Eight Questions That Could Decide the NFL Playoff Race

Thanksgiving has come and gone. College football's regular season is over. It's the time of the year when you have to familiarize yourself with the NFL's tiebreaking procedures. Here are eight pressing questions that will shape the postseason field.

Cincinnati Bengals beat the Titans 20-16 on Sunday. They are currently fifth in offensive EPA per play and 11th in defensive EPA. The team has been good against bad teams and average against better ones. It's not as good as last year's team, but it's better prepared for the postseason. Cincinnati has a tough schedule down the stretch. Next week they play the Chiefs, then they have a trip to New England and Tampa Bay. They also have home games against Buffalo and Baltimore. If they get hot and catch Baltimore in the division, they could be the no. 6 seed.

Tampa Bay couldn't run on the Browns defense. The Buccaneers run game lost 3.6 EPA on 18 plays with a success rate of 27.8 percent.

Tampa Bay's offensive line and offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich's system are to blame for the team's poor performance. The team is not running well and Brady is struggling to do that. Sunday's loss to Cleveland suggests the Bucs are not close to finding an answer. Until that changes, the NFC South race is basically over. The division will be one-and-done in January if the best team from the division is playing well.

Trevor Lawrence was outstanding in the Jaguars' comeback win over the Ravens. The team is 4-7 and three games behind the Titans in AFC South. They play the first game against Jacksonville the week after, and then they play against the Chargers. The Jaguars have two games against Tennessee next week. If they can win both games, they could catch up to the other teams. It's a long way to go, but it's possible. For the time being, the team needs to keep winning.

Corey Linsley and Justin Herbert left Sunday's game against the Cardinals with concussions. The win kept L.A.'s playoff hopes alive. Herbert has been without his top two options at wide receiver, tight end, and offensive tackle for most of the past month. Mike Williams should return next week. Joey Bosa could be back in time for the playoffs. Rashawn Slater could also return at some point this season. The Chargers are currently on the outside looking in, but if they can just take care of business against Raiders, Rams, Broncos, Colts and Bengals, they should be favored.

The NFC East has four winning teams. The Giants just kicked off a four-game stretch against divisional opponents. Washington and New York are going to play back-to-back games against Washington. Dallas and Philadelphia will play a game that could decide the division. There have been just six intra-NFC East games played so far. If Washington or New Jersey can sweep the home-and-home series, it could open up the race for the third and final wild-card spot.

The Dolphins beat the Texans on Sunday. Miami scored at least 30 points in four consecutive games. The Dolphins defense hasn't allowed more than 20 points since the trade for Bradley Chubb. They play the 49ers next week, the Bills in three weeks, and the Patriots, Patriots and Jets to end the season. After that, they play four games against top-10 defenses. If they end up with home-field advantage, Miami will have earned their stripes. The team is just a game back of the Chiefs in the AFC standings.

Josh Allen has had problems with his accuracy since his elbow injury. Buffalo's quarterback has been off-target on short throws since the injury, but he's been more accurate on throws over 10 yards. The team needs to win games to avoid trips to Kansas City and Miami in the playoffs. The Bills take on five teams with winning records over the next six games. They need wins to stay in contention. It's not the best news for Buffalo, whose Super Bowl hopes are contingent on its quarterback's ability to throw a football.

The Vikings are 2-1 after a difficult stretch against the Bills, Cowboys and Patriots. They have a tough remaining schedule, but they have to beat the Jets and Giants. If they do that, they could challenge the Eagles for the top seed in the NFC. They are yet to win a game by more than eight points. The team has a plus-5 point differential. It's the real contenders who win close games.