The NFL playoff field is almost set. Here’s what’s left in the Week 18 scramble:
AFC playoffs
Kansas City Chiefs: They are the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs, an honor that grants them a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the conference’s postseason action. The Chiefs did not play in the final game of the regular season against the Denver Broncos and were without several starters, including Patrick Mahomes. AFC’s road to the Super Bowl passes through Arrowhead.
Buffalo Bills: They faced the New England Patriots in the final game of the regular season, but had nothing to gain, losing 23-16. The Bills have already clinched the No. 2 seed in the AFC, so they’ll be hosting the worst wild-card team in the conference during wild-card weekend. Their postseason opponent will be the Denver Broncos.
Baltimore Ravens: Lamar Jackson and the team won the AFC North title with a win over the Cleveland Browns on Saturday.
That means the Ravens are the No. 3 seed in the AFC and will host a wild card game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Houston Texans: The Texans didn’t have much to show for it in Week 18, but they had no trouble defeating the Tennessee Titans. The Texans won the AFC South in Week 15, but were unable to improve their seeding. Houston, the conference’s worst divisional champion, is locked into the No. 4 seed.
The Texans will host the Los Angeles Chargers on Wild Card weekend.
Los Angeles Chargers: They have a wild card berth heading into Week 18 against the Las Vegas Raiders. The Chargers clinched the No. 5 seed with an emphatic win against the Raiders on Sunday. That No. 5 seed earns them a trip to Houston to play the Texans on wild-card weekend.
Pittsburgh Steelers: They clinched a playoff spot in mid-December, but lost Saturday night against the Bengals and missed out on the No. 5 seed.
They will be seeded No. 6 and will visit the Baltimore Ravens during wild-card weekend.
Denver Broncos: Defeated the Kansas City Chiefs on hiatus 38-0, clinching the final wild-card spot as the seventh seed in the AFC. The Broncos will face Buffalo in the first round of the playoffs.
The Chiefs, already clinched the No. 1 seed in the conference, did not use a starter for the final regular-season game in Denver.
Miami Dolphins: The Dolphins needed help to earn the AFC’s final wild-card spot, and they weren’t getting it from the Kansas City Chiefs. The Denver Broncos won 38-0 against the visiting Chiefs, eliminating the Dolphins from postseason play.
Cincinnati Bengals: They had the toughest chance of earning a playoff spot among the AFC postseason contenders and didn’t get the rest they needed in Denver. The Bengals needed the Broncos to lose to the visiting Kansas City Chiefs, but that didn’t happen as Denver cruised to a 38-0 victory.
NFC playoffs
Detroit Lions: A win over the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday night would clinch the NFC North, giving them the conference’s No. 1 seed and home-field advantage through the NFC postseason.
An unlikely tie with the Vikings would give the Lions the No. 1 seed thanks to Monday night’s win over the San Francisco 49ers.
With the loss in Week 18, the Lions will lose their No. 5 seed and will face the Los Angeles Rams on the road in Game 1.
Philadelphia Eagles: The NFC East champions are locked in as the conference’s No. 2 seed. They defeated the New York Giants 20-13 on Sunday without incident. Even Saquon Barkley was taking it easy, not challenging Eric Dickerson’s single-season rushing record.
During Wild Card weekend, the Eagles will host the No. 7 seed Green Bay Packers.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Won the NFC South with a 27-19 victory over the New Orleans Saints.
The Buccaneers were also promoted to the third seed after the Los Angeles Rams lost to the visiting Seattle Seahawks.
As the third-seeded team in the NFC, the Bucks will face the Washington Commanders in the opening round of the playoffs.
Los Angeles Rams: As the NFC West champions, LA heads into Sunday’s game against the Seattle Seahawks with a chance to clinch the No. 3 seed with a win. They didn’t get it and lost to the Seahawks. With this loss and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ win over the New Orleans Saints, the Rams moved into the fourth seed.
The Rams will face the Minnesota Vikings or Detroit Lions in the first round of the playoffs.
Minnesota Vikings: NFL schedule makers couldn’t have dreamed of anything better. A Vikings victory over the host Detroit Lions in Sunday night’s final regular-season game would give Minnesota the North title, the No. 1 seed in the NFC, and home-field advantage for all of the conference’s postseason play. It turns out.
A loss or tie at Motown would lock the Vikings into the No. 5 wild-card seed, and they would face the Los Angeles Rams in the first round.
Washington Commanders: Thanks to Sunday’s win over the Dallas Cowboys, they will enter the postseason as the No. 6 seed in the NFC.
As the No. 6 seed, the Commanders will face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Wild Card weekend.
Green Bay Packers: The Packers’ loss to the rival Chicago Bears and the Washington Commanders’ road win over the Dallas Cowboys confirmed Green Bay as the final wild card team in the NFC playoffs.
As the No. 7 seed, the Packers will play the Philadelphia Eagles on the road in the first round.
Atlanta Falcons: Tampa Bay’s win against New Orleans eliminated them from postseason contention. They lost to the Carolina Panthers 44-38 in overtime.
playoff matchup
Here’s what the playoff matchups will look like through the second game period on January 5th. A brave team made it to the playoffs. Teams marked with an asterisk have not yet played in Week 18.
NFC
1. Detroit Lions (14-2)*
2. Philadelphia Eagles (14-3) vs. 7. Green Bay Packers (11-6)
3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10-7) vs. 6. Washington Commanders (12-5)
4. Los Angeles Rams (10-7) vs. 5. Minnesota Vikings (14-2)*
A.F.C.
1. Kansas City Chiefs (15-2)
2. Buffalo Bills (13-4) vs. 7. Denver Broncos (10-7)
3. Baltimore Ravens (12-5) vs. 6. Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7)
4. Houston Texans (10-7) vs. 5. Los Angeles Chargers (11-6)
