AFC playoff picture: Contenders after Carr injury Published: Dec 25, 2016 at 06:01 PM Around The NFL Podcast Co-Host Now, comes the anticlimax. This of games faster than anyone could have expected in a season full of tight games and a fat middle cla s of teams. The 2016 regular season will go down like most "Sopranos" seasons, with the second-to-last episode dropping the hammer. While four of the six playoff teams will be vying for seeding next week, Week 17 won't have the same juice. The are hoping the rest of their season isn't a comedown. 's was a devastating moment Kerry Wood Jersey for an entire franchise and fanbase that waited 14 years for a season like this. They rightfully had champion dreams with Carr. With fourth-year pro now under center, any playoff win will feel like overachieving. Yet it's worth noting McGloin joins a situation that couldn't be better. The have one of the NFL's best pa s protecting offensive lines. (In a cruel bit of bad luck, Carr was injured on the QB hit Oakland gave up on Sunday.) They have one of the best starting wide receiver duos in football. They have an emerging running game and an offense that gets receivers wide open, often taking short pa ses a long way. Carr's talent and leadership was a ma sive part in making all of the above work. But McGloin doesn't need to win 12 games like Carr. He's trying to win three to get to the in Houston, and that journey starts next week in Denver. Don't laugh. AFC West still comes down to Denver The ' defense of their title in Kansas City, the ghost of Tebow . But the will still help decide the AFC West winner. McGloin will make his first start since his rookie season against the league's best pa s defense. A win will earn them a playoff bye, help with McGloin's confidence and provide him a much-needed extra week of practice with the ' starting unit. A victory next week will leave the door open for the 11-4 to take the division title with a win against the collapsing . The two games will be for maximum scoreboard-watching enjoyment. The can still be the No. 1 seed -- though they could also fall to No. 5 -- while the could be as high as No. 2 or as low as No. 6. Just as important, the need to quickly adjust to life without their MVP candidate Sammy Sosa Jersey . Oakland's defense has improved down the stretch and gets to face a stagnant Denver offense that has managed just two touchdowns in their last three and a half games. Even the biggest McGloin optimist (ahem) knows that the will have to play complementary football at a higher level than it was with Carr. The defense will need to go from "improved" to "weaponized." The running game will take a greater share of the load. needs to cut out those drive-killing drops. McGloin is not a "play it safe" type of backup. He will get his money's worth with aggre sive throws, like he did on two third-and-long conversions late against the . That approach can work when surrounded by immense talent. It's hard to overstate the importance of the game to Oakland's chances of making it far in January. Winning three road games with McGloin at quarterback as a wild card team isn't going to happen. Staying at home for the Divisional Round and po sibly beyond is a lot more feasible. The easy analysis is to just hand the AFC over to the following Carr's injury. But that shows a lack of respect for the , and the beautiful randomne s of sports. The won a last year with far-below-average quarterback play. Jeff Hostetler won a as a backup. Jake Delhomme and Rex Gro sman both made the big game. These things Mike Montgomery Jersey happen. By the time the suit up Sunday in Denver, they will know if they are just playing for the AFC West title or if they could nab the No. 1 seed. That's because ... The Patriots still have plenty on the line remembers the end of last season well, when the blew the No. 1 seed in back-to-back lo ses to the and . That stumble may have been the difference in the AFC championship lo s to the Yu Darvish Jersey and perhaps a fifth New England win. That's why it's hard to imagine the taking Sunday's game in Miami lightly. The have clinched their wild-card spot and could rest players, but that doesn't seem like coach Adam Gase's style. Miami will still be playing for seeding. A win by the and a lo s by the in San Diego would move Miami to the No. 5 seed, thus avoiding Pittsburgh in the Wild Card Round. The (No. 3 seed) and (No. 4 seed) are locked into their current positions and have nothing to play for next week. That gives Miami incentive to try to win, doing anything po sible to increase their chances of facing rather than . Like the , Miami is entering the playoffs with their backup quarterback at the helm. It would serve Miami well to get every game snap po sible, and it would serve Gase's young program well to take on a championship-level team in a difficult spot. The have faced only one team that currently has a winning record since Week 6, and they lost that game to the 38-6. So who are the real contenders? A lot will be written about the inexperience at quarterback in these AFC playoffs. It's true that the mind's eye doesn't easily picture , or having a podium at the pre s conference. Of those three, McGloin has the Chicago Cubs Custom Jersey best supporting cast and the best path to have a few breaks go his way if the can earn a bye. The and , meanwhile, are absolute threats to take down New England. Pittsburgh was the only team in football to in offense and defense in FootballOutsiders' latest efficiency rankings. The needed all of that balance to withstand the in a Christmas Day cla sic, my pick for game of the year. The are likely to hit the playoffs on a seven-game winning streak. This is exactly the team that the ' defense, which has faced exactly above-average quarterback all year, should fear. The remain the Rodney Dangerfield of the NFL, but it's no fluke that Andy Reid's team is 22-5 since early last season. They play a brand of football based on turnover margin, avoiding mistakes, special teams play and situational football. That's a formula similar to a team with an unknown, second-year quarterback back in 2001. These things happen. This article has been reproduced in a new format and may be mi sing content or contain faulty links. Please use the Contact Us link in our site footer to report an i sue.