The West was the dominant geographical region this season, with the AFC North becoming competitive top to bottom once again.
Every other division in football has at least one team with 9 or more losses, so no other division can finish with all teams at .500 or better this year. But the AFC West and AFC North are still all .500 or better (despite their best efforts at times).
It's somewhat surprising that these 8 teams have been able to stay above water despite having to play each other this year. The teams have played 14 of 16 games and split 7-7 so far:
Week 1:
Chiefs (33) v Browns (29)
Raiders (33) v Ravens (27), OT
Week 2:
Raiders (26) @ Steelers (17)
Chiefs (35) @ Ravens (36)
Week 4:
Broncos (7) v Ravens (23)
Week 5:
Broncos (19) @ Steelers (27)
Chargers (47) v Browns (42)
Week 6:
Chargers (6) @ Ravens (34)
Week 7:
Broncos (14) @ Browns (17)
Week 11:
Raiders (13) v Bengals (32)
Chargers (41) v Steelers (37)
Week 13:
Chargers (41) @ Bengals (22)
Week 15:
Broncos (10) v Bengals (15)
Raiders (16) @ Browns (14)
Week 16:
Chiefs v Steelers
Week 17:
Chiefs @ Bengals
We could still end up with an overall .500 between the divisions if the Chiefs split their remaining two matchups.
Overall records between the divisions:
Chiefs 1-1
Broncos 0-4 (yikes...)
Chargers 3-1
Raiders 3-1
Steelers 1-2
Browns 1-3
Bengals 2-1
Ravens 3-1
Since every team plays 6 games against their own division (which are ultimately .500 for the division) and 4 more games against the same-conference division they're paired with (which were .500 here), for all 8 teams to remain over .500, they had to do pretty well against their other 7 opponents, which are mostly cross-conference. So it's not surprising that the AFC West's overall record against the NFC is 14-6, and the AFC North's is 10-7-1 with 2 games to play.
The AFC North remains the closest division in the NFL. With 2 weeks left in the season, it’s still possible for all 4 teams to win the division title. Here are all the possible scenarios:
The Bengals are in the driver’s seat with a 9-6 record. If they win either of their remaining two games, the Bengals will win the division because they will finish ahead of the Steelers and Browns and hold the tiebreaker over the Ravens. When things get interesting is if the Bengals lose both of their remaining games (vs. Chiefs in Week 17 and vs. Browns in Week 18).
If the Bengals lose out and the Ravens win out (vs. Rams in Week 17 and vs. Steelers in Week 18), the Ravens will finish ahead of the Bengals and win the division with a 10-7 record.
If the Bengals lose out and the Steelers win out (vs. Browns in Week 17 and vs. Ravens in Week 18), the Steelers will finish ahead of the Bengals and win the division with a 9-7-1 record.
If the Bengals lose out, the Browns win out (vs. Steelers in Week 17 and vs. Bengals in Week 18), and the Ravens lose either or both of their remaining two games, the Browns will win the division with a 9-8 record by virtue of holding both the H2H tiebreaker with the Bengals (2-0 vs. 0-2) and the 3-way H2H tiebreaker with the Bengals and Ravens (3-1 vs. CIN 2-2 vs. BAL 1-3) in either scenario.
If the Bengals lose out, the Rams beat the Ravens in Week 17, the Steelers beat the Browns in Week 17, and then the Ravens beat the Steelers in Week 18 (meaning all 3 other teams split their final 2 games), the Bengals will win the division with a 9-8 record by virtue of their H2H tiebreaker over the Ravens (2-0 vs. 0-2).
TL;DR the Bengals control their own destiny but if they lose it is possible for any of the other teams to win the division by winning out (and for the Browns getting help from the Rams/Steelers) or for the Bengals to still win the division if all 3 others split.
Sadly, I think this is a reason why he won’t leave the packers but I feel we are the only team getting better (assuming he leaves).
The MS for Colywn Bay /u/Rea-wakey spoke at the final of his regular Town Hall events before the Senedd election on the 10th December, outlining his commitment to continue to serve in the role.
Audience applause
“Thank you, thank you all. It gives me great pleasure to end the official Senedd campaign here today in my home town Colwyn Bay. As I stand before you all today, I feel confident that this will not be the last time I stand before you all in an official capacity as your Senedd representative. I believe that we have the strong foundations, the belief and spirit to win the election in North Wales. Serving you all in the Senedd has been the privilege of my life – and I have absolutely no intention of stopping”
A visibly emotional Rea-wakey paused as the audience watching cheered, before the Liberal Democrat veteran composed himself to continue his speech.
“As we move into the 8th Senedd, the values that we have as Welsh Liberal Democrats – to secure a unique, vibrant and modern Welsh Nation – are more important than ever. My dear friend /u/RhysGwenythIV has campaigned long and hard for the spirit of Wales, and their experienced and stable leadership has delivered some great successes for our nation. Having served over 300 days now as Deputy First Minister, Rhys represents the very best of the Welsh spirit, and their determination to continue to serve and to push to lead the Welsh Government is a testament to their hard work and sacrifice.
My colleagues across Wales, from /u/PoliticoBailey in Mid and West Wales, to /u/haroldinite in South Central, to /u/Frost_Walker2017 in South West Wales are all determined to deliver a durable and long lasting settlement for the nation that will finally bring us into the 21st century as a strong and equal partner in the United Kingdom. This is why we are advocating for a Legislative Consent Motion to be put into the Wales Act 2021, providing opportunity for the Senedd to scrutinize any devolution settlement and provide useful analysis for both Westminster and Welsh Citizens.
The Welsh Liberal Democrats will uphold their commitment to a Wales Act (2021), championing a settlement which unites Wales and keeps a healthy connection with the Union, ensuring no opportunity for digression in Nationa
... keep reading on reddit ➡
AFC North:
Ravens 6-2 Steelers 5-3 Bengals 5-4 Browns 5-4
AFC West:
Chargers 5-3 Raiders 5-3 Chiefs 5-4 Broncos 5-4
Also worth noting is that both divisions have the majority of their inter-divisonal games coming up.
