Ranking the AFC teams battling for wild card spots: Despite losing to Patriots, Bills toughest contender

The AFC remains one of the most unpredictable conferences in NFL history. Entering Week 14, a whopping 12 teams in the conference are .500 or better — and the Miami Dolphins can enter the party after their bye week (they face the New York Jets in Week 15). The Patriots lead the conference with a 9-4 record and three teams are tied for second in the conference at 8-4, setting the stage for a wild finish in December and January — with the margin of error slim from first place to 12th (all teams are separated by 2.5 games in the conference standings). 

Teams will soon start eliminating each other in these division battles, but that hasn’t occurred yet. After the crazy Week 13 slate of games, let’s take a revised look at the top contenders for the three wild card spots in the conference. 

Current AFC division leaders

The AFC division leaders through the first 13 weeks. All currently have a playoff spot locked up if they claim the division crown. 

1. Patriots (9-4) East
2. Titans (8-4) South
3. Ravens (8-4) North
4. Chiefs (8-4) West

AFC wild card contenders, ranked

This is a ranking of the teams competing for a wild card spot in the AFC. Only three teams can make the playoffs, so the top three obviously have the best chance to make the postseason through the first 13 weeks of the year. 

Remaining schedule:  at Buccaneers, vs. Panthers, at Patriots, vs. Falcons, vs. Jets

The Bills fall to the No. 7 seed in the AFC after Monday’s loss to the Patriots, also dropping to 1.5 games back in the division. Buffalo can still win the AFC East, but the road is much harder after losing to New England. The schedule is still very favorable for the Bills, especially if they can find a way to upset the Buccaneers this week. There’s little reason to panic in terms of reaching the playoffs for Buffalo, but this team were supposed to be Super Bowl contenders. Good news — the conference is still wide…