Kansas City Clinches First Seed, Jaguars Earn First Pick In 2021 NFL Draft

The top and bottom of the NFL standings have been finalized after Sunday’s games.

The reigning Super Bowl Champions the Kansas City Chiefs have secured the first seed in the AFC following their 17-14 win over the Atlanta Falcons. This was an important objective for the Chiefs as they now secure themselves a bye week for the start of the playoffs. Usually, in the post-season, it would be the first and second seeds that are given a first-round bye in the playoffs. However, that is not the case this season. The NFL decided to expand playoff teams from 12 to 14 because of COVID-19. Additionally, only the first seed are given a first-round bye and home-field advantage through the playoffs.

Securing the bye was necessary for the team as coach Andy Reid said, “We can use [the playoff bye-week] as a healing time and get ourselves back healthy and ready to roll.” This will re-energize the team as they look to repeat as Super Bowl Champions again.

Meanwhile, at the bottom of the AFC standings, the Jacksonville Jaguars were given a victory as they have been awarded the first pick for the 2021 NFL Draft. This is an important victory for Jacksonville because of the talented Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence who may be available for the draft. Lawrence is expected to go first in the draft as he is seen as a generational talent that could be compared with Andrew Luck or even Peyton Manning. However, the Clemson quarterback has not declared for the draft yet. Lawrence is currently preparing to lead his team against Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl.