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Early 2022 -23 AFC Contenders

8 Most Favored Teams To Reach The NFL Playoffs 2022-23

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Who are the AFC elite?

8 Most Favored Teams To Reach The NFL Playoffs 2022-23

With the 2022-23 playoffs just around the corner, it’s time to look into what teams are likely to make them and how their season is already going.

The playoffs are set to begin on the 14th of January 2023 and in this article, we cover the wins and losses of the most favored teams in the first 5 weeks of the season. 

Knowing how each team is doing and who is expected to make the playoffs is a key part of understanding NFL lines odds. The odds can change with a single game so it is important to check on them frequently.

Baltimore Ravens

The Baltimore Ravens are currently 1st in the AFC North division and 4th overall in the conference.

This is a huge difference from their 2021 season where they came in last place in the AFC North division. Under the guidance of head coach John Harbaugh, they are clearly upping their game this year.

In week 1 they managed to defeat the New York Jets, only to lose to the Miami Dolphins the following week. This win/lose pattern will continue with them defeating the New England Patriots in week 3, losing to the Buffalo Bills in week 4, and then defeating the Cincinnati Bengals in week 5.

Buffalo Bills

The first game of the season was against the previous Super Bowl Champions the Los Angeles Rams, the Buffalo Bills ended up winning this game.

They would follow these victories with wins against the Tennessee Titans in week 2, the Baltimore Ravens in week 4, and the Pittsburgh Steelers in week 5. Their only defeat was in week 3 against the Miami Dolphins.

Led by head coach Sean McDermott, the Bills are 1st in the AFC East division and 1st in the overall conference.

Cincinnati Bengals

The Cincinnati Bengals were coming off of a successful 2021 season where they won the AFC Championship, had their first playoff victory in 31 years, and then had their first Super Bowl appearance in 33 years.

Their 2022 season started on a low note with them losing to the Pittsburgh Steelers, breaking a 3-game long win streak against them. They would then also go on to lose against the Dallas Cowboys in week 2.

The Bengals would have victories in weeks 3 and 4 against the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins before losing again in week 5 to the Baltimore Ravens.

As of week 5, the Bengals are 3rd in the AFC North division and 13th in the overall conference.

Indianapolis Colts

The Indianapolis Colts' first game of the season was a tie against the Houston Texans. After that, they lost to the Jacksonville Jaguars in week 2 and then lost again in week 4 to the Tennessee Titans. Their 2 victories so far were against the Kansas City Chiefs in week 3 and the Dever Broncos in week 5.

As of week 5, they are 8th overall in the conference and 2nd in the AFC South division.

Kansas City Chiefs

The Chiefs are 1st in the AFC West division and 2nd in the overall conference with only 1 loss so far which was against the Indianapolis Colts in week 3. Their other matches against the Arizona Cardinals, Los Angeles Chargers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Las Vegas Raiders, were all victories.

Los Angeles Chargers

Led by head coach Brandon Staley, as of week 5 the Chargers are 2nd in the AFC West division and 7th in the conference.

In week 1 they defeated the Las Vegas Raiders but then lost to the Kansas City Chiefs the following week. They would also lose in week 3 against the Jacksonville Jaguars before having back-to-back victories against the Houston Texans and Cleveland Browns.

Miami Dolphins

The Dolphins were on a winning streak for the first 3 weeks against the New England Patriots, the Baltimore Ravens, and the Buffalo Bills. After that, they would go on to lose both their week 4 and week 5 games against the Cincinnati Bengals and New York Jets respectively.

With their wins and losses up to and including week 5, the Dolphins are 3rd in the AFC East division and 6th in the conference.

Tennessee Titans

As of week 5, the Tennessee Titans are 1st in the AFC South division leading them to be 3rd in the conference.

Their season started low with them being defeated in week 1 by the New York Giants and then the Buffalo Bills in week 2. They seemed to have found their footing by week 3 after defeating the Las Vegas Raiders and then the Indianapolis Colts and Washington Commanders in weeks 4 and 5.

Final Thoughts

The 2022-23 NFL season is set to end on January 8th before the playoffs, so anything can change from now until then. While these are the most favored teams to win, there can be an underdog that none of us expected.

Since we are so early in the season, there is much that can happen to completely change how the Super Bowl Championship game will play out.


Credits

The banner photo is courtesy of Wikimedia Commons of Overall view of the Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, during a National Football League regular season game between the New York Jets and the Miami Dolphins , celebrated 23 September 2012. As seen from the upper deck. Contributed by ChaChaFut

A Very Special thanks to the contributing author of the article


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