The playoffs are not determined by one week of football, but that’s what gives us something to debate. Eight teams in the AFChad a good Week 1, eight didn’t, and a couple results already look like January matters. Here’s the current AFC playoff picture after the first weekend of the 2026 season by division:
AFC East: Bills and Jets Off to Clean Starts
The Bills didn’t do themselves any favors, but Josh Allen pulled through in the final minutes as the Bills defeated the Texans 36-31 in a game that saw four quarters of back and forth action. It wasn’t a pretty game, but a win is a win, and the Bills will gladly take it against a Texans team that is looking to contend this season.
Jets Surprise in Nashville
Popular question Meanwhile, the Jets managed an outcome that somehow surprised some people. New York took to the road at Nissan Stadium to earn a 23-10 victory over the Titans, with former Titans head coach Robert Saleh now leading the Jets defense. It’s a small sample size, but after years of struggles in this division, a road win to open the season is something the fan base can hang their hats on until they see a glimmer of positive movement.
A Rough Debut for New England
On the other side of the balance sheet, the Patriots began with a 13-10 loss at the Seattle Seahawks in a rematch of last season’s Super Bowl. Drake Maye threw three interceptions in a contest that never did have much offensive momentum for New England. The Dolphins were also worse for wear, losing 27-13 to the Raiders in a contest where the Miami skill position unit had real difficulty establishing any sort of consistent rhythm.
AFC North: A Division Full of Wins
This may be the best division story of Week 1. Three of the four AFC North teams won, which is something that almost never happens in the first week of a season.
Ravens Look Sharp Under New Leadership
First year head coach Jesse Minter and the Baltimore Ravens routed the Colts 41-23 on the strength of a monster game from Lamar Jackson. Jackson threw for 364 yards and was responsible for two touchdowns. The Ravens will be right in the thick of the AFC playoff picture all year if they can maintain this level of play.
Steelers Defense Sets the Tone
Pittsburgh’s defense dominated in their win against Atlanta, with T.J. Watt closing out the game with a pick six in the fourth quarter. New Falcons head coach Mike McCarthy did not have the debut he wanted, and the Steelers showed once again that their defensive identity travels well no matter who is on the roster.
Bengals Survive a Shootout
Cincinnati was at home vs. Tampa Bay to start the season and had to hang on for dear life to a 33-27 win. Joe Burrow and the offense came through when it counted, although a defense that was shaky at times in 2025 will need to make some improvements against superior opponents.
Browns Fall Behind Early
Cleveland is the exception, losing their opener 34-10 to Jacksonville. It was a rough day all around, and with uncertainty still swirling around the quarterback position, the Browns have some work to do before this division race becomes any tighter.
AFC South: Jaguars Make an Early Statement
Jacksonville’s 34-10 beatdown of Cleveland was a stunningly well-rounded showing from any team in the AFC South in Week 1. The defense shut down Cleveland’s offense from the first drive, and if that group can hold up for a full season, the Jaguars might be the team to beat in this division.
Colts, Texans, and Titans All Start 0-1
It was a difficult opening week for the rest of the division. The Colts fell to Baltimore at home, the Texans came up short versus Buffalo despite an impressive offensive performance, and Titans dropped their season-opener to a Jets team that a lot of people expected them to knock off. None of these losses are ending the season themselves, but a division race often goes to head to head, so an early hole is worth watching.
AFC West: Mahomes Returns in Style
Patrick Mahomes showed why he was worth $510 million, leading the Chiefs to a 31-10 win over Denver on Monday Night Football. Kenneth Walker III, coming off a Super Bowl MVP performance with Seattle last year, ran for 173 yards in his Kansas City debut. If Kansas City has at last unearthed a bellcow running back to complement Mahomes, the rest of the AFC West should probably be nervous.
Raiders Open with Confidence
Las Vegas se encargó de Miami, ganando 27-13 con una defensa que forzó varias equivocaciones del ataque de los Dolphins. Es un partido, pero una victoria clara para comenzar el año es justo lo que necesita una plantilla joven.
Broncos and Chargers Both Stumble
Colorado’s unit seemed disjointed in the Kansas City loss with only 176 total yards in a contest in which QB duties were turned over to a newly promoted play caller. The Chargers also had problems of their own, losing to Arizona, 26-14, in a result that shocked much of the world given the expectations for that team coming into the season.
Early Playoff Picture Takeaways
Here’s how the AFC playoff picture looks after Week 1: Buffalo, Kansas City, Baltimore and Jacksonville all look like the best teams in their divisions heading into Week 2, with Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, the Jets and the Raiders just behind them. That’s all meaningless. There are 16 games left to be played, injuries will happen, and even teams that stumble in Week 1 have a long time to recover.
What Week 1 establishes, though, for sure is that the AFC North at the very least, could be the best division from top to bottom and that a couple of teams who were written off in the offseason (lets call them the Jets and the Raiders) might just have us laughing a bit too soon. Check back in a few weeks, because this thing is going to shift more than once before the season is through.
