The Bills looked dominant in weeks 2-4, then went to London and have looked like shit since then. They're 4-3 and just don't seem like a contender at the moment. Which they have time to fix that...but their best hope of making it to the Super Bowl was getting that #1 seed and the only bye, forcing the Chiefs/Dolphins* (or whoever the other top teams are by January) to play each other. But with a 4-3 record, even if they round into form, their odds of getting the bye are not ideal.
The Dolphins just lost to the Eagles. Like, it's cool to drop 70 on the Broncos. It really is. But Miami needs to beat a good team before we're sure they're a Super Bowl contender.
I can't say it enough, the November 5 Germany game between KC and Miami is huge. If Miami wins that, it would vault them into first place in the AFC via head-to-head tiebreaker. Lose, and Chiefs might be able to secure the #1 seed and rest players in the regular season.
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Coming into the season, I wasn't confident that the Chiefs would be the same Super Bowl contender we saw last year. I know how hard it is to repeat AND there were bad vibes around Kelce's injury and Chris Jones' holdout. Well the bad vibes are gone. The defense is legit good, the only team to hold every opponent to 20 or less. The offense looked sharp again. Hardman already made an impact with a 50-yard punt return and Charles Omenihu helped the defense in his first game for the Chiefs. At this point, it feels like all the pressure is on other teams to prove they belong in the same conversation with the Chiefs. Pretty nice spot to be in at week 7. (Of course, there's 11 more weeks in the regular season. It can all go to hell for tons of reasons, including injuries. Nothing is guaranteed. Et cetera.)
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Who's the second best team in the division?
The Raiders? With the -49 point differential and just got blown out by TYSON BAGENT and the Bears?
The Chargers? Who have 2 wins after week 7? And are 14th out of 16 in the AFC standings?
Or the Broncos? Who also have 2 wins and gave up 70 points this year?
Okay, it's the Chargers. But still. 2-4 is not where you want to be after choking a playoff game.
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AFC
Cross-Offs: Patriots, Broncos, Raiders, Jets
Playoff Teams: Chiefs, Dolphins, Ravens, Jaguars, Bills.
I know it's early but it looks your four division winners are in this group. I'm not ready to believe in Steelers or Browns. As of right now, I would put the Bengals and Texans as more likely to be wild-card teams.
NFC
Cross-Offs: Giants, Bears, Vikings, Panthers, Cardinals, Commanders, Packers
Packers are a new addition. I was believing through 3-4 weeks. Last two weeks, back to back losses to Raiders and Broncos. Yeesh.
7 out of 16 crossed-off in Week 7, including every NFC North team except the Lions.
Playoff Teams: Eagles, 49ers, Lions, Cowboys, probably Seahawks, probably Falcons
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