What AFC playoffs race looks like for Las Vegas Raiders entering Week 13

The Las Vegas Raiders are in the hunt for a playoff spot in the AFC entering Week 13.

The Raiders are currently eighth at 6-5 after picking up a 36-33 win over the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving. There were other teams that were ahead of the Raiders, but they jumped to the eighth spot after the Pittsburgh Steelers and Indianapolis Colts lost in Week 12 games.

Only seven teams in both the AFC and NFC will qualify for the playoffs.

According to FiveThirtyEight, the Raiders currently have a 19% chance of making the playoffs. Those odds can increase to 29% with a win against The Washington Football Team on Sunday.

The teams will meet at 1:05 p.m. at Allegiant Stadium.

If the Raiders lose, their odds would drop their odds to 10%.

The Raiders’ odds of winning the AFC West currently stands at 4%. The Kansas City Chiefs lead the division with a 7-4 record, followed by the Los Angeles Chargers (6-5), Raiders (6-5) and Denver Broncos (6-5).

The Raiders will face the Chiefs in a rematch at Arrowhead Stadium on Dec. 12. That game will loom large with tiebreaker implications down the road, but the Raiders need to get a win over Washington to keep their AFC West title hopes alive.

The Raiders’ remaining schedule includes Washington (Dec. 5), at Kansas City (Dec. 12), at Cleveland Browns (Dec. 18), Denver Broncos (Dec. 26), at Indianapolis Colts (Jan. 2) and Los Angeles Chargers (Jan. 9).

The AFC pictures are as follows:

1. Baltimore 8-3-0
2. New England 8-4-0
3. Tennessee 8-4-0
4. Kansas City 7-4-0
5. Cincinnati 7-4-0
6. Buffalo 7-4-0
7. LA Chargers 6-5-0
8. Las Vegas 6-5-0
9. Denver 6-5-0
10. Indianapolis 6-6-0
11. Pittsburgh 5-5-1
12. Cleveland 6-6-0
13. Miami 5-7-0

The Raiders already have wins over Baltimore, Denver and Pittsburgh. But a loss to Cincinnati could be key when it comes down to tiebreaker scenarios.

That is why the Raiders need to go on a win streak especially beating their AFC West rivals. The game against Indianapolis is another big one.

Here are the remaining schedule for teams ahead and behind Las Vegas.

Baltimore: at Pittsburgh, at Cleveland, vs. Green Bay, at Cincinnati, vs. Los Angeles Rams, vs. Pittsburgh

New England: at Buffalo, at Indianapolis, vs. Buffalo, vs. Jacksonville, at Miami

Tennessee: vs. Jacksonville, at Pittsburgh, vs. San Francisco, vs. Miami, at Houston

Kansas City: vs. Denver, vs. Las Vegas, at LA Chargers, vs. Pittsburgh, at Cincinnati, at Denver

Cincinnati: vs. LA Chargers, vs. San Francisco, at Denver, vs. Baltimore, vs. Kansas City, at Cleveland

Buffalo: vs. New England, at Tampa Bay, vs. Carolina, at New England, vs. Atlanta, vs. New York Jets

LA Chargers: at Cincinnati, vs. New York Giants, vs. Kansas City, at Houston, vs. Denver, at Las Vegas

Denver: at Kansas City, vs. Detroit, vs. Cincinnati, at Las Vegas, at LA Chargers, vs. Kansas City

Indianapolis: at Houston, vs. New England, at Arizona, vs. Las Vegas, at Jacksonville

Pittsburgh: vs. Baltimore, at Minnesota, vs. Tennessee, at Kansas City, vs. Cleveland, at Baltimore

Cleveland: vs. Baltimore, vs. Las Vegas, at Green Bay, at Pittsburgh, vs. Cincinnati

Miami: vs. New York Giants, vs. New York Jets, at New Orleans, at Tennessee, vs. New England

Anthony Galaviz

The Fresno Bee

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Anthony Galaviz writes about sports for The Fresno Bee. He covers the Las Vegas Raiders, high schools, boxing, MMA and junior colleges. He’s been with The Bee since 1997 and attended Fresno City College before graduating from Fresno State with a major in journalism and a minor in criminology. Support my work with a digital subscription