NFL Playoff Bracket if the Postseason Started Today
We have to soak in every minute of football action we can. After 18 weeks, the NFL regular season is over, and most teams are left licking their wounds. However, the 14 teams left standing dial things up a notch, competing for glory and the chance to hoist the Lombardi Trophy.
Here’s what the playoff brackets would look like if the postseason started today.
NFC
| No. 1 – Philadelphia Eagles | First-Round Bye |
| No. 2 – Detroit Lions | No. 7 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| No. 3 – San Francisco 49ers | No. 6 – Dallas Cowboys |
| No. 4 – Atlanta Falcons | No. 5 – Seattle Seahawks |
The Philadelphia Eagles continue to fly above the rest in the NFC playoff picture. The reigning NFC Champions easily dispatched the Miami Dolphins in Week 7, leaving them as the only one-loss team on this side of the bracket. Moreover, the Eagles remain perfect against conference opponents, giving them another advantage regarding tiebreakers. If they can carry this momentum into the latter stages of the season, there will be no denying the Eagles an opening-round bye.
It was just a matter of time before the wind was taken out of the Detroit Lions’ sails. It’s been a while since they experienced this feeling, but the Baltimore Ravens trounced the Lions on Sunday. Still, that was only their second loss of the season, and it came against a non-conference opponent, meaning the Lions are clinging to the second seed in the NFC. If the playoffs started today, that would mean a Wild Card matchup against the surprising Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who fell to seventh after Week 7’s loss to the Atlanta Falcons.
Consequently, the Falcons were thrust into the NFC South lead, setting up a potential first-round clash against the Seattle Seahawks. Atlanta hasn’t hosted a playoff game since the 2016 postseason, and we all remember how that ended. The Seahawks have taken care of business early this season and have some winnable games on the horizon. They may need every win they can get before they head into a daunting part of their schedule.
Consecutive losses have dropped the San Francisco 49ers from the top of the NFC standings, putting them at an immediate disadvantage as we approach the season’s halfway point. The Niners were humbled on Monday Night Football, failing to generate any meaningful offense against a stout Minnesota defense. They could face a much stiffer challenge in the playoffs, needing to get past a Dallas Cowboys squad that ranks fifth in yards allowed and fourth in points allowed.
AFC
| No. 1 – Kansas City Chiefs | First-Round Bye |
| No. 2 – Miami Dolphins | No. 7 – Buffalo Bills |
| No. 3 – Baltimore Ravens | No. 6 – Cleveland Browns |
| No. 4 – Jacksonville Jaguars | No. 5 – Pittsburgh Steelers |
Led by the Kansas City Chiefs, the top four teams in the AFC continue to separate themselves from the pack. No one has an answer for the Chiefs offense, as they continue to rack up nearly 400 yards per game. The scariest part of the Chiefs metrics is that they’ve actually seen a decrease in scoring, with their points per game dropping from 29.2 to 25.4 this year. That makes them natural progression candidates as output catches up with production.
Try as they might, the Miami Dolphins couldn’t find a way of breaking down the Eagles’ defense on Sunday Night Football. As such, Miami fell to 5-2 on the season despite operating the top-ranked total offense in the league. If they want to disprove the notion that defense wins championships, they may have to get past a division foe in the playoffs. The suddenly disappointing Buffalo Bills occupy the seventh seed and are barely hanging onto their playoff aspirations. Three teams beneath them have a game-in-hand and are only one win shy of the Bills in the standings. Buffalo could be left on the outside looking in come January.
By virtue of the Bills’ loss, the Cleveland Browns improved to sixth in the AFC. Although it would be less glamorous than the previously seen potential playoff matchup, football enthusiasts could be treated to an AFC North grudge match in the Wild Card round. The division-leading Baltimore Ravens would host the Browns, who would be looking to advance to the Divisional Round for just the second time since 1994.
After years of perpetual disappointment, the Jacksonville Jaguars are finally reaping the rewards of building from within. The Jags have a comfortable lead in the AFC South, setting up a potential first-round meeting with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Nothing seems to be going right for the Steelers, but they continue to find ways to win games. That could make this contest nothing more than a formality, as Jacksonville would almost be assured of a free pass into the second round.
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