2021 NFL Playoff Picture Week 14 - 5 AFC teams battling for wild card spots

Teams vying to occupy wild card spots

#3 - Cleveland Browns

Cleveland Browns v Baltimore Ravens

The Cleveland Browns are just outside the wild card spots but are on a record identical to all other teams on the list. Just a few short weeks ago, as Odell Beckham Jr. left, most observers had written the Cleveland Browns off. But this Browns team is not like its recent predecessors; it does not fold quite so easily.

The thing that is working against them having a relatively more comfortable path to the wild card spots is their tendency to blow hot and cold. They have won four of their last eight games, three of their last six, two of their last four and one of their last two. It seems the moment they get a win, they follow it up with a loss.

If the Cleveland Browns could go on a winning spree by winning at least two or three games on the trot, they would really be in contention to make one of the wild card spots in the AFC.

#4 - Cincinnati Bengals

Pittsburgh Steelers v Cincinnati Bengals

If the Cleveland Browns have the tendency to win alternate matches, the Cincinnati Bengals seem to be stuck in a loop of winning two games and then losing two games going back to a sequence of eight games. When they play well, both their passing game and running game kicks in and helps them beat their rivals.

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If the Cincinnati Bengals are to make one of the last wild card spots, they need to improve on their consistency. They have lost their last two games on the bounce to the Los Angeles Chargers and the San Francisco 49ers, and will be hoping that their current trend holds and they win their upcoming couple of matches, and then hopefully the last two as well.

#5 - Denver Broncos

Denver Broncos v Kansas City Chiefs

The last team on our list of AFC teams that can make wild card spots are the Denver Broncos. Their next match against the Cincinnati Bengals will be critical for both franchises.

For most teams in contention, we have talked of their offensive prowess, but the Denver Broncos are a team led by their defense. They are second across the NFL when it comes to allowing points per game (17.5 points per game), second only to the New England Patriots.

The Broncos have won four of their last six matches and will be looking to ensure they get one of the wild card spots.