The picture for the NFC playoffs is starting to take shape, as the Washington Commanders clinched their first playoff berth in four years with a big win over the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday. washington Dallas and San Francisco also excluded In an upset in Philadelphia.
The Los Angeles Rams lead the Seattle Seahawks by one game in the NFC West and are on the verge of finishing the division. The Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings are tied for first in the NFC North with 13 wins, but the Lions still hold the tiebreaker. The NFC South is close as the Buccaneers’ loss to the Cowboys puts the Falcons back in first place.
The picture for the AFC playoffs is starting to become clearer and the field is getting closer to setting. The Los Angeles Chargers have no chance of the Denver Broncos clinching a playoff berth while hurting the chances of other AFC teams that are mathematically in line for them, including the Indianapolis Colts, Miami Dolphins, and Cincinnati Bengals. was prevented.
With Saturday’s win, the Baltimore Ravens are tied with the Pittsburgh Steelers for first place in the AFC North, but Pittsburgh still holds the tiebreaker because of its winning conference record. Meanwhile, the Kansas City Chiefs are one win away from securing home-field advantage.
Below is a breakdown of the conference standings with most Week 16 games completed.
AFC Playoff Photos
y — clinched division
x — Qualify for playoffs
e — Eliminated from playoffs
1. Kansas City Chiefs (14-1)
The Chiefs are two games behind the Bills for the No. 1 seed in the AFC. If the Chiefs win on Christmas Day, Kansas City will have home-field advantage in the conference. (Kansas City only needs one win in its last two games.)
Remaining schedule: Steelers, Broncos
2. Buffalo Bills (12-3)
Buffalo holds a two-game lead over Kansas City in home-field advantage, but it will be a head-to-head tiebreaker. The Chiefs need to lose for the Bills to have a chance at the No. 1 seed.
Remaining schedule: vs. Jets, Patriots
3. Pittsburgh Steelers (10-5)
Heading into the playoffs, the Steelers are tied with the Ravens in the AFC North after losing to Baltimore on Saturday. Pittsburgh has a conference-record tiebreaker (7-3) over Baltimore (6-4), giving the Steelers the edge in the division.
Remaining schedule: vs. Chiefs, vs. Bengals
4. Houston Texans (9-6)
The Texans have already clinched the AFC South championship. They will be at least the No. 4 seed in the AFC and play a home game in the wild-card round of the playoffs, but they are one game behind the Steelers for the No. 3 seed.
Remaining schedule: vs. Ravens, at Titans
5. Baltimore Ravens (10-5)
The Ravens defeated the Steelers on Saturday to clinch a playoff berth and are currently tied for first place in the AFC North. Pittsburgh clinched a conference-record tiebreaker against Baltimore.
Remaining schedule: Texans vs. Browns
6. Los Angeles Chargers (9-6)
After defeating the Broncos and overwhelmingly defeating Denver, the Chargers won the head-to-head tiebreaker and moved into the AFC’s No. 6 seed.
Remaining schedule: Patriots, Raiders
7. Denver Broncos (9-6)
Even with Thursday’s loss to the Chargers, the Broncos only need one more win to qualify for the playoffs.
Remaining Schedule: Bengals vs. Chiefs
8. Indianapolis Colts (7-8)
The Colts are two games into the final wild-card spot in the AFC, but a loss or a win to the Chargers and Broncos would eliminate them from playoff contention. The Colts’ win in Week 7 gave them the No. 8 seed with a head-to-head tiebreaker against the Dolphins, and their better conference record (6-5) than Cincinnati (4-4) puts them ahead of the Bengals. won a tie-break with 6).
Remaining schedule: Giants vs. Jaguars
9. Miami Dolphins (7-8)
The Dolphins’ AFC playoff hopes remain, but Miami will be eliminated next week if they lose or the Chargers and Broncos win. Miami is two games behind Denver for the final playoff spot, with a conference record tiebreaker (6-5) over Cincinnati (4-6).
