While most of the playoff seeds are locked up going into week 18, there are still 3 spots up for grabs and a lot of competitors left. The most notable spot left is the 7 seed in the AFC, where the Chargers and Raiders will battle it out for a chance to get into the playoffs. For the rest of the teams that are in, who is the best?
On the Outside Looking In
18. New Orleans Saints
The Saints put themselves in a position to sneak into the playoffs this past weekend by defeating the Carolina Panthers. The defense, especially Cameron Jordan, shined when the team desperately needed them to by making Sam Darnold’s afternoon a living hell, sacking him a total of 7 times. The offense on the other hand struggled to find the end zone all day, kicking 4 field goals until Alvin Kamara finally scored a touchdown for the first time in what seemed like multiple games. If the Saints want to have a shot at the final spot in the AFC, however, Taysom Hill is going to have to score touchdowns if they are going to beat the Falcons.
17. Baltimore Ravens
The Ravens must have forgotten how to close games out this season, as this past game against the Rams was another example of it. With time expiring and the Ravens playing so well for 59 minutes, they could not keep Odell Beckham Jr. from scoring, handing the Ravens their 5th straight loss and just out of reach of the playoffs. For the Ravens to make it to the postseason, they are going to have to re-discover their early season magic against their long-hated rival, the Pittsburgh Steelers, and root for the Jaguars to beat the Colts. It’s not completely out of the realm of possibilities, but it sure is looking bleak in Baltimore.
On what could have been Big Ben’s final home game of the season, it almost seemed poetic that he would get a win against the Browns, a team that he has tormented for years on end. Even though Roethlisberger struggled (24/43 for a measly 123 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT), both Najee Harris and TJ Watt played their hearts out to help the Steelers stay in the playoff chase. The former rushed for an astounding 188 yards (including the go-ahead TD late in the 4th), while the latter sacked Baker Mayfield 4 times to put himself 1 back of the record set by Michael Strahan in 2001. These two are going to have to shine one more time, as the Steelers need a win against the Ravens and the Jaguars to beat the Colts if they want to see the playoffs.
15. Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders put themselves in a win-and-you’re-in scenario by beating the Colts this past Sunday. After so much had gone against them, including losing a touchdown to replay and losing the turnover battle, Derek Carr marched the Raiders offense down the field so Daniel Carlson could kick the game winning field goal from 33 yards away. It is their 3rd straight win for their rollercoaster season, where they started off strong, struggled midseason, and now seemed to have composed themselves again. Las Vegas has the simplest scenario out of the rest of the teams on the outside looking in, but it may have the toughest challenge to get there. For the Raiders to make the playoffs, they are going to have to beat the Chargers.
Currently in the Playoffs
14. San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers handled business against the lowly Texans. What did stand out from this game was that it was Trey Lance’s second career start and the played well with the playoffs at stake. Lance was able to move the ball at will and help his team score on most of their drives in the second half after struggling in the first half. With this win, this team has put themselves in control of their own destiny when it comes to the playoff race. To make it in, they have to defeat the Rams, who are playing for division crown. If they can’t do that, they have to hope that the Falcons beat the Saints. Otherwise, San Francisco will have head start on the offseason.
With lead back Miles Sanders out, Jalen Hurts did a little bit of everything in Philly’s 201-6 win over the Washington Football Team. Hurts threw for 214 yards and rushed for 44 more, while Boston Scott chimed in with 47 yards and both of the Eagles’ touchdowns. With this crucial win over their division rival, the Eagles have punched their ticket to the playoffs and should look at resting Hurts to let his ankle heal. Philly is going to need to have Hurts healthy and ready to go for their presumptive showdown with the Los Angeles Rams for Wild Card Weekend in 2 weeks.
12. Los Angeles Chargers
Justin Herbert may not have played his best football in this game, but it was more than enough to lead the Chargers over the Broncos and keeping them in control of their own destiny. Herbert threw for 2 touchdowns, Austin Ekeler ran one in, and the Chargers special teams took one to the house for an all-around beat down of the Broncos. For the Chargers to finally make it back to the playoffs, all they have to do is play their best game this upcoming Sunday against a Raiders team that is in the exact same position. This showdown should be an amazing game and should be the Sunday night game, if it isn’t already.
11. Indianapolis Colts
While it may seem that the Colts were once locks to make the playoffs, that scenario is no more after last week’s loss to the Las Vegas Raiders. Even when they won the turnover battle and scored on a wild play, the Colts could not put the game away. Carson Wentz came back off the COVID reserve list, but struggled to move the ball throughout the game. Here is where it gets dicey for Indy. They play the Jaguars on Sunday, which may seem like a walk through the park. However, they have not won in Jacksonville since 2014 and desperately need to break that streak to clinch a playoff berth. If they don’t win, there is a serious chance the Colts don’t make it to the postseason, depending on which of the outside teams win their respective games.
10. New England Patriots
If we are going to be completely honest with each other, what the Patriots did to the Jaguars in Foxboro should have been borderline illegal. Sure, everyone expected New England to win this game against the worst team in the league, but the way the Patriots beat them was simply brutal. Mac Jones threw for 3 touchdowns, Rhamondre Stevenson found the end zone twice on the ground, and Damien Harris scored two more rushing touchdowns just for good measure. With the division crown still up for grabs, New England would surely like to repeat this performance in their final regular season game against the Miami Dolphins.
