University of Kwazulu-Natal

Nfl Playoff Picture 2025 Final Standings Seeding Clinching Outlook

Bonisiwe Shabane
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nfl playoff picture 2025 final standings seeding clinching outlook

2025 NFL Playoffs Complete • Final Standings 🏈 AFC & NFC Playoffs Complete • Wild Card Round begins next week! 14 teams make the NFL playoffs each season – 7 from the AFC and 7 from the NFC. Each conference’s playoff bracket includes four division winners (seeded 1-4) and three wild card teams (seeded 5-7). The top seed in each conference earns a first-round bye. Playoff seeding is determined by win-loss record, with tiebreakers applied when necessary.

The four division winners are seeded 1-4 based on their records, regardless of wild card team records. Seeds 5-7 go to the three non-division winners with the best records. Tiebreakers include head-to-head results, division record, common games, conference record, and strength of victory. “In The Hunt” refers to the seven teams in each conference that currently hold playoff positions. If the regular season ended today, these teams would qualify for the postseason. However, with games remaining, these positions can change weekly based on game results and tiebreakers.

Boy oh boy, have the 2025 NFL playoffs been interesting. For starters, the Seahawks are in charge of the No. 1 seed in the NFC, despite failing to make the playoffs since 2022. And in the AFC, the Broncos have that honor thanks to second-year QB Bo Nix, who last season helped the team snag its first postseason berth in almost ten years. Even crazier, missing from the field are the Patrick Mahomes-led Chiefs, who crashed and burned this season despite three consecutive Super Bowl appearances, as well as Lamar Jackson and Baltimore, who are ... going through a lot right now.

And better yet, four of this year's six wild-card games were decided by one score, making for quite the thrilling viewing experience over the last three days. Seriously, this first round had everything: fourth-quarter lead changes, spoiled bets, surprising upsets ... heck, we even got a saucy postgame handshake between one Ben Johnson and Packers coach Matt LaFleur. In short: it's been a blast to watch it go down. And the madness will only continue in the divisional round, all the info for which has been outlined below. Here's a look at how the seeding shook out for each conference, plus the final records for each team:

The NFL Playoff field was nearly set heading into the final Sunday of the regular season. Now we know every matchup that will start the road to Super Bowl LX. The Seattle Seahawks clinched the NFC's No. 1 seed with a win over the San Francisco 49ers on Saturday. The Panthers took the final spot in the NFC thanks to some help from the Atlanta Falcons, they clinched the NFC South. The Denver Broncos were able to beat a Los Angeles Chargers team that elected to rest key starters to grab the top seed in the AFC.

The loss moved the Chargers down the AFC wild-card race, but allowed them to rest their starters ahead of the playoffs. The Steelers used .css-8b3r8y{margin:0;font:inherit;font-style:italic;}Sunday Night Football to cash the final ticket to the dance in a wild finish to close out the year. Here's a look at the final playoff picture of the 2025-26 season. .css-1582m2i{margin:0;font:inherit;font-weight:700;}Division Leaders Welcome to The Athletic’s 2025 NFL Playoff Picture Simulator, where you’ll find everything you need to know about the NFL standings. From the No.

1 seed in each conference to the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL draft, you can explore all the ways your favorite team’s season could end. Below, you’ll find detailed estimates for all 32 NFL teams. All these estimates are powered by Austin Mock’s NFL Projection Model. You can read more about this tool and how it works right here, and send in your questions to AskAustin@theathletic.com. The tables below represent a view of the final regular season standings.

About the simulator: We estimate odds by randomly simulating the remainder of the season thousands of times and counting how often each team makes the playoffs, gets the No. 1 seed, the No. 1 draft pick and so on. We estimate each team’s probability of winning each remaining game using a statistical forecast that incorporates a host of data, including team records, roster changes, weather, game location and more advanced measures like expected... By Ryan Best, David Haye, Elliot Jordan, Junghye Kim, Austin Mock, Matt Myers, Thomas Oide, Laura Pelton, Yuriko Schumacher and Oliver Viehweger We have the 2025-26 NFL Playoff picture, current standings, and projected seeds for you.

Updated December 31, 2025. With Week 17 wrapped up, the 2025-26 NFL playoff field is nearly set—12 teams have clinched spots, but two berths remain open (one in each conference), both No. 1 seeds are up for grabs, and several division titles hang in the balance. Week 18 delivers massive drama, including winner-take-all games for divisions and playoff lives. Here’s the latest breakdown: current standings, key clinching scenarios, projected bracket, and links to our printables for your pools and brackets. Below is the updated playoff picture as of December 29, 2025 (pre-Monday Night Football).

Check the official NFL Playoff Picture for real-time updates. Download our free printable 2026 NFL playoff bracket and the NFL Week 18 pick-em sheet to follow the action this week. Week 17 wrapped up most of the AFC picture, with the New England Patriots clinching the AFC East (ending the Bills’ long reign), the Denver Broncos locking up the AFC West, and the Jacksonville... The AFC North remains undecided—the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens will decide the division title in Week 18 (Steelers host Ravens). The Colts’ loss to the Jaguars eliminated them. 12 teams have clinched playoff spots overall, with only the AFC North spot pending.

The Monday Night Football game (Rams at Falcons) has no AFC impact. Updated December 29, 2025: Week 17 solidified the NFC, with the Philadelphia Eagles clinching the East, Chicago Bears the North, and Seattle Seahawks holding the No. 1 overall seed. The NFC South is set for a winner-take-all Week 18 matchup (Panthers at Buccaneers). The 49ers clinched a berth with a strong finish. Here are the projected playoff bracket seeds (most likely scenario) for you.

Stay tuned, and we’ll get you an updated printable NFL Playoff bracket as we get a clearer picture of who’s going where. x Team has clinched a playoff berth. y Team has clinched their division title. z Team has clinched a first-round bye and home-field advantage. e Team has been eliminated from playoff contention. k Team has been knocked out of division title contention.

Any 2026 first round picks that were traded prior to the end of the 2025 season are reflected in the Explanation column. Any trades that happen after the conclusion of the season will not be reflected here since this is the 2025 season summary. The following teams are still active in the playoffs. Teams in the playoffs are added to the bottom of the draft order upon playoff exit. The teams that exit in the same round will have any necessary draft tiebreakers applied among them. The table below is only for reference for the relative order of these teams should they exit the playoffs in the same round.

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The playoff field for the 2025 NFL season is set, the wild and crazy 272nd and final game of the regular season between the Ravens and Steelers determining the field's final entry − Pittsburgh,... One other division was determined Sunday − a day after the NFC South-winning Panthers lost in Tampa ... before the Falcons backed them onto the throne. Seeding in both conferences was also finalized Sunday, including the Broncos wrapping up the top spot in the AFC. Here's where things stand with the regular season now complete: yz − 1.

Denver Broncos (14-3), AFC West champions: Sunday's win over the Chargers, who rested a lot of key players, gave the Broncos home-field advantage and a first-round bye in a season which brought Denver's first... The common-games tiebreaker gives the Broncos the No. 1 seed instead of New England. Remaining schedule: Bye, TBD y − 2. New England Patriots (14-3), AFC East champions: They have their first division title since 2019 even if they couldn't quite get up to the conference's top spot, as Tom Brady and Co.

so frequently did. Their Week 1 loss to the Raiders cost them in the tiebreaker department. Remaining schedule: vs. Chargers, Jan. 11 (8 p.m. ET)

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