It may seem like the more things change the more they stay the same for dominant teams such as the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks, but the 2016 NFL standings are a testament to the parity in the league.
With Week 16 in the books, the Miami Dolphins, Baltimore Ravens, Tennessee Titans, Oakland Raiders, Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Detroit Lions, Atlanta Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers all have realistic playoff hopes after missing out a season ago.
What's more, the defending Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos are in a tenuous position at best, while last season's NFC Championship Game participants (Carolina Panthers and Arizona Cardinals) are no longer seriously part of the race.
With that in mind, here is a look at the current playoff picture, as well as predictions and a breakdown for the wild-card races heading into the final two weeks of the season.
The records and standings are courtesy of NFL.com's playoff standings, while the tiebreakers are courtesy of CBS Sports. The team-by-team playoff scenarios are per Vinnie Iyer of Sporting News unless otherwise mentioned.
League Playoff Standings and Records
Playoff Scenarios
AFC
New England Patriots (12-2): The Patriots haven't quite clinched the No. 1 seed yet over the Raiders, but they control their own destiny with two weeks remaining.
Oakland Raiders (11-3): The Raiders control their destiny in the AFC West, and they would get the No. 1 seed if they finish 2-0 and New England slips.
Pittsburgh Steelers (9-5): The Steelers clinch the AFC North if they beat the Ravens in Week 16. However, a loss means the head-to-head defeat against the Dolphins would become a factor in the wild-card race.
Houston Texans (8-6): It's likely division or bust for the Texans, making the Week 17 clash against Tennessee all the more important.
Kansas City Chiefs (10-4): The Chiefs are playing catchup in the AFC West but are one win away from officially clinching a wild-card spot.
Miami Dolphins (9-5): The Dolphins control their own wild-card destiny but would lose a tiebreaker with the Ravens if they slip.
Baltimore Ravens (8-6): The Ravens control their own AFC North destiny with a remaining head-to-head game against a Steelers team they already beat once. Baltimore's head-to-head win over the Dolphins could come into play in a wild-card race.
Tennessee Titans (8-6): It's likely division or bust for the Titans, so all eyes will be on the Week 17 showdown against Houston.
Denver Broncos (8-6): Denver is eliminated in the AFC West race and will need to make up ground on the Dolphins and pass up a Titans team it lost to in the wild-card race. The Broncos will be cheering for those two teams to lose but probably need to win out to have any realistic chance.
Buffalo Bills (7-7): According to Thad Brown of WROC-TV in Rochester, New York, the Bills need to win out and hope for two Dolphins losses, two Ravens losses, one Colts loss, a Broncos loss to the Raiders and two losses from either the Texans or Titans. So, the Bills are realistically eliminated, even if there is still a mathematical chance.
Indianapolis Colts (7-7): Iyer provided the full breakdown for the Colts' slim chances: "For Indianapolis to still win the South after the win at Minnesota, it somehow needs to finish a full game ahead of the Houston and be even with Tennessee."
Cincinnati Bengals (5-8-1): Eliminated
San Diego Chargers (5-9): Eliminated
New York Jets (4-10): Eliminated
Jacksonville Jaguars (2-12): Eliminated
Cleveland Browns (0-14): Eliminated
NFC
Dallas Cowboys (12-2): The Cowboys are one win or one Giants loss away from clinching the NFC East and home-field advantage in the playoffs.
Seattle Seahawks (9-4-1): The Seahawks are out of the race for the No. 1 seed, but they still control their destiny for a first-round bye.
Atlanta Falcons (9-5): The Falcons control their own destiny in the NFC South race and would host a playoff game if they take care of business. They are also in position to seize a first-round bye if Seattle slips.
Detroit Lions (9-5): The Lions have to play at the Cowboys and then against the Green Bay Packers in their final two games. That narrow one-game NFC North lead will likely come down to the Week 17 game against Green Bay.
New York Giants (10-4): The Giants need to win out and benefit from two Cowboys losses down the stretch to win the NFC East. They are probably going to stay in the first wild-card spot.
Green Bay Packers (8-6): Green Bay now controls its own destiny in the NFC North after four straight wins following a lackluster start to the season.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-6): With Green Bay and Detroit still set to play each other, Dan Graziano of ESPN.com said, "Washington's loss Monday gave Tampa Bay back control of its own destiny. If the Bucs win their last two, they'll be in."
