The Kansas City Chiefs are officially eliminated from playoff contention and it's not even Christmas yet. Yes, that's right, for the first time since the 2014 season, there will be an NFL playoffs taking place without the Chiefs in it.
It's a wild reality we're dealing with but here we are. The Chiefs lost to the Chargers (and were swept by their divisional foe for the first time since 2013) while the Bills, Jaguars, and Texans all won their games, further putting nails in the Chiefs' coffin.
With nothing meaningful to play for aside from draft order, what is the playoff picture looking like now that K.C. is not going to be a part of it?
Updated AFC playoff standings after Chiefs' Week 15 loss
- Denver Broncos (11-2, 1st in AFC West)
- New England Patriots (11-3, 1st in AFC East)
- Jacksonville Jaguars (10-4, 1st in AFC South)
- Pittsburgh Steelers (7-6, 1st in AFC North)
- Los Angeles Chargers (10-4, 2nd in AFC West)
- Buffalo Bills (10-4, 2nd in AFC East)
- Houston Texans (9-5, 2nd in AFC South)
- Indianapolis Colts (8-5, 3rd in AFC South)
- Baltimore Ravens (7-7, 2nd in AFC North)
- Miami Dolphins (6-7, 3rd in AFC East)
- Kansas City Chiefs (6-8, 3rd in AFC West) - Eliminated
- Cincinnati Bengals (4-10, 3rd in AFC North) - Eliminated
- New York Jets (3-11, 4th in AFC East) - Eliminated
- Cleveland Browns (3-11, 4th in AFC North) - Eliminated
- Tennessee Titans (2-11, 4th in AFC South) - Eliminated
- Las Vegas Raiders (2-11, 4th in AFC West) - Eliminated
So, there you have it, folks. The Chiefs won't be making the postseason this year and it's going to be an odd feeling for sure.
If the playoffs kicked off right this minute, it'd be the Patriots hosting the Texans, the Jaguars hosting the Bills, and the Steelers hosting the Chargers. The Broncos would have the first-round bye. Let's just prepare ourselves to root against Buffalo, Denver, and Los Angeles since we can't root our own squad on this year.