NFL Wild Card Picture

By Jordan Raanan, XFINITY Sports

It’s called the wild card for a reason. Eleven teams (not including division leaders) are realistically in the running for the final four NFL playoff spots—two in each conference. Seven NFC teams are battling for the two positions. Even the embattled Jets are still very much in the mix. Here’s a breakdown of the 11 non-division leaders in the wild-card running: (AP Photos)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.

More from this Slideshow

0 of 0

NFL Wild Card Pi... By Jordan Raanan, XFINITY Sports

It’s called the wild card for a reason. Eleven teams (not including division leaders) are realistically in the running for the final four NFL playoff spots—two in each conference. Seven NFC teams are battling for the two positions. Even the embattled Jets are still very much in the mix. Here’s a breakdown of the 11 non-division leaders in the wild-card running: (AP Photos)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.
Indianapolis Col... What They Need: One more win against Houston, Kansas City or Houston again to clinch an improbable postseason berth.

What Could Go Wrong: Houston feels the need to play until the very last second of the regular season and something goes terribly wrong in Kansas City. That or Andrew Luck trips on the way to the stadium. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.
Cincinnati Benga... What They Need: Not to overlook the Eagles on Thursday night and a win the following week in Pittsburgh.

What Could Go Wrong: The Bengals play like the Bengals and lose their final two games to the Ravens and Steelers. (AP Photo/Tom Uhlman)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.
Pittsburgh Steel... What They Need: For Ben Roethlisberger to get back into the flow quickly and for them to play like the Steelers. That means dominate defensively and have Ben do just enough in the passing game to get the Steelers some key wins.

What Could Go Wrong: If Pittsburgh loses its Week 17 matchup with the Bengals its playoff hopes disappear. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.
New York Jets (6... What They Need: To win out against Tennessee, San Diego and Buffalo and hope for some help.

What Could Go Wrong: Oh the possibilities, like Mark Sanchez running into the backside of his offensive linemen and fumbling at any moment. (AP Photo/L.G. Patterson)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.
Washington Redsk... What They Need: At least two out of three at Cleveland, at Philadelphia and vs. Dallas.

What Could Go Wrong: RG3 doesn’t play the final three weeks because of the knee injury he suffered Sunday in a win over the Ravens. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.
Dallas Cowboys (... What They Need: Tony Romo to put the injury-riddled team on his shoulders and carry them to the postseason.

What Could Go Wrong: The Steelers release their anger on the Cowboys this weekend, all but killing Dallas’ playoff chances. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.
Chicago Bears (8... What They Need: Jay Cutler to be healthy. Chicago has no chance of avoiding a second straight collapse if Cutler isn’t at full strength.

What Could Go Wrong: Injuries become too much for the Bears to overcome and they lose to either Arizona or Detroit in the final two week. If that happens, it’s going to get ugly in Chicago. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.
Minnesota Viking... What They Need: Quarterback Christian Ponder to play better. Minnesota can’t get to the playoffs without a passing game, no matter how freakishly good Adrian Peterson is the rest of the way.

What Could Go Wrong: The Vikings don’t win another game. They have a difficult schedule with trips to St. Louis and Houston, followed by a finale against Green Bay. (AP Photo/Genevieve Ross)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.
Seattle Seahawks... What They Need: Two more wins to assure themselves of a playoff spot. Seattle should get it done with a trip to Buffalo and home games against San Francisco and St. Louis to close out the season.

What Could Go Wrong: The only scenario I can think of is that Russell Wilson suddenly starts playing like a rookie quarterback. Unlikely to happen at this point of the season, especially with two of the three games at home, where Wilson has been brilliant this season. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.
St. Louis Rams (... What They Need: To win out against Minnesota, Tampa and Seattle, with the final two on the road. Good luck.

What Could Go Wrong: St. Louis’ offense begins to falter once again. The Rams have had trouble scoring all season. (AP Photo/Bill Wippert)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.
Tampa Bay Bucs (... What They Need: Three straight wins and a lot of luck.

What Could Go Wrong: Anything really. Tampa is a real long shot at this point after losing at home to the Eagles and their rookie quarterback as time expired last week. (AP Photo/Brian Blanco)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.