The Colts held serve in the AFC playoff race with a 31-28 overtime win over the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium, improving their record to 7-5 and holding on to the AFC's No. 7 seed entering Week 14.
Week 13, though, didn't bring about much clarity in the AFC playoff picture, which saw the Pittsburgh Steelers lose to a 10-loss Arizona Cardinals team at home – a game in which starting quarterback Kenny Pickett sustained an ankle injury. The Cleveland Browns were nearly doubled up by the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium, while the lone game between contenders saw the Houston Texans knock off the Denver Broncos – but lose standout rookie wide receiver Tank Dell in the process.
With five weeks to go, here's a look at the entire AFC playoff picture with five games left (note: the Jacksonville Jaguars play the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday night, and the result of that game is not included here).
Key Week 13 results:
- Colts 31, Titans 28 (OT): Colts improve to 7-5
- Cardinals 24, Steelers 10: Steelers fall to 7-5
- Rams 36, Browns 19: Browns fall to 7-5
- Texans 22, Broncos 17: Texans improve to 7-5, Broncos fall to 6-6
- Bills: Bye, remain 6-6
AFC Standings (*denotes division leader)
- Miami Dolphins (9-3)*
- Baltimore Ravens (9-3)*
- Jacksonville Jaguars (8-3)*
- Kansas City Chiefs (8-4)*
- Pittsburgh Steelers (7-5)
- Cleveland Browns (7-5)
- Indianapolis Colts (7-5)
- Houston Texans (7-5)
- Denver Broncos (6-6)
- Buffalo Bills (6-6)
- Cincinnati Bengals (5-6)
- Los Angeles Chargers (5-7)
- Las Vegas Raiders (4-7)
- New York Jets (4-8)
- Tennessee Titans (4-8)
- New England Patriots (2-10)
The Colts currently hold the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Texans, though that tiebreaker is still pending Week 18's season-ending meeting with Houston at Lucas Oil Stadium. The Browns own the head-to-head tiebreaker with the Colts, and the Colts face the Steelers in Week 15 (a game the NFL announced last week will kick off at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 16).
The second tiebreaker after head-to-head is conference record. The Colts are now 5-3 against AFC opponents, tied with the Browns and Steelers and ahead of the Texans (4-3), Broncos (3-5) and Bills (3-5). The Colts have four games left against AFC opposition (at Cincinnati, vs. Pittsburgh, vs. Las Vegas, vs. Houston) and travel to face the NFC's Atlanta Falcons on Christmas Eve in Week 16.
Remaining Schedules
Colts (7-5):
- Week 14: at Bengals (5-6)
- Week 15: vs. Steelers (7-4)
- Week 16: at Falcons (5-6)
- Week 17: vs. Raiders (5-7)
- Week 18: vs. Texans (6-5)
Browns (7-5):
- Week 14: vs. Jaguars (8-3)
- Week 15: vs. Bears (3-8)
- Week 16: at Texans (6-5)
- Week 17: vs. Jets (4-7)
- Week 18: at Bengals (5-6)
Steelers (7-5):
- Week 14: vs. Patriots (2-9)
- Week 15: at Colts (6-5)
- Week 16: vs. Bengals (5-6)
- Week 17: at Seahawks (6-5)
- Week 18: at Ravens (9-3)
Texans (7-5):
- Week 14: at Jets (4-7)
- Week 15: at Titans (4-7)
- Week 16: vs. Browns (7-4)
- Week 17: vs. Titans (4-7)
- Week 18: at Colts (6-5)
Broncos (6-6):
- Week 14: at Chargers (4-7)
- Week 15: at Lions (8-3)
- Week 16: vs. Patriots (2-9)
- Week 17: vs. Chargers (4-7)
- Week 18: at Raiders (5-7)
Bills (6-6):
- Week 14: at Chiefs (8-3)
- Week 15: vs. Cowboys (8-3)
- Week 16: at Chargers (4-7)
- Week 17: vs. Patriots (2-9)
- Week 18: at Dolphins (8-3)
Playoff odds
The playoff odds for each wild card contender (right now, any team with at least six wins) via the New York Times' Upshot playoff predictor:
- Texans (78 percent, up from 58 percent last week)
- Colts (67 percent, up from 43 percent last week)
- Browns (60 percent, down from 66 percent last week)
- Steelers (54 percent, down from 78 percent last week)
- Broncos (21 percent, down from 34 percent last week)
- Bills (15 percent, no change from last week)
Per the New York Times, a Colts win over the Bengals in Week 14 would boost their playoff odds from 67 percent to 81 percent, while a loss would drop the Colts' odds to 52 percent.