Washington (7-6-1): Washington needs help in the form of Tampa Bay and Green Bay or Detroit losses to climb back into the playoffs after Monday's loss to the Carolina Panthers.
Minnesota Vikings (7-7): According to Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press, the Vikings need to win their last two games to stay alive. From there, Tampa Bay needs to lose out, and Washington must drop one of its final two (was two of three before Monday's game).
New Orleans Saints (6-8): Christopher Dabe of NOLA.com said the Saints have to win out and hope for the following: Vikings beat the Packers in Week 16, Lions beat the Packers in Week 17, Bears beat the Vikings in Week 17, Buccaneers lose out and Washington lose out.
Carolina Panthers (6-8): Nathan Jahnke of Pro Football Focus described Carolina's minuscule postseason chances during Monday's game: "So Carolina just needs to win this, win out, NO>TB, ATL>NO, MIN>GB, DET>GB, CHI>MIN, WAS lose one, tie another, and Panthers in playoffs!"
Arizona Cardinals (5-8-1): Eliminated
Philadelphia Eagles (5-9): Eliminated
Los Angeles Rams (4-10): Eliminated
Chicago Bears (3-11): Eliminated
San Francisco 49ers (1-13): Eliminated
Wild-Card Race
AFC
The Raiders will win the division seeing how they are home against the Colts and play a Broncos team they already beat by double digits for the final two games. That will leave the Chiefs with a wild-card spot after they beat the Broncos at home and/or the 5-9 Chargers to end the season.
Kansas City's win means the loser of the Steelers and Ravens game, the Dolphins, the loser of the Texans and Titans game, and the Broncos will be fighting for the final AFC wild-card spot. Miami is the only team out of those four that controls its own destiny in this scenario.
The Dolphins play the Bills, who are 3-5 in their last eight with wins coming against the Browns, Jaguars and Bengals. They then play the Patriots in a game that New England will likely still need to remain ahead of the Raiders for the No. 1 seed. That means Tom Brady and the starters will be full go, and the Dolphins will finish the season at 10-6 after beating Buffalo and losing to New England.
Miami would lose a tiebreaker to Baltimore, but the Steelers will beat the Ravens at home. The Steelers will be fired up considering guard David DeCastro said, "If you can't get up for this one, you're probably not alive," per Stephen J. Nesbitt of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
In that situation, Baltimore can't finish better than 9-7. What's more, the loser of the Texans and Titans game can finish 9-7 at best, and the Broncos have to play the Chiefs and Raiders and will lose at least one of those.
A 10-6 record will be enough for the Dolphins.
Prediction: The Chiefs and Dolphins win the two AFC wild-card spots.
NFC
The Cowboys are undefeated this season against teams outside of the Giants, so they are not going to lose their final two and open up the division for New York. That means Eli Manning and Co. will be fighting for a wild card, and they have to win just one more game to clinch.
They will do just that against the Eagles on Thursday, considering Philadelphia has lost five games in a row and seven of eight.
That leaves Washington, the loser of the Lions and Packers, and the Buccaneers (Atlanta is predicted to win out here against the 6-8 Panthers and 6-8 Saints and win the NFC South) going for the final NFC wild-card spot. As explained above, Minnesota, Carolina and New Orleans are facing long odds and will not make it, making this more of a three-team race.
Unfortunately for the rest of the teams, Washington faces the 3-11 Bears in its next contest. It will win that with relative ease and then face a Giants team that will have already clinched a wild-card spot. New York will rest its key starters accordingly, which will open the door for a Washington victory and 9-6-1 record.
The Lions will lose to the dominant Cowboys and red-hot Packers to finish the season, which will leave Green Bay as the NFC North champions and Detroit at 9-7 and on the outside looking in after Washington finishes with a flurry.
Tampa Bay faces the Saints and Panthers, who are each 6-8 and essentially playing out the string. The Buccaneers beat both of those teams earlier in the season and will do so again to close out the schedule, leaving them at 10-6 and in the postseason over Washington.
Prediction: The Giants and Buccaneers will win the two NFC wild cards.