Did the Jacksonville Jaguars loss on Monday Night help the Houston Texans?

The Jacksonville Jaguars got a shock on Monday night as the Joe Burrow-less Cincinnati Bengals were able to pull up the upset in overtime. The Bengals won 34-31, lifting the Bengals record to 6-6 on the season and dropping the Jaguars to 8-4 on the season. Now the Bengals are right again in the playoff race, and the Jaguars, who had and still have control of the AFC South, just lost a crucial game of cushion in the division.

The Jaguars are now only one game up on the Indianapolis Colts and the Houston Texans for the AFC South title. Both the Texans and Colts are 7-5 and will make-or-break square off at the end of the season for what may be a make or break game for both teams. But before we get there, we have to look at the current standings following the Jaguars loss on Monday night.

The Jags still hold that one-game lead over the Colts and Texans for the division, but the win by the Bengals has just crowded the back end of the playoff pool. They're right in the thick of it alongside the Buffalo Bills and the Denver Broncos, all of whom are 6-6, while the Texans are still one game out of the playoffs today despite the Jags losing.

The Colts hold the seventh and final wildcard slot over the Texans, but the Texans still have a game against teams ahead of them, namely the Cleveland Browns, who are sixth in the Wild Card standings. What doesn't hurt the Texans is that three of their final five games are against the Tennessee Titans (twice) and the New York Jets, meaning that it's far likelier that the Texans put together three or four wins over the next month, heading into the Colts game.

The Colts still have the Bengals, the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the still-involved-but-not-really Las Vegas Raiders. The Jaguars have the toughest road of all three teams, with the Browns, Baltimore Ravens, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers on their schedule.