AFC could have No. 1 seed, all four divisions and all three wild cards clinched by Sunday

As the NFL playoff picture comes into focus, it may come into too clear a focus for the AFC to have meaningful football played down the stretch.

By Sunday afternoon, it's possible that the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage in the AFC could be clinched, that all four divisions in the AFC could be clinched, and that all three wild card berths in the AFC could be clinched. That would leave the entire AFC with very little to play for in Weeks 17 and 18.

The first thing that would have to happen is the Chiefs win and the Bills lose this week. That would clinch the AFC No. 1 seed for the Chiefs, and leave the Bills as AFC East champions who would be playing at home in the first round of the playoffs but would have to go to Kansas City if they advance that far.

Then, the Steelers beating the Ravens would clinch the AFC North for Pittsburgh. Houston has already clinched the AFC South, so the Steelers would be the fourth and final AFC division winner.

If the Chargers win while the Bengals, Dolphins and Colts all lose, that would clinch all three AFC wild card spots, for the Chargers, Broncos and Ravens.

And that would leave us with a very clear AFC playoff picture with two weeks to go: The Chiefs would have the 1 seed and the first-round bye, the Bills, Steelers and Texans would have their divisions and play at home in the first round, and the Chargers, Broncos and Ravens would be wild cards playing on the road in the first round. There would still be some jockeying for the 2-4 seeds and the 5-7 seeds, but the playoff picture would largely be determined. And the final two weeks of the regular season would largely be irrelevant in the AFC.