Every week for the duration of the 2025 regular season, USA TODAY Sports will provide timely updates to the NFL’s ever-evolving playoff picture − typically starting Sunday afternoon and then moving forward for the remainder of the week (through Monday’s and Thursday’s games or Saturday’s, if applicable. And, when the holidays roll around, we’ll be watching then, too).
What just happened? What does it mean? What are the pertinent factors (and, perhaps, tiebreakers) prominently in play as each conference’s seven-team bracket begins to crystallize? All will be explained and analyzed up to the point when the postseason field is finalized on Sunday, Jan. 4.
Here’s where things stand with Week 15 now underway:
NFC playoff picture
1. Los Angeles Rams (10-3), NFC West leaders: They’ve regained the inside track for home-field advantage and a first-round bye by demolishing the Cardinals and benefiting from Chicago’s loss to Green Bay in Week 14. The Rams’ Week 11 defeat of Seattle currently remains pivotal. Beat Detroit on Sunday, and a playoff spot is secured. Remaining schedule: vs. Lions, at Seahawks, at Falcons, vs. Cardinals
2. Green Bay Packers (9-3-1), NFC North leaders: They’re back on top of the division and just a half-game off the conference pace. But the Pack would need to beat Denver and for the Rams and Seahawks to lose in order to rise to the top spot Sunday. Remaining schedule: at Broncos, at Bears, vs. Ravens, at Vikings
3. Philadelphia Eagles (8-5), NFC East leaders: Three losses in a row not only mean a lot more scrutiny but − beware − a team that could still fall into the Cowboys’ clutches in the division if it’s not careful … though Vegas should be a get-right game. Remaining schedule: vs. Raiders, at Commanders, at Bills, vs. Commanders
4. Carolina Panthers (7-6), NFC South leaders: Coming out of their bye week, the Panthers pulled even atop the division over the weekend after the Bucs lost to New Orleans and then took outright possession Thursday night with Tampa Bay’s collapse to Atlanta. But Carolina and the Buccaneers will decide this on the field with two meetings between Weeks 16 and 18. Remaining schedule: at Saints, vs. Buccaneers, vs. Seahawks, at Buccaneers
5. Seattle Seahawks (10-3), wild card No. 1: Sunday’s rout of Atlanta moved them atop the conference … for a few hours. But the Rams’ win at Arizona pushed Seattle back to the wild-card echelon. All three of the ‘Hawks’ losses are against NFC opponents, including two in the division − defeats that don’t serve them well in tiebreaker scenarios. Remaining schedule: vs. Colts, vs. Rams, at Panthers, at 49ers
6. San Francisco 49ers (9-4), wild card No. 2: They’re in a precarious spot given their pursuers, yet are just behind the Rams and Seahawks for the NFC West lead as well. A two-week spin through the AFC South shouldn’t hurt. Remaining schedule: vs. Titans, at Colts, vs. Bears, vs. Seahawks
7. Chicago Bears (9-4), wild card No. 3: How tightly packed is the NFC? One narrow Week 14 loss dropped the Bears from first place in the conference to seventh, just a game ahead of the division rival Lions. Remaining schedule: vs. Browns, vs. Packers, at 49ers, vs. Lions
8. Detroit Lions (8-5), in the hunt: They’re within a game of the NFC’s final wild-card spot and in striking range of first place in the NFC North … even as they sit outside the NFC bracket at present. Remaining schedule: at Rams, vs. Steelers, at Vikings, at Bears
9. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-7), in the hunt: A fifth loss in their past six games drops them to .500 and into ninth place in the conference. But beat Carolina twice, and the Bucs will still win the NFC South. A 5-5 mark in NFC games keeps Tampa Bay ahead of Dallas on the tiebreaker front. Remaining schedule: at Panthers, at Dolphins, vs. Panthers
10. Dallas Cowboys (6-6-1), in the hunt: Dallas’ best bet now is probably hoping that the Eagles continue to struggle and leave the NFC East in play, the Cowboys’ chances to qualify creeping up to 10% on Monday, per the NFL’s Next Gen Stats. Remaining schedule: vs. Vikings, vs. Chargers, at Commanders, at Giants
AFC playoff picture
