Titans Playoff Picture 2017: Tennessee's Chances Of Reaching The Postseason, Tiebreaker Scenarios

The Tennessee Titans control their own destiny in the regular-season finale. They enter Week 17 as the AFC’s No.6 seed in the 2017 NFL playoff picture, and they can clinch a wild-card berth with a victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars Sunday afternoon.

Even with a loss, the Titans have a chance to make the postseason because of tiebreaker scenarios. That would require other teams in the playoff hunt to come up short, as well.

If Tennessee doesn’t beat Jacksonville, they can still secure the second wild-card spot with losses by both the Los Angeles Chargers and Buffalo Bills. All three teams have an 8-7 record, but the Titans own the three-way tiebreaker because of a superior conference record.

In the unlikely scenario that the Titans tie the Jaguars, Tennessee would need the Bills and Chargers to both either lose or tie.

The Baltimore Ravens are still trying to clinch a playoff berth as the AFC’s No.5 seed, though what they do in Week 17 is irrelevant to Tennessee’s playoff chances. If Baltimore loses and Tennessee wins, the Titans own the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Ravens for the No.5 seed.

After winning eight of their first 12 games to start the season, the Titans looked like they would stroll into the playoffs. That changed with a three-game losing streak, including two losses on the road to the Arizona Cardinals and San Francisco 49ers, both of whom have losing records. Tennessee was defeated at home 27-23 by the Los Angeles Rams in Week 16, marking the Titans' third straight defeat by five points or fewer.

Had Tennessee’s matchup with Jacksonville taken place a week earlier, they might be significant home underdogs against the Jaguars. That changed with last week’s results because Jacksonville now has nothing on the line in the regular-season finale. The Titans are 3.5-point favorites, per OddsShark.

Jacksonville has clinched the AFC South title with no chance of getting a first-round bye. They are locked in as the conference’s No.3 seed, and the Titans are their most likely opponent on wild-card weekend.

Jaguars’ head coach Doug Marrone has said the team won’t rest their starters, making things a little more difficult for the Titans. Tennessee had probably their best win of the season when they visited Jacksonville in Week 2, defeating the Jaguars 37-16.

Getting help from both the Chargers and Bills might be too much for Tennessee to ask. L.A. will host the Oakland Raiders, who are under .500 and one of the NFL’s most disappointing teams. Buffalo is favored to win on the road against the Miami Dolphins as they look to reach the playoffs for the first time in 18 years.

A 9-7 record wasn’t good enough to get the Titans into the postseason last year when they lost the AFC South tiebreaker to the Houston Texans. Tennessee hasn’t reached the playoffs since the 2008 season when they won 13 games.

Tennessee hasn’t won a postseason game since the 2003 season when Steve McNair was the NFL MVP.