AFC Playoff Picture: New York Jets In Control of Destiny

Victory Monday. It tastes so sweet. With tonight's Monday Night Football game between two teams from the National Football Conference, we can look to see how the American Football Conference playoff picture currently stands.

In the AFC East, we have the following:

1. New England Patriots (10-2)

2. New York Jets (7-5)

3. Buffalo Bills (6-6)

4. Miami Dolphins (5-7)

The late season match-ups against the Patriots (at home) and the Bills (away) are shaping up to be extremely important for the Jets as they maintain their hold on a wildcard spot in the playoffs. Let's look at the whole playoff picture though:

1. Cincinnati Bengals (10-2)

2. Denver Broncos (10-2)

3. New England Patriots (10-2)

4. Indianapolis Colts (6-6)

5. Kansas City Chiefs (7-5)

6. New York Jets (7-5)

Right now, the Jets would play the Patriots in the wildcard round (who dropped out of first place after two consecutive losses) and then head to Cincinnati to play the Bengals. However, the Pittsburgh Steelers are closely in the hunt, also with a 7-5 record, and the Bills and Houston Texans, both of whom have tiebreakers over the Jets, are just a game behind at 6-6.

So right now, the Jets control their own destiny, but they have competition hot on their heels. With the Tennessee Titans, Dallas Cowboys, Patriots and Bills remaining, this may go down to the wire.