The 2022 NFL season is down to the final four weeks.
Although the playoff picture for the AFC and NFC won’t be finalized until Week 18, it’s time to keep looking at the updated standings and what teams would be in the playoffs if the season ended after Week 14.
Here’s a breakdown of the NFL’s latest playoff field and seedings, also looking at the contenders on the brink of joining the potential postseason party:
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NFL standings after Week 14
AFC playoff picture
1. Buffalo Bills (10-3), first place, AFC East. The Bills opened up a full two-game lead on the Dolphins by beating the Jets on Sunday. They also kept full control of this seed that comes home-field advantage and the lone bye in the playoffs a few weeks ahead of a big matchup with the Bengals in Week 17. They can get closer to taking care of the division hosting the Dolphins in Week 15.
2. Kansas City Chiefs (10-3), first place, AFC West. The Chiefs fell here after losing to the Bengals in Week 13. They lost to the Bills but beat the Titans. They are in danger of dropping to the No. 3 seed if the Bengals should stay hot and win the AFC North over the Ravens. They need some help against the Bills and/or Bengals to finish with the top seed now. After holding off the Broncos in Week 14, they need to wait to clinch another division title after the Chargers won on Sunday night.
3. Baltimore Ravens (9-4), first place, AFC North. The Ravens won critical games over the Broncos and Steelers to stay ahead of the surging Bengals in the division and also gained two games on the Titans in the process. They’re not positioned to jump to No. 1 after losing to the Bills but finishing strong with a backup QB situation for a while and a dominant defense could allow them to jump the Chiefs as they’re holding off the Bengals.
4. Tennessee Titans (7-6), first place, AFC South. The Titans are still close to winning their weak division but that’s on delay again after they lost to the Jaguars home on Sunday following a loss at the Eagles in Week 13. They are likely locked into this seed, now two games behind whoever ends up winning the North, the Ravens or the Bengals.
5. Cincinnati Bengals (9-4), second place, AFC North. The Bengals’ huge wins over the Chiefs, Titans and Browns give them control of the top seed because they host the Bills in Week 17. They first need to take care of the division again, which may require beating the Ravens at home in Week 18. The Bengals have tricky road games in between against the Buccaneers and Patriots.
6. Miami Dolphins (8-5), second place, AFC East. The Dolphins lost another game on Sunday night to the Chargers after falling to the 49ers in Week 13 to stay in the same spot behind the winning Bengals and losing Jets. They are still looking good for a playoff berth but it will get more interesting should the Patriots also win to get to 7-6 on Monday night.
7. New England Patriots (7-6), third place, AFC East. The Patriots are back in playoff position with the final wild-card spot because they have a superior conference record vs. the Chargers and Jets. They also swept the Jets earlier in the season, so the Week 14 win over the Cardinals also got them out of the division cellar.
Who’s in the hunt?
8. Los Angeles Chargers (7-6), second place, AFC West
9. New York Jets (7-6), last place, AFC East
The Chargers were jumped by the Patriots on Monday night but still are ahead of the Jets by a conference-record tiebreaker. Anything can happen between these teams, the Dolphins and the Patriots in the final month.
Who’s set to be out?
10. Jacksonville Jaguars (5-8), second place, AFC South
11. Las Vegas Raiders (5-8) third place, AFC West
12. Cleveland Browns (5-8), third place, AFC North
13. Pittsburgh Steelers (5-8), last place, AFC North
14. Indianapolis Colts (4-8-1), third place, AFC South
15. Denver Broncos (3-10), last place, AFC West
16. Houston Texans (1-11-1), last place, AFC South
The Jaguars, by beating the Titans, moved within two games of first place in the South, but that’s still hard to make up with only four games left. The Raiders blew a big chance vs. the Rams on Thursday. The Browns and Steelers fell in tough division games.
