The Tennessee Titans’ playoff hopes took a big hit on Sunday. The Titans (7-6) lost a tough home game to the New Orleans Saints (10-3) by the score of 22 to 17. The Titans battled back after the Saints took a lead but their fourth quarter comeback came up just short. However, even though the Houston Texans secured their first AFC South title, the Titans still have playoff hopes. Those hopes hinge on what happens with the New York Jets, the Cincinnati Bengals and the Oakland Raiders.
If the Jets (8-5) win their final three games then they will be the final AFC Wild-Card team. However, were New York to lose a game and the Titans were to win out then Tennessee would win the tiebreaker. If the Titans finish at 9-7, the Jets would have to lose two of their last three games, including the Miami game, in order for Tennessee to qualify for the playoffs.
The Oakland Raiders currently sit at 7-6. If both the Raiders and the Titans were to finish with 10-6 records then Tennessee would win the tiebreaker by virtue of conference wins. If both teams finish at 9-7, assuming Tennessee loses to Houston, then Oakland’s loss would have to come against Detroit or else the Titans would win the tiebreaker. If both teams finish with identical conference marks, and Tennessee does not defeat the Texans, then Oakland would win the tiebreaker by their better record against common opponents. If Tennessee and Oakland have the same conference record and identical records against common opponents, the tiebreaker would go to the Raiders by virtue of their strength of victory.
Since Cincinnati defeated the Titans earlier this year, Tennessee must finish with a better record than the Bengals. Cincinnati finishes the season against Baltimore so this may very well be a loss. However, unless the Titans win out, Tennessee would also need the Bengals to drop a game against St. Louis or Arizona.
There you have it. It would be much simpler if the Titans just win out.