1. Denver Broncos (11-2), AFC West leaders: They’ve won 10 in a row, matched New England’s victory total and overtook the Patriots for possession of the top seed last weekend by virtue of a conference record (7-2) that is a half-game better. But Denver has a much tougher finishing stretch. Remaining schedule: vs. Packers, vs. Jaguars, at Chiefs, vs. Chargers
2. New England Patriots (11-2), AFC East leaders: The first team in the league to reach 11 wins thanks to Week 13’s rollover of the Giants, the Pats remain in a very tight race with Denver, the teams’ airtight tiebreakers now in effect following the Patriots’ off week. New England will officially wrap up its division by sweeping the Bills on Sunday. Remaining schedule: vs. Bills, at Ravens, at Jets, vs. Dolphins
3. Jacksonville Jaguars (9-4), AFC South leaders: They claimed first place outright by smashing the depleted Colts on Sunday in Duval County. The Texans now loom as the bona fide threat. Remaining schedule: vs. Jets, at Broncos, vs. Colts, at Titans
4. Pittsburgh Steelers (7-6), AFC North leaders: They jumped up five spots, from out of the field back into the division lead by winning at Baltimore on Sunday. Remaining schedule: vs. Dolphins, at Lions, at Browns, vs. Ravens
5. Los Angeles Chargers (9-4), wild card No. 1: They’ve won five of six after surviving the Eagles on Monday night. A one-win advantage in AFC games (7-2) moved them ahead of Buffalo. Remaining schedule: at Chiefs, at Cowboys, vs. Texans, at Broncos
6. Buffalo Bills (9-4), wild card No. 2: Massive win over Cincinnati solidified their playoff standing heading into a notable showdown at Foxborough in Week 15 to face the AFC East-leading Pats. Remaining schedule: at Patriots, at Browns, vs. Eagles, vs. Jets
7. Houston Texans (8-5), wild card No. 3: They’ve won six of seven, including five in a row. Beating the Chiefs at Arrowhead moved Houston into a wild-card slot by virtue of its Week 13 defeat of Indianapolis. Remaining schedule: vs. Cardinals, vs. Raiders, at Chargers, vs. Colts
8. Indianapolis Colts (8-5), in the hunt: Now out of the projected playoff field and maybe soon in the hands of 44-year-old QB Philip Rivers, they face a steep climb back to relevance − their 7-1 start already starting to seem like ancient history. And the Colts’ schedule doesn’t let up the rest of the way. Remaining schedule: at Seahawks, vs. 49ers, vs. Jaguars, at Texans
9. Baltimore Ravens (6-7), in the hunt: Consecutive losses − and to AFC North foes (Bengals, Steelers) − has them on the outside looking in. At least a 4-5 record in AFC games places them ahead of K.C. and Miami in the three-way tiebreaker. Remaining schedule: at Bengals, vs. Patriots, at Packers, at Steelers
10. Kansas City Chiefs (6-7), in the hunt: Their chances to win a 10th straight AFC West title are officially null and void. And Sunday night’s loss to Houston means they’ll likely miss the postseason for the first time since 2014 − Andy Reid’s second year in K.C. And don’t forget they’ve lost to the Broncos, Chargers, Bills, Texans and Jags, who are all ahead of them. Lose to the Bolts on Sunday, and the Chiefs could be eliminated. Remaining schedule: vs. Chargers, at Titans, vs. Broncos, at Raiders
11. Miami Dolphins (6-7), in the hunt: They probably need to win the remainder of their games to even have a shot at postseason qualification but notched another one Sunday in New York. Remaining schedule: at Steelers, vs. Bengals, vs. Buccaneers, at Patriots
12. Cincinnati Bengals (4-9), in the hunt: They basically need to win the remainder of their games to even have a shot at postseason qualification … though they probably have a better one than Miami by virtue of living in this year’s surprisingly subpar AFC North. Remaining schedule: vs. Ravens, at Dolphins, vs. Cardinals, vs. Browns
NFL playoff-clinching scenarios for Week 15
Denver clinches a playoff berth with:
- Win OR
- Houston loss or tie + Indianapolis loss or tie (but not if both teams tie) OR
- There are also multiple scenarios that involve a Broncos tie combined with losses and/or ties by other teams
New England clinches AFC East title with:
Win
New England clinches playoff berth with:
- Houston loss or tie + Indianapolis loss or tie (but not if both teams tie) OR
- There are also multiple scenarios that involve a Patriots tie combined with losses and/or ties by other teams
Los Angeles Rams clinch a playoff berth with:
Win