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NFC playoff picture
1. Philadelphia Eagles (12-1), first place, NFC East. The Eagles have a two-game lead on the Cowboys after winning the first meeting in Philadelphia so they still have work to do to take the division title back, which started with beating the Giants on the road on Sunday. It needs to finish with sweeping the Cowboys in Dallas in Week 16. The Eagles clinched a playoff berth with a win in Week 14 and are looking great for home-field advantage and lone by with a two-game and tiebreaker lead on the Vikings.
2. Minnesota Vikings (10-3), first place, NFC North. The Vikings failed to clinch the division title by losing to the second-place Lions in Detroit on Sunday. They are likely locked into this seed, having lost to the Eagles and Cowboys and up 1.5 games on the 49ers. Getting up to No. 1 will require a lot more help now and sliding is unlikely given their favorable closing schedule.
3. San Francisco 49ers (9-4), first place, NFC West. The 49ers are up two games and a head-to-head tiebreaker on the Seahawks with Brock Purdy starting at quarterback for the rest of the regular season. They stayed red-hot and won their sixth consecutive game on Sunday by routing the Buccaneers. They can clinch the division title with a season sweep at Seattle on Thursday night in Week 15.
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-7), first place, NFC South. The Buccaneers fell back below .500 by getting destroyed by the 49ers in San Francisco on Sunday, despite the Tom Brady homecoming narrative. They also saw their division lead shrink to one game over the Panthers, to whom they lost in Carolina, and also the Falcons, whom they beat in Tampa Bay. The Bucs should still win the division, but now it might come down to either Week 17 vs. the Panthers or Week 18 at the Falcons. It doesn’t help that tough games vs. the Bengals and Cardinals come next.
5. Dallas Cowboys (10-3), second place, NFC East. The Cowboys are still within reach of the Eagles, as their Week 6 loss at Philadelphia is their only defeat in division play. After rallying to beat the Texans on Sunday, f they can make up one more game on the Eagles before or after their Week 16 rematch in Dallas, they would win the East based on having the better division record if both teams finish with the same overall record and a season split.
6. Washington Commanders (7-5-1), third place, NFC East. The Commanders jumped back into playoff position with the Giants losing to the Eagles because they hold a tiebreaker because of a superior division record, thanks to their big upset road win over the Eagles. The Commanders need to beat the Giants at home after the bye in Week 15 to stay here.
7. New York Giants (7-5-1), last place, NFC East. The Giants jumped back here after the Seahawks, to whom they lost, fell to the Panthers, whom the Giants beat. The Giants did also lost at home to the Lions behind them. They lose the tiebreaker to the Commanders, whom they tied in Week 13, because of an inferior conference record for now, so they need to beat that team in the Week 15 rematch in Washington.
Who’s in the hunt?
8. Seattle Seahawks (7-6), second place, NFC West
9. Detroit Lions (6-7), second place, NFC North
11. Carolina Panthers (5-8), second place, NFC South
12. Atlanta Falcons (5-8), third place, NFC South
The Seahawks were looking good at No. 6 ahead of two NFC East teams but then got upset by the upstart Panthers. The Lions keep making it interesting with a late push and have an outside shot at catching the Vikings, whom they beat at home in Week 13. The Panthers jumped the idle Falcons and are only one game behind the Buccaneers while holding the head-to-head tiebreaker for now.
Who’s set to be out?
10. Green Bay Packers (5-8), third place, NFC North
13. Arizona Cardinals (4-9), third place, NFC West
14. New Orleans Saints (4-9), last place, NFC South
15. Los Angeles Rams (4-9), last place, NFC West
16. Chicago Bears (3-10), last place, NFC North
The Packers get a bye, too, in Week 14, after which they will try to run the table and hope for the best at 9-8, but it will likely take 10 wins to get into the NFC playoffs as a wild card. The Panthers and Saints have no margin for error in trying to catch the Buccaneers now. The Rams’ upset of the Raiders kept them from matching the Bears’ conference-worst mark.
