Parity continues to be the theme of the NFL season.
There has yet to be a team to emerge as a strong favorite to get to the Super Bowl.With five weeks left, 12 of the 16 AFC teams are at .500 or better. All four division leaders have four losses.
The battle for the top seed is wide open although New England at 9-4 is currently in the top spot with just four games left and one of them is against Jacksonville. The Patriots managed to beat Buffalo while throwing only three passes in windy conditions.
If the Patriots beat Indianapolis this weekend and win the rematch with Buffalo the day after Christmas, they should get the bye.
Baltimore had the top seed but suffered its fourth loss when coach John Harbaugh went for two instead of kicking the extra point to send the game against Pittsburgh into overtime.
In the NFC, Arizona has two losses and Bucs and Green Bay have three each and one of them will likely get the bye. None of top three NFC teams will play against each other in last five weeks.
The Cardinals, who boosted their road record to 7-0 with a victory at Chicago, have a key Monday night game with the Rams. They also have road games with Lions and Cowboys and home games with Colts and Seahawks.
Tampa Bay, which beat Atlanta last week, has home games coming up with Bills and Saints, road games with Carolina and the Jets and a home game with Carolina.
The Packers, who had a bye last week, have a tough game at Baltimore in two weeks but figure to beat the Bears, Browns Vikings and Lions in their other four games.
In the NFC division races, Tampa Bay and Green Bay are virtual locks with four games leads so all they have to play for is the bye the rest of the season.
Dallas and Arizona have two game leads over Washington and the Rams and since the Cowboys play Washington and Arizona plays the Rams, they both can boost their lead to three games with four to play and virtually lock up their division title.
In the AFC division races, Tennessee has a two game edge over Indianapolis but the Patriots, Chiefs and Ravens all have only a one game lead.