It is that time of year in the NFL season, and the race is on.
Not the race for playoff berths — the race among the league’s bottom-dwellers for the top pick in the 2013 draft.
With a month remaining in the regular season, the Chiefs and Jaguars, both 2-10, are the front-runners to finish last in the league and earn the right to pick first in April.
Right behind them are the Raiders at 3-10, then the Eagles and Panthers at 3-9. Five teams are two games out at 4-8 — the Titans, Chargers, Cardinals, Lions and Browns.
There are fans from some teams — including even the Jets, despite the fact they still are mathematically alive in the playoff hunt — who have called for their team to tank the rest of the season to position for the top pick.
After all, judging by the top two picks in the 2012 draft, it is difficult to argue getting that first pick isn’t a franchise-changing event.
Look at what No. 1 pick Andrew Luck has done for the Colts, who are 8-4 and in commanding position for a playoff berth a year after finishing 2-14.
Look at how No. 2 pick Robert Griffin III has energized the moribund Redskins, who are one game out of first place in the NFC East.
With this year’s crop of potential high draft picks, though, you could question whether there is any player coming out of college who can come close to providing the impact of Luck and Griffin.
The winds of opinion will shift dramatically between now and April, with the NFL Combine in February and private workouts, etc., but at the moment there does not appear to be a franchise quarterback sitting there like a hanging curveball for the Chiefs or Jags to jump on.
Matt Barkley of USC began this season as a potential top overall pick but has been underwhelming in his senior year.
West Virginia’s Geno Smith began the season looking like he would be the player of the year, but his production waned considerably as the Mountaineers lost five straight.
According to draft analysts, those are the only two quarterbacks who consistently grade out as first-round picks, and neither seems like a no-brainer top pick.
That could lead to a team to go defense with the top pick, something that hasn’t happened since the Texans drafted defensive end Mario Williams in 2006, a pick that never made a big impact.
Among the top defensive players who could be picked first include Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te’o, Georgia linebacker Jarvis Jones and Utah defensive tackle Star Lotulelei.
The Jags’ final four opponents are a combined 23-25; the Chiefs’ 25-25. The Raiders have the softest remaining schedule with opponents having a 9-27 record.
The Panthers’ opponents are 23-26 while the Eagles have the toughest remaining schedule with four foes still in the playoff hunt, with a combined record of 26-22.
➤ If you like close games, you have to be loving this season. There were 19 overtime games through Week 13, one shy of the league record (1995 and 2002). … Patriots quarterback Tom Brady last week became the first starting QB in NFL history to win 10 division titles. On the same day, the Broncos’ QB Peyton Manning tied Joe Montana for the second-most division titles in NFL history with nine. … The 9-3 Patriots, who clinched their fourth consecutive AFC East title and ninth since 2003, are guaranteed to finish the year with a winning record for the 12th consecutive season, the longest active streak and tied for the seventh-longest all-time.
mark.cannizzaro@nypost.com