Each year, the NFL's 32 teams play 16 games apiece. That works out to 256 total games. Heading into Sunday's play, 93 of those 256 games have already been completed. By Monday night, the total will be 107 of 256. That's over 40 percent of the season over with.
Pretty soon, we'll be in what can only be described as the second half of the season. As each week goes by, the playoff picture becomes clearer and clearer, with the contenders separated from the pretenders by more and more ground.
As of today, here's how the NFL playoff picture looks, as well as a snapshot of some games that could potentially impact what it looks like next week and beyond:
Who's in from the AFC
- East: New England Patriots (5-1)
- North: Pittsburgh Steelers (4-2)
- South: Houston Texans (4-2)
- West: Oakland Raiders (4-2)
- Wild card: Denver Broncos (4-2), Buffalo Bills (4-2)
Who's out in the AFC
- East: Miami Dolphins (2-4), New York Jets (1-5)
- North: Cincinnati Bengals (2-4), Cleveland Browns (0-6)
- South: Tennessee Titans (3-3), Jacksonville Jaguars (2-3), Indianapolis Colts (2-4)
- West: Kansas City Chiefs (3-2), San Diego Chargers (2-4)
Who's in from the NFC
- East: Dallas Cowboys (5-1)
- North: Minnesota Vikings (5-0)
- South: Atlanta Falcons (4-2)
- West: Seattle Seahawks (4-1)
- Wild card: Washington Redskins (4-2), Green Bay Packers (4-2)
Who's out in the NFC
- East: Philadelphia Eagles (3-2), New York Giants (3-3)
- North: Detroit Lions (3-3), Chicago Bears (1-6)
- South: Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-3), New Orleans Saints (2-3), Carolina Panthers (1-5)
- West: Los Angeles Rams (3-3), Arizona Cardinals (3-3), San Francisco 49ers (1-5)
Games to watch in Week 7
Week 7 features three games where both teams currently occupy playoff spots. There's an early Sunday game in the NFC, a late afternoon Sunday game in the AFC, and "Monday Night Football" with two AFC teams.
- Vikings at Eagles - 1 p.m. ET
- Patriots at Steelers - 4:25 p.m. ET
- Texans at Broncos - 8:30 p.m. ET ("Monday Night Football")
Two of these three games feature quarterbacks returning to the city in which they played last season. Sam Bradford, now the starting quarterback for the Vikings, is heading back to Philadelphia to take on the Eagles and No. 2 overall pick Carson Wentz. Brock Osweiler, now starting for the Texans, is heading back to Denver to square off with the Broncos and Trevor Siemian. The third game here should have been one of the marquee quarterbacks matchups of the season, but Ben Roethlisberger will not be on the field against Tom Brady at the Patriots.
Week 7 also features three games where both teams are within a game of a playoff spot, all in the NFC.
- Giants at Rams - 9:30 a.m. ET (London)
- Redskins at Lions - 1 p.m. ET
- Seahawks at Cardinals - 8:30 p.m. ET ("Sunday Night Football")
The Giants and Rams are each a game back of a wild card spot heading into Week 7. This game is taking place at London's Twickenham Stadium, so if you're on the West Coast and you want to see it, you'll have to get up pretty early.
Washington has rebounded from its 0-2 start to win four straight games and looks like it has gotten back to playing the style of football that won it the NFC East last season. This is a road game, and Washington has yet to lose on the road this season. Detroit has a ton of injuries in the backfield and could be using a Justin Forsett-Dwayne Washington-Zach Zenner trio for this one.
Seattle and Arizona, of course, were both playoff teams each of the last two years. Neither team's offense has exactly performed to expectations so far this year, but the defenses have been excellent.
