Looking at the AFC playoff picture, there's a number of teams clumped together in the Wild Card hunt. While the Chargers still absolutely have a shot to win the division with games remaining against Denver and Kansas City, the alternative way they can make the dance is still worth monitoring.

Welcome back to the AFC Playoff Picture, a weekly look at where the Chargers stand in playoff chase. The Bolts currently sit at 5-3 and are firmly in the playoff field at the halfway point of the 2025 season. Here's the look at the AFC playoff picture — with standings, current playoff odds and a status update — as we head into Week 9.

The New York Jets likely took the Cincinnati Bengals out of the AFC North hunt with their upset win. The Dallas Cowboys' playoff chances took a massive hit with their loss to the Denver Broncos, while the Tampa Bay Buccaneers appear to be cruising toward their fifth straight NFC South title.

The Jacksonville Jaguars didn’t play this weekend, but they still lost in the standings. With the Kansas City Chiefs’ win on Monday night, the Jaguars fell from the final playoff spot into the teams in the “In The Hunt” graphic. They sit in eighth place in the AFC.

The Pittsburgh Steelers fell to 4-3 on Sunday night with their second straight loss, but that didn’t mean they would fall far in the AFC playoff race. They stayed in fourth place despite the loss, but the rest of the division is in striking distance now, even though the Bengals and Browns lost.

The Jacksonville Jaguars and their fans might be feeling the dreadful effects of their two-game losing streak, but there are plenty of silver linings in the sto