Remaining schedule: Browns, Jets
10. Cincinnati Bengals (7-8)
The Bengals remain the 10th seed in the AFC. We need big help to qualify for the playoffs.. The Bengals will play the Broncos in Week 17 with a two-game lead, so Cincinnati will need to jump over multiple teams to win and qualify for the playoffs. They can’t afford to lose another game.
Remaining schedule: vs. Broncos, at Steelers
Eliminated from playoff contention
Six AFC teams will be eliminated from the playoff race: the Raiders, Patriots, Titans, Jets, Jaguars, and Browns.
NFC Playoffs Photos
1
× – Lions
13
2
0
.867
2x – Eagles 1230.8003 Rams 960.6004
falcons
8
7
0
.533
5 x – Vikings 1320.8676 Packers 1040.7147 Commanders 1050.6678 Buccaneers 870.5339 Seahawks 870.53310e- Cowboys 780.46711e- Cardinals 780.46712e- 49ers690.40013e – Saints 590.35714e – Bears 4110.26715e – Panthers 4110.26716e – Giants 2130.133
x — Qualify for playoffs
e — Eliminated from playoffs
1. Detroit Lions (13-2)
The Lions won and remain the No. 1 seed in the conference after the Eagles’ loss. They are tied with the Vikings for first place in the NFC North, but hold the head-to-head tiebreaker.
Remaining schedule: 49ers vs. Vikings
2. Philadelphia Eagles (12-3)
The Eagles still seek home-field advantage, but they need the Lions to lose, the Vikings to lose next week and Minnesota to beat Detroit in Week 18. Philadelphia is one point away from clinching the NFC East championship and the No. 2 seed. Win one of the next two games.
Remaining schedule: vs. Cowboys, vs. Giants
3. Los Angeles Rams (9-6)
The Rams lead the NFC West by one game over the Seahawks with two games remaining. Next week, Seattle will win the league with Los Angeles having one win and one loss.
Remaining schedule: vs. Cardinals, vs. Seahawks
4. Atlanta Falcons (8-7)
The Falcons returned to first place in the NFC South as the Buccaneers lost to the Cowboys. The Falcons control their own destiny with a head-to-head tiebreaker in Tampa Bay.
Remaining schedule: Commanders vs. Panthers
5. Minnesota Vikings (13-2)
Minnesota remains the top wild-card team in the conference, tied with Detroit for first place in the NFC North. Detroit also holds the division lead in head-to-head tiebreakers.
Remaining schedule: vs. Packers, at Lions
6. Green Bay Packers (10-4)
The Packers are the No. 6 seed in the NFC. They could clinch a playoff spot with a win against the Saints on Monday night.
Remaining schedule: vs. Saints, at. Vikings, vs. Bears
7. Washington Commanders (10-5)
The Commanders hold a two-game lead over the Buccaneers and Seahawks for the conference’s final playoff spot. They will qualify for the playoffs if they win next week.
Remaining schedule: vs. Falcons, at Cowboys
8. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-7)
The Buccaneers fell from first place in the NFC South to outside of the playoffs. They have lost both games to Atlanta, so they will need to finish better than the Falcons to win the division.
Remaining schedule: vs. Panthers, vs. Saints
8. Seattle Seahawks (8-7)
The Seahawks are two games back of the Commanders for the final wild-card spot after Sunday’s loss. Although they were one game behind first place in the NFC West, the Rams won the head-to-head tiebreaker.
Remaining schedule: Bears, Rams
Eliminated from playoff contention
The Cardinals, Cowboys, 49ers and Saints were eliminated from the playoffs in Week 16. The Commanders’ win over the Eagles also eliminated the Cowboys and 49ers. The Cardinals lost to the Panthers and were eliminated with the Rams’ win. The Bears, Panthers, and Giants have already been eliminated entering Week 16.
