How the Jaguars can get into the playoffs with a loss

The AFC South title is on the line for the Jaguars in Saturday’s game against the Titans, but a loss wouldn’t completely eliminate them from postseason contention.

A Jacksonville Jaguars team that lost five games in a row earlier this season is now sitting at 8-8 atop the AFC South with a chance to get to the playoffs for the first time since the 2017 season.

In Doug Pederson’s first year as head coach, the Jaguars have a chance to clinch the AFC South title this Saturday night (8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN/ABC/ESPN+) against the Tennessee Titans, who sit 7-9 and haven’t won a game since mid-November.

Jacksonville beat Tennessee the first time around, winning 36-22 in Nashville to start their current four-game winning streak, but a loss this time around would give the Titans the division title for the third straight year.

Both teams would be 8-9, but the Titans would own the tiebreaker with a 4-2 division record. The Jaguars would be 3-3.

Obviously, a win is the easiest way for the Jaguars to get to the playoffs. They would seal the No. 4 seed, clinch a home playoff game, and secure their first winning record in five years at 9-8, clearing the Titans by two full games. Even a tie would do it.

But even with a loss, all hope is not lost for Jacksonville.

At 8-9, the Jaguars would enter the final Sunday of the regular season with a shot to land the AFC’s No. 7 seed, along with a trio of 8-8 teams: the New England Patriots, who currently occupy the spot, the Miami Dolphins, and the Pittsburgh Steelers.

If the Patriots lose to the Buffalo Bills, the Dolphins lose to the New York Jets, and the Steelers lose to the Cleveland Browns, there would be a six-way tie among 8-9 teams (the Jets and Browns are currently 7-9, but already eliminated).

An AFC East division tiebreaker would be used to eliminate the Dolphins and Jets, and an AFC North division tiebreaker would be used to eliminate the Steelers. That leaves us with the Patriots, Browns, and Jaguars.

Of those three teams, the Jaguars would own the best conference record (7-5) and thus clinch the No. 7 seed. The Patriots and Browns would both own 6-6 records within the AFC.