AFC Playoff Picture: Patriots Move Up In Standings With Browns Beatdown

The New England Patriots on Sunday continued their surge up the AFC standings.

With their 45-7 beatdown of the Cleveland Browns, the Patriots moved up from seventh to sixth in the conference. They remain a half-game behind the Buffalo Bills, who beat the New York Jets on Sunday, for first place in the AFC East.

What was true last week still is true: If the season were to end today, New England would visit the Baltimore Ravens on wild-card weekend.

Here are the current NFL wild-card weekend matchups:

— No. 2 Bills vs. No. 7 Chargers
— No. 3 Ravens vs. No. 6 Patriots
— No. 4 Chiefs vs. No. 5 Steelers
— No. 2 Cardinals vs. No. 7 Panthers
— No. 3 Cowboys vs. No. 6 Saints
— No. 4 Buccaneers vs. No. 5 Rams

And here are the updated AFC standings, including records:

1. Tennessee Titans (8-2)
2. Buffalo Bills (6-3)
3. Baltimore Ravens (6-3)
4. Kansas City Chiefs (6-4)
5. Pittsburgh Steelers (5-3-1)
6. New England Patriots (6-4)
7. Los Angeles Chargers (5-4)
8. Cincinnati Bengals (5-4)
9. Las Vegas Raiders (5-4)
10. Indianapolis Colts (5-5)
11. Cleveland Browns (5-5)
12. Denver Broncos (5-5)
13. Miami Dolphins (3-5)
14. New York Jets (2-7)
15. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-7)
16. Houston Texans (1-8)

New England’s overall playoff odds significantly increased with its performance Sunday.

The Patriots now have a 74% chance of qualifying for the postseason and a 26% chance of winning the division, per FiveThirtyEight. They currently have a 4% chance of winning Super Bowl LVI — ninth-highest in the NFL.

New England will look to make it five wins in a row when it visits the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday night.