Consequently, the Patriots and Bills could have played their tiebreaker playoff on December 22, potentially leaving the AFL Championship Game for the next weekend (the originally scheduled date), since they knew after games of December 15 that they and they alone had tied for the division title. However, the Western Division race had not yet been decided and Chargers and Raiders owners Barron Hilton and Al Davis respectively objected to playing the Eastern playoff "early" on the grounds that it would have given the Eastern winner an unfair advantage in terms of rest in case the Chargers and Raiders also had to play a tiebreaker. The Chargers won their last game and with it won the West outright, nevertheless the Bills-Patriots Eastern Division playoff was not played until after the following week on Saturday, December 28 (the day before the Chicago-New York NFL Championship Game).
This led to a situation where the Patriots and Bills could have played their tiebreaker playoff on December 22, potentially delaying the AFL Championship Game to the following weekend. Since they had tied for the division title by December 15, they were aware of their status. However, the owners of the Chargers and Raiders opposed playing the Eastern playoff early, arguing that it would give the Eastern winner an unfair rest advantage if they also had to play a tiebreaker. The Chargers won their last game and secured the West outright, but the Bills-Patriots Eastern Division playoff was not played until after the next week on December 28.