JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- After two years of stagnation, it appears Trevor Lawrence has made his ground up with CJ Stroud in the race to be the AFC South's best signal-caller.

The Houston Texans earned a critical win in Week 17 over the Los Angeles Chargers. Here's how that impacts the standings and playoff scenarios.

According to multiple national reporters, San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh is headed to the AFC. Saleh finalized a deal with the Tennessee Titans to become their next head coach. Saleh was scheduled to interview with the Arizona Cardinals in-person on Tuesday. The Cardinals will have to pivot to another option.

Andy Reid is still around as the last of the old guard, but the Kansas City Chiefs are coming off a down season and saw Patrick Mahomes suffer an ACL injury at the end of the season. Otherwise, it appears the AFC is as wide open as it has been in years, if not the last few decades.

Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence led his team to win the AFC South Championship for the first time since 2022.

As the Jacksonville Jaguars begin building towards Year 2 under Liam Coen, there has been another coaching shake-up in the AFC. According to multiple reports, the Buffalo Bills have moved on from head coach Sean McDermott. This decision comes after the Bills lost in the AFC divisional round to the Denver Broncos 33-30.

On Sunday, a 14-win Patriots team will be playing a divisional round playoff game against a team from the AFC South in the snow. Mike Vrabel also was a part of both teams. New England (14-3) will play the Houston Texans (12-5) in what's expected to be a snowy AFC Divisional Round playoff game at 3 p.m.

The Colts continue to value continuity and patience, but a few of their AFC rivals with much more sustained and recent success have made some rather big moves.