AFC East
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The AFC East refers to the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference of the National Football League. It currently has four members: Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots, and New York Jets. All of them were former members of the American Football League.
When the division was created after the AFL-NFL Merger in 1970, the division also included the Baltimore Colts. Despite relocating to Indianapolis, Indiana in 1984, the Colts continued to belong to the AFC East until the 2002 re-alignment when they were put into the AFC South.
Although Miami is further south than the other three teams (all of which are in the northeast), all four have historical rivalries between each other dating back to when they were all in the AFL.
[edit] Division champions
- A players' strike in 1982 reduced the regular season to nine games. Thus, the league used a special 16-team playoff tournament just for this year. Division standings were ignored, Miami had the best record of the division teams.
[edit] Wild Card qualifiers
- Since 1970
- 1970 - Miami Dolphins
- 1971 - Baltimore Colts
- 1972 - None
- 1973 - None
- 1974 - Buffalo Bills
- 1975 - None
- 1976 - New England Patriots
- 1977 - None
- 1978 - Miami Dolphins
- 1979 - None
- 1980 - None
- 1981 - Buffalo Bills, New York Jets
- 1982 - *
- 1983 - None
- 1984 - None
- 1985 - New England Patriots, New York Jets
- 1986 - New York Jets
- 1987 - None
- 1988 - None
- 1989 - None
- 1990 - Miami Dolphins
- 1991 - New York Jets
- 1992 - Buffalo Bills
- 1993 - None
- 1994 - New England Patriots
- 1995 - Indianapolis Colts, Miami Dolphins
- 1996 - Buffalo Bills, Indianapolis Colts
- 1997 - Miami Dolphins
- 1998 - Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots
- 1999 - Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins
- 2000 - Indianapolis Colts
- 2001 - Miami Dolphins, New York Jets
- 2002 - None
- 2003 - None
- 2004 - New York Jets
- 2005 - None
* - A players' strike in 1982 reduced the regular season to nine games. Thus, the league used a special 16-team playoff tournament just for this year. Division standings were ignored.
[edit] Total playoff berths
| Team | Championships | Playoff Berths |
|---|---|---|
| Miami Dolphins | 13 | 21 |
| New England Patriots | 8 | 13 |
| Buffalo Bills | 7 | 13 |
| New York Jets | 2 | 9 |
| Baltimore/Indianapolis Colts1 | 6 | 10 |
1 Known as the Baltimore Colts before 1984. Realigned into the AFC South during the 2002 NFL season.
