The Las Vegas Raiders, currently holding a 7-8 record, have a path to the NFL playoffs if they manage to win their upcoming games against the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos. According to @NextGenStats, the Raiders now have a 12% chance to make the playoffs and a 2% chance to win the AFC West following their win over the Chiefs. The Raiders' playoff chances are precarious, with a scenario outlined where their chances could drop to 2% if the Houston Texans defeat the Tennessee Titans and the Colts in their next two games, the Jacksonville Jaguars beat the Titans in Week 18, and the Kansas City Chiefs win one game. This would eliminate the Raiders if either the Pittsburgh Steelers or the Buffalo Bills win one of their final two weeks' games. The Jaguars are also facing a critical situation where a loss to the Carolina Panthers, coupled with wins by the Colts and Texans, would mathematically eliminate them from the AFC South race. Meanwhile, the Broncos, with Jarrett Stidham at QB, are still in contention but require wins in their last two games and additional help from other teams. The Colts, Texans, Steelers, and Cincinnati Bengals are all currently tied with an 8-7 record, just ahead of the Raiders and Broncos.
With the win over the Chiefs, the Raiders now have a 12% chance to make the playoffs, and a 2% chance to win the AFC West, according to @NextGenStats.
The #Broncos are still alive in the AFC playoff chase, but they'd need to win two with Jarrett Stidham at QB and get a lot of help. Indianapolis (8-7) is currently in the No. 7 slot, followed by Houston (8-7), Pittsburgh (8-7), Cincinnati (8-7), Las Vegas (7-8) and Denver (7-8).
#Jaguars are in must-win territory now. If they lose Sunday to #Panthers, and both #Colts (vs. LV) and #Texans (vs. TEN) win, Jags would be mathematically eliminated from the #AFCSouth race (because Colts and Texans can't both lose Week 18).
The nightmare scenario for #Raiders is if Texans beat Titans and Colts the next 2 games, Jaguars beat Titans in Week 18 and Chiefs win 1 game. That drops chances to 2% and Raiders would be out with 1 win in final 2 weeks by either Steelers or Bills https://t.co/P2ixftXCD3
Now 7-8, the @Raiders can give themselves a shot at playoffs by sweeping the Colts and Broncos in the next two weeks. #RaiderNation https://t.co/vSfxR194gn