9. Buffalo Bills
The Bills have punched their ticket into the playoffs after beating the Falcons 29-15. Even though Buffalo can feel good about the win, what should be cause for concern is the fact that Josh Allen struggled against the Falcons defense, which isn’t much to write home about. With that being said, it was good to see Devin Singletary and the rushing attack come alive again to the tune of just under 150 yards on the ground for the running backs and another 80+ on the ground from Allen. If the Bills can play turnover free football and keep running the ball effectively, this team should have no problem taking down the New York Jets to win the AFC East.
8. Arizona Cardinals
Arizona may have just gotten a quick preview of their wild card matchup when they took on the Dallas Cowboys this past week. Even though Kyler Murray was without his top receiver, he still managed to throw a pair of touchdown passes to give the Cardinals the edge over the Cowboys, 25-22. This puts Murray at an impressive 8-0 when playing in AT&T Stadium, including games that he played in high school and college. There’s not much Arizona can do in terms of seeding this final week of the season, so it may be in their best interest to rest the starters against the Seahawks to prepare for a rematch with Dallas.
7. Cincinnati Bengals
Joe Burrow had another mind-boggling performance this past week, this time against the #1 seeded Kansas City Chiefs. Against a Chiefs defense that has come into their own the past few weeks, Burrow completed just over 75% of his passes for an eye-popping 446 yards and 4 touchdowns, with just over half of those yards coming from standout rookie receiver Ja’Marr Chase. Not many QB’s can say they have gone toe to toe with Patrick Mahomes and won, but Burrow did it with poise and swagger, even though he was suffering from what looked like a knee injury the whole second half. Now that the Bengals have won the AFC North, it would be in the best interest of the team to rest Burrow and some other starters and focus on the playoffs.
6. Dallas Cowboys
If this game was any indication, the Cowboys may be in trouble when it comes to Wild Card Weekend. The Cowboys went up against their potential first round opponent, the Arizona Cardinals, and could not get the win at home. The game ended on a questionable call that went against the Cowboys, but had Mike McCarthy not mismanaged his timeouts, they would have been able to challenge the call and win the game. Combine timeout mismanagement and a subpar rushing attack this game and things were not looking good for the Cowboys. Since they already clinched the division and really can’t do much about their seeding, it would be wise to rest the starters to get ready for a potential rematch with Arizona.
5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The stat sheet may say that Brady had an amazing game (34/50 for 410 yards and 3 TDs, including the game winner), but for anyone that watched the Bucs play the New York Jets, Brady was having issues against the Jets defense. This had all the makings of a trap game for Tampa Bay, and for 59 minutes it looked like the Bucs would fall in that trap. However, Brady managed to pull off a miracle and get the win. With that win comes controversy over Antonio Brown’s meltdown mid-game, which led to him getting released. Tampa is going to have get very creative on offense come playoff time, as they are now missing 3 of their top weapons.
4. Tennessee Titans
The Titans handled their business against the Miami Dolphins, winning the game handily 34-3. With this win, the Titans have claimed the AFC South crown for the second time in as many seasons and have jumped the Chiefs to take the top seed in the AFC. This does nothing but work in their favor, considering that a lot of their players are still banged up and injured and could use the bye week. In addition to that, Derrick Henry was taken off IR this week, which makes Tennessee that much more of a threat in the playoffs. If they can win their game against the lowly Texans this upcoming Sunday, Tennessee may be in a prime position to cause havoc in the AFC playoffs.
3. Los Angeles Rams
Despite the three interceptions from Matthew Stafford, the Rams were able to beat a shorthanded Ravens team that was desperate for a win. With just under a minute left on the clock, Stafford threw an absolute gem to Odell Beckham Jr for the go-ahead touchdown. With the win, the Rams are on the verge of winning the NFC West and guaranteeing themselves at least one home game in the playoffs. Despite the fact that they will not be able to fight for the 1 seed, the division crown is more than enough reason to play their hardest against the 49ers. If they do win that game and the rest of the seeds remain the way they are, they will have a showdown with the Eagles on Super Wild Card Weekend.
2. Kansas City Chiefs
Despite Patrick Mahomes and the offense putting up 31 points, Kansas City’s defense got torched for 34 points and the Chiefs lost their game against the Bengals. Mahomes had a solid game (26/35 for 259 and 2 touchdowns) and Damien Williams rushed for 88 yards and 2 more scores, but a questionable decision to play man coverage on star rookie receiver Ja’Marr Chase hurt the Chiefs immensely. With this loss, Kansas City falls out of the top seed in the AFC to the 2 seed. If the Chiefs want a chance to re-gain home field advantage throughout the playoffs, not only are they going to have to win their game against the Broncos, but they also need the Titans to lose their game against the Texans. If the Titans don’t lose, the Chiefs will likely be preparing for a first round matchup with the Colts.
The Packers yet again hold the top spot in the rankings after defeating the Vikings 37-10 and clinching the #1 seed in the NFC. A.J. Dillon had himself a game and ran for 63 yards and 2 touchdowns, while Aaron Rodgers had a relatively quiet game by his standards (29/38 for 288 yards and 2 touchdowns). Now that the Packers have locked up the 1 seed, the Packers have earned a week of rest, and the starters have earned themselves 2 weeks of rest. It’s hard to not see the Packers as the favorites to make the Super Bowl out of the NFC.