Playoff destiny? Playoffs? Ryan Smith wrote an article earlier this week called predicting the AFC West Champion. In that article, Ryan touched on the fact that the Oakland Raiders control their own destiny for the division crown.
Oakland Raiders Control their Playoff Destiny
Even though the Raiders are the fifth seed going into week 11, they are the only team that actually controls its own destiny for home field advantage throughout the playoffs. Thanks to the New England Patriots losing to the Seattle Seahawks last week.
Of the three elite teams in the AFC, only two of the three can technically win out. The Patriots do not play the Raiders or the Kansas City Chiefs. And only one of the AFC West teams can technically win out since they play each other in week 14.
Lets start with the Patriots and Chiefs scenario. If the Patriots and Chiefs both win out, it would fall to the 3rd NFL playoff tie breaker conference games since neither team will play each other. The Patriots only have one conference loss and the Chiefs have two. In this scenario the Patriots would finish with the number one playoff seed.
Now lets move to the Raiders and Patriots scenario. If the Raiders and Patriots both win out, it would fall to the 4th tie breaker “common games” since both teams would finish with only one conference loss. Here is where the Raiders would hold the advantage. The Patriots only AFC loss was the Buffalo Bills. That just happens to be a common team that both the Patriots and Raiders will face this season. The Raiders face Buffalo in week 13. In this scenario the Raiders would have a better record in common games. The Raiders would own the playoff seeding tiebreaker over the Patriots!
That’s right boys and girls. Every other possible playoff team, with a shot at the home field, in the AFC, has to hope for a Raiders loss, or they will be playing the AFC Championship game in Oakland!
If you did not already notice, from here on out, every game matters!
P.S. The last time the Raiders controlled it’s playoff destiny going into week 11 was the year 2000 NFL season. The Raiders actually failed to secure home field advantage that year entering the playoffs, but the 13-3 Tennessee Titans lost to the wild card Baltimore Ravens. That Ravens team went on to defeat the Raiders in the AFC Championship game in Oakland and was the Superbowl XXXV Champion.
