After Week 13, the Jacksonville Jaguars' place in the playoffs is all but guaranteed. They absolutely destroyed the Tennessee Titans, and elsewhere in the AFC South, the Indianapolis Colts fell to the Houston Texans. The once-dominant Colts have continued to fall, which is great for the Jags.
Earlier in the season, the Texans were struggling while the Colts seemed to not only be guaranteed to win the AFC South but to even potentially have the No. 1 seed in the playoffs. Now, the tables have completely turned; the Colts are drowning, while the Texans are surging.
Currently, the Jaguars are tied with the Colts at 8-4, putting them in first place in the division. Yet it's not the time to be cavalier; with Houston winning their last four games in a row, it could easily leap ahead of the Jaguars in the standings. So it's clear who Jaguars fans need to root for this weekend.
How a Chiefs win could clear the path for a Jaguars division title
The Texans will be playing the Kansas City Chiefs this weekend, while the Jaguars have another divisional matchup, as the Colts take on the Jaguars at home. Obviously, Jacksonville needs to beat Indianapolis, but they also need to see Kansas City emerge victorious to cement their playoff hopes.
Flash back to Week 5, and the Jaguars shocked the league by defeating the Kansas City Chiefs. Today, the Chiefs are 6-6 and need a win over the Texans to keep their own postseason hopes alive. A loss could very well put them out of contention.
And as the Jaguars already beat the Chiefs, they hold the tiebreaker if both teams end up in the playoffs. A Chiefs win Sunday, therefore, means basically nothing for the Jaguars' playoff goals. A Texans win, though, could have huge repercussions, especially if Jacksonville loses to the Colts.
Currently, the Texans trail the Colts and Jaguars by just one game; their record is 7-5. If the Jaguars lose and the Colts win, they'll be tied at 8-5, and the Colts will pull ahead to 9-4. It wouldn't necessarily spell disaster for the Jaguars, but it could make their road to the playoffs significantly harder.
If the Chiefs win, it will give the Jaguars a bit more breathing room. It keeps the Texans further behind in contention, and ideally, Jacksonville walks away with the win on Sunday, and also sees Houston fall. That will all but cement their place as AFC South champions, and give them a clear path to the postseason.