THE Kansas City Chiefs finally lost a match on Sunday, while Josh Allen’s fourth-quarter touchdown drive propelled the Buffalo Bills to a 30-21 victory.. While the game ended in a two-point game, the Chiefs were fortunate to make a 4th stop that would have given them the ball down just two points with just over two minutes left. Instead, the Bills kept their hopes of becoming the AFC’s top seed alive.

The Bills’ victory, coupled with the Pittsburgh Steelers’ two-point victory over the Baltimore Ravens, made the AFC a three-team race heading into Week 12.

The Chiefs still lead the AFC with a 9-1 record, but the Bills are now tied with them in the win column at 9-2. The Steelers also have two losses, but are one behind KC and Buffalo in the win column at 8-2. The Ravens now find themselves at 7-4 and far from the conference’s top seed.

The Los Angeles Chargers are outside the top three after improving to 7-3 with a win over the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday night. However, those three losses include head-to-head losses to the Chiefs and Steelers (and upcoming games against the Chiefs and Ravens). That means the Chargers will still need some serious help to win the top spot.

Assuming nothing too unexpected happens, the AFC’s top seed will go to the Chiefs, Bills or Steelers. What do the remaining schedules look like for these teams? Let’s compare, starting with the Chiefs. The Chiefs still have some positives after their first defeat of the seasonand while they have a few tough games left, they also have some of the easiest games on their schedule coming up.

The Chiefs play three games against struggling teams in Carolina, Las Vegas and Cleveland. These three teams make a total of 7-23. The Chiefs have four potentially tough games. The Chargers will likely be a tough division matchup and the Texans are always dangerous. The Chiefs’ biggest remaining game will now likely be against the Steelers on Christmas Day. It would be great if the Chiefs could wrap up the AFC with a win over Pittsburgh and avoid having to win a potentially tough rematch against the Broncos to lock up the top seed in the final week of the season.

The Bills get a bye after their big win against the Chiefs, then play some interesting NFC West games against the 49ers and Rams. The Bills should be favored in both of these games, but they aren’t easy wins. Then they have what could be the best game remaining of the year when they travel to Detroit to take on the Lions. The Chiefs need the Lions to win this game to prevent the Bills from closing the gap on them (assuming KC continues to win). While divisional games are always interesting, the Bills close out their season with three straight games against the struggling Patriots and Jets.

The Steelers have by far the toughest remaining schedule of the three teams. Their only “easy” games are their two games against the Browns and divisional games can still often be tough. They still have two games left with the Bengals and they have to travel to Baltimore after edging the Ravens by 2 in Pittsburgh. That’s tough enough, but when you add in having to go on the road against the 8-2 Eagles and then face the 9-1 Chiefs, you have to imagine the Steelers will have at least some additional defeats to come at some point.

The Chiefs can’t afford to try to slow down all the way if they want to maintain control of the AFC’s top seed and the bye that comes with it. They absolutely cannot afford to drop one of their games against teams with losing records.

The Chiefs need the Bills to drop one or more of their games against NFC teams like the 49ers and Lions. If that happens and the Steelers lose another game and KC can beat them on Christmas Day, the Chiefs could rest their players against the Broncos. However, the Bills definitely have a chance to keep the pressure on the Chiefs after winning the head-to-head matchup.

So what do you think, Chiefs fans? Do you like the Chiefs’ chances of maintaining control of the AFC with their remaining schedule? Do you agree that the Steelers have the least chance of getting out of the top seed with their tough schedule? Do you think the Bills can go on a run and force the Chiefs to win to maintain control of the bye? Do you think the Chargers deserve a place in this conversation as well? I’d love to read your thoughts in the comments below.