2015 NFL Playoff Predictions: Steelers fall to Jets as Chiefs win West

The AFC is up for grabs with two weeks left in the regular season. Will the Chiefs unseat the Broncos? Can the Jets take down the Steelers? Who’s in and who’s out? 2015 NFL Playoff Predictions.

Dan Salem and Todd Salem debate in today’s NFL Sports Debate. Check out more of the brothers in Seesaw Sports Debate on BuzzChomp. Two brothers from New York yell, scream, and debate sports.

TODD:

With two weeks remaining in the NFL regular season, just a handful of playoff spots remain up for grabs in the suddenly crowded middle of the American Football Conference. There remains a trio of highly contested battles that are likely to come down to the season’s final game.

Who grabs final playoff spots for the AFC South, AFC West and AFC wildcards?

Out West, the rolling Chiefs find themselves just one game behind the sputtering Denver Broncos. Kansas City plays the Browns this week, a likely win, while Denver has to host the Cincinnati Bengals. It seems pretty conceivable that this time next week, the two squads will be tied atop the division at 10-5.

In Week 17, Denver then plays San Diego, a nice reprieve from the tough sledding it has been traversing here recently. KC plays Oakland, another possible victory, but are the Chiefs really going to win 10 consecutive games to finish the regular season? Without Jamaal Charles? That seems almost inconceivable. I have to think Denver holds on for this division.

Which means, the AFC wildcard comes down to KC, Pittsburgh or the New York Jets.

Pittsburgh is all but assured of reaching 11 wins with games remaining against Baltimore and Cleveland to round out the year. The Jets have the toughest road of anyone, having to play New England and then Buffalo on the road. As great a year as Ryan Fitzpatrick and company have had, I think the Jets are the odd team out of the AFC playoff picture.

Of course, if they were a member of the South, they would have clinched a first-round home game ages ago. Instead, the South playoff spot is coming down to the dumpster fires in Houston, Indianapolis and Jacksonville.

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It would have been fun to see the Jaguars in the playoffs, but they have two full games to make up and two teams to hop to reach first place. It ain’t happening. Between Houston and Indy, the Texans have looked like the superior club, but they once again have questions at quarterback. With another injury, it may come to the newly signed Brandon Weeden to carry Houston’s offense.

What helps the Texans is that both their remaining games are in the division, against Tennessee and Jacksonville. However, the Colts have an even easier path with Miami and then Tennessee on the docket. But Indy has QB questions of its own with Matt Hasselback having worn down and Andrew Luck‘s return still in doubt.

Can I just take the cop-out with this one and say Houston will advance because it has that one-game lead? It doesn’t totally matter. Whomever wins the South and grabs the four seed will surely lose to a fifth-seeded Pittsburgh in the first round of the playoffs.

Dec 19, 2015; Arlington, TX, USA; New York Jets defensive end

(78) reacts during the first half against the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

DAN:

Considering the streaky nature of teams this season, and the truly unpredictable nature of a games week to week, I don’t believe anything is as cut and dry as you’d like to believe. Your predictions are basically all chalk. Have you learned nothing this season? Don’t ignore what your eyes are telling you.

I’ll work backwards, starting in the AFC South. While I too want Jacksonville to win this division, I don’t believe they close the two game gap to end the year. I do believe that Houston stumbles in these final two weeks, losing one of two. The Colts manage to take care of business, unseating the Texans and winning the South division. At 7-9, the NFL will once again have a losing team win a division and make the playoffs.

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In the AFC West things will get very interesting. The Broncos continue to play mediocre football, losing to the Bengals and squeaking by the Chargers to finish at 11-5. Kansas City is not hitting any roadblocks and finishes off one of the greatest turnarounds in recent NFL history. After starting 1-5, the Chiefs take care of Cleveland and Oakland to finish at 11-5, tied atop the West. Kansas City wins the tiebreaker and the division, unseating Denver and throwing them into the Wildcard mess.

Our AFC Wildcard will end up being equally as surprising, with Denver in the mix at 11-5. The Jets win out, surprising the Patriots and taking care of the pesky Buffalo Bills to finish at 11-5 as well. We won’t end with a three-way tie, however, as the Ravens utilize their spoiler status to defeat the Steelers in Week 16. Pittsburgh wins their final game to finish at 10-6 and on the outside of the playoff picture. Their excellent offense won’t be enough to compensate for a lackluster defense in the end.

More nfl spin zone: Can the Packers still Win the Super Bowl?

AFC Playoff Picture:
New England Patriots
Cincinnati Bengals
Kansas City Chiefs
Indianapolis Colts
Denver Broncos
New York Jets

Dan Salem is a Staff Writer for NFL Spinzone. He’s also Lead Editor, Staff Writer, and Featured Vlogger for BuzzChomp Entertainment Network, and a New York Jets Analyst at Pro Football Spot. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, or Instagram.

Todd Salem is a Staff Writer for NFL Spinzone. He’s also a Contributing Editor for BuzzChomp Entertainment Network, a Featured Columnist at College Sports Madness, and an Analyst for Tipster Labs, among others. Follow him on Twitter.