), at Cincinnati
10. New England (6-6)
Remaining games: at Los Angeles (Rams), at Miami, vs. Buffalo, vs. New York (Jets)
ANALYSIS: With Buffalo beating San Fransisco this week, the Patriots pretty much have no shot at the division, and then with Cleveland being 9-3 it’s likely their only path to the playoffs is being the No. 6 or 7 seed. This means it’s worth focusing on the Dolphins, Colts, Raiders and Ravens the rest of the way. Although it is worth noting the Raiders are trending in a bad direction. Next week’s game in Miami will go a massive way when it comes to the Patriots’ chances of making the